Duane Forrester Utah Digital Marketing Conference 2019 Learn more at: utahdmc.org How Machine Learning is Changing the Landscape of Search, Discovery and Engagement Today’s consumers have more choices than ever and are less brand loyal than at any point in history. We’ll examine pivotal inflection points driven by consumers that influence search and data discovery. These directly affect what search engines rank and show in results, so you need to know what you can control and influence. Data about your business, products, and services remains one key area under-explored by most businesses, and digital knowledge management is proving to have a deep impact on consumer engagement, revenue, and business success.

1. How Machine Learning is Changing the
Landscape of Search, Discovery and
Engagement
Duane Forrester
VP, Industry Insights, Yext
@duaneforrester

2. Discovery v. Search

3. Warby Parker app

4. ByeByeCamera app – Visual AI

5. ByeByeCamera app – Visual AI

6. Zone Out
A sci-fi short film written
and directed by
Benjamin, an AI.
https://www.youtube.com
/watch?v=vUgUeFu2Dcw

7. f r o m L I N K S t o A N S W E R S
i n 2 0 y e a r s
20082001 TODAY20151998
Source: “Google search results: the evolution of the SERPs,” 1&1 Digital Guide, 09.03.2017.
E V O L U T I O N O F C O N S U M E R S E A R C H

8. S E A R C H M E S S A G I N G A P P S V O I C E A S S I S T A N T S Y O U R W E B S I T E
where’s the best pizza place in New York that’s good for kids and has accessible bathrooms_
C O N S U M E R S H A V E M O V E D F R O M B R O W S I N G T O A S K I N G E V E R Y W H E R E

9. Q U E S T I O N S
A N S W E R S
CONVERT
T H E C U S T O M E R J O U R N E Y S T A R T S W I T H A Q U E S T I O N

10. YOUR
BRAND
COMPETITOR INFO
WRONG HOURS
WRONG MENU
TWO STARS
LIES MISSING INFO
OUTDATED INFO
WRONG PRODUCTS
WRONG SIZE
Y O U R I S K L O S I N G C U S T O M E R S I F Y O U ’ R E N O T A N S W E R S - R E A D Y

11. TalkToTransformer.com – Writing AI

12. DEMOGRAPHIC
MARKETING
PSYCHOGRAPHIC
MARKETING
BEHAVIORAL
MARKETING
AGE & GENDER
RACE
LOCATION
INCOME
PURCHASE HISTORY
PERSONALITY
INTERESTS
HOBBIES
REAL-TIME BEHAVIOR
KEYWORD USAGE
MEASURABLE ACTIONS
NEEDS
Y O U R M A R K E T I N G S T R A T E G I E S H A V E E V O L V E D

13. From Keywords to Questions
gas station Where’s the nearest gas station?
cardiologist Who’s the best cardiologist for children?
insurance Who sells the best car insurance?
cheeseburger Where’s the best cheeseburger in Detroit?
A N E W A G E : I N T E N T M A R K E T I N G

14. What is intent?
Where can I get gluten-free ramen right now?_
Who’s the best cardiologist for children?_
financial advisors that speak Russian_
buy Tesla Model 3 in Dallas_
When was Facebook founded?_
getting married_
How many calories are in a Big Mac?_
Does Paragon Sports carry Nike sneakers?_
● I want to know
● I want to go
● I want to do
● I want to buy

15. HARD TO RANK
HARD TO CONVERT
EASY TO RANK
EASY TO CONVERT
SHORT KEYWORD PHRASES
“law firm”
MID-LENGTH KEYWORD PHRASES
“utah law firm”
NATURAL LANGUAGE PHRASES
“How do I hire a law firm in
Utah?”
LOW VOLUME
LOW COMPETITION
HIGH VOLUME
HIGH COMPETITION
NATURAL
LANGUAGE PHRASES
convert at
2.5x
the rate of
SINGLE KEYWORDS
Q U E S T I O N S C O N V E R T B E T T E R T H A N K E Y W O R D S
“The Long Tail And Why Your SEO Keyword Strategy Is Wrong,” Josh Steimle, Forbes.
“The Long Tail of Search: Why the Fastest Path to More Traffic Might Not Be Where You are Looking,” Conductor.

16. PICK UP
IN STORE
“What are the best
outdoor Bluetooth
speakers?”
“What kind of bass
and treble is best for
outdoor speakers?”
“Where’s the nearest Best
Buy that’s open now?”
“Who carries Bose
Bluetooth
speakers?”
REVIEWS
SEARCH ENGINES
VIDEOS
BLOGS
SEARCH ENGINES
EXPERT WEBSITES
PRODUCT PAGES
FAQ
VIRTUAL ASSISTANT
BRAND WEBSITE
DISTRIBUTOR WEBSITE
D E L I V E R V E R I F I E D A N S W E R S E V E R Y W H E R E C O N S U M E R S S E A R C H

17. You need to think “Answers Ready”

18. BUILD YOUR
KNOWLEDGE GRAPH
Collect, structure, and manage the
facts about your brand to answer
nuanced questions.
ANSWER QUESTIONS
YOURSELF
Add key elements to your website to
capture consumer intent and answer
specific questions.
ANSWER QUESTIONS
EVERYWHERE
Ensure AI-based services like voice
assistants and search engines deliver
brand verified answers to your
customers’ questions.
T H R E E S T E P S T O B E C O M I N G A N S W E R S - R E A D Y

19. C A N Y O U R D A T A A N S W E R Q U E S T I O N S L I K E T H I S ?
Best Financial Advisor near me open now
who covers Family Trusts?
rating: four stars and higher
primary category
geography-based data
hours of operation
additional attribute: financial product

20. HOURS OF
OPERATION
RETAIL
STORES
SERVICES
PRODUCTS
RATING
RESTAURANTS
CITY
BRAND
TIME
NOW
MENUS
HOLIDAY
HOURS
OFFERS
CATEGORY
EVENTS
S E A R C H E N G I N E S U S E A K N O W L E D G E G R A P H
T O A N S W E R Q U E S T I O N S — A N D S O W I L L Y O U

21. High-intent traffic could bounce back to
search engines where they could find
wrong information or, worse, a
competitor.
T H I S I S W H A T H A P P E N S W H E N Y O U R S I T E I S N ’ T B U I L T T O A N S W E R Q U E S T I O N S

22. Answers not Links
AnswersLinks

23. Customer can Chat with Businesses on the
Biggest Platforms in the World
“25% of customer service and support
operations will integrate with chatbot
technology by 2020.”
— Gartner
“Organizations who have integrated with
chatbots today reported an average of 70%
fewer call and/or email inquiries.”
— Forrester

25. best pizza restaurant near me_
“Here are three top-rated pizza
restaurants near you:
Two Brothers Pizza, 755 6th Avenue
Little Italy Pizza, 2 East 33rd Street
Little Italy Pizza, 122 University Place”
V O I C E R E S U L TW E B R E S U L T C H A T R E S U L T
D I S T A N C E
R E L E V A N C E
P R O M I N E N C E
YOU S H O U L D O P T I M I Z E F O R A L L O F T H E S E E X P E R I E N C E S

26. 20162015 201820142012201020082006200420022000199819961994 20172013201120092007200520032001199919971995
Print
1440
CONNECTED CARS
SOCIAL
MOBILE WEB
GPS
SEARCH
EMAIL
WEBSITE
ECOMMERCE
CRM
CONNECTED HOME
CHAT
VOICE
MOBILE APPS
MOBILE MAPS
MOBILE FIRST
AR / VR
T H E E C O S Y S T E M O F
B R A N D T O U C H P O I N T S
I S M O R E C O M P L E X T H A N E V E R

27. Thank you!