kartiky

M Posted 9 years 8 months ago

t 9 min read

As a valuable strategy for marketers, keyword awareness can boost a site's flow of organic traffic as well as engagement metrics.

A few months ago, I was returning from a concert when I noticed a small flier placed on my car window, which read "If you enjoyed this event, lookup [artist name] on Google". It was an ad for another concert organized by the same company whose event I had just attended.

I ended up searching for [artist name] as per the flier on Google a few days later to look for tickets and found myself clicking on the management company's website. While clicking around the site and learning more about their upcoming events, the strategy from a marketing standpoint intrigued me.

The flier was essentially a way to explicitly build keyword awareness, that when searched, would lead to more traffic on the company's website - a feedback loop to generate repeat customers. By encouraging people to research a particular term that they already ranked highly for, the company was able to secure the organic traffic and build engagement. This untapped strategy can build brand awareness and boost engagement metrics for companies that employ it.

Understanding the role of awareness in brand promotion

We understand brand awareness to be the likelihood that consumers recognize the existence and availability of a brand's product or service. Keyword awareness could be similarly described as the likelihood that consumers recognize the existence of search terms. When terms enter the vocabulary of those familiar with a particular topic or industry, they become more likely to use these phrases in their searches, thus increasing the traffic for those sites that were already optimized for the topics.

Marketers can use keyword awareness to drive up their organic search traffic. Similar to the experience above, brands can suggest keywords and promote different terms to particularly receptive audiences and begin to build themselves a strong audience for their particular areas of expertise.

When you build keywords in the minds of consumers, you can help influence both current and future behaviors. For example, if someone sees a list of related search terms on your site, even if they do not choose to click on one right now, they have a higher chance of remembering that term in the future and using it to search. When you rank highly for this term as well, the search will lead them back to your site, helping you to further build your relationship.

Before you can build keyword awareness, however, you have to have an understanding of which terms will align with your target audience's needs. If you're still trying evaluate which related topics will resonate, try our free 30-minute webinar on 3 Steps to Boost Content Marketing Results.

Building keyword awareness

One way to build keyword awareness is to publicize the high-ranking keywords via your product recommendation engine. Typical product recommendation engines calculate the likelihood of a product attracting a visitor’s attention by computing a likability score for related products and ranking them. This is done through a mathematical indexing formula that takes into account the browsing behaviors of other users.

In addition to the browsing behaviors, if the product likability score is made a function of organic keyword search volumes and ranking, marketers could have recommendations that are influenced not just by product likability but also search engine optimized content. In addition, publishing the list of keywords as a social proof-- for example, listing current popular search terms-- reinforces these keywords in the visitors’ minds, thereby creating an organic traffic feedback loop.

A strong keyword awareness campaign can encourage people to visit your site while also boosting the engagement of those who have already landed on your page. Linking to related topics will encourage people to explore more material, keeping them on your page and laying the foundation for a strong relationship.

Improving engagement on your website serves a critical purpose in encouraging more prospects to enter your sales funnel. Customers today are inundated with content and information from a variety of different sources. Experts believe the digital ecosystem will grow from 130 exabytes to 40,000 exabytes by 2020. While the growth in digital usage is beneficial for customers, this means also that brands will have to compete even harder for attention.

Building engagement on your platform will boost your brand recognition and reputation. It lays the foundation for your relationship with the prospect, demonstrating that you can answer their questions and address their needs. Strong engagement metrics can also boost your ranking on the SERPs and encourage more people to enter your sales funnel.

Building keyword awareness and demand with BrightEdge

BrightEdge is a powerful tool that will help you find the right keywords to capitalize on, empowering you to raise awareness for visitors and build the positive feedback loops.

1. Using the BrightEdge API, you can easily pull your top ranking keywords, search volumes and other SEO metrics, out of the BrightEdge platform. This will let you see the terms for which you regularly rank highly.
2. Monitor and measure the search volume and the ranking URLs to better understand the keywords that will be the focus of your keyword awareness campaign. See our on-demand BrightEdge API webinar. 
3. Create a site recommendation engine that uses the data pulled out of the BrightEdge platform, to help bolster your target keywords while using social proof to boost interest in the terms. Link people to content that is likely to interest them, encouraging them to explore more terms and the topics where you excel.
4. Use A/B testing to further optimize your recommendations. Look at a variety of KPIs including how well the recommendations boost engagement, encourage people to enter the sales funnel, and result in repeat customers.

Keyword awareness and demand can be an important part of building an online strategy. By interesting people in your terms and topics, you can encourage them to engage with your brand through your website. Used correctly, it will boost your traffic arriving from organic search engines and it will encourage people to remain on your site longer.

A BrightEdger

M Posted 9 years 8 months ago

t 9 min read

Forrester describes the customer journey as “[spanning] a variety of touchpoints by which the customer moves from awareness to engagement and purchase.” Typically represented in the form of a customer journey map, it is implied to be linear and sequential.

In truth, with the increasing reliance on digital and mobile today, the customer journey is splintered and does not follow a logical, straight path. Instead, the customer journey is really more of a network of quests for information. Altimeter Group says that it is now "[fractured] into hundreds of new ‘micro’ touchpoints where customers seek real-time, mobile-optimized content, reviews, shared experiences and direction online.” Google calls them “micro-moments” and says that “when added together, they ultimately determine how that journey ends.”

This change -- from straight path to meandering, multi-directional journey -- is reminiscent of the “Choose Your Own Adventure” children’s books that were popular during the 1980s and 1990s. Instead of a set story, these books gave the reader the option to choose the next event within the storyline -- resulting in a number of possible outcomes. Admittedly, a Google search on this topic revealed that others have also noticed the connection between content marketing, the customer journey and this children’s book series. However, beyond just a kitschy metaphor, there are takeaways that digital marketers should consider and strategies that should be employed -- to effectively connect with customers throughout this new customer journey framework and to win over customers during these critical touchpoints.

1) The journey is self-driven

As indicated in the name, books within the “Choose Your Own Adventure” series gave the power of the narrative to the reader. Every few pages, the reader was presented with a choice and each successive decision led to a different outcome. The same is true in the customer journey. Customers are no longer sitting back and passively consuming the outbound messaging that happens to make it their way. Instead, customers are actively researching and educating themselves on the best options throughout the decision-making process. Consider these facts about the digital behavior of customers:

• Search engines are the 3rd most popular way that customers learn about new products. Almost half (47%) of customers use a search engine when engaged in product discovery.
• This rings true for B2B customers as well: 74 percent of business buyers conduct more than half of their research online before making an offline purchase.

What this means for digital marketers Today’s customers are empowered to actively seek out information throughout their unique customer journeys. This makes it imperative for marketers to understand what troubles, plagues, interests and inspires customers and to deliver the right content during each touchpoint. With Google processing more than 2 trillion searches each year, search is your strongest and most direct source of information about your customers’ interests and needs. Organic search is your market-wide voice of the customer -- conveying critical information on what your customers care about at scale. Only by researching customer demand are marketers able to deliver the digital experiences that customers are seeking and to win the moments that matter.

2) There are twists and turns, and unpredictable outcomes

In the “Choose Your Own Adventure” books, each decision point sent you in a new direction, resulting in serpentine plotlines and upwards of 40 possible endings. The customer journey is equally complex. Customers now access a multitude of information to discover, compare, evaluate (and re-evaluate), and ultimately make their decision. In an interview for The Huffington Post, Matt Lawson, Google Director of Performance Ads Marketing, stated, "...[When] we see customers start on this journey, there’s typically a domino effect of new opportunities and greater insights that appear." 

Just when it seems that the story is set, the customer journey can take a rapid and unexpected detour. Google research revealed that 65 percent of smartphone users look for the most relevant information, regardless of the company providing it, when conducting a search on their smartphones.

This means that the battle to engage customers is never-ending and can be won by any brand that provides the most compelling, helpful and relevant content during these moments that matter.

Additionally, 82 percent of smartphone users consult their phones while in a store. And one in 10 of these customers ended up purchasing a different product than they had originally planned. That’s an ending that no one saw coming!

What this means for digital marketers

Marketers must ensure that their content is available and accessible at every step of the overall journey. There’s a saying: “It ain’t over ‘til the fat lady sings.” In today’s customer journey, it ain’t over ‘til the customer clicks “Confirm purchase” on their smartphone, signs the credit card receipt at the register, or until the business buyer puts their signature on the contract.

The customer journey is no longer a series of compartmentalized states of being -- with diminishing influence further down the funnel. Instead, digital marketers must acknowledge the opportunity that exists throughout the network of digital touchpoints. They must ensure a strong organic presence, providing customers with thoughtful and informative content throughout the customer journey, to influence customers towards a desired outcome.

3) Every moment matters

The books were able to maintain twists and turns in plotlines because each chapter ended in a question and required that the reader make a decision before proceeding to the next part. As such, each of these points was an important pivot in the overall storyline. The decision made at each and every one of these touchpoints influenced the direction of the voyage.

The same is true for today’s customer journey. From a company’s product pages to online reviews to social media influencers and user generated content to ecommerce sites (and back and forth again), customers consult multiple sources and types of content in making a decision. And each of these touchpoints is critical in influencing the customer and contributing to the momentum as they continue along their path to purchase.

Consider the impact of reviews on the customer journey. More than half (54%) of customers said that they read online reviews before making an online purchase. Or consider the impact of providing information and knowledge in driving customers from I-want-to-know to I-want-to-buy micro-moments. Outdoor products retailer REI created informative online buying guides to help customers understand how to best select the right outdoor products, including backpacks.

This I-want-to-know content had incredible impact on conversions, resulting in 60 percent of content consumers purchasing backpack products.

What this means for digital marketers

The takeaway for marketers is precisely as it is written above: every moment matters. The most successful digital marketers ensure that the right content reaches the right audiences at every phase of the customer journey. Taking a data-driven approach, digital marketers understand customer needs and interests, create the content that addresses these demands and positions their brand as the best solution, and ensures that this content can be easily found and accessed during the more than 2 trillion times that customers seek out insights and guidance on search engines every year.

If customers are the protagonists in their adventures, then your content can be thought of as a digital sherpa guiding them every step of the way. As they approach each touchpoint, ensure that your content is there and that it is helpful and useful in that moment. Create compelling digital experiences matched to each decision point to influence customers as they venture along and to drive them towards your “ending.”