When you have ads, you are setting specific expectations to the user. I click on the ad because something connected with me. But to get to a page that then had nothing to do with what was promised on the ad only makes me want to leave. If they would just state something to the effect of “5 logo comps! Packages starting at $175″ they would not only see more conversions but also save money in people clicking on the link, not finding what they wanted and leaving.

Michael Bowen is the Performance Analyst at GearyPMG.

There is a misperception that when companies embark on a lead generation campaign they relinquish control of their brand to affiliates and partners, but this is categorically untrue. The best lead generation campaigns stem from a strong brand which resonates within all of its components. Good branding creates trust around a company and advances lead generation programs because the focus can move beyond questions like “who are you?” to “what can you do for me?”   Branding should be the key framework for any successful lead generation program; without it marketers are forced to compete on a generic level.

By building a strong reputation and brand awareness, companies will strengthen all of their campaigns, including lead generation campaigns. As users progress down a consideration funnel, they are more likely to use branded search queries or go directly to brand-owned web properties. This is a win-win situation for marketers because leads are more qualified, and sales processes shorten when users already know the companies they like.

When lead generation efforts consider a holistic brand, they are able to incorporate additional lead sources into the mix. Search engine optimization, paid search, social media and website structure should play important roles in a branded lead generation program.

So Branded Lead Generation, “Will you be our Valentine?”

Vincent: It’s the little differences. A lotta the same stuff we got here,
they got there, but there they’re a little different.

Jules: Example…

Vincent: Alright, when you walk into a movie theatre in Amsterdam, you can buy beer. And I don’t mean in a paper cup either. They give you a glass of beer. And in Paris, you can buy beer at MacDonald’s. And you know what they call a Quarter Pounder with Cheese in Paris?

Jules: They don’t call it a Quarter Pounder with Cheese?

Vincent: No, they got the metric system there, they wouldn’t know what the heck a Quarter Pounder is.

Jules: What’d they call it?

Vincent: They call it Royale with Cheese.

Now to my point…

The purpose of the dialogue above is to show how little differences can make a big difference. In terms of marketing, little things can make the difference between connecting you with your audience or losing them altogether. You have to speak their language and relate to them on their level.

Below are some little things that you should look for in your marketing campaign.

1. Target niche markets

You want to make sure that your funnel isn’t too large. If you go after a segment that is too large, then your messaging will be general. You are going to get stuck trying to speak to everyone (but you won’t connect with anyone). In this day and age, segmenting your audience will provide higher returns on your marketing campaigns.

2. Make sure your messaging is consistent

The goal of your messaging should be to walk them through a cohesive thought process and keep them on a path to conversion. If at any point you shift the messaging, you could cause confusion. This confusion could force users to go somewhere else to find information that makes sense to them. The last thing you want them to think is why am I here? What does this have to do with me?

3. Are you providing a solution to your users’ pain points ?

Ideally, they have an issue, problem or situation that you are able to help with. Do not lose focus on this. Otherwise, they will leave your website.

These are just three things that can make or break your digital marketing efforts. Stay tuned for more.

Michael Bowen is the Performance Analyst at Geary +PMG.

Like any advertising/marketing professional, I keep an eye on what goes on in different verticals. What aggravates me the most is seeing people doing their advertising WRONG. We’re not talking about just WRONG, but about as WRONG as it can be.

In this particular instance, I am referring to an education-focused PPC ad campaign. Most of the paid search ads I was served for a particular query were written well, but one seemed to stand out. It addressed searchers queries and paint points. It was dead on. After viewing the page of the ad, I was sent to a homepage. A HOMEPAGE!?!?!?! This is a BIG mistake that could driving up CPLs for the entire campaign.

They are missing a prime opportunity to connect with their users. They developed a great PPC ad that relates to searchers (based on their needs and pain points), but instead of driving users to a page where they can speak to the ad content that captured their attention, users end up on a home page–a page that has no connection to the ad.

Don’t let this happen to you. Check your campaigns. Make sure you are delivering on the message. Make sure you are holding up the promise of your ad on the page you are driving people to.

Michael Bowen is the Performance Analyst at Geary +PMG.

By how much? An un-optimized website typically has a meager 3.1% conversion rate (verticals vary of course). When conversion rate optimization is executed correctly, it can increase conversion rates between 50 and 200 percent, and there are occasions when resultant increases are higher (King). GearyPMG has your quick tips and a whitepaper to help optimize your site and dramatically increase your conversion rates.

Why it matters to your business

Generating more qualified leads from website traffic makes good business sense
Continuous testing reduces bounce rates
A solid CRO strategy results in increased sales, revenue, leads, page views and engagement

Three targets for CRO

There are three types of web properties to work with during a CRO process: landing pages, microsites and conversion paths.

Testing

During the testing process, landing pages, microsites and conversion paths will be classified as one of the following states:  control, challenger or champion.

Control: The page with the original design and baseline data
Challenger: The new design that you are putting up against the control
Champion: The design that performs best during testing

Look beyond the obvious

Every website is unique, so CRO requires a clear picture of a site’s goal, an integrated strategy, cross-functional input and analysis throughout the optimization process. Conversion rate optimization is not:

Minor tweaks in text size or color
Blind implementation of best practices
Relying on guess and check temethodology

For more information Click here to download a complimentary copy of the whitepaper.

Michael Bowen is the Performance Analyst at Geary +PMG.

Other areas of focus include:

• Innovation and iteration testing
• Testing thresholds and timeframes
• GearyPMG case study examples

Click here to download a complimentary copy of the whitepaper. 

“If someone is not intimately familiar with the ins and outs of paid search management, it is easy to misinterpret data when agencies report unnecessary information without much context. It makes it difficult to understand cause-and-effect optimizations and the true value of hiring an agency or expert.

To minimize confusion, it is essential for paid search professionals to sort through the performance data and provide a framework to summarize reports. This way, clients are not blindly reporting a sheet of numbers/metrics back to their organizations. They should have the data they need to address C-level executives and present a clear understanding of how their campaigns are performing. While clients do range in paid search knowledge, an agency should never assume that everyone can fill in the context around a paid search campaign and the implications of performance fluctuation” (iMedia Connection, 10/20/10).

Click here to read the  entire article that investigates how clicks, impressions, #1 rankings, click thru rates and keyword strategies should be viewed so marketers can succeed in their paid search efforts.

]]> http://www.gearypmg.com/paid-search-metrics-marketers-should-forget/feed/ 0 http://www.gearypmg.com/mobile-marketing-tips-for-universities-and-colleges/ http://www.gearypmg.com/mobile-marketing-tips-for-universities-and-colleges/#comments Fri, 08 Oct 2010 22:06:08 +0000 PMG Blogger http://www.gearypmg.com/?p=830 Mobile marketing needs to be a consideration for all marketers, but it’s important that marketers remember the ways in which mobile differs from other forms of digital marketing. Here are some tips to keep in mind include:

1. Content is Key: Even more than traditional internet advertising, the visuals and content of a mobile campaign need to grab users and captivate them. We’ve found that bolder graphics, text-centric call outs, maintaining a consistent user flow are helpful ways of grabbing mobile users. Also since a mobile phone is such a personal device, when compared to, say, a work computer, we use more media rich ads, such as fun videos.

2. Creation of a Mobile Site: Many of our education clients already have incredible websites (we might have something to do with that). Yet, it’s important to create a separate mobile site that mobile viewers will be directed to automatically.

3. Implement Paid Search Tracking: Knowing where paid search traffic will go, and being prepared to track it, is essential to the development of a successful mobile campaign.

4. Tracking Offline Conversions: We’ve found that by having dedicated phone numbers, or even coupon codes, on our mobile ads are a helpful way for us to measure and track success offline.

5. Keywords Adjustments: It’s important to strike the right balance between branded and generic keywords for mobile campaigns. Traditional bidding and keyword strategies might not transfer to the mobile space.

• Third party sites/ aggregators aren’t going anywhere. If you are not on these sites, you are losing some prospective students. Dive into the process and set up quality assurance steps like lead scoring and brand standards to ensure that you are getting the most from your investment.
• Microblogging sites are a credible source of school reviews and information. If you are ignoring trends because they seem irrelevant to you, you’re also ignoring viable market segments and how they communicate. Take a strategic approach to social media marketing with multiple touch points that target specific demographics; for example a particular group could be extremely active on Facebook while another might have moved on.
• Post secondary students are mobile marketing savvy. SMS can be a powerful tool if used correctly. Many marketers are already incorporating it into their follow up process. Keep in mind that prospective students might have to pay for this service, so be careful how and when you employ this tactic.

• Facebook is a source prospective students use to gauge the personality of a school. If students are using social media as an education tool, you should become part of the conversation and monitor buzz about your brand. Let the conversation happen naturally and inform where appropriate. Remember a referral from a friend-even a digital one- can carry more weight than a canned marketing message.
• Students use generic queries to start their pre-enrollment research. Since the largest amounts of searchers don’t search using your school brand/ name, you need to focus search efforts on identifying profitable long tail keywords. From both a SEO and paid search aspect, your terms should be in the language of your prospects and should direct them to customized landing pages that relate to their query.
• New devices like iPads can be utilized to engage students outside of traditional classroom settings. Using new devices proves that your school is cutting edge and adapts to progressive students who are on the move. Applications could involve taking an interactive virtual tour or flipping through a virtual course guide that leads to a form.

• How marketers are mismanaging their lead generation campaigns
• Criteria for evaluating a lead management technology solution
• Strategies and tactics to increase the efficiency of lead management programs

The following in an excerpt from a newly released whitepaper from GearyPMG. To download the whitepaper in its entirety, click the download link at the bottom of this post.

Lead generation is a common marketing goal. Most strategies and a majority of marketing programs are created with the goal of producing leads. While this goal keeps marketing and sales departments progressing forward, lead generation is only the means to the end goal of driving revenue. If leads do not convert into business, are they serving their intended purpose? This whitepaper will investigate how marketers might be losing leads through fragmented management tactics and present tips and tricks about how marketing departments can manage earned leads efficiently—so not one lead is wasted.

Lead generation is a sizeable marketing investment with $1.7 billion projected to be spent on lead generation in 2011. Digital lead management is still transitioning into the digital space as 65 percent of marketers note that they are increasing spending on lead generation-based website design and 47 percent are investing in online data quality and management (CSO Insights). While efforts and budgets are being allocated to digital lead generation, most marketers note it as one of their top three challenges—behind lack of budget and lack of time for efficient program execution (MarketingProfs). This means that generating leads is a top marketing priority that will get resource support, but there is still a gap between generating leads and generating business.

Download here–

GearyPMG Whitepaper_Lead Management Generation Strategies

ESPN.com Ad Blunder

Once again how important are details? Or better stated, how important is it to pay attention to details? When trying to optimize digital marketing campaigns, I like to look at the whole funnel. Two points of interest are where traffic comes from and where it converts; it’s not just the lead for that matters when optimizing a conversion funnel.

The image to the right is an example of what happens when marketers do not pay attention to detail. The advertisement is promoting an outdated event. I am not trying to cast blame on one party (as both the marketer and ad network could be at fault), but still, this is a waste of valuable ad space that drives me nuts.

Remember with all of your media campaigns to focus on the entire conversion process. Pay attention to where the user ENTERS your funnel (like the display ad seen here). Monitor users as they MOVE through the process, and then optimize the end RESULT. Do this, and you can be sure that you’re always maximizing your media and supporting a holistic conversion funnel.

Michael Bowen is the Performance Analyst at Geary +PMG.

We think there should be a guide for how universities can design their websites. It would cover how to build a useful website with a focus on successful home pages. The goal would be to present useful information, not just the most impressive.

This funny cartoon appeared on the website XKCD, addressing the challenges University marketers face when trying to create the best home page.

http://xkcd.com/773/

While tongue in cheek, this depicts a common problem education marketers face. They have several distinct groups visiting their websites that range from students to prospective students and alumni to the media. In many cases, the school clutters the homepage with information aimed to reach each group or they choose which to feature.

A better solution is to allow site visitors select the information they are interested in. On the homepage, clearly designate user paths that align with key audience segments. For example, have a button calling out “Member of the media? Click here.” This removes the clutter of a homepage and creates intuitive paths for users to follow that leads them to the information they’re actually interested in.

I was watching Blue Chips the other day, the movie with Nick Nolte and Shaquille O’Neill.  As an aside, he never should  have signed on with the Celtics. Back to the film, it contains one of the most clichéd sports analogies. To paraphrase, it went something like:

“I’ll give them the play book. They can know our offense, they can know our defense, all that matters is how we execute.”

This quote can be applied into many aspects of our professional and personal lives.

By way of example, I’m applying it to conversion rate optimization since it’s what a performance analyst does best.

Typical questions around conversion rate optimization are: “What are your top tips for improving a site,” “Do I need to change my button colors,” “Should I put different images on my website,” or “What font is best?”

What people fail to understand is that it’s not just one thing, it’s about the overall execution. It’s an over simplifaction to think that one can make random tweaks to a site, and have it magically improve conversion rates. There is a method to the madness, and an execution of the method. When I’m working on a client’s conversion rate optimization, I go through the following steps:

1. Make sure tracking is set up, as this is the crux of your data. Without it, you can’t make any educated recommendations on which changes to test.

2. Remember and focus on the user. What brings them to your website? What needs or problems do they want solutions for?

3. Analyze the data and how people found your site. What are the hot keywords that attracted the most visits?

4. Work off of a check list of what you should consider testing on the site. This can include content, calls to action and value props. Then run the tests, and analyze the data before making a test recommendation.

Each conversion professional has his or her own process. This is just my way of channeling my own conversion rate madness into a methodology that delivers the results my clients expect.

Michael Bowen is the Performance Analyst at Geary +PMG

A few weeks ago came “The Return of the Man Your Man Could Smell Like.”

The official Old Spice YouTube channel posts of the ads have garnered over 13,399,000 and 6,400,000 views, respectively. Having created a hilarious character that people have come to love, W + K decided to up the ante even further by letting Old Spice fans interact with the gent of a fine scent by responding to fan-submitted questions on the Old Spice YouTube channel. That campaign launched two days ago. So far, there have been over 6 million views of the over 180 responses to questions. I’ve included a couple of my favorites below:

According to Visible Measures, the campaign (specifically, responding to fan questions directly) has become one of the fastest-growing online video campaigns of all time.

But why?

According to Mashable.com, the popular social media blog, it may be because of how positive the campaign is. “Most viral videos are shocking, disturbing and/mocking of their subject. There’s none of that here. Instead of trying to trick folks into sharing content by creating something shocking or over-the-top or coasting along on an established viral meme and attaching a product to it, Old Spice first created a character that people — shock, shock, horror, horror — liked, and then created an immersive experience that people wanted to be a part of.”

I couldn’t agree more. And what’s even better, the campaign is already “over.” Rather than have it drag on and become more of a nuisance, W + K finished off with the following response:

So what are your thoughts? Do you like the approach? Is it over too soon? Let us know!