SEM Survey Highlights Six Opportunities for Advertisers – Dorothy Weaver-Acquirgy

Internet Retailer39s SEM Survey August 2011 gives us numerous clues as to how paid search programs can be expanded optimized and enhanced to produce more sales or leads revenues and profits We analyzed 6 of these stats and have specific recommendations based on our experience Read on to learn moreNumber of KeywordsThe IR survey revealed that over 33 of respondents had less than 500 keywords with 146 having less than 100 And almost 45 had less than 1000 keywordsAnalysis there aren39t many situations where you can39t develop bigger lists or don39t need such small keyword lists Even a company with just one product or service should be able to build out more keywords As we39ve written in our Long Tail of Search Green Paper keywords in the long tail usually have higher conversion rates lower click costs and are generally more profitable If you39re in the 45 group with less than 1000 keywords this is potentially an area for immediate enhancementAttribution of SalesOn a real positive note 41 of the respondents indicated that more than 50 of their sales are a result of SEM ampamp SEO On the other end 273 said that their online sales did not account for more than 20 of their total salesAnalysis while we39ve all seen the emergence of social media for our clients search is still king If you39re in the amplt 20 group have you recently analyzed every aspect of your search program to determine why this number is not higher Have you also analyzed the profitability of the other channels that contribute to your online sales to see which is greater We find that these kinds of exercises can often pay off in meaningful directionConversion RateThis was a real eyeopener The specific question was quotWhat percent of shoppers who come to your site through your paid search program make a purchasequot There is a real quothavehave notquot thing going on here 39 report their conversion rate is less than 2 while 20 report a 5 or better rate with the real good ones 43 converting at 10 or moreAnalysis there are numerous factors that contribute to conversion rate some that an advertiser can control and others that can39t be controlled Advertisers can increase conversions by looking at what we call quotthe search continuumquot which is every step of the process from keywords used keyword copy call to action offer landing page design and order path When was the last time you examined all of these links to determine if you have any weak links that are slowing down sales Maybe now is the time to do an audit of your search continuum to see what you uncoverConversion Rate Over TimeThe survey reported that 514 of advertisers said their SEM conversion rate increased over the past year while 168 said it decreased Like the last section an audit will most likely help you uncover ways to increase conversion rate in the year aheadOnline Marketing Budget Spent on Search414 of the advertisers indicated that less than 20 of their budget is spent on search including paid and organic Of course that means than 80 or more is being spent in other online venues Digging a little deeper in to the numbers 426 spend more than 50 of their online budget on searchAnalysis if you39re in the former group it would make sense to review all metrics for all online marketing tactics and determine if dollars are being correctly allocated Often time39s companies take dollars away from search in favor of other tactics which may be eroding sales and profitsConversion Rate by Search Engine23 of the respondents indicated that Google yields the highest conversion rate with 13 indicating BingAnalysis with the analytics tools out there today it is pretty easy to see the conversion rate by engine for each keyword or ad group We find that some keywordsad groups convert better on Google and others better on Bing The trick amp8211 and this is where to spend your time amp8211 is to determine the right mix of Google and Bing for all of your keywords and ad groups Unless you39ve maxed out your spend on both shifting dollars between the two engines based on very granular conversion rates makes a lot of senseConclusionOur analysts and managers spend a lot of time looking at trends and reviewing daily reports to find pockets of opportunity Whether your manage search inhouse or use an agency make sure that the analysis we39ve presented in this article is a staple of your SEM programGrab a PDF of this story at httpA49acquirgynetWith seven years of paid search marketing experience Dorothy utilizes her knowledge to evaluate current search accounts from a strategic perspective Throughout her tenure at acquirgy Dorothy was also responsible for overseeing day to day management of multimillion dollar search media budgets for almost every account at acquirgy She can be reached at dweaveracquirgycom or 6467861898Read all Dorothy39s MediaBizBloggers commentaries at Customer Acquisition IntelCheck us out on Facebook at MediaBizBloggerscomFollow our Twitter updates MediaBizBloggerThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaBizBloggerscom management or associated bloggers MediaBizBloggers is an open thought leadership platform and readers may share their comments and opinions in response to all commentaries

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