Digital Marketing: Search Engines

SEARCH ENGINES 

As defined by the BBC, Search Engines are special websites that have indexed billions of pages-and make it easy for you to find a website or page in an instant. 

Search differs in each continent - 

Europe = Google is the main search engine used

United States = Bing holds a large share of the market

 Even though search’s importance can be over estimated, it is still a huge portion of a companies overall spend. 

'45% of a company’s digital budget is allocated to search' 

Searching vs Navigating 

• There is a difference between searching and navigating, when using a search engine we are not searching for a destination but using it as a navigation tool. 
• Ranking has become an important factor in the use of search engines for businesses. 
• We usually only see the results displayed on the first page, due to the fact that search engines are becoming better at working out what we are looking for, this is generally displayed on the first page. 
• As revealed by jeffbullas.com the first ranking search result receives 42.25% of all click through traffic with the second position only receiving 11.94%. 
• The click through rate gets lower and lower as you move down the page and on to second or third pages. 
• These figures show that the results at the top of your search are believed by consumers to be trustworthy and contain the relevant information.  Search engines are definitely important for businesses. 

Users no longer ‘surf’ the web they search!

Search engines are learning and refining the results each time we search. 

Search patterns are evolving; the length of our search is getting longer. 

Users are asking more questions instead of just typing keywords. 

Globally Google outshine all of the other search engine options with 90% share in the market. This percentage is even higher in Ireland with 92%.  

Google release statistics each year revealing the top searched people, events, news stories, etc of the year. 

Allows users to see what was popular throughout the year.

                     Google - Year in Search 2014

                  (Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVwHCGAr_OE)



It's also interesting to see Googles top trending searches of the year (which can be found here) that has some interesting entries such as "How to shift" being Ireland's second highest ranking "How to" search result!   

Digital Marketing: Search Engine Marketing

SEARCH ENGINE MARKETING 

-Definition: "Search engine marketing (SEM) is a form of Internet marketing that involves the promotion of websites by increasing their visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs) through optimization and advertising. SEM may use search engine optimization (SEO), which adjusts or rewrites website content to achieve a higher ranking in search engine results pages, or use pay-per-click (PPC) listings (search engine advertising (SEA))".

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)+ Search Engine Advertising (pay-per-click)(SEA) = Search Engine Marketing (SEM)

SEO= Within the company’s website to score well on ranking

SEA= The campaign the company runs in order for their ads to be displayed

Search Engine Results Page (SERP): The top left hand side of the first page is more important and viewed most, the second page of results is rarely visited.

-ORGANIC LISTINGS (SEO)

Advantages:

·        - Low cost, no money gets paid to the search engine

·         - People are 80% more likely to click

·         - If high positions are achieved they last long into the future

                    -  It is perceived as a quality endorsement

Disadvantages:

·         - Long time required before results appear

·         - Difficult to get good positions and highly competitive phases

·         - There are no guarantees of success

·         - It’s not possible to fully control what appears

- PAID FOR LISTING (SEA) 

Advantages:

·         - The listing is guaranteed and instant

·         - Flexible, it allows for trial and error

·         - Search engine provides reporting (Google Analytics)

·         - It can be geo-targeted (target ads geographically)

Disadvantages:

·         - High costs, both initial and ongoing

·         - Users are 80% less likely to click

·         - Requires close management, very time-consuming

·         - Competitors with more money can outbid you

Digital Marketing:Search

SEARCH: HOW IT WORKS 


THE DIFFERENT STAGES OF SEARCH 

Search itself is a dynamic process best illustrated by the AIDA model. Users at Different stages will want different messages and you need to think about capturing the users at these different stages with a tailored message. This message may be tailored through the use of search terms.

AIDA

AIDA is an acronym used in marketing and advertising that describes a common list of events that may occur when a consumer engages with an advertisement.

It is a useful tool for ensuring that your copy, or other writing, grabs the attention of your defined target audience. 

The acronym stands for: 

•           Attention/ Awareness 
•          Interest
•           Desire 
•           Action    

      

     

LONGTAIL IN SEARCH 

A longtail keyword is on that has three or more search terms e.g. "black 10-speed beach cruiser". It is very specific and is generally more cost efficient as less people type in 3-4 keywords than just 1-2 keywords. There is usually less demand for 3 or 4 keywords so they can be inexpensive on a Cost Per Click model. In return the clicks are more likely to convert because of the specificity of the search terms used.


 

Search Is a Dynamic area!

We can not predict exactly what search terms a user might input when searching the web but we can use a series of tools that can help us to predict terms they are most likely to use in a given search.

According to Google 20 -25% of Google queries have never been searched before! However this figure is potentially the result of  spelling errors e.g. “dress for sael” instead of “dress for sale” or grammatical mistakes. This makes the field of search engine marketing particularly difficult for marketers to navigate!

Whats involved in Natural Search Listings?

Despite what you might believe search itself is a fairly simple process.
-We enter a search term and google which in turn searches its index and comes back with a result, it isn't live searching the web as it goes.

Web Spider – A web spider is a program that visits Web sites and reads their pages and other information in order to create entries for a search engine index. The major search engines on the Web all have such a program, which is also known as a "crawler" or a "bot." Search engine indexing collects, parses, and stores data to facilitate fast and accurate information retrieval. 
Crawlers visit frequently used sites regularly, you can check how frequently your web page has been visited by a crawler on your log page, changes you make will not be detected until the next time a crawler checks your page.

How Search Works 

Check out more of Matt on his blog, Matt Cutts : Gadgets, Google, and SEO!

PageRank is an algorithm used by Google Search  to rank websites in their search engine results.
 - PageRank works by counting the number and quality of links to a page to determine a rough estimate of how important the website is. The underlying assumption is that more important websites are likely to receive more links from other websites.

Search Engine Optimization

Best Practices in Planning and Managing SEO

“The most effective digital marketing technique, but also challenging to get right”

“Build it and they will come” principle doesn't apply. It’s crucial to optimise your site to boost and maintain search engine rankings in order to get a good ROI on online marketing spend.

“SEO is like an iceberg, mainly hidden but with massive impact.”

— Trond Lyngbo, Senior SEO Strategist and Author

Constant monitoring and adjustment of SEO strategies is required. Keywords, page titles and meta descriptions are very important. when it comes to generating inbound traffic

The primary focus is on:     

Optimising the page

-     this is done by using the HTML (standard mark up language used to create web pages) correctly.

-     i.e including a title tag <example>

-     alternating tags with images and links

-     correct formatting of headings and subheadings

-     Search engine places huge importance on the key phrases contained within

HTML

-    Meta-tag title is what is shown in browsers

-    made up of 160 characters

-    every page has it’s own title  which identifies it uniquely

-    Search engine places importance on key phrases contained within

-    CSS are Cascading Style Sheets that upload style sheets instead of each individual page

-    using it correctly

•   HTML tag (H1/H2/H3 etc.)

-    <h1> is heading which contains important keywords

-    <h2> for subheadings containing less prominent keywords

Links

-    Having no outbound links on your page is a huge mistake

crucial not to isolate yourself

-    using them correctly is also important

•   utilising descriptive link text

•   “click here for ____” doesn't work

•   indicate if it will open in a new window or if its a PDF, big image/file

•   don’t use the same title on all pages

•   also have unique descriptions on pages

Other things to look at:

1.     Update your mobile strategy

-    search behaviour and search results differ between devices

-    much more limited space on mobile

2.     Focus on fresh, relevant content

-    crucial to your search engine ranking

•   eg Twitter posts, new product launches, updated blogs

3.     Utilise paid and organic search

-    synergy of the two is crucial

4.     Have a solid social media plan

-    close analysis of trends/likes aids in developing optimised content and keywords

5.     Constantly test what works i.e AB testing

-    zero in on metrics and see what works and what doesn't

Important SEO Resources

                        - Google Webmaster guidelines

                        - SEO trends

                        - Seven sensational tips for eCommerce sites

                        - MattCutts.com

                        - searchenginewatch.com

Digital Marketing: Google Adwords

GOOGLE ADWORDS

Google Adwords is a system developed by Google to assist companies in marketing their website on the Google Search Engine. It uses placed text ads that appear when people search for phrases related to your offering and they appear as “sponsored links”.

How Adwords work:

• The company writes an ad detailing their offer. 

• They then choose the search terms or key words that will make their ad shown in the Google results. A daily budget is and the ad is then ready to go live.

•  When a consumer searches the company’s keywords, their ad can appear next to or above the search results.

•  The customer clicks on the ad and goes to their website.

    Ad Example:

Your Ad Copy

•          Make sure and include keywords
•          Choose an attractive ad which has a call to action
•         Include features, testimonials and a sense of urgency
•          Display URL
•          Ad needs to match to landing page

Google provides Google Adwords Keyword tools such as Google Trends and Freeware KeywordPad. 

Auction Model

Your ad rank depends on:

·         maximum Cost per Click (CPC)

·         quality score

Maximum CPC = This is a bid which you set to determine the maximum amount you are willing to pay for a click on your ad. A higher bid usually helps your ad to appear in a higher ad position on the Search Engine Results Page.

Quality Score = An estimate of the overall quality of your ads, keywords, and landing page. You are ranked on a scale from 1- 10. Higher quality ads generally lead to lower prices and better ad positions.  Your quality score depends on your expected click through rate, ad relevance and landing page.

How it works: