Viget Engage : The Marketing Lab

Clever Photographic Advertisements

2009-07-02T08:00:00Z

I recently wrote about branded utility, and while many of the examples were full-on applications or products, I thought a more "simple" example of branded utility in advertisements would be a good follow-up. The photographs found in the article "192 Creative, Smart & Clever Advertisements" are indeed creative as well as inspirational, thought provoking, and useful. Many of the examples take a traditional issue and shed light from a new angle -- the kind of angle that makes you say, "Huh...I never thought of that..." That's what it's all about -- Advertising should surprise and delight.

Thanks @AvinashKaushik for the link - it's old but it's good! For some of you, this will be a flashback, for others it will (hopefully) provide first time inspirations. Here are a few of my favorites:

Check out the original aritcle for a lot of other great examples!

What can the New AdWords Interface Search Query Report do for You?

2009-06-29T18:44:00Z

The new Google AdWords interface has been around for a few of months now. While at first I was hesitant to make the switch over, I eventually made the jump and now I’m starting too really like it, as do others. There are a few aspects I miss about the old interface (the Statistics drop down menu, faster loading times), but the new interface definitely has its pros. In my opinion, one of the best new additions to the interface is the integrated Search Query Report.

Now, instead of going into the Reports Tab, you can simply navigate to an ad group (or look at the entire account) go to your keyword tab, select the keywords you wish to run the report for and then click the “See Search terms…” dropdown.

AdWords will then display a pop-up of the search query report for your selected keywords, in real time. From there, you can see what search queries your selected keyword triggered, and easily add or negative out that keyword from your campaign. Last month Google even got rid of the “other queries” bucket that previously encompassed all search queries that did not generate enough clicks, thus leaving out valuable search query information.

Why is this so great? Aside from the fact that it gives you great insight into what visitors are searching for surrounding your keywords, it makes the whole process of running the report much more efficient. No longer do you have to go in to the reporting tab, run the search query report, wait for the report to process, and possibly export the data into a spreadsheet. Of course, if you ever needed to do that it is still an option.

So far I’ve used the new search query report for several clients now and I’ve been hit with interesting, funny, or surprising results. Each time I’ve taken these results and utilized them to improve the campaigns. If you haven’t run the new search query report on your campaigns yet I strongly suggest doing so. Who knows what you may find!

Branded Utility - The (Already Happening) Future of Marketing

2009-06-23T11:10:00Z

Most Fridays here at Viget, someone has an opportunity to present on just about anything (including hockey fighting), but mostly it’s on industry trends. I presented this last Friday and thought I'd pass it along for anyone who is interested (there are a few slides missing that were specific to Viget; but you'll get the picture).

The concept of “Branded Utility” isn’t new (we wrote about it here and here), but it's still in its infancy and by no means has it been widely accepted, or widely disseminated -- we're hoping to help change both of those things! Enjoy the slideshare!

Branded Utility - The (already happening) future of marketing

Branded Utility - The (already happening) future of marketing by Josh Chambers

Middle School Marketing Recap: Is Twitter the Ultimate Emotional Branding Tool?

2009-06-19T19:16:00Z

This week’s MSM kicked off with a great question from Matt Smith of SmithGifford: is Twitter the ultimate form of emotional branding?

Some went on to argue that from a rational standpoint, Twitter might not make much sense since it doesn’t directly generate ROI, however emotionally it was huge. With Twitter, consumers feel more connected to a brand. Plus, aside from a resource cost, there is no other cost, so why not be on Twitter?

On the other hand, some argued that there IS a tangible ROI. Take Dell for example, who claims that Twitter has helped to bring in $3MM in sales thus far.

As always, however, with good comes bad. In the case of Twitter it’s risk. One negative @reply about your brand and you could be destroyed. Well, maybe not destroyed, but it could certainly sting a little.

The final conclusion was that, regardless of ROI, cost, or risk, the key benefit of Twitter was the consumer-to-company relationships and emotional branding it adds. Consumers want to peak “behind the scenes” and enjoy access to individuals of companies. They want to be able to communicate with that brand whether it’s to give props or complain.

Of course this doesn’t just mean that all brands should hop on Twitter bandwagon. The only way consumers will actually feel that emotional connection via Twitter is if a company uses Twitter correctly. This isn’t always easy, as consumers are becoming more attuned to marketing speak and insincerity. Some examples of good uses of Twitter that the group mentioned:

Comcast: Twitter is their shining light in what is otherwise a black hole of customer service.
Zappos: CEO Tony Hsieh takes a more personal spin on tweeting, sharing quotes, thoughts and images.
AAA: Uses Twitter to post facts and stats about traffic, driving, and travel/motorist safety.

In the end, all agreed that Twitter is an emotional form of branding. And, there is a place for it in company’s marketing strategy.

What do you think about Twitter and emotional branding? How does your brand utilize Twitter? Let us know in a comment.

Thanks to everyone who made it out to this month’s MSN, hopefully we’ll see you all again (and more) next month!

Supposedly Dismal Twitter Statistics Actually Indicate Strength

2009-06-18T15:24:01Z

A recent Harvard Business School study, titled “Men Follow Men and Nobody Tweets,” made many techies and the media question if all the fanfare surrounding Twitter is unsubstantiated hype. The study found that 10% of Twitter users created 90% of tweets and that the median number of lifetime tweets for a user is—brace yourself—one.

Some (like the BBC’s article, “Twitter Hype Punctured by Study”) have suggested that this study means Twitter lacks retention value and that it’s not actually catching on with the masses. I’d argue the exact opposite. Rather, it shows that Twitter is moving into an untapped niche as an information aggregator, which has big implications for companies’ social media marketing strategies.

It’s a good thing that people aren’t using Twitter like Facebook. (HBS estimates that the top 10% of other social media sites’ members generate 30% of the sites’ content.) Although the original idea behind Twitter may have been Facebook-esque (updating people on what you’re doing and staying in touch with friends), the site’s purpose has morphed—which I think will keep it sustainable in the long run.

The Iran Election has shown this direction that Twitter is morphing: it’s where people go for up-to-the second breaking information and opinion. People are less concerned about speaking and more about listening—listening to thought leaders, celebrities, and people “on the ground.” For this type of information, no one else can compete: the news is too delayed, blogs are often too elaborate to update from a phone, most search isn’t in real time, and Facebook allows users access only to their Friends’ updates. The ability to search for breaking content sets Twitter apart.

What does this evolution in Twitter mean for companies looking to market through social media? First, it means Twitter’s not going away. Twitter has grown from 1.7 million unique visitors in May 2008 to over 19.7 million in May 2009, which signals that there’s something appealing to users aside from the media hype, even if users aren’t tweeting themselves. Therefore, companies looking to enter the social media sphere can’t overlook Twitter as a passing fad.

Second, it means companies should focus less on going through layers of bureaucracy to create the perfect message, and more on distributing the message as quickly as possible to an audience craving up-to-the second updates. Third, I think it means that companies should worry less about using Twitter to have conversations with a small vocal minority, and more about creating relevant, timely, and interesting messages which make the passive majority want to follow the company.

Twitter is finally falling into its niche and gaining its own identity. Companies who recognize and adapt early to users’ trends will give themselves the best chance to capture coveted social media mindshare.

BlogPotomac: Key Takeaways

2009-06-16T14:59:00Z

Last Friday, some fellow “Vigeteers” and I made our way down the street to the State Theater for this year’s edition of BlogPotomac, a one-day social media marketing event. Below are a couple of key takeaways from the day’s discussions.

1. Have a Digital Hub
Ford Motor Company’s Social Media Lead Scott Monty spoke on crisis communication and the importance of an organization having a digital hub. A digital hub is an official web site, microsite, or blog that serves as an anchor to link back to as your organization engages in social media. Scott offered The Ford Story as an example and reinforced Shel Holtz’s belief that blogs are not dying. Blogs will continue to be used for what they are good at; offering a means of rapid response in an authoritative and archived fashion (i.e., a type of digital hub). Shel pointed to Southwest Airlines’ Nuts About Southwest blog in his talk.

Credit: Geoff Livingston

2. Respond, Respond, Respond!
Both Scott Monty and Network Solutions’ Social Media Swami Shashi Bellamkonda discussed their use of social media in crisis communications. Their message was simple: respond! Responding to negative comments or misinformation is the single most effective way to promote transparency and, therefore, trust. Both speakers agreed that the last thing an organization should do in crisis is to go quiet. A response as simple as, “we’re looking into it” can go a long way. Both shared instances where a “we’re looking into it” response sparked others to comment on their organization's behalf. What if we can’t respond due to possible litigation? Shashi recommends responding by saying you can’t respond. How quickly should one respond to a crisis? Shashi tries to respond in 30 minutes or less, noting that a response changes the tone of comments from yelling to a conversation.

Similarly, Scott’s advice for assessing and responding to a crisis included:

Is it a true crisis? If so, how bad is it?
Admit any wrongdoing.
Acknowledge the other side’s feelings.
Respond in kind. (If a video complaint, respond with a video, etc.)

For other impressions and recaps of the event search Twitter for the hashtag #blogpotomac.

Thanks to Geoff Livingston and Jen McClure for hosting the event! Sadly, the third and final BlogPotomac will be October 23, 2009. Stay tuned to the www.blogpotomac.com for details.

Bing! Generates Buzz but Doesn’t Deliver

2009-06-08T15:43:00Z

Last Wednesday, Microsoft launched its new search engine, Bing.com, with an aggressive advertising campaign rumored to cost between $80 and $100 million. In just five days, the “decision engine,” as Microsoft calls it, surpassed Yahoo! as the number two search engine in the U.S. As of today, according to VNU Net, Bing! owns 16 percent market share, much of which has come at Google’s expense.

Personally, I believe growth in market share has more to do with the hype from launch and its creative ad campaign rather than the search engine experience itself.

First, let’s look at the ads:

Microsoft launched Bing! with this ad, associating the financial crisis with inefficient searches. In this creative spot, Bing positions itself as “the cure for search overload”—a way to filter out those irrelevant results.

In a non-traditional move, Microsoft is sponsoring a “bing-a-thon” today on Hulu with a live sketch comedy show featuring members of Saturday Night Live. Users can watch all shows and movies today with no commercial interruptions. In a similar move, according to this New York Times article:

The MTV Networks shows will carry a Bing spot, created by JWT, called “Fast Forward,” which looks like viewers are using the fast-forward feature on a DVR or VCR to zip through 2 1/2 minutes of commercials in 30 seconds. The intended message is that bing.com is about “getting what you want.”

Now, the engine: Is it better than the Goog?

For now, all signs point to “no.” A Microsoft executive even admitted in Ad Age that Bing’s search results are almost identical to Google’s, but that it would differentiate itself through “travel, local, health and shopping, as well as a new user experience for organizing results.” But these features really don’t offer us anything new.

I only found two real innovations on Bing! The first comes from the Shopping section. Users can search for a product, which links to another shopping site like Buy.com, but Bing! will give cash back on their site, usually between about 2 and 12 percent of the purchase price. Google doesn’t send its users checks. Second, when users perform a search, a “Related Searches” column appears to the left of the results. These suggestions can be pretty helpful, but might make companies who have optimized their SEO squirm, since the “Related Searches” often include the names of their competitors.

The travel section differs from Google only in that the user can search for flights directly on Bing’s page. I found basically no difference with Health or Local, and only small differences in the organization of results. (For example, you get a little more information about schedules and scores when searching for a sports team.)

My conclusion: I predict Bing! will fall down the same path as its predecessors, Live Search and MSN Search. For its unique points—Shopping and Travel—users already have options like Amazon, Expedia, and Travelocity—and many people may not even turn to a search engine for these needs. Any search engine that plans on competing with Google must do so in the search results themselves, and although Bing! makes this claim, it falls short.

It’s not a good sign when a website’s biggest differentiator is its advertising. And when the ads die, I wouldn’t be surprised if Bing! goes along with them.

What do you think? Have you found anything on Bing! that revolutionized the way you search?

Middle School Marketing Recap: The State of Email Marketing

2009-05-22T11:30:00Z

Is email the “digital glue” that holds our online lives together? Will email remain the dominant form of communication, or will it be replaced by new means of online communication such as Facebook, Twitter, Wikis, etc.? How do so-called “Millennials” view email?

These were just some of the questions that were batted around during the May edition of the Middle School Marketing (MSM) meeting here at Viget Labs. Nikki Schiavone and Amy Garland of Blue Sky Factory kicked off our time together by soliciting the group’s thoughts on the state and future of email marketing and by asking the overarching question “is email dying?” While the consensus was a resounding “no”, the discussion moved into an examination of how Millennials use and view email. While both reports and experience show a decline in the use of email by Millennials, email continues to be the web’s killer app and primary source of identity with almost every social service (requiring an email address at sign-up). Furthermore, businesses will continue to rely heavily on email, resulting in increased adoption by Millennials upon entering the workforce.

Another reason email marketing is alive and well is its maturity. Many email service providers (ESPs) utilize data rich targeting and reporting tools that enable email to be one of the most measurable and efficient means of marketing on the web. Email continues to have a sizable advantage over social media marketing due to marketers’ ability to effectively measure results. Similarly, ESPs are experimenting with allowing subscribers to share email content with various social networks. When given permission to do so, organizations may soon be able to build and sustain relationships by providing messages in the places (inbox, Twitter, Facebook, etc.) subscribers most like to receive them. As the methods for delivering a message online expand it’s important to remember that email remains a valuable and measurable tool in the marketer’s shed for the foreseeable future.

Thanks to everyone who came out. We’re looking forward to next month’s MSM!

Google Analytics Training - June 11, 2009

2009-05-18T15:35:00Z

Given the success of our one-on-one training sessions, we decided to host a group Google Analytics Training program at our Falls Church, VA headquarters.

This program is intended for users (marketers, business owners, or web professionals) who are familar with Google Analytics, but need assistance deciphering all it's features and data. If you're looking to explore visitor behavior, make informed online marketing decisions, and generate custom reports this training program is for you!

Our goal is to not only help attendees explore and understand their data, but also ensure they're utilizing Google Analytics to its full potential.

We're capping the training to 40 people, so register today to guarantee your spot!

Nifty Little Analytics Tool

2009-05-05T12:16:00Z

As I dig deeper and deeper into the Google Analytics realm I’m learning a whole lot more about traffic patterns, goal funnels, and conversion tracking, than I ever thought possible. I’m also starting to find, and take advantage of, some great tools that Analytics has to offer (that is, tools that aren’t easily accessible in the standard Google Analytics tutorial).

One of these is the utm_nooverride string.

When tracking conversions, Google Analytics will report the most recent non-direct source as the source of the conversion. For example, say you search for “skydiving in Virginia.” You click on an ad for “1800Skyride.com” and browse the web site.

You're not ready to pull the trigger and book your skydiving adventure just yet. After thinking it over, you go back to the site via the brand keyword “1800 Skyride” and complete the conversion. In Google Analytics, the conversion will be attributed to the second keyword, NOT the original one.

What if, however, you want to attribute the conversion to the original keyword, “skydiving in virginia”? That’s where the utm_nooverride comes in handy. All you have to do is attach the string “utm_nooverride=1” to your brand keyword ads (not all your ads!). Now if someone visits your site via a non-branded keyword first and then visits the site again via a branded keyword, and converts, the conversion is attributed to the original keyword.

Don’t worry, this doesn’t mean that your branded keywords will never get any love. If the branded keyword is the original source of the conversion then the conversion will go to that keyword.

So go on and give your original keywords the credit they deserve!

Search Behavior Proves Humans Are Just Weird

2009-05-04T08:00:00Z

This amazing post on why Google loves Denmark inspired me. What do people search for? What are we thinking? What does Google think? I started this thinking I would find some funny stuff, but I was not at all prepared for some of these results. Some of them are offensive, so be warned. Some are absolutely hilarious. All of them say something about human behavior online...

First, some general questions:

Why...

I kept looking. I asked "Why," "What," "When," and "Where."

Then, I decided, what do people think about the countries within the G8? How about the continents? I moved onto "I Am," then kept going. But a lot of them were just too offensive to post. All of them have something striking and a bit surprising. I have to admit, some of them are just depressing, like, "What should I do with my life?" Sure, we all ask that question, but are we really hoping to find answers on Google?

I could say more, but enjoy peering into the dark, weird soul of humanity.

What...

When...

Where...

The G8...

And the a few of the Continents...

Last, I am...

Wow.

Google Analytics API Now Open For Business

2009-04-22T19:30:00Z

Surpisingly, the post I wrote "Google Analytics just got WAY Better - API, Segments & Reports" still gets a lot of traffic. Weird, eh? Don't get me wrong; it's a mind blowing post ... but I didn't think it would have the longevity it has had. You know where the traffic is coming from? People searching and hoping for info on the Google Analytics API.

Well, good news! The private beta is no longer private.

I'm stoked that the Google Analytics API is finally open to the public (check out the full GA article for instructions and additional info). We're able to talk about it, blog about it, answer questions about it, and use it as a service for our clients!

As Google Analytics Authorized Consultants (GAAC), we were fortunate to be part of the private beta, and we've been working on a few apps internally that I'm excited to share with you down the road. Our first app isn't super sexy, but it's going to be awesome. It's designed to allow for more flexible reporting, easier data mashups, reports based on queries, and making the data compilation more efficient; thus, allowing more time for what really matters: human analysis.

Still, I'm curious why visitors to our site were searching for the GA API. Were you one of them? What problems are you trying to solve with API? Why are you excited about the API (things to never share at a party)?

Check out Tony's post about how we're accessing the API using Ruby: Introducing Garb: Access the Google Analytics Data Export API with Ruby

That is all.

Google Integrates Twitter into AdSense with Turbo Tax

2009-04-13T14:27:00Z

Yup, it's true. Google will now be inserting (or, at least, testing)Tweets into AdSense advertisements. The first company to participate in the alpha testing was Intuit's TurboTax. My initial reaction to the news ranged from "No way will this work" to, "Maybe...?" to, "This disgusts me" to, "I respect the effort"... and I still haven't seen it in action. Marketing Voices Podcast has an interview with Intuit’s director of online advertising and internet media, Seth Greenberg (which you can listen to below), and, despite my initial reservations, I found myself impressed with Intuit's approach,and Seth's attitude towards what he calls the "test."

"We're not changing the way we talk ... we're not optimizing for broadcasting, we're optimizing for individual relationship ... we're not trying to buy followers, we're just trying put out the same message that you probably wouldn't see in other channels."

Although Seth said there is "very little downside," I wonder if that's true. Will Twitter users actually be interested in starting a relationship with a brand on Twitter through an ad? Or will they find it impersonal and too salesy? Judging from its Twitter feed, I wouldn't say Turbo Tax is too salesy; its tweets are filled with @replies and customer service outreach.

Additionally, this isn't Turbo Tax's first exploration of social media, and it certainly isn't the only initiative they have running -- its been running a little contest called Super Status Contest, which allows users to enter a contest via tweeting. So far, it's getting moderate pickup.

I am impressed with Seth's desire to test and fail, and I appreciate that it's not all about selling his product; rather, he's hoping this will be a way to build relationships. What kind of relationship can truly come from this type of ad, though? I'm not sure ... but, if you're interested, have a listen:

Finding the Perfect Match Type

2009-04-07T17:47:00Z

When creating keyword campaigns in Google AdWords I’ve always believed that using all three match types – exact, phrase, and match – for a single keyword would negatively affect your campaign. I thought that with this setup your own keywords would be competing against each other. I realized, however, that my beliefs had no solid foundation.

After reading a number of discussions such as this one on Search Engine Roundtable I came to the conclusion that I may have been misguided in my original beliefs. Turns out it is common, and may even be beneficial to use multiple match types for the same keyword, if done correctly. Many claim that the reason Google discourages the use of the same keyword with multiple match types (as stated in an email from Google to member bcc1234 in this Webmaster World thread) is to help cut down the total number of keywords in their system. If users started to double or triple keyword lists by using multiple match types it would significantly increase the load on Google’s system and cause potential scalability issues.

So how exactly should you go about using multiple match types for a single keyword? The general consensus says to start with multiple match types for a single keyword and then fine-tune your lists based on performance. It is important to create separate ad groups for each match type because this will allow you to track performance more effectively. Once you get a general idea of how each keyword /match type combination is performing you can weed out match types that are not working, add in negative keywords to filter out irrelevant searches, and increase bids for those match types that are working. In some cases you may find that all having all match types works well.

I decided to implement these recommendations in some of the campaigns we manage. In a few weeks I will let you know if I’ve found my perfect (keyword) match type. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions for, or warnings against, using multiple match types please leave a comment!

Google Analytics Training at Viget HQ

2009-04-07T15:37:00Z

Last week we wrapped on another successful Google Analytics training session. I was sure not to repeat the mistakes of trainings past and snapped a quick picture of our very own Josh Chambers in full effect.

Be on the look out for details on our next Google Analytics training session!

Middle School Marketing Recap: Interest-Based Advertising

2009-03-26T13:31:00Z

Another month, another successful MSM meeting...Josh kicked off yesterday's meeting with a comment about Google's recent announcement about launching interest-based advertising on partner sites and YouTube. This means that ads being served will be based on a user's browsing history. Josh asked the group: Is this a good thing or a bad thing?

After much discussion, the group came to the conclusion that while behavioral targeting is a good thing for marketers, it may not always be the case for consumers. First, interest-based, or behavioral targeted advertising, could be viewed as invasive and a potential violation of privacy. Second, it’s critical that behaviorally targeted ads be used provide value to consumers. Lastly, social media provides a great setting for discussion and feedback, but more often than not companies fail to monitor and engage in conversations with customers. Interest-based advertising provides marketers an opportunity to serve up ads that are relevant and provide value, but it’s critical they don’t violate the trust consumers have placed in their hands.

For an in-depth look at our discussion, check out Daniel Li’s Live Blog from yesterday morning’s meeting.

Thanks everyone for coming out and we’re looking forward to next month’s MSM!

Timeless Marketing & Advertising

2009-03-24T11:00:00Z

I just read an awesome post by Paul Isakson entitled "Stuck in the Now." Here are a few great quotes:

I have a growing concern that much of our always-connected culture has become so caught up in the now that we're losing valuable lessons from the past and forgetting the importance of having a vision to work towards in the future.

...the rise of social media has spawned new businesses with such a narrow focus on launching and "iterating" that they have no clue where the business is going nor how to make money from it if it takes off.

This quote in particular resonated with me:

Then there is the "I said/thought/wrote about it first" mentality of so many in social media. People are so focused on being the first to say something about the last five minutes that they aren't looking to history to apply the wisdom of the past to today's problems.

CMOs have become focused on what they can do in the two to three years they'll be in their jobs instead of what makes the most sense for the long haul of the company that they're creating mediocre marketing at best.

Check out the entire post, there are some solid links and interesting comments. In some ways, this post sums up why we started the Middle School Marketing meetups.

So, I was inspired to commit to reading a timeless, older marketing/advertising book. Isakson recommends a David Ogilvy and Howard Gossage book (which I will be searching libraries for, because those are way too expensive...). What are a few books you would recommend? Of course, comments are open for general feedback as well!

Under the Hood: Measuring Purchase Intent of PPC Traffic In Google Analytics

2009-03-19T17:02:00Z

Is paid search predominately a research mechanism? Or do visitors have strong purchase-intent when clicking on paid advertisements? Does PPC predominately expose new visitors to your company? Or does it seal the deal? Out of the box Google Analytics doesn't return this data. Google Analytics tracks the last referring source and overwrites the previous. So, if a visitor is exposed to your company via PPC, but then makes a purchase during a later visit via organic search, the organic visit gets the credit thus blinding you to your PPC's conversion rate.

Here's what we did to try and get at this data (still not sure if it will work).

The Goal

We wanted better insight into exactly how PPC traffic was behaving for a catering client. Some keywords generated high click-through-rates (CTR) and decent conversion rates; but other keywords had even higher CTR's but lower conversion rates. Before abandoning the "poorly converting" keywords, we wanted to be sure we had the whole story.

Google Analytics + The Purchase Cycle

As I mentioned previously, Google Analytics tracks the latest referring source. Direct traffic doesn't overwrite the previous source, but all other referring sources overwrite one-another (organic search, PPC, referral, banners etc.) Let's identify a possible (simple) use case:

Billy-Jean is searching for "catering in Washington, DC".
Billy-Jean clicks a PPC ad, lands on the site, checks out prices and the menu then exits.
The next day, Billy-Jean searches Yahoo! for "Catering Company Brand Name" and drops $100k on a whole lot of soda.

Why it Matters

If we were viewing Billy-Jean's process in Google Analytics, we would see a Yahoo! organic search visitor searched for "Catering Company Brand Name" and purchased $100K of soda. We would also see that the Google AdWords keyword "catering in Washington, DC" generated one visit but no conversions.

You can see why this is a problem. We're left thinking the PPC keyword "catering in Washington, DC" isn't producing revenue and is a big waste of money. But in reality it was the rainmaker.

Our Solution

Using the Google Analytics User Defined Variable (setVar); Tony wrote some JavaScript that automatically tagged every paid search visitor with the user defined variable of "CPC". We then created a GA profile that filtered in only visitors with the variable "CPC". The best part? The user defined variable (UDV) doesn't expire, and it doesn't get overwritten unless you tell it to. In other words, that profile contains multiple referring sources (direct, referring sites, MSN organic); however, we can identify all visitors who arrived via paid search because of the UDV.

Want to know how to do it? Check out Tony's post on "GA User Intention Tracking" on our developer blog.

How We're Planning to Use the Data

Well, like any marketing shop, we're going to let the data talk to us, not the other way around. But, here are a few ideas of how we might use this data:

If we discover PPC is simply an exposure piece, we might consider building a “purchase” PPC campaign that contains keywords such as "order" or "affordable" to capture visitors with a stronger intent-to-purchase.
If we know people are using PPC for research but usually purchase after 10 days, maybe we'll have a section of the homepage say, “Welcome back! Last time you visited you check out Boxed Lunches. Still interested?"

The important thing is we have the data, which GA couldn't give us out of the box. Now it's about using this data to make smart marketing decisions on behalf of our client.

Any questions?

Link and Display Advertising Research Tools

2009-03-18T13:19:00Z

Recently I’ve been focusing on finding Link and Display Advertising opportunities for several of our clients. The other day I came across an article in AdAge, by Noah Brier. Brier brought up a great point, explaining “…display advertising needs to be aware of where it lives. At least it should know what site it's on and what people are there for.” This is one thing I’ve been trying to perfect: finding the right placements for the right clients, and making sure visitos "act" on the site.

Credit: theavonne

The key success to display advertising efforts is not just about generating targeted traffic, but converting traffic. A lot of this has to do with the strategies we use, which Josh outlined in a recent blog post about the effective use of banner ads and microsites. But on top of that I've put in hours research and played around with a number of online tools. Here are the tools I've found to be the most helpful for identifying Link and Display advertising opportunities.

1. Yahoo! Site Explorer
A great tool for checking competitors' inbound links. I usually go through each competitor’s “inlinks” and click on legitimate ones to see if they have any valuable linking/advertising opportunities. Be sure to exclude inlinks from the domain you are checking, in order to avoid sifting through any internal site linking.

2. SEOmoz Juicy Link Finder
Simply type in target keywords and Juicy Link Finder generates a list of up to 200 relevant links. It also includes the age and pagerank for each one.

3. Quantcast
There are a number of traffic ranking services out there, but so far Quantcast proves to be my favorite. It seems to have the most up-to-date and comprehensive data and it allows you to view traffic patterns based on time frame, demographics, geography, business type, and lifestyle. This is extremely useful when trying to determine if a site is worth a paid ad.

4. Google Analytics
Everyone knows that Google Analytics gives us insight into top referring sites. It’s easy to look at these top referrers and think “great, so-and-so is sending me a lot of traffic.” What people often overlook (and something I was doing for a long time) is that there is the opportunity to reinforce your presence on these referring site with a display ad. I’ve used this technique to

5. Google
And of course, we can’t forget the all powerful Google search. Running a few searches of key terms can give you insight into relevant sites that may have advertising opportunities. You may also come across competitors that you had previously missed.

If you have any tools that you think would be a good addition to contextual advertising list, please share in a comment!

New Technologies That Blow My Mind

2009-03-16T13:58:00Z

The future will not only be filled with silver jump suits and blue hair, but some pretty incredible digital experiences as well. A few weeks ago, I read/watched a cool Razorfish post about the Surface Table Gestural Interfaces they're working on with the MS surface tables. Last week, it was Microsoft's vision for the future. This week, it's Intel's Shape-Shifting material. These amazing products will change life as we know it. And, even if they don't . . . these videos are worth watching.

Picture this:

You walk up to a window, give it the "live long and prosper" signal, and up pops a display for the latest Fender Jaguar (I'm obsessed) guitars. You move the objects around with your hand, drag and drop the guitars to compare each, hear a live clip of what they sound like, find corresponding accessories, change your pickgaurd, add engraving, and change the color -- basically whatever you want. Sounds awesome and doable, right?

What if that guitar could actually come off the screen and hang out with you in 3D? Now you're not just comparing different colors on a screen, you're looking at the real thing; you may even be able to hold it!

So, you've got these two "virtual" guitars in 3D (probably slowly spinning and making a "whirring" sound effect), but you're not quite sure which one you like. You pull out your little iGadget-thingamajig from your digital jeans, pull the 3D guitars into your palm, take them home, and show your band. You can interact with the guitars, talk shop, compare specs, everything.

How awesome would that be? Can you imagine what types of channels we'll be marketing with in . . . thheee fuuuutuuurreee? The possibilities are endless.

MS Surface + AT&T:

Check out more Surface videos from Razorfish on Vimeo.

Microsoft's Future:

Credit: i Started Something. There's a longer, full length clip at the post. Watch it.

Shape-Shifting Matter:

Credit: PSFK.