search marketing for the holidays: formic media seminar series

Formic Media Seminar Series:Search Marketing for the Holidays

Presented by:Formic Media, Inc.

www.formicmedia.com/seminars503-260-6700| kent@formicmedia.com

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Upcoming Seminars

November 10th – Social Media Fundamentals December 8th – Social Media Privacy Policy January 12th – WordPress 101

2010 Trends SEO PPC Shopping Feeds Web Development

Agenda

2010 Holiday Trends

2010 Yahoo Holiday Research

On average, consumers will spend $888 this year on gifts, and $1086 total this season

About 1 in 3 consumers will spend less money this year

Moms buy for more people (15.6), dads spend the most money ($1,152)

Most shoppers will plan and start shopping well before the holidays

2010 Yahoo Holiday Research

Immediate family & friends will be top recipients

Gift cards are popular among 3 out 5 of shoppers

Mobile shopping is growing: Product research, price comparison, and last

minute ideas

How will shoppers use the Internet?

In 2009, 65% of visitors to a retailer website came from search engines

Where did the other 35% come from?

How will shoppers use the Internet?

Search buzz really picks up week before Thanksgiving “Black Friday” and related search terms

Daily site traffic across all categories peaks right around Thanksgiving & Cyber Monday

It’s all about budgets and deals!

How will shoppers use the Internet?

How will shoppers use the Internet?

SEO

Most Effective Marketing Tactics

Top SEO Tactics

Keyword Research Title & Meta Tags Simple Category URLs Optimized Product Descriptions Internal Linking Structure Optimize Product Images Google Place Pages (for local brick & mortar stores)

SEO Tactics: Keyword Research

Identify both short & long tail keywords Short Tail = 1 word phrase

High level, Category pages Long Tail = 4+ word phrase

Product pages

Tools Google Keyword Tool Amazon Bestsellers WordTracker KeyWord Discovery

SEO Tactics: Title Tags

70 characters Incorporate keywords Be descriptive (on Product pages) Call to Action

Category Level

Product Level

SEO Tactics: Meta Tags

160 Characters Incorporate keywords Use a call to action & benefit messaging i.e. Sale pricing, reviews, free shipping, etc.

Category Level

Product Level

SEO Tactics: Simple Category URLs

Use keyword rich URLs at category level Avoid using session IDs

http://www.nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Product/Digital-SLR/25462/D3000.html

Good

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16830113222

Bad

SEO Tactics: Optimize Product Descriptions

Utilize keywords in product name Include product keywords within the description

SEO Tactics: Internal Linking Structure

Link to other products within your site Use optimized anchor text when linking

SEO Tactics: Optimize Product Images

Use keywords in image file name Alt text should be descriptive, incorporating keywords

Good

Bad

PPC

Overview: Holiday PPC Tactics

Effectiveness of Paid Search

Branding Targeted traffic Online sales Immediate results Real-time tracking Small investment

Holiday PPC Ad Text

Getting Started Review campaign history Pick top performing Ad

Text Research the Competition Use similar tactics Choose keywords Create Ad Text Schedule Your Ads Based on top sales days (Black

Friday, Cyber Monday, Christmas Day) Plan around buying habits longer research phase

before purchase

Keyword Selection

Review campaign history Pick top performing keywords

Purchase Cycle / Buying Process Target both broad and specific keywords

Broad = Increases reach & visibility Specific = Drives conversions & sales

Example Interest

“slr cameras” Research

“nikon slr cameras” Purchase

“nikon digital slr d3000”

Holiday PPC Ad Text

Creating Successful Ads Showcase holiday specials, pricing & promotions!

Use strong calls to action Simple & enticing

Include main keywords in headline/description Consider adding “gift” keywords to your mix

Holiday PPC Ad Text

Creating Successful Ads, Contd. Increase your budgets & bids

Test performance of ads in different positions

Test Ad Text to increase performance

Choose relevant landing pages

Holiday Ad 1 vs. Holiday Ad 2

Anatomy of a PPC Ad

Keyword use in Headline

Relevant Display/Vanity URL

Enticing offer/ad copy

Convenience elements

ROI positioning(testing

required)

Good vs. Bad PPC Ad Text

PPC Ad Text: Additional Tactics

Product Extensions

Ad Sitelinks

Landing Pages: Stats

Landing Pages: Stats

Holiday PPC Landing Pages

Creating Successful Landing Pages Align holiday Ad Text specials, pricing &

promotions! Use strong calls to action prominent buttons

Use time-sensitive pricing incentives

Align main keywords in headline/description Keep important text above the fold

Make content easy to scan

Holiday PPC Landing Pages

Creating Successful Landing Pages, Cont’d. Reduce & simplify minimize links/navigation that

could lose visitors Customize landing pages to campaigns, ad groups

& keywords Include links to relevant information for research

phase buyers Add relevant imagery holiday related A/B test

Anatomy of a PPC Landing Page

Or utilize area for product pairing /

suggestions

Align with Ad Text offers & keywords

Good vs. Bad PPC Landing Pages

Good vs. Bad PPC Landing Pages

Shopping Feeds

Shopping Portals

It’s not enough to just list products on your site, submit them to online shopping portals to increase visibility:

Google Product Search

Google Product Search

Optimizing Shopping Feeds Be sure to set up your feed properly:

Include all required product attributes

Use highest-quality original image available, preferably 300x300 pixels

Include tax & shipping information

Product URLs must link directly to website. No pop-ups, redirects, or sign-ups.

Optimizing Shopping Feeds Use the correct taxonomy and choose the most

specific category as possible

Link feed with other Google Products: AdWords ads, Google Place Page, Google Checkout

Update your feed frequently

Get reviews!

Web Design/Usability

Entice your users

Black Friday deals are a great example. Coremetrics Black Friday Stats for 2009:

The avg. online order last year was $170.19 Avg. amount of items purchased: 5.40 Bounce rate rose by 40% and time on site decreased by 5% Coupons and deals are a great way to do this

People want what they are looking for fast, give them clear funnels.

Entice your users

Conversion Funnels

A B

Results

VERSION A produced 59% more free trials sign-ups than VERSION B. This difference is mostly accredited to a reduction in competing objectives, a simplified eye path, and an intensified communication of the value.

Gift Certificates

Gift Certificates Online gift card sales increased more than twelve-fold (1129

percent) between Black Friday (November 27) and Christmas Eve. Nearly one in five purchasers (18 percent) opted to send online gift

cards at a later date They’re an efficient way to get people in your door to

spend more.

Gift Certificates

Update Internal Links on your homepage

Update your anchor text and site Navigation for more emphasis on Holiday items.

This will help impatient holiday shoppers find what they’re looking for quick.

Update Internal Links on your homepage

Shopping Cart Functionality

One page check out functionality is highly effective. Ask for minimal amounts of info, while still getting what you need.

Global Visibility(viewable on all pages is a plus) Offer the most popular payment options.

Shopping Cart Functionality

Shopping Cart Functionality

Shopping Cart Functionality

Shopping Cart Functionality

Shopping Cart Functionality

Questions?

Contact:John McPhee

www.formicmedia.com503-517-9059 x122| johnm@formicmedia.com