Australian search advertising expenditure hits record levels

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) released its Online Advertising Expenditure Report (OAER) compiled by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) this week, showing Australian online expenditure for the first three months of 2011 totalled $601 million – the largest ever Q1 record.  Search achieved a record Q1 performance, recording a 23 percent growth year-on-year.  Search and directories now accounts for 54.2 percent of the overall online advertising expenditure, representing $326 million.e-channel CEO Frank Grasso comments “it is evident that Australian online budgets are on the rise, as companies see the increasing value and advantages of internet advertising.  Developing a paid search strategy and pushing marketing budgets towards search is what savvy advertisers need to do to remain competitive”.  Grasso points out the benefits of Search “Online marketing offers discretely measureable results for advertising spend and is one of the only channels to do so.  This, combined with the influx of new users to the internet and the rise in hours spent online by existing users, creates an environment where growth in the online advertising space will continue”. 

“For e-channel, IAB’s study reinforces where our company needs to be, making us optimistic in achieving our growth strategy, both locally and overseas”.

http://www.newsmaker.com.au/news/8826

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Tags: e-channel search, Frank Grasso, IAB, online marketing
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How to change your domain name without affecting Quality Score

We recently uncovered an issue which nearly saw a client lose page rank and consequently Quality Score.

After recently having a company domain name change, this client set about redirecting pages from their old domain to their new domain name.  What we discovered were temporary 302 redirects existing for a few of their web pages, a 302 redirect is a ‘temporary redirect’, bringing across ‘0’ ranking power.  Google does not confer any page weight to these pages, and it appears they also penalise ad Quality Score.

Upon discovering this issue, we promptly suggested changing the redirect by utilsing a 301 redirect, instead of a 302.  The 301 redirect is permanent that is, the URL requested is no longer valid, and will exist at the new location from now on.

The ideal solution when moving to a new domain is to 301 redirect all the old pages to their equivalent page on the new domain.  There are many types of redirects available, and the primary redirect used by practically all software and scripting languages is a 302.

The key point is that a 302 redirect is a temporary redirect, that is you need to check back, whereas a 301 redirect is permanent, that is that the URL requested is no longer valid, and will exist at the new location from now on.

A 301 redirect, whilst far from foolproof, is the “best available solution” to maintain the old pages, ‘off page’ benefit, such as PageRank, link popularity and anchor text, which will otherwise be lost.

In order to achieve the best result, a spreadsheet outlining the old and new pages should be created, that lists the old URLs and their equivalent new URL, and, upon launch, put in a 301 redirect from old to new.

If you have far too many pages to redirect, then at the least, refer to your analytics for the last 2 months and look for the pages providing 90% of the SEO traffic and then ensure those pages are mapped to the new pages of the site.

The client’s Quality Score is now back up between 7 to 10 (previously 1 to 2s).  The Quality Score, CPCs and CPA will continue to improve over the coming weeks as the account gains more history.  Positive effects have also been seen as more of our client’s pages are coming up in organic search.  This will progress as Google index the site, driving more traffic and signups organically for them.

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Tags: e-channel search, echannel, Google, organic search, Quality Score
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Google Shopping is here, Aussie retailer’s take note!

Yesterday, Google launched Google shopping in Australia.  Accessible on the Google search page, the retail shopping site allows online retailers to advertise their products on-line, enabling shoppers to search for products, compare prices and read reviews.  Good news for Adwords advertisers with the ability to add product extensions to their ads. Frank Grasso, CEO and Founder of leading Australian internet advertising agency, e-channel Search comments “the launch of Google shopping is fantastic news for the Australian retail industry.  This is all the more reason for Australian retailer’s to get on board with digital marketing.  If Aussies retailers don’t take advantage of these opportunities, the consequence will be losing shoppers to offshore retailers”.  Grasso goes on to comment on the associated benefits to paid search. “With Google shopping providing Adwords advertisers the option of using product extensions with ads, shoppers view ALL related products from the retailer’s site.  Therefore improving retailers search campaigns by increased click through rate (CTR) for ads with product extensions”.With the growing number of Australian’s turning to the web for shopping, it is imperative for Australian retailers to have a significant online presence or run the risk of losing business to offshore competitors.

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Tags: adwords, CTR, e-channel search, Frank Grasso, Google shopping
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Strong Growth Leads to Employment Opportunities at e-channel Search

e-channel is offering several new employment opportunities as the company continues its increased expansion into Australia, Asia and the rest of the world.  Benefiting from a strong third quarter, e-channel Search is currently seeking staff in the areas of Research and Development, Search Engine Marketing and Business Development, expanding their team in both Sydney and Adelaide. 

e-channel’s CEO Frank Grasso comments, “Our third quarter results reflect a very nice start into 2011.  With the number of Australian and international clients increasing, it has resulted in significant growth to our business, allowing us to expand all areas of our company”.  Grasso also gives recognition to the e-channel staff and technology; “e-channel’s strong customer service focus, and award winning patented software DynamicCreative^TM has positioned us well, to service clients in any global location and to expand our business base at a national level.” 

 “We have added several large clients to our existing customer portfolio and look forward to working with them in maximising their paid search results”. 

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Tags: e-channel search, employment, Frank Grasso, Search Engine marketing
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Are you ready to ride the retail superhighway?

Frank Grasso founder of e-channel Search and developer of patented technology, DynamicCreative^TM will take attendees on a fast ride along the retail superhighway at the Sydney SMX online marketer Conference Series and Expo this month, April 14.Grasso will address the changing landscape for today’s retailers, as iconic brands such as Borders and Angus and Robertson close their shopfronts, and Google and Yahoo thrive.   He will provide some valuable, leading-edge information which is pivitol to marketing professionals who want to develop a winning Paid Search strategy.  Grasso will leverage his vast experience in search engine marketing and consultation with some of Australia’s leading online goods and service brands.  A Champion writer with Digital Ministry, avid blogger and highly sought after speaker, Grasso most recently presented at PhoCusWright in the US, one of the world’s largest travel innovation summits.  The presentation can be viewed here; http://www.echannelsearch.com/In addition, Grasso will make a second presentation at SMX Sydney, on ‘Large Volume PPC Tactics & Strategies.  Educating brands on the right way to handle thousands of keywords, fluctuating inventory and landing pages.  Grasso’s smart automation presentation saves marketers both time and money, enabling competitor differentiation and significant improvements for Return on Investment.e-channel’s Head of Search Guy Wayland will present at the SMX Boot-Camp with his talk on Keyword Selection for Pay Per Click campaigns.  Looking at how to perform keyword research to get the best results for your Pay Per Click campaign.

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Tags: Digital Ministry, Dynamic Creative, e-channel search, Frank Grasso, PhoCusWright, Sydney SMX
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The Retail Industry’s Biggest Challenge

David Jones is one of my favourite department stores.  I go there every morning for coffee, I buy my lunch there, and I am also a frequent visitor to the Sydney, David Jones store.  It is also my wife’s favourite store (my monthly credit card bill provides testament to that!).  Upon receiving the latest glossy DJ’s ‘home’ catalogue, in our letterbox, my wife fell in love with a white Moran bar stool, contained within the sophisticated, 18 page brochure.

We planned an outing to the city DJs store, got the kids organised, drove the 30 minutes to the store, battled our way into the car park and headed into the departmental giant.  Heading straight to the furniture section we were disappointed to find, the advertised bar stools were nowhere to be seen.  My wife hailed a shop assistant and proceeded to investigate the location of the desired furniture (the credit card was literally burning a hole in her hand!).The sales assistant did not know the whereabouts of the stools, or when they would arrive.  She promptly contacted the buying department who also, as it turns out, did not know the arrival date of the stools.   We did, however, find a life size banner, with the exact picture of the bar stool, so I took a picture with my iphone.  With iphone in hand, I began searching for “Moran bar stools” only to find no search results for Moran or David Jones.  There were however, a host of other online retailers making it easy to take my money. The catalogue was obviously designed and printed weeks before the scheduled promotion date. Clearly there was some sort of ‘mix-up’ getting the bar stools to Adelaide – s**t happens! I’m sure this wasn’t intentional. Catalogue promotions are great at getting people to the store – driving foot traffic.  There is always that finely printed, sneaky disclaimer “subject to stock availability” that covers advertisers should an item sell out, or in our case, there is a delivery problem. In the days when customers did not have the luxury of a computer or ‘smart phone’ this was probably a good strategy.    A retailer’s biggest challenge in 1998 was getting the customer to the store; from there a skilled sales representative would up-sell or cross-sell. It didn’t really matter if you disappointed customers by not having exactly what they came in for – after all, you had that finely printed disclaimer advising the item ‘may not be available’. Today, customers have the ability to search on their smart phones, right from your showroom floor – giving Google, Yahoo, and Bing the opportunity to cross sell and make an immediate sale to disappointed customers – not just your floor sales staff.   

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e-channel Awarded Patent, Now Hungry for Global Market

e-channel Search has been awarded a Patent as a result of its research and development into new search engine PPC software, Dynamic Creative^TM.  The award winning software, works by taking a direct XML feed from a client website to produce live, dynamic ads that match inventory levels. 

The Australian Patent was granted after e-channel Search CEO and founder, Frank Grasso invested more than ten years of research and development into Dynamic Creative^TM before successfully deploying it within a number of Australia’s largest companies, including Flight Centre, one of Australia’s largest on-line search spenders.

After e-channels recent success in the US at the travel innovation conference; PhoCusWright, (visit www.e-channel.com.au to see the presentation) e-channel gained trials with two of America’s premier travel organisations.  This follows e-channel’s vigorous entry into the US market, targeting; airlines, hotel chains and online travel agencies, after immense success in Australia and Asia.

Due to Dynamic Creative’s^TM ability to create highly targeted and relevant ads, it drives the most relevant and targeted customers to click on websites, providing better conversions, and taking searchers straight to the appropriate landing page.

 If  a searcher requests ‘flights to London’, Dynamic Creative^TM generates a live ad, providing a price corresponding with the airlines current inventory levels, ie. ‘$999 flights’.  It also displays an expiry date within the ad, ie. ‘Offer ends November 30’.  As the searcher clicks on the ad, it takes them straight to the landing page of the offer.  When November 30 rolls around the ad will delete itself, or if the airline sells out of flights at the $999 price, the ad will be automatically deleted. 

The intuitive software works successfully with any product category, subcategory or item on a website, allowing search advertisers to perform very sophisticated mass marketing campaigns in search engines. 

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Tags: DynamicCreative, e-channel search, Frank Grasso
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Australian’s – the boredest people in the world!

Author: Frank Grasso on 2 December 2010  

Whilst I sit and wait for another meeting in the plush surrounds of the ‘Googleplex’ lobby here in Mountain View, I have time to contemplate. 

I realise this is the first time I have had a quiet moment after a crazy 14 day business trip around the US. 

Thanks to a spare five minutes and the free Google guest Wi-Fi, I log onto Google Insights, after remembering a recent dinner conversation with Timothy Hughes from Orbitz (author of Business of Online Travel).

He told me, he had noticed more and more searches appearing in the form of statements – like; ‘I am bored’.

So what does one do when they are sitting in the headquarters of Google awaiting a meeting …….. they Google things, of course.  

To my surprise, (and no doubt, probably yours - that is why I’m sharing this) I discover Australian’s are the top searchers of the word ‘bored’, and by a landslide! 

 If Australians are searching for the term ‘bored’  at 100%, being the highest, then UK are second, searching 61 times, with the US and Canada sharing 3^rd place with 56%.

It seems we are the most bored on a Saturday and our favorite ‘bored’ search term is ‘bored bored bored’, with the search term ‘bored to death’ on the rise.

So as marketers how can we leverage on this knowledge, particularly to our Aussie purchasers???

Boredom as per the Wikipedia definition is described as; “an emotional state experienced during periods lacking activity or when individuals are uninterested in their surroundings.”

It seems more and more Aussies are bored and looking for something to do on-line.   As marketers, how can we leverage on this emotional state that consumers are so freely sharing with us?

We could create a live dynamic action ad that appears as the consumer searches the word ‘bored’. 

Sort of like window shopping but on-line.

 It could read …. ‘Bored? Need a change? Get away.  5 star hotel $130 with free breakfast, book by December 30’.

This ad not only plays on the feelings of the searcher, but also provides a call to action, one click and the ad will take the searcher to the website where they can book the offer and escape from their dull and uninteresting Saturday.

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Google Ad parameters (previously Live Ads)

On the 24^th of November 2009 Google announced a new feature in its v2009API, called Ad parameters. Ad parameters enables you to change numeric information such as prices, discount percentages, inventory level, etc. within an text ad in real time, while keeping the history and statistics associated with the ad.

Before Google launched Ad parameters Adwords users had to delete the old ad and write a new one every time they wanted to update information such as price or quantity in their ads, resulting in the ads losing their Quality Score and performance history.

The announcement of the launch of Ad parameters was no surprise to e-channel search. In fact, we have been working with Ad parameters (previously known as Live Ads) for several months while it was in beta test. We are absolutely thrilled to see it graduate from beta.

Ad parameters is now an included feature in our propitiatory campaign management software, Dynamic Creative^TM, enabling the software to automatically build and update dynamic ads.

Below is an example of the type of ads we can create with Dynamic Creative^TM:

Hong Kong Flights

Fly from Sydney to Hong Kong for $521,

Act Now, Only 5 Seats Left.

www.flyflyfly.com

The results speaks for themselves, by including Ad parameters in the ads the CPA for one of our largest clients active in the travel industry has decreased by 69%  at the same time as the CTR has increased by 600%.

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Tags: Ad parameters, Dynamic Creative, e-channel search, Live Ads
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e-channel search ranked number 43 in Deloitte Technology Fast 50

e-channel search has been ranked number 43 in Deloitte’s prestigious Technology Fast 50 Australia 2009. Deloitte Technology Fast 50 is a program that recognises and profiles fast growing technology companies. The program, which has been running in Australia for 9 years now, ranks the 50 fastest growing public or private technology companies, based on percentage revenue growth over three years (2007 to 2009).

Read the full report here: http://www.deloitte.com/assets/Dcom-Australia/Local%20Assets/Documents/news-research/Press%20releases/Tech%20Fast%2050/Technology_Fast_50_Australia_2009.pdf

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Tags: Deloitte, e-channel search
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