Category Archives: Google

The verdict on Google Shopping

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By Julia Priddle, Head of Account Management EMEA for ChannelAdvisor

 

When Google announced the end of its free product listings service, it set in motion the biggest shake-up of the way online retailers use search since the launch of Google Adwords.

The service is already live in the USA and retailers in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Japan, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Brazil, Australia and Switzerland will begin to transition to Google Shopping from 13 February 2013, with full roll-out due by June 2013.

While it’s good news for Google, it could lead to some big changes for retailers as the decision to start charging for listings causes a tremor through the e-commerce landscape. Continue reading →

Google+ for business

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By Kelly Sutherland currently, Digital Promotion for iCrossing UK

 

With 2013 set to become the year of ‘content marketing’, it’s important to ensure that your business is creating fresh, engaging and relevant content. For SME’s this can seem daunting and a common misconception is that you won’t have the staff numbers or in-house expertise to create and promote engaging assets. But in reality, the beauty of digital marketing is that you have the freedom to share information regularly and immediately. Google+ is key, and getting your business active now will benefit traffic, customer engagement and SEO goals long-term. Here are 4 key tips for maximising your presence through Google+. Continue reading →

Marketers urged to get on board with Google’s latest Remarketing for Search product or get left behind

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Google’s latest launch of its Remarketing for Search product, currently in beta, is a huge step from the standard advertising options that Google Adwords presents, says leading independent digital marketing agency, Greenlight. According to the Greenlight, it could have a substantial impact on the way digital marketers traditionally use remarketing and advises that it would be in their best interest to trial the product sooner rather than later or they could get left behind.

Ryan Haines, Paid Media Executive at Greenlight says:

“Remarketing for Search is a powerful targeting option for marketers whose aim is to increase brand awareness, obtain new customers and tailor ads to existing customers within the search engine results pages (SERPS). In a case study, World Travel Holding says it has seen a significant 145% increase in click through rate (CTR) versus its original campaigns.

Until now, Adwords remarketing was based on the Google display network (GDN) and was a product where digital marketers could select various audiences based on their behavioural web page browsing history. Remarketed ads would then be targeted to entice browsers and potential customers, who may have entered the conversion funnel, back to a certain webpage where they are more likely to perform a conversion function.

Google’s Remarketing for Search takes the benefits of remarketing and leverages them within the SERPs. It allows advertisers to target users on the search network based on their keyword search history within the SERPS. It facilitates a more personalised search experience, as it gives the opportunity to create and target ads based on a users’ level of interaction with the brand, from new user to premium member.

Benefits

According to Greenlight, some of the major benefits of Remarketing for Search in relation to the placement of ads on the SERPs include:

  • Ability to monitor bids on expensive generic keywords, as ads will be targeted towards browsers that have already been to a certain site and therefore more likely to convert.
  • Higher quality of traffic as ads are targeted towards keywords instead of webpage history.
  • Tailored ad copy and bidding strategies based on a customer’s browsing and conversion history.
  • Option to exclude existing or previous customers from brand awareness campaigns, therefore more targeted advertising, saving costs etc.
  • Ensures the most relevant landing page (LP) is used based on the customer’s level of interaction, keyword search and conversion history with the respective brand.

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Concerns

Although this all sounds like the product should be fundamental to any good search engine marketing (SEM) campaign, Greenlight’s Haines notes that Remarketing for Search, like any Google product, comes with boxes that need to be ticked, some of which may raise more questions than answers.

“Firstly, a concern for most would be the fact that they would essentially be bidding on similar, if not the same keyword for their text ad. As always quality score will determine which ad will be shown. As mentioned, the advantage of bidding higher if need be for an audience you know has already visited your site, has some form of brand awareness and is more likely to convert and should justify this. Also, once the specific Remarketing for Search campaigns have a history and gain traction, the quality score should improve thereby helping to reduce cost per click (CPC).”

According to Greenlight’s Haines, the main red tape requirement for this product would be the fact that advertisers must use the specific Google remarketing pixel to create the audience. This automatically limits Adwords users that have limited pixel placement capabilities. Also advertisers will have to use discretion with certain ‘call to action’ ad copy in order to comply with Google policies.

Haines concludes:

“It remains to be seen whether Remarketing for Search will completely change the face of remarketing as we know it. What will further impact this also depends on what tweaks are made before its release. That said, I would urge digital marketers to take the initiative to trial and test the product sooner rather than later otherwise they could find themselves left behind on one of Google’s most innovative ways to create even more targeted and granular methods of online advertising.”

Boosting natural search performance abroad

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By Andreas Voniatis at Alchemy Viral 

As Google reigns in its search engine ranking positions (SERP), boosting natural search through localised content aimed at targeted international audiences is proving key to driving natural search performance abroad.

 

Following Google’s 2012 penguin and 2011 panda SERP updates, it was user-friendly websites and trustworthy content rather than repetition that remained optimal.  The implications for international search are such that the cheap and cheerful tactics have now been eliminated.  For example, placing French words on English language websites to rank in Google France no longer apply – not that it should have done so in the first place.

 

Leading international SEO practices demands that you not only need to think global by getting the site architecture right so that the content is accessible.  You also need to act local by ensuring the content makes sense to the audience at hand.  So if you’re targeting businesses in Russia, you need to ensure your content is written by native Russian speakers and is persuasive.

 

To really succeed abroad and avoid getting lost in translation there are several stages one needs to go through.  An international SEO strategy helps to ensure your business websites hit the ground running in the countries you’re targeting, however certain considerations need to be borne in mind to get this right.

Audiences not keywords

 

Whilst traditional SEO focuses on key phrases. Whipping out your online foreign dictionary and directly translating your English keyword lists simply won’t do.  For example, if you’re selling iPhone skins in Germany you may wish to understand how people in Germany go about buying these products.  The next question begs, which demographics are buying those products.  Yes it is true you can find out which keywords generate online sales using Pay Per Click advertising (known as PPC).  It’s also true that it’s dreadfully expensive.  The alternative is to simply research who the customers are and which sites do they visit in order to learn more about the products you’re selling.  Doing so will also not only help you generate the right keywords but also understand the factors that affect their buying decision.

 

Know thy local social

 

Although Google is the most used search engine in most countries, in many other countries local brands are preferred.  For example, Yandex is the most search engine used in Russia as Baidu is the most popular search engine in China.  Understanding the nuances of these engines is critical for ensuring your practices will achieve the desired effect.

 

Persuasive local content

 

Now there we know where we are getting to, content that speaks the language of your customers is very important because it communicates trust.  That means hiring native speakers from that country that have a talent for persuasive writing.  The writer of course must understand your product and buy into the company or brand in order for their passion to show through the landing page copy.  Let us not forget also the content is even more persuasive if is hosted on a website domain that matches the country.  So if you’re selling to the Spanish market, the most appropriate option is to build a Spanish site on a .es domain.

 

International link acquisition

 

Link building has acquired a dirty reputation of late and the SEO industry is still obsessed with links even if they call it “content marketing”.  The reality is link building is what forms the Internet.  It existed before Google and it will exist long after Google.  For international campaigns, it’s imperative you acquire links from sites that your target audience read.  For example, a business website targeting mainland Chinese people must aim to get links from sites that have mainland Chinese audiences.  This could be sites with relevant and topical Chinese language content hosted on .cn domains for example.  Acquiring links in China can be achieved by building media relations in China.  In addition, hiring a brilliant copywriter for your Chinese website will also help attract links from other websites in China.

 

There is no excuse for a well thought out campaign that has a strategy mindful of the people you want to do business with in the target countries.  It not only communicates your serious intent and the respect for your potential customers, it also show avoids being lost in translation.

Why You Should be Paying Attention to Google+

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By Ruth Cheesley, Director of Virya Technologies (www.viryatechnologies.com)

With the abundance of social networks that spring up on an almost daily basis, you would be forgiven for emitting a dramatic sigh to hear that you need to start paying attention to another social network. But this time, really, you do!

What’s the fuss about?

Google+, if you haven’t already heard, is the social network which is provided by the search engine giant Google.

On the surface it’s ‘Just another social network’ but when you start to look at the deep integration with other Google products which are gradually being rolled out, alongside the way that Google+ ‘Circles’ (the containers into which you group your contacts) are influencing the content served up through Google search, it is rapidly becoming a social network that you cannot afford to ignore if you take search engine rankings seriously.

So what?

Google is building a trust-based network, whereby your social habits and connections inform your search results. If you search for something in Google when you’re logged in, results which have been recommended (by ‘+1′ or sharing) by your network (people in your Circles) will begin to be served up above those which haven’t – the relevance algorithm won’t be ignored completely, but precedence is beginning to be given to resources which people in your network think are useful.

This makes logical sense, in a way. If you were looking for some information about a topic, would you be more likely to trust information which comes from somebody you are already connected with, or a complete stranger (or something a company is paying to put in front of your face)?

For companies …

Take a step back and consider this from a corporate perspective – if you have a corporate page on Google+ and your potential clients follow your Google+ page, your results are naturally going to start ranking higher for those people. If you have a lot of people following your page, then a lot more people are going to have your links ranking higher. It’s important to note, however, that you can’t directly ‘Circle’ people from a page unless they have already ‘Circled’ your page – so some strategy is called for in order to gain followers.

For individuals…

Consider the implications from the perspective of an author, technical writer, trainer, speaker, one-man-band or any other position whereby building a reputation is important. If you have lots of people in your Circles, they too will be served over time with content you recommend (by sharing or recommending using +1). They will also be able to see when they search for a term which you have a reputation for, how many Circles you are in (hence your general popularity), and at a click see all the content you have contributed.Everything.

So, the question is, can you (and your clients) afford to ignore Google+ any more?

Google Glass set to land in shops for 2014

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At yesterday’s Google’s I/O developers conference in San Francisco, Google introduced not only the new Nexus 7 Tablet, but also announced that Google Glass will be ready for developers as early as next year and is set to land in shops for 2014.

The video (below) shows Sergey Brin, Google’s co-founder entering the stage at the developers conference to deliver a ‘special surprise’ that promised to be ‘pretty magical’ – he wasn’t exaggerating, check out the video and let us know what you think.

Talking about Glass and yesterday’s conference, Google said that ‘we are always pushing the limits of our technology, and Project Glass is no exception.  It is designed to help you live in the moment — even when you’re falling from the sky.’

If you want to see more and you haven’t caught this yet, then check out the original preview viral video for Glass here:



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