This document outlines the agenda for a class on online and new media. It includes a discussion on search engine marketing and a review of two blog posts. The reading assignment is a chapter on search analytics that discusses key concepts like search queries, click-through rates, and using analytics tools in marketing plans. The discussion section covers the differences between search engine optimization and search engine marketing, and how SEM works through paid search results and organic rankings. Tools for SEM like keyword lists, landing pages, and analytics are also mentioned.

1. Online & New Media
SNC-MKTG350
October 16, 2013

2. Tonight’s Agenda: Search Engine
Optimization
• Reading:
– Ch. 5, Analytics: Search Analytics Key take-aways
• Discussion:
– Search engine marketing (SEM)
• Blog Post Review:
– Nobody clicks on banner ads anymore. 7 tips for
overcoming banner blindness.
– 9 best practices small businesses should use in
optimizing a website.

3. Reading Recap: Ch. 5, Analytics:
Search Analytics
Your top 5 take-aways from Chapter 5
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
How might you use these Search Analysis
tools in your digital marketing plan?

4. How big is search?
19,400,000,000
searches
in July 2013
Source: comScore Search Engine Ranking

5. What are we talking about today?
• Search engine marketing:
– Marketing your business through the engines
– SEM has specific costs
– SEM also requires time to manage campaigns
Goes by “SEM” among friends…

6. SEO
vs.
SEM
• Search engines find
• You bid on keywords
your site
valuable to your biz
• Users find you through • Text ads show on
the search engines
search engines
• No direct costs
• Lots of direct cost

7. The results show on same page
Paid results
Organic results
Paid results

8. SEARCH: the right side delivers clients

9. Source: comScore’s Search
Engine Ranking, July 2013

10. How Search Works:
1
Idea about your
product or service
2
Research on a
search engine
3
See your ad
and click
4
Visit your microsite,
already self-qualified

11. Search’s efficiency
Attract people already in a mindset for your
service, allowing you to engage with people
ready to buy:
•You set the budget by click or visitor
•15-25% of visits should become calls
•Only pay when someone clicks
•Shortens your sales cycle

12. How marketers use SEM
• Understand what customers WANT when they
search and find your site  Keywords
• Sales tracking, optimizations
 Sales funnel management
• Create topic-specific landing pages
Landing pages best practices

13. Tools for SEM
• 50-250 keyword list
• Text ad AdWords campaign
• Landing page microsite
• Google Analytics on microsite
• Know your conversion targets.
I like 25% visitor-to-caller
conversion target.
• Unique, trackable phone number

14. Good keyword hygiene
• Describe your product from your client’s
point of view
• Think in terms of campaign groupings:
– “Yoga for beginners” vs.
– “Yoga trainer certifications”
• Be specific
• Layer in geography
• Use phrases

15. Keyword Thinking
• A single word: “fountain”
• Or a phrase: “outdoor fountain
with lights and timer”
• Short terms
= high volume, high competition, more ambiguity
• Longer phrases
= lower usage volume, more likely to connect

16. Evaluating
keywords
• Some words
get lots of
clicks
• Some words
get few clicks
• Compare to
sales funnel –
not all clicks
are equal

17. SEO Key Ideas
• Should you always go with the
highest clicked keywords?
• What’s the relationship
between keywords and sales
funnel?
• Do your optimal keywords
change over time?
• How do you evaluate the value
of your keywords?

18. Text ads
Headline
URL
Three lines
•
•
•
•
•
Be VERY succinct
Stand out, make an offer
Action-oriented (“buy flowers” not “we have flowers”)
Use your most important keywords
Optimize the ads: this is dynamic and on-going work

19. Good landing page practices
• Simple design
• Clear, concrete offer
• Don’t link out – this is a
sales funnel
• Attractive, for credibility
• Include your phone,
address, email

20. Blog Topic: 9 best practices small businesses
should use in optimizing a website.
• Blog criteria:
 300-500 words
 Has 1-4 images
Has links to other articles
Takes a position/opinion
Tagged the post with relevant categories
Used a systematic research process?
What did you learn?

21. Blog Topic: Nobody clicks on banner ads anymore.
7 tips for overcoming banner blindness.
• Blog criteria:
 300-500 words
 Has 1-4 images
Has links to other articles
Takes a position/opinion
Tagged the post with relevant categories
Used a systematic research process?
What did you learn?

22. Next session:
• Quiz on Monday
• Reading: Ch. 6, Analytics: Audience Analysis
• Discussion:
– Website, campaign & mobile analytics
– Key performance indicators: Clicks, Impressions,
Leads, Conversions, Time on site
• Blog Post Review:
– Why mobile websites matter in the marketplace.