Search Marketing is More Complicated Than Many Believe and The Media Landscape is Changing Faster Than Most Expected, and Welcome to New World Order
Recently I spoke with a good phone and email buddy who nailed me for not keeping my Blog updated. I'm busy building an empire man!
Last week I spent nearly ten hours with Mary O'Brien (One of the original Overture folks, now working with Yahoo Search Marketing - training advanced search concepts and simply how to "do" Yahoo.) at the Aqua Hotel, outside of San Francisco.
O-Ma-Gawd.
Yahoo! is so far behind Google. I mean REALLY far behind. Understand, I WANT them to be a strong second. I really like the vibe of their consumer-facing brand. Competition is good for all of us living on the soon to be called "Planet Google." (I like them too...Guess I'm a search groupie.) However, it just aint so.
Have you ever walked through an old junk yard or second-hand appliance store and imagined what you could "invent" by making the old record player work with that washing machine if you mounted it on the back of that '78 Gremlin and powered it all with a diesel-generator hidden in the trunk? Apparently, Yahoo has, and they offer this clunky, sputtering, confusing back-end to those of us who make a living driving business to customers via the web.
The back-end interface is just plain clunky for search marketers. I guess that is what happens when you try to duct tape a bunch of legacy systems together as fast as you can because the new, smart, good-looking, rich kid is taking your client base and reinventing your industry faster than you can say GoTo or Overture or Yahoo or?. (That sounded a lot more bitter than I meant it. I really do want them to pull it together and it sounds as if the first of the year should bring with it some massive improvements for Yahoo search marketing especially on the local side.)
Beyond that, we studied, discussed, opined and were generally overwhelmed with minutia detailing the following agenda...
* Overture Overview - Overture Network, Precision Match, Content Match, Local Match, International Opportunities, Growth Opportunities for Advertisers in Search Advertisers
(Jeez... Yahoo, you keep changing the names on us. PLEASE make this simple.)
* Keyword Generation - Strategies for identifying keywords that sell, which keywords to use, what to stay away from and how many you really need for your business
(Pretty good stuff here even in the early session. Mary O’Brien has insight that was fantastic. I learned much more than I had hoped to.)
* Titles & Descriptions - Tips for creating search listings that get results. Writing for Overture versus writing for other search engines, effective copywriting guidelines, targeting your listings to your audience
(OK - no surprises here.)
* Guideline Guidance - What are the editors looking for? Understanding the editorial process to get your listings online faster
(Hmmm... seemed a bit removed from current practice.)
* Campaign Management - What to look for to make sure false clicks aren't killing you. How much time should you spend managing your campaign? Tools to make campaign management easier. Getting the most out of the DirecTraffic center. Where to go for answers.
(Very good, but really angered me that we still have to police this ourselves. IF you can get a service rep on the case, you have to present logs and make the case for refund. Who has the time running a business on 20% margins!?)
* Tracking Your Results - How to tell if it's working, and what to do if it's not. What to test, what to track and how to get results that work for your bottom line.
* Bidding - Basic bidding strategies that get results
(Good stuff.)
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(I am not going to comment on every piece here, but if you can catch this class, you may be surprised what EVEN YOU can still learn.)
Session B: 1:30 pm - 6:00 pm
Agenda Items:
* Advanced Tracking - More sophisticated tools that help you analyze and use your campaign data to get results. What should you track and why?
* Advanced Bidding Tactics - How to bid like a pro, lower your price per click, annihilate the competition and STILL get sales
* Landing Pages That Work - Sending customers to the home page is like dropping them off at the curb, but where should you send them? Which pages are more effective and deliver higher conversions?
* Successful Advertiser Case Studies - What do the big guys do differently and how can you adapt their strategies to get the most from your campaign?
* Other Overture Products - Now that you've mastered Pay Per Click - What's Next?
* Q & A
For questions regarding this event please email workshops@overture.com, or call Mary O'Brien/Alteract Marketing at (360) 632-2186 between 9 am and 5 pm PST
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So, Knight Ridder?
Wow. This is pretty scary for the newspaper industry. These guys were the smart ones. They were the guys the rest of us envied. Knight Ridder Digital was/is(?) on it. What happened? this was the Mercury News. "The San Jose Merc." For those of use really fly, "The Merc." Hmmmm... Hey Google, want to buy some old world credibility among the Blue-hair set?
posted by Jim Bonfield @ 10:39 PM
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