Can Big Brands Benefit from Search Marketing?
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Can big companies like Walmart, Burger King and Victoria’s Secret benefit from search marketing? This question arose during a conversation in reference to an SEM proposal I was working on for a very well-known company who everyone has heard of. The company advertises via traditional media, such as TV and print, and they dominate the market share in their particular vertical. “So why," my colleague asked me, “should they even bother with search?” Good question.
The short answer to my first question is: yes, big brands can benefit from search marketing. Everyone can benefit from search marketing. That’s because search marketing is driven by the consumer, not the advertiser. It truly puts consumers in a proactive role in terms of what they are looking for and what companies/products/brands, they choose to read about, exchange information with and ultimately buy from.
These are not people flipping through a parenting magazine who see an ad for Huggies, but don’t have kids in diapers. In this scenario the consumer is the passive bystander and they aren’t looking for information on diapers. They are looking for information on parenting. This is why an ad when it’s not wanted, needed, or expected can be ineffective. Not that this is news to anyone, but bear with me.
So getting back to my colleague’s question, “why should big brands even bother with search?” There are several very good reasons.
Search marketing is cheap (relatively speaking)
Search marketing is cheap compared with other forms of advertising such as TV commercials, direct mail and print advertising. “Cheap” is relative. If you are a small company, then I am not speaking to you. If you are a big brand with millions to spend on advertising, then shame on you if you are not using search to its absolute maximum potential. Paid search ad impressions are FREE, and organic search listings that appear in search results are also FREE.
Yes, it costs money to hire agencies, consultants or in-house staffers to perform SEO and manage PPC, but this is still a fairly low cost compared with one prime time television spot. Click charges can be as low as $0.05 each on Google and $0.10 each on Overture for certain keywords, and search volumes are getting larger each day as more people turn to the Internet for products, services and information.
People are looking for you, man. Be there for them.
Search marketing can support a well-known brand by associating top product-specific keywords and/or products with the brand.
This can apply to both business-to-bussiness (BtoB) and Business-to-Consumeer (BtoC) companies. For example, a search for "grill" on Froogle brings up a wealth of grills, but none of them are from Lowe's or Home Depot. Both chains sell grills and should absolutely be there (in the search results of Froogle) for generic terms like "grill" and "grill accessories" and brand names like "Jenn-Air grill" and "Char-Broil."
Search engine results can support the message that Lowe's is a resource for all things having to do with grills by being there at the point of search. But don't look just at Froogle, but also paid search ads on Google, Overture and other shopping engines and also in the natural search results. The best part is, consumers are looking for information on grills, grilling and grill accessories. This isn’t a hit or miss ad. It’s always a hit because it’s always targeted and (even better) impressions are free, unlike banners, commercial spots or magazine insertions.
Keeping the above in mind, you can start to see how search marketing can impact a company's bottom line by featuring big brands in ways that consumers may not be aware of.
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