The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)
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Transcript of The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)
THE SEMISWEET SIDE OF DIGITAL BRANDING
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
WHO IS HOMEADVISOR?
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
1999
2000 2004
2012
2013
1M+Reviews
10MUsers
2008
EVOLUTION OF THE BRAND
“Service is appropriate for home maintenance and repair but Magic
is not. Magic suggests fraud or trickery.”
ServiceMagic isn’t a good name for a home repair and
maintenance company, even less so for a design and
remodel company.
“ServiceMagic is too general. I would
change it to something better.”
“I don’t understand what kind of service is
provided.”
“Sounds like a cleaning
company.”
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
STUCK IN MUDDY MIDDLE
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
Distinctive & Unique
Descriptive & Unique
AVOID THE MUDDY MIDDLE
A Web Retailer Buys the Perfect Domain. Then Comes a Letdown.
Golden’s ServiceMagic becomes HomeAdvisor in risky rebranding strategy
DEATH BY DOMAIN
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
REBRAND
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
SUCCESS!
Rebranding: How HomeAdvisor Quickly Recovered In Search Engine Ranking, Paid Search
How One Brand Switched A Million URLs & Lived To Tell About It: 5 Questions For HomeAdvisor.com
HOMEADVISOR REBRAND PAID SEARCH PERFORMANCE
DEC2012
FEB2013
STARTED DOMAIN CUTOVER
FULL RECOVERY
24%MORE CLICKS
+15%CLICKTHROUGH
RATE (CTR)
+5%CONVERSIONS
DOMAIN CUTOVER SEM IMPACT
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
5 Month Recove
ry
SEP2012
COMPLETED DOMAIN CUTOVER
History
Build Strong Domain & Account History First
1. Tier keywords by quality
2. Launch high quality score first
3. Delete low quality score
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
SEM BEST PRACTICES
Structure
Eliminate Waste Frequently
1. Poor performing keywords create account & domain drag
2. Create tight intent / content driven ad groups
Tracking
Track all elements of performance closely
1. Track the difference between maxCPC & avgCPC
2. Track impression share
3. Track keyword match type margin
Testing
Use SEM to validate brand preference
assumptions
1. Test CTR and conversion of various brand options
2. Track repeat use by brand
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
SEO BEST PRACTICES
DOMAIN RECOVERY: SEO
201420122013
1-2 months
6 months +1 year
-45% -5% +22%
8 Month Recovery
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
8 Month Recovery
EXTERNAL FACTORS
Algo changes, competitors, usage
data, context, location, et al. can affect
rankings, risk and opportunity.
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
SEO BEST PRACTICES
CONTENT
How can we enhance our strongest content
and expand into weaker areas?
LINKS
How can we increase the number of unique quality
domains linking to us, internal site
architecture, et al.?
USER EXPERIENCE
How happy are users with your site vs.
competitors? Engagement, time on
site, customer satisfaction, task
completion.
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
KEY TAKEAWAYS
A Good Brand Matters
Do Your Research Early – cheap surveys, ask friends, test in SEM
Avoid the Muddy Middle- choose either a distinctive or descriptive domain (but make sure it’s unique)
@ColoradoCraig #SEMside
Q&A / RESOURCES
Google's recommendations for site migration: https://support.google.com/webmasters/topic/6029673?hl=en Crawler:Deep Crawl: http://deepcrawl.co.uk/ (paid) Rank checkers:Authority Labs: http://authoritylabs.com/ (paid)
Domain Selection Sites: http://www.bustaname.com/
Social Media Name Check: http://namechk.com/