Rose Osprey Marketing: Cutting-Edge SEO, PPC, & Web Analytics

Conversion Rate Doesn’t Matter-For The Most Part

I was speaking with a client the other day about his site. He said he was fairly pleased with its performance as the conversion rate was 3%.
I paused and took a breath.
Did I really want to get into why that is a meaningless statistic? No: “I really don’t want to go into why that is a meaningless statistic, but yes your site has been performing better lately.” Luckily I have built up some level of trust to where it was okay to leave it at that.
What I mean to emphasize is that aggregate conversion rate tells you nothing about your website or business. However, it is a statistic that is commonly referred to as meaningful (especially the higher up the corporate ladder you go). Adding to the confusion, in the web world, I am not certain the definition of “conversion rate” has been uniformly established. Does it mean:
1) Total number of conversions/ Total number of visitors
2) Total number of conversions/ Total number of people who added items to the cart*
In my mind when we in the web world talk about conversion rate, most mean #1.

Why is Aggregate Conversion Rate not important?
Aggregate Conversion Rate is not important because you will always be willing to sacrifice your conversion rate for increased revenue.
For example:
Say you are paying $1/ visitor and converting at 5%. You get 100 visitors a day.
I tell you that there is a potential stream of traffic that you have not taken advantage of. This stream costs $.10/visitor and converts at 1%. (Both customers spend the same amount).
Would you want the traffic?
Would you be happy with increased revenue and decreased conversion rate?
Yes, of course. This would be great.
Could this ever happen? Yes, it happens all the time. Each revenue source (or channel) converts at a different rate and will change your aggregate conversion rate if you decide to incorporate that channel. The content network might convert at a different rate than the search network. As long as they are both profitable, they are worthwhile investments.
Never focus on the conversion rate, focus on profitability and maximizing conversions.

*Number #2 has something to do with abandonment rate. That is, conversion rate + abandonment rate will always add up to 1 (or 100%). We do not have a good term for conversion rate #2 (that I can think of) so we refer to its opposite term, the abandonment rate.

Should I Invest in SEO or PPC?

Companies trying search engine marketing for the first time may only have the money for SEO (search engine optimization) or PPC (pay per click) but not both.  While they are similar in that they both use the search engine as a medium to attract customers the results, costs, and expectations are very different.

The other similarity is that both services are often performed by the same agency or individual.

SEO

Are you looking to invest in the long-term success of your company? Are you patient enough to wait for results?

If the answer is “Yes” then SEO may be your choice.

PPC

Do you need results now? Are you prepared to spend more money to get the results you want?

If the answer is “Yes” then PPC may be your choice.




The Strengths and Weaknesses of SEO and PPC

SEO

Strengths:

The effects of good SEO are relatively permanent.

The upfront cost of SEO is less than PPC.

Weakness:

It may take two months to see results.

PPC

Strengths:

Very quick results compared to SEO

You can bring traffic/customers to your site instantly.

Weakness:

PPC is more costly than SEO.

PPC does not help the sites’ development for the future. If you stop spending you will stop seeing the positive effects.




Which is Better for my Business: PPC or SEO?

The answer is “it is unique for every business”.  It depends on your goals and budget. Often a business owner will know for certain which service she wants to try, sometimes they will ask for input from us.  If you have a question contact us and we’ll answer any questions.

Using Keywords for Competitive Intelligence

If a competitor is targeting a keyword it is very likely that those keywords are leading to sales (or conversions). If you had this knowledge you could put it to good use:

1) Is there a hot product that you haven’t noticed because you’re too busy trying to run your business?
Did you not know that people were already selling model X-2011 already?
Competitive Intelligence can help fill that gap: Order model X-2011

2) Do you sell a great product but people refer to it by another name?
Are you selling “horses” and calling them “mounts”?
No one will find you; no one searches for ‘mounts’ when they are looking for a ‘horse’.
Competitive Intelligence can help you with that: Change your copy.

3) Is there an area you have not explored that your competitors have?
Are you only selling gold jewelry and your competitors thought to sell beaded jewelry? Your customers would never buy that!
They are already buying it. From your competitor! Perhaps you should stock it.

There are endless examples.
Competitive analysis can help you fill the holes in your research and get a leg up on the competition. Don’t reinvent the wheel- learn from others.

Using Google Maps to Market your Business

Local Search, Google Maps and Business

For marketers and businesses, Google Maps is an extension of SEO. For businesses whose customer base is primarily local, Google Maps may be a more important source of traffic than traditional organic SEO or pay per click marketing.
Lawyers, doctors, hotels and restaurants are all examples of businesses that need a presence on Google Maps to stay competitive.
E-commerce companies, wholesalers, and warehouses usually do not need Google Maps to stay competitive

local search results

Google Maps and Universal Search
Google maps is an aspect of what is called “universal search”. Google maps attempts to identify businesses close in location to the searcher. If I need a lawyer and search for “lawyer” or I want a pizza and I search for “pizza”, it is likely that a business down the street will be much more relevant than a lawyer in New York or Ukraine.
For certain searches, local results are better.

How does Google know I want a Local Business?
There seems to be at least two conditions that need to be satisfied for Google Maps to be triggered:
1) The search phrase must contain a city name: e.g, San Diego Lawyer, Surgeon in Minneapolis, etc.
2) The search is for a business-related item. You can’t just search for “San Diego X” or “X San Diego”. X has to match a database of words. Lawyer, surgeon, pizza, hotels are all business-related, so Google-Maps triggers if you enter one of these phrases. “San Diego Rattlesnake” does not trigger Google Maps.

What Does This Have to do With My Business?
Submitting your business to Google Maps can help you gain visibility when people perform these “local searches”.

If people see you on Google Maps, they could clickthrough to your website and end up as customers. This has to be the easiest search optimization technique to use to help market your business. Obviously, the “trick” is to do it right.

You only get seen if you are in positions A-J (the top 10).

The Problem
Google has not resigned to the fact that Google maps is the domain of marketers.
As such, they have enforced very strict rules against attempts to optimize Google Maps. More than any other area of search marketing, it is better for you to be conservative- no keyword stuffing.

Conclusion
Submit a map, or hire someone to submit a Google Map for you. If you still desire more visibility, and wish to be aggressive in your marketing, look into altering your SEO and PPC efforts.