Search Engine Marketing

More than one-third of online shoppers reported they frequently shop around online before making a purchase in a retail store, according to a study of multichannel shoppers conducted by Fry Inc., the e-tailing group and comScore Networks. Other findings include: ¥ 97% of shoppers expect a seamlessly integrated shopping experience between online and offline channels. ¥ 46% of consumers start their shopping at a search engine. ¥ 39% of shoppers go directly to the retail Web sites in which they are interested. ¥ 36% of online shoppers have purchased a product online and picked it up at a retail location. Source: comScore Networks, www.comscore.com

Introduction Like other forms of e-commerce, the possibilities in search engine marketing (SEM) are only just beginning to be fully explored. In its own way, the craft of SEM is a lot like other methods of direct marketing: It requires a steady dose of testing, and in the end, a favorable return on investment. According to a recent SEM survey by New York-based Jupiter Research, just 25 percent of search marketers use “sophisticated SEM tactics. Marketers must cultivate sophistication to remain successful,” the survey states. What’s more, the search numbers continue to multiply. For instance, in November, Google doubled, to more than

I’ve been thinking a lot about Google these days. Its IPO has been in the news, and “60 Minutes” recently ran a fascinating profile of the company. But there was other news about Google that got only brief media attention and deserved much more, because the announcement was no less than historic: Google’s plan to scan all text from books in five libraries (e.g., the New York Public Library, University of Oxford) and make that content available online and easily searchable. Something like this was a dream of Vannevar Bush, Ph.D., science advisor to President Roosevelt, former director of the Office of

Problem: Sea Eagle needed a way to gauge whether its advertising investments were paying off. Solution: It developed a proprietary ad-tracking solution that ties back to sales data. Results: The merchant of boats and gear now can track back 21 percent of its sales to the cost of promotions, vs. only 10 percent last year. As more and more of its customers migrated to the e-commerce channel, Sea Eagle was losing sight of how it was generating leads. Were they coming from print advertising, search-engine marketing, natural search on the Web or some other method? “We spent $400,000 in print ads

1. What is paid-search marketing? It consists of placing ads for your products/services on Internet search engines and content sites. These ads typically are small snippets of text linked to your merchandise pages. You pay when someone clicks through to your site from the ad. Cost-per-click (CPC) fees range from 5 cents to several dollars per click, with an industry average near 30 cents. Leading search-marketing channels include Google, Overture and Inktomi. Additional smaller channels and new large channels are expected to appear soon. 2. What sort of catalogers benefit the most from paid-search marketing? Catalogers with fair pricing, good Web sites and

Search engine marketing is hot and getting hotter. Indeed, analysts predict that retailers will spend $2 billion on paid searches in 2003, representing a third of total online advertising spending. It will generate more than $10 billion in tracked online sales for e-merchants, with additional untracked spill-over revenue going to contact centers and retail stores. Search engine marketing works because searches are how consumers find products today: 41 percent of online shoppers report finding retail Web sites through search engines, according to eMarketer’s March 2003 study. And it’s still a bargain, averaging 35 cents per click across the industry, compared to $1 per lead

Neiman Marcus customers have discerning tastes, and visitors to its Web site deserve a shopping experience that offers the same level of sophistication, says Michael Crotty, vice president of marketing, Neiman Marcus Online. Following the relaunch of its Web site last spring, Crotty earmarked the next priority: improve the site’s online search capabilities. Previously, Neiman Marcus had an out-of-the-box solution that did searches only on a text and product-category basis. “It had to be a one-to-one match [to work],” says Crotty. “But we wanted shoppers to be able to search however they choose. We needed a very flexible solution.” The need was especially

Spring clearances and upcoming Mother’s Day promotions offer catalogers a great opportunity to tweak their Internet search-marketing campaigns and cast a wider net for reaching customers. Rotating copy and thinking more broadly about keyword-search terms are just a few ways in which you can better blanket the online-search market to stretch your advertising dollars, spur brand recognition and attract eyeballs. Taking a multichannel marketing approach and integrating online strategies with offline promotions also offers more leverage around spring advertising opportunities. Paid placement Internet search, which enables you to bid for placement at the top of search engines’ results pages, can help you

Gathering new buyer names for your housefile presents a challenge in any economic climate. But consumers’ current spartan buying habits have some catalogers puzzling about how, or even how much, to prospect. Some are using new avenues, while others staunchly stick to the basics. Associate Editor Gabrielle Mosquera asked three catalogers to share their thoughts on prospecting in today’s challenging environment. Larry Brown founder, Whatever Works catalog Market: business-to-consumer Type of products: garden, home and pest-control items Catalog Success: What do you think are the most popular prospecting media for catalogers today and why? Brown: As always, it’s other catalogs and their databases

Problem: Boost a B-to-B catalog’s reach Solution: Expand sales into the consumer market using search engine marketing Result: 30 percent of TopBulb’s overall sales now come from the consumer market, from 0 percent four years ago Consumers began finding their way to the TopBulb.com Web site soon after its launch in 1999, and they found the site almost exclusively through search engine marketing. Until 1998, Indiana-based Gray Supply Co. produced only a print catalog, selling hard-to-find light bulbs to the b-to-b and medical markets. Though the company’s founders had hired Phil Bonello as president and CEO that year to increase sales, he also saw