Coordinating Online Marketing to Maximize ROI
When it comes to online marketing tactics, several basic questions that need to be considered. First, what do Internet users feel about online advertising? Second, which tactics are working for others marketers? Third, what can marketers do to get a bigger bang for their online buck?
There is, of course, tons of information out there on these exact questions, so here's an interesting sampling of articles to get you started.
First, let's take a look at the your potential targets:
Posted by Universal Ad
There is, of course, tons of information out there on these exact questions, so here's an interesting sampling of articles to get you started.
First, let's take a look at the your potential targets:
- Searchers Prefer Organic Results - a iProspect/Jupiter/NPD survey (also covered by MediaPost) brings good news for retailers as a whole, but bad for those which do not rank highly in organic search results. It seems that most Internet users are now impatient with anything less than great results. Nearly 70% said they clicked a search result within the first page of
results, and 92% clicked a result within the first three pages of
search results. If they couldn't find what they wanted, nearly half of search engine users changed their search terms and/or search engines after reviewing just
the first page of search results. More than nine out of 10 respondents
did so if they did not find what they wanted in the first three pages
of search results.
- Who Pays Attention to Sponsored Links? - Almost 10% of respondents in a BIGresearch survey said they were influenced or greatly influenced by sponsored links when searching
for products and services on the Internet. This self-directed group skewed younger than average, had a slightly lower average income and were more likely to
be planning a major purchase and to be anticipating a life event in the
next six months such as getting married or having a baby.
- Analyzing Online Traffic - An EngineReady report (also covered in MediaPost) evaluated the quality of site visitors in terms of motivations, behaviors and buying characteristics. The results - dollar for dollar of
marketing investment, paid traffic returned a higher percentage than
organic listings did. Visitors
who arrived directly or via a bookmark had a higher overall value compared to visitors from other sources, while visitors coming from other domains and e-mails had the
second-highest value per visitor, as well as the second highest conversion rate and average order
value. In terms of search sources, prospects drawn from PPC
ads outperformed those from organic listings (41% higher value) and converted at a 20%
higher rate.
- Is Behavioral Targeting Bothersome? - 59% of US adult Internet users were uncomfortable with Web sites using information about their online activities to target them with ads or content, according to a Harris Interactive survey found that . Younger respondents were more accepting of behavioral targeting - among 18- to-31-year-olds surveyed, 49% were comfortable with the practice, as were 45% of 32- to-43-year-olds, compared to 34% and 31% for baby boomers and matures, respectively. After the participants were shown a series of potential privacy and security policies, the level of comfort rose among all age groups with 55% saying they were comfortable with the practice after being shown the policies.
- Organic Search, Behavioral Targeting Big Winners For ROI - The answer is obvious from the title, alongside SEO, and it is based on Marketing Sherpa's 5th Annual ad:Tech Year-End Survey. These are followed by paid search, e-mail, contextual ads and rich media, even though most marketers said they won't stop investing in those venues, despite the diminished returns.
- Better Bang, Better Bucks - According to an Internet Retailer/Vovici study (also covered in eMarketer), search marketing works for US online retailers better than other forms of marketing and advertising. More than 50% generate more than 25% of their sales from PPC campaigns and natural search, and for more than 25% it drives more than 50% of their sales. PPC works especially well, with nearly 50% saying they had increased their conversion rates over the past year - which average more than 5% for 64% of respondents (probably due to an increased focus on diversity and more targeted advertising campaigns.)
- More Narrowly Tailored Ad Networks Gain Favor - A Collective Media report (also covered by eMarketer) showed that nearly 60% of advertisers are using ad networks for both branding and direct marketing, with 75% planning to spend more in 2008. The increase is attributed to targeting--suggesting a shift toward more narrowly tailored networks. Inventory quality and site transparency are also increasingly important to advertisers. Still, 62% of those surveyed think there are too many ad networks, and almost 75% work with only one or two on an average media plan, due to lack of site transparency and control over ad position.
- SEO Tactics Linked to Specific Search Ranking Results - A study by Covario showed how SEO tactics influence specific changes in organic search rankings and thus click-through rates, conversions and ultimately sales. First, the big
three engines (Google, Yahoo and MSN) react very differently to SEO
techniques. For example, Google is twice as sensitive to technical
issues as MSN, while Yahoo and MSN were noticeably more sensitive (25%) to
content changes than Google.
- Can Organic Rankings Replace Paid Placement Rankings? - Getting top organic positions does have huge incremental value, especially if the page that ranks well contains a clear offer leading to a good conversion rate and site stickiness. However, the ability to achieve top organic placement above any universal search elements is increasingly in doubt, except perhaps for a brand search. These as well as other issues and a comprehensive test of various scenarios, lead the writer to the conclusion that pulling PPC ads after achieving high organic position may, in fact, be a very bad idea.
- Coordinating Organic, Paid Search Efforts - It's always tricky to decide how much resources should be invested in your search marketing efforts versus other online
activities and how to split this between organic and paid search activities. Neither paid nor organic search efforts come without risk or reward, and both of them offer distinct advantages. Bottom-line: you don't have to choose. Instead, paid and unpaid search should be made to work together in harmony to produce a well-rounded search presence.
- Targeting with Culture in Mind - Behavioral targeting has evolved from tracking consumers' online action to evaluating their mindsets and personality traits. As technology continues to help marketers understand the consumer, the next advancement in behavioral targeting methodology should incorporate culture into the targeting mix. These different ethnic groups provide marketers with opportunities to create more focused messaging. Since those who belong to ethnic groups operate within their own cultures, targeting can move beyond segmentation by ethnicities and actually tap into consumer preferences based upon cultural norms.
Posted by Universal Ad
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Choosing which media are right for your institution, your key audiences, and your marketing initiatives can be a difficult decision. We need to take test what brings a cost effective result.
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Looks like a promising business opportunity. Lots of helpful information.
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For organic results to replace paid search would be something only certain markets would want. For some, scalable PPC is important, for others it is only for branding. Depending on your online marketing goals, you will need to target different outcomes.
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