Step Wise SEO

Using search engines to drive lead generation requires much of the same thought process and rationale used in the sales (eCommerce) approach.

Submission type and engine selection
Submission type
This strategy requires, and in many cases can only be supported by, two distinct submission types owing to the nature of the content on the website and by virture of the distribution.

A couple of submission types are optional and through a process of testing may be valuable channels.

Paid For Placement (PFP) - As with the previous two uses for search engines the PFP engines are by far the strongest paid options.

With distribution to the major channels used by searchers these mechanisms are the strongest providers of fast and accountable results.

Organic search - Essential in any strategy, the organic search engines (e.g. Google) are likely to be some of the strongest providers of large volume traffic and success.

Paid For Inclusion (PFI) - Optional for a lead generation strategy, this mechanism is suitable for websites with large scale volume.

Vertical engines - The second optional submission type for generation leads. These engines are strong in driving contextually relevant traffic and in the case of the B2B industry are very targeted.

Sites like Business.com are worth investigating; however, like any optional element to a strategy these mechanisms should be tested as the targeted traffic comes at a premium and might not justify the Cost Per Lead (CPL) metrics.

Engine selection
It is important to select the correct search engines to achieve this objective. With a lead generation strategy many search engines arc optional, pending testing, as the results may swing either way from strong to poor (see Table below).

PFP First tier - the first-tier PFP engines such as Overture and Google AdWordsTM will be the two strongest performers for a lead generation campaign, only rivaled by Organic optimization.

Ask Jeeves may provide solid back up and MSN featured sites might be applicable, however, a minimum spend level of $’sk is required for this engine to be viable.
PFP Second tier - these engines arc all optional as the syndicated results may well provide good enough ROI.

Expect the possibility of high traffic and low conversion or very low traffic and conversion (this is dependent upon syndication partner).

The conversion likelihood of these sites may be higher than on a sales strategy as a lead isn’t committing the search 100 per cent to a company; however, it is important, as with any engine, to test to find the right blend of keywords.

Organic - the use of the organic engines is essential in any strategy. With zero CPC and the largest coverage of screen real estate on most major search portals, this type of engine is critical.

Vertical engines - in the USA, engines such as Business.com and Industry Brains lead the way in driving vertical specific traffic to a site that is contextually relevant.

This traffic is strong in relevance but driven from contextual type advertising (i.e. not directly from an engine) and as such should be tested for conversion potential. As the traffic comes at a premium these engines can produce very high CPL.

Keyword and creative selection
Once the submission type and distribution network has been identified (i.e. the engines) the next variable is to determine the components that go into representing the company within the vast array of searchable variables.

The following types of keyword and creatives should be used to drive leads to a website.

Keyword selection
Branded terms - branded terms are essential in any strategy as they hold the highest possibility for traffic at a low cost with a high conversion potential. If the brand is well known, this is even more applicable.

Generic terms - generic terms are important but in a lead generation strategy, especially for the B2B environment, can be exceptionally expensive.

Generic terms in this context are expensive not because of the search velocity possessed but because of the relevance to a subject and, in complete contrast, as the traffic velocity is so low any click is treated like gold dust.

The management of these terms is particularly important to the success of a strategy to drive cost-effective leads.

Product terms - product terms are important in any type of strategy but the research required must be done to ensure it is effective to research a large number of terms.

In many instances the cost-benefit of researching and implementing terms that aren’t going to be searched for at least once a month may not be favorable and, as such, utilizing more generic terms with broader match types might be the answer.

Regardless of this fact, if there are product terms being searched for it is important to make full use of the opportunity held.

Match types
When selecting keywords the match type is key to success. If the wrong match type is applied to a keyword, the resulting traffic number could jeopardize the overall return of the campaign.

With such little traffic available on some terms and every click a potential lead, the match types used could be set as broad as necessary.

It is, however, of vital importance to use negative keywords to ensure that irrelevant traffic is not received.

Development
For a lead generation approach the creative used must qualify a searcher as a potential customer and be compelling enough, with a call to action.

Branding creatives are those that continue a theme or maintain continuity with other branding or marketing activities.

In a lead generation strategy the branded terms can be used in multiple ways to increase awareness of a particular offering of competitive advantage.

General creatives are those that represent the core benefits, offerings or values of a company but are designed to reinforce the fact that the searcher has come to the right place or found the right company.

In many instances search results are dominated by listings that might not be the actual site being looked for.

Resellers and competitors might all be buying or optimizing against a particular term and in most instances if the keywords being used are generic the likelihood of there being a maximum number of other bidders is high.

General creative is optional as, in many respects, designing as compelling as possible a creative to prompt a click and then rely on the website to convert the user into a qualified user, could be a viable option.

Specific creatives are those that utilize the titles and descriptions to represent a specific offer or message related to the keyword or searcher’s interest.

A click on keywords, especially a generic keyword, is so desirable that a general creative might fail; if this is the case applying a specific creative to a generic keyword may provide enough of a compelling statement to prompt a click.

Measurement/control parameters
Once all of the actionable variables (i.e. engines, keywords, creatives) have been highlighted the next stage is to get an understanding of how to measure the performance against the objective.

In this instance it is lead generation so the following control parameters are used as well as the measurement thereof.

Control parameters
The most important variable here is to determine what the success metrics are and how they are to be measured.

In a lead generation strategy the perfect solution would be to make all traffic to a website accountable.

Understandably, all sales from a lead generation strategy are handled offline, however, if any leads are to be generated from this medium, the following control parameter must be used.

• Cost Per Lead (CPL) - a CPL measurement takes into account the number of conversions (leads) generated by an advertising medium.

 If the cost of advertising (in the case of search cost of clicks) is divided by the number of leads generated, the CPI is determined. Many companies have a range for a CPI and optimize within that range.

Measurement
With the identification of the control parameters the focus must now be how to measure each of them to gauge success or failure. Using measurements provided from the search engines and parameters gathered by tracking and analysis tools, the following apply to the tracking of a lead generation strategy.

Measurement variables
The essential criteria for measuring a lead generation strategy are to be aware of all the parameters that determine success.

In making such measurement the most important variables to consider are traffic, cost of traffic and conversions (generated leads). There are three means of getting this information.

1. Search engines: many of the engines, such as Overture and Google AdWordsTM, provide the search marketer with the option of taking all of the abovementioned data.

 This is free of charge in most cases or can be obtained with a small premium. The disadvantage with this type of tracking is that despite the information being free it is only available for a selection of engines and won’t give a complete picture of success or failings.

2. Tracking tools: Please click here to learn about a detailed description of the tracking tools available to track the entire search campaign.

 The advantage of a tracking tool is that all search submission types (PFP, Organic) can be measured in one location and, analyzing on performance, compared type for type. The disadvantage is cost and resources to manage such a tool.

3. Homegrown systems - many companies have devised analysis tools that allow marketing departments to track the performance of a search campaign using the website’s existing logs.

By utilizing a code (such as an affiliate ID code) a company can identify the source of traffic and watch the progression of said traffic through the site.

If these data are compared with those provided by the engines, all of the variables for control are covered.

Detailed measurement
It is also important to ensure that the measurement for a lead generation strategy is as granular as possible.

Keywords should be measured individually so for some search engines, such as Google AdWordsTM or Find What that allow you to measure groups of keywords together (e.g. in an AdGroup), these options should be ignored in place of singular-keyword tracking.

For the sake of reporting, keywords can be grouped together and summarized but in an ideal scenario keywords, engines and sales must all be recorded in minute detail.

Indirect conversions
Additionally it is important to appreciate conversions both directly and indirectly. In other words it is vitally important to recognize that users may return to the site after a few hours, days, or even weeks, to conclude a transaction.

For a lead generation strategy this is of particular importance as a B2B (or high scale B2C) sale requires a great deal of consideration and as such the searcher may well study many websites before finally converting on a website.

With some cost per clicks being in the dollar (rather than cent) range it is important to track this cost back to a sale well after the initial visit.

Measurement calculations
With this information at hand all of the control measurements can be recorded as follows.

The measurement parameters for success will be marketer defined according to the business parameters of the company.

 For many companies search is measured differently from other marketing activities, as it is accountable (i.e. revenue over costs).

Management and optimization
The final stage in working toward a particular objective is to understand the way to manage the campaign and to optimize the performance if it isn’t as good as expected.

It is important in understanding how to make the most of search engines and generating leads.

Management
The variables that require management are quite simple and represent the core foundations of a strategy around generating leads via the search engines. The following are the said variables.

• Presence ensuring that search listings appear under search terms that are most likely to prompt a click and eventual conversion.

• Quality - ensuring that search listings that appear are converting the searcher into a visitor to a website.

• Cost effectiveness - making sure that all search campaigns are running at the desired business goals set for the particular medium and objective (i.e. meeting a CPL goal).

Managing a campaign for generating leads consists of two distinct methodologies, as with all previous campaigns.

These are (1) technology and (2) manual management. Typically the strongest search campaigns will develop using both, but, as has been discussed in previous chapters, the two can exist in singularity.

Technology ‘bid management’
With an effective sales campaign working with all types of keyword it is essential to use some type of bidding technology to aid in driving success.

In a lead generation approach a third component is added, i.e. to manage towards a cost per lead (CPL) goal and the parameters for success are increased as price and position will be determined by a keyword’s ability to perform, either singularly or as part of a group, towards a return goal or a measurement type highlighted in Measurement/Control parameters above.

The following stepped process should be considered when managing a campaign through a bid management technology.

Step 1 Research - It is critical to research the right keywords to use in a campaign and more importantly to apply bidding to each of them.

Elements such as bid price, keyword velocity and estimated conversion rate can be applied to terms and the price and position needed to sustain an effective campaign.

Step 2 Selecting keywords - keywords researched must be selected by both their singular ability to achieve the goal and as a portfolio.

Different bidding rules or practices must be applied to keywords with different capabilities.

Keywords that are generic for example may have stricter CPC limitations as they hold most risk in using a large percentage of a budget.

In a lead generation strategy the generic keywords may be the deciding factor between success and failure so selecting the right keywords is of critical importance.

Brand terms, for example may require top placements to ensure a brand-related search is always catered for within the top syndicated positions.

The keyword classification must be done based upon the research mentioned in point number 1 so that accurate keywords can be selected to achieve goals.

In applying the conversion factors, keywords should also be selected based upon conversion potential.

This applies to any kind of keyword management; however, applying the same conversion rate to a generic word as to a specific word may produce inaccurate projections.

Averages must be estimated in the initial setup of a campaign; then, as more realistic data are passed back from tracking tools the averages must be replaced with actuals.

Step 3 Implement - once the keywords are selected it is essential to produce the most appropriate bidding rules for each term.

Selected terms that can justify higher positions must have different rules from those that hold more risk. Use the selected keywords to apply bidding rules and implement the terms on an hourly basis.

In some instances bid rules must be applied to singular terms, however, in many instances the same bid rule or bid management technique can be applied to more than one keyword.

As many of the terms indicated in Step 2 don’t hold a keyword velocity warranting concern, these can be grouped together and a ‘universal’ bid rule applied.

The more sophisticated tools allow for market conditions and the performance of the keywords to determine the best bidding rules.

These systems take much of the guesswork out of bid management as trend-based analysis determines the most appropriate time of day, day or week, by keyword, to place bids and listings to ensure maximum coverage within the PFP search engines.

Manual management
Manual management is defined as the control of a campaign using limited additional technology.

The focus is to find work around mechanisms on the words and phrases being used to ensure that a campaign’s performance is maintained at all times.

Without a bid management technology the process of driving leads from the PFP engines is a very difficult and challenging task; however, it is not impossible.

The way to master this is to focus on the tools and mechanisms provided within the industry that are freely available for all to use.

In this instance these are the bidding vehicles provided by the PFP engines themselves.
The following screen shot demonstrates how the interfaces from the engines allow for position range and maximum CPC limits.

The effectiveness of these mechanisms is in actually determined by the amount of resource allocated.

The question becomes one of frequency and updating techniques. This has been clearly demonstrated in previous chapters.

• Manage keywords sorted by importance: if the keywords are sorted by the importance and relevance to a company’s products, services or branding exercises, more emphasis could be placed upon these words only and the remaining terms updated less often.

• Manage keywords sorted by cost: for the more fiscally challenged campaigns the management of keywords by price is critical.

 In sorting keywords by those that have a high likelihood to run away with a campaign, these should be managed more carefully and more often than those that don’t have as high a probability of doing so.

 Note: this rationale is particularly important for the management of Google AdWordsTM and in reference to organizing campaigns to get the most from each keyword based upon a budget.

• Manage keywords sorted by performance: The performance of each keyword is critical for generating leads.

 As with the sales strategy the performance of a keyword can be determined through the tracking mentioned earlier in Chapter 2 and, as such, the keywords that hold the greatest performance opportunity should be managed more often than those keywords that don’t show as much promise.

Optimization
The optimization of a lead generation strategy is most similar to that of a sales strategy. The difference lies with the optimization toward a conversion metric of leads rather than that of sales.

In Table 2 are listed many of the problems that are commonly associated with a strategy designed to drive sales, and some suggested optimization techniques are presented for review.
 
Table 2
Sales-driven strategy problems
PFP Engine Problem Optimization Technique
High Traffic, High CPL This would indicate that the traffic being driven to a website is either:
a) Not relevant enough or that
b) The cost of driving this traffic is too high.

Revisit the keyword list to see if more terms are available to test or attempt to lower the bid price to gain less traffic that may well be more qualified
High Leads, High CPL The keywords being used are converting but at a high cost. Attempt to weed out terms that are driving nothing but traffic.

If this exercise fails to reduce the CPL attempt to control the positioning of the converting terms and, if applicable, apply bid rules or day parting to ensure success
Low CPL, Low Lead Volume The volumes of leads in this scenario are too few in number.

Increase the number of keywords being used or attempt to increase the position of the terms within the engines to boost performance

While the optimization techniques mentioned above are some of the more common scenarios with solutions, there are many factors at play that could determine success or failure.

Beyond inappropriate keyword selection there could be other forces, such as market conditions, searcher demand, and even creative selection, that might affect the success of a campaign.

Management and optimization of ‘other’ submission types
Organic (natural search) engines
One of the strongest ways to increase leads at a very low CPI is to adopt organic search engines, such as Google, Yahoo! and MSN.

In many instances these mechanisms have low recurring costs, which are in actuality based upon the commitment from an organization to constant improvement, and can be very strong in driving top placements, under a company’s brand name in particular.

It is therefore one of the most important aspects of a search strategy designed to drive leads; however, as has been highlighted earlier in this book the calculation and accountability of organic search is a great deal more complicated than that of paid search. For this reason the following should be utilized.

• Research: when either (1) employing an outside firm to optimize a website or (2) placing a request for web designers or technical departments to implement website changes, it is important to ensure that keywords that will represent the brand and company are used within the optimization process.

Above all else it is important to be listed organically against these terms alone as many searchers still to this day utilize search engines even to find company websites rather than typing in a website address.

• Measurement: for a lead generation strategy it is recommended that rankings are used as the control and measurement variable and that sales are measured from organic traffic by recording the data from log file analysis against conversion points within the website.

 While adjustment and optimization of words and phrases based upon success is difficult, it is possible to record total sales and then measure additional organic optimization.

As organic listings aren’t as dynamic as paid listings, the optimization and control isn’t as fluid.

For this reason when optimizing organically it is important to accumulate a history or presence within the engines and build upon it.

The Constant optimization necessary for organic search is performed via attention to detail on the key words and phrases that are most important to a business and increasing relevancy, via code changes and link architecture to ensure long term presence.

Key issues in achieving sales (eCommerce) via search engines
There are a number of key issues that must be taken into consideration when building a campaign around lead generation.

These items relate to different aspects of building a campaign and should be associated with a campaign if deemed necessary.

The problem in a lead generation campaign, as with any, is that (1) if one listing is being shown, the term being placed might not be the `official site’ listing and (2) if bidding is happening behind the scenes then should the `official site’ listing appear it may do so at a much higher cost than can he justified by the site’s conversion and CPL per

Affiliates
Changes in affiliate bidding, as of January 2005, on Google AdWordsTM (the most commonly used search engine for affiliate bidding) resulted in affiliates bidding frenetically to get the only listing available for a company under a particular keyword.

 This is a departure from the current scenario, which allow more than one listing for a company to appear under one term.

The problem in a lead generation campaign, at with any, is that:

(1) If one listing is being shown, the term being placed might not b the ‘official site’ listing and
(2) If bidding is happening behind the scenes then should the ‘official site’ listing appear it may do so at a much higher cost than can be justified by the site’s conversion and CPL performance.

Contextual advertising
Content match has been a much maligned mechanism for driving traffic to a website from some of the major (and minor) PFP engines.

As a vehicle for driving traffic it is exceptionally good; however, as soon as ROI (in this instance a CPL) metrics are placed against it, in many cases poor returns have been the result.

In a lead generation strategy, content match or content targeting is not recommended, but, with any type of vehicle, not completely disregarded. The following mechanism should be applied.

• Research - when researching the keywords on some of the engines, content matching can be added to the analysis parameters to determine what additional success will be seen.

Some engines are more capable of providing these data so use judgment when selecting keywords.

• Measurement - for this measurement use traffic, CPC and conversion data. Both Overture and Google AdWordsTM have the capability of providing tracking parameters to measure search listings against content listings.

Ensure that these mechanisms are used to gauge the success of contextual advertising.

To Sum up
As most research is performed online and with most online users turning to search engines to source the information required it makes perfect sense to use an SEM strategy to achieve these goals. The following are some of the highlights from this article:

• Paid For Placement (PFP) engines and organic search are the recommended types of search engine mechanism to use for lead generation.

• The major first tier PFP and vertical engines are recommended, as these will give the maximum coverage on the major portals and provide results for very specific audiences.

Second tier are optional; however, it is recommended that testing is done to ensure success.

• It is recommended that generic, specific and branded keywords are used for a lead generation campaign, if possible. The more specific the search request, the better the creative will have to be.

As traffic levels for the B2B space are often far below those of the B2C the clicks are worth more and driving a higher CTR is almost essential.

• Similarly generic, specific and branded creatives are also recommended to ensure keywords are matched with appropriate creative.

• Control should be obtained by measuring success against the following (but not specific to any one): cost per lead, cost per action.

• Management is deemed necessary in maintaining position in accordance with the control metrics of these phrases at the maximum possible within budget.

• Affiliate marketing must be controlled to ensure that any activity performed on branded terms is done so at the lowest possible CPC.

• Contextual advertising is not an option.

• Buying brand names is recommended for this strategy, as this helps with the entire buying cycle and these terms can often have the best return on investment.

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