Top 5 SEM Management MistakesMiles Olson

VP, Customer EngagementSearchForce

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Expected Performance Gain/Loss From. . .

THE COST OF MISTAKES

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

TOP 5 MISTAKES

Mistake #1

Default Campaign Settings

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Campaign Setting Default Value

Networks: Search Network with Display Select

Locations: United States and Canada

Mobile Bid Adjustment: 0%

Campaign Level Negatives: None

Ad Scheduling: None

Budget Cap: User Defined – Required

Tagging & Tracking: None

Is This What You Want?. . . probably not.

Mistake #1Mistake #1 Default Campaign Settings

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Campaign Launch Checklist

SolutionSolution Default Campaign Settings

1) Write it down.

2) Get 3rd party to

review.

3) Then launch.

Mistake #2

Conversion Tracking Issues

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

What do you want to achieve with your search advertising dollars?

Lots of ad impressions

Traffic to my website

Car buyer leads

Vehicle sales

Mistake #2Mistake #2 Conversion Tracking Issues

The vast majority of agency-managed

dealer search campaigns are being

optimized for TRAFFIC!

Source: My personal experience

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Mistake #2Mistake #2 Conversion Tracking Issues

Search Conversion Funnel

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

You Only Get What You Optimize For. . .

Optimizing to maximize traffic will likely result in less leads.

The cheapest clicks are typically driving the lowest quality traffic. e.g. display network, general terms

Optimizing to maximize leads will likely result in less sales.

The cheapest conversions are typically the lowest quality leads. e.g. job seekers, business questions

So, why are agencies and dealerships doing this?

Mistake #2Mistake #2 Conversion Tracking Issues

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

SolutionSolution Conversion Tracking Issues

The most crucial step to improving ROI!

Mistake #3

Poor Keyword Matching

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Mistake #3Mistake #3 Poor Keyword Matching

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

1. Matching to the wrong searches

2. Matching to the wrong places

Two Types of Keyword Matching Mistakes

Mistake #3Mistake #3 Poor Keyword Matching

Money Wasted

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Inappropriate MatchSEARCH TERM KEYWORD AD GROUPused semi truck for sale +used +truck +sale Used Trucksused truck bed liners for sale +used +truck +sale Used Trucksused mack mixer trucks for sale +used +truck +sale Used TrucksMisdirected Match SEARCH TERM KEYWORD AD GROUPused ford f250 trucks sale +used +truck +sale Used Truckslexus GX460 suv lexus lx570 suv Lexus LX570used bmw x5 “used bmw” Used BMWused 2014 acura suv +used +suv Used SUVs

Money Poorly Spent

Mistake #3Mistake #3 Poor Keyword Matching

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Impact on Bid Management

ROI-based bid management assumes a correlation between what users are searching for and conversion behavior (search query & conversion rate).

Example: People searching for a Toyota Prius are more likely to purchase a Toyota Prius than those searching for a Ford F-150.

Due to broad keyword/search term matching, a correlation between search terms and conversion rates may NOT lead to a correlation between keywords and conversion rates!

Example: People searching for a Toyota Prius but matched to a Honda Accord keyword are less likely to purchase an Accord than those searching for an Accord.

Mistake #3Mistake #3 Poor Keyword Matching

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Mistake #3Mistake #3 Poor Keyword Matching

In both scenarios, $100 was spent on each search term. But in the second scenario, more leads at a lower CPL resulted from directing search terms to match to the most appropriate keyword.

ROI-based bid management does not work without correct keyword matching!

Keyword Search Term Conv Rate Spend Clicks CPC Leads CPLUsed Toyota Prius Used Toyota Prius 5% $ 100.00 100 $ 1.00 5 $ 20.00 Used Toyota Prius Used Car 1% $ 100.00 100 $ 1.00 1 $ 100.00

Totals 3% $ 200.00 200 $ 1.00 6 $ 33.33

Keyword Search Term Conv Rate Spend Clicks CPC Leads CPLUsed Toyota Prius Used Toyota Prius 5% $ 100.00 100 $ 1.00 5 $ 20.00

Used Car Used Car 1% $ 100.00 500 $ 0.20 5 $ 20.00 Totals 2% $ 200.00 600 $ 0.33 10 $ 20.00

Assume we pay exactly what we bid. . .

Allowing different searches to match to the same keyword:

Routing searches to match to the best keyword:

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

1. Review search term reports regularly.

2. Use campaign negatives or shared libraries for inappropriate terms.

3. Use ad group negatives to force correct search term/keyword matches.

4. Leverage match types for more control.

SolutionSolution Poor Keyword Matching

Mistake #4

Shortsighted Budget Management

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Limited by budget = Overbidding

Mistake #4Mistake #4 Shortsighted Budget Management

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Mistake #4Mistake #4 Shortsighted Budget Management

Campaign targeting a $50 CPL and hitting budget cap. . .

Cost/Budget Cap CPC Clicks Conv Rate Leads CPL1,000.00$ 2.00$ 500 4% 20 50.00$

Same campaign after lowering bids. . .

Cost/Budget Cap CPC Clicks Conv Rate Leads CPL1,000.00$ 1.60$ 625 4% 25 40.00$ 1,000.00$ 1.25$ 800 4% 32 31.25$

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

1. Lower bids (or target CPL) until budget caps are not being hit.

2. Use Target CPL and bidding to control spend.

3. Develop process to make this easy to manage.

SolutionSolution Shortsighted Budget Management

Mistake #5

Conversion Path Neglect

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

These problems might exist without your knowledge. . .

•Landing on home page•Landing on 404 error page•Landing on incorrect vehicle page•Landing on “no results found” page

Mistake #4Mistake #4 Conversion Path Neglect

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Mistake #4Mistake #4 Conversion Path Neglect

Searched for ‘used Toyota Prius’ in Austin, TX

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Mistake #4Mistake #4 Conversion Path Neglect

Searched for ‘used Toyota Prius’ in Austin, TX

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Mistake #4Mistake #4 Conversion Path Neglect

Searched for ‘used Toyota Prius’ in Austin, TX

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

1. Check to make sure your destination URLs are correct. . . Obviously.

2. Use a software tool to automatically run landing page error reports on a regular basis

SolutionSolution Conversion Path Neglect

Miles Olson | VP, Customer Engagements miles@searchforce.com

Things to

check after

the

conference

Things to

check after

the

conference

Contact Info

Full Name:

Company:

Job Title :

Email:

Miles Olson

SearchForce

VP, Customer Engagements

miles@searchforce.com

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