Category SEM
eBrand Media Research Brief: SEO or PPC? Which converts better and delivers highest AOV?
According to a new study by Engine Ready, based on traffic to 26 e-retail sites in a 12-month period that ended June 30, visitors who arrive at a retailer’s site from paid search ads are 50% more likely to buy than those who come from clicking on a natural search link. The conversion rate from paid search is 2.03% versus 1.26% from organic search, according to the study as reported by Internet Retailer.
From Wikipedia:
Pay per click (PPC) is an Internet advertising model, used on websites, in which advertisers pay their host only when their ad is clicked. With search engines (SEO), advertisers typically bid on keyword phrases relevant to their target market.
The current study is a follow up of a completed two year study in 2008 to identify the magnitude of any visitor behavioral trends based on traffic source in a way that could help marketers adjust their strategies to maximize value. Although there can be an almost endless number of individual traffic sources, notes the study, this study, identified and measured 4 primary traffic source categories that encapsulate all source origins:
Posted by Tom Polanski in SEM, eBrand Media on August 18th, 2009
Search Wars – Google offers up a taste of “Caffeine”, its new search engine.
By Tom Polanski, EVP, eBrand Media and eBrand Interactive
The “Search Wars” heat up as Luke Googlewalker escalates his battle with Darth Binger. At stake is the future of search and untold billions of dollars. What does this mean for SEM managers? What will happen the intrciate formula that Google uses to rank companies in bidded search? What will happen to advertisers? Stay tuned for “The Attack of the Clones”.
The Associated Press reported today that Caffeine will be faster, more accurate, and more comprehensive.
Posted by Tom Polanski in SEM on August 11th, 2009
What the Microsoft-Yahoo deal means to users
By Suzanne Choney
Consumers would see improved Web search efforts by all major players as a result of a proposed search partnership between Microsoft and Yahoo, experts said Tuesday.
“It’s a negative in that we’re going from having three major search competitors to two, but it may be better to have two strong competitors rather than one strong competitor and two weak ones,” said Danny Sullivan, editor-in-chief of Search Engine Land, a site that monitors the search engine industry.
Google, which dominates search with 65 percent of the market, according to online measurement firm comScore Inc., “may be driven to improve their (consumer) offerings somewhat” as a result of the partnership, said David Smith, a Gartner analyst who covers the Web.
Posted by Tom Polanski in Advertising, Marketing, SEM on July 29th, 2009
eBrand Media Research Brief: E-commerce grows using SEM to acquire and e-mail to retain
By Tom Polanski, EVP, eBrand Media and eBrand Interactive
According to the first installment of of Retailing Online 2009: Marketing Report from Forrester Research and Shop.org, e-commerce sales, including event and movie tickets, will grow about 11% to $156.1 billion this year from $141.3 billion in 2008. Online sales will account for 6% of total retail sales this year, up from 5% last year. Retailers report that their conversion rates continue to hover between 3% and 3.5%.
While Internet sales growth continues to outpace traditional retail sales, 54% of online retailers expect overall retail growth to slow during the next 12 months, and 57% acknowledge the economy is hurting their bottom line, according to the survey.
Although many retailers expect lower sales, however, four out of five surveyed online retailers think the web is better suited than other channels to withstand the recession and one-third say the downturn has helped them capture greater market share, the study found
Scott Silverman, Shop.org Executive Director, says “… Online retailers are trying to weather this economic storm by doing more with less, making smart spending decisions, and leveraging effective, affordable tactics like e-mail to grow their businesses.”
Posted by Tom Polanski in E-mail marketing, SEM, eBrand Media on May 19th, 2009
eBrand Media Research Brief: paid search clicks down, digital radio usage up
By Tom Polanski, EVP, eBrand Media and eBrand Interactive
In regards to SEM; according the research done by eBrand Media, Inc., paid search clicks are down considerably, while click-through rates, click to conversion rates, and CPC costs are higher. This probably means that search engine marketers are attempting to do what eBrand Media has done since 2005: expand keyword lists with low volume, low cost, but extremely targeted, and high-yield multi-word keyphrases while using “header” terms only to drive required volume, as part of a sustainable SEM eco-system.
The study followed online retailer clients in shoes, clothing, flowers and gifts, housewares, and a number of other industries, analyzing the performance of each category on a a daily, weekly, and monthly basis in Q1 2009. The data was then compared with the data with that for the same period last year.
On another front, the latest study by Arbitron and Edison Research shows continued growth in usage and ownership of various forms of digital audio platforms, including online radio, iPod/MP3 players, and podcasting. The weekly online radio audience increased significantly in the past year to 17% of the U.S. population age 12 and older; up from 13% in 2008. On a weekly basis, online radio reaches 20% of 25-to-54 year-olds; up from 15% in 2008.
Bill Rose, senior vice president of marketing, Arbitron Inc., says “The sharp growth in weekly usage of Online radio… provides compelling evidence that radio’s digital platforms may be reaching critical mass. We are… seeing encoded streams of AM/FM broadcasts with significant audience in local markets.”
Key findings from The Infinite Dial 2009: Radio’s Digital Platforms, include:
Posted by Tom Polanski in Advertising, SEM, Trend Tracker on April 27th, 2009