how to choose the right keywords for the right type of audience

MARCH 3rd, 2015

CHOSING THE RIGHT KEYWORDS FOR THE RIGHT TYPE OF AUDIENCE Gene Skazovski

Sr. Director of Demand Generation Tongal

@Gene_SEOMachine

searchmarketingexpo.com

@Gene_SEOMachine #SMX #12A

Audience Types



eCommerce & Lead Generation Differences

Different Customer Focus with Different

Keyword Variations



eCommerce & Lead Generation Similarities

Emotional State > Impulsive vs. Patient

A Need vs. Want > Is it a necessity?

Timeframe to make decision > Short vs. Later…

Who is it for? Is it for “me”? Is it for “someone else”?

Users have different behavioral group patterns when performing search online

Users have different latency to conversion

eCommerce would have two phases: a) buy now and b) buy later

Lead Gen is something like: “this is kind of urgent, but…”



Similar Yet Different

eCommerce & Lead Generation

Users often rely on outlets perceived to be an authority in some verticals: (Ex. WebMd – Home Health Care, Wikipedia – Home Research,

Matt Cutts videos - SEO, Amazon - eCommerce, Yelp - Local Reviews, etc…)

Users have different compromise thresholds – Price vs. Quality vs. Service



Keyword Options

What does a customer do?



Lead Generation



Sample #1 – Searching for a Limo Company

Prospects refine their search patterns as they assess the outcome of their own search efforts.



Use Synonyms and Thesaurus

Develop Segmented Keyword Silos

Further research your category and understand if there are any customer niches

How To Target These Prospects?



Many recommended

keywords are displayed

in the search bar as the

keyword is typed in.

Most keywords are

semantically related

and may be used in

developing engaging

and sharable content.

Other Options



Other Search Options…

Keywords that frequently occur in searches, but as frequently overlooked:

DIY related

How To/Guide(s)

Popular tips

Top/Best of

Why is/are

Where is/at/are

What is/are

When is/are

Videos

Blogs/Case Studies/White Papers

Enterprise/Luxury

Cheap/Inexpensive/Affordable



eCommerce



Sample #2 – Purchasing a 70” TV

Started with “70” > two options > two paths…



refined search “best 70

inch tv on the market“

Nothing, but Ads!



This time using Google

Started with “70 inch tv”

Mostly Ads

Few “info” pages

Conversion oriented (last click driven)



Refining the search to “best 70 inch tv”

More balanced SERP’s

More “info” pages optimized for

“best/top-rated” or “recommended”

keywords.



Other Search Options…

Options/Specs

- LED

- HDTV

- 4D/3D

- 3K/4K

Branded Searches

- Sony®

- Samsung®

- LG®

- Toshiba®

- Sharp®

- VIZIO®

Savings

- Coupons/Promos/Discounts

Off To The Left Field

- 75”/65”/80”

- UPC# / Model# / Model Name

- Warranty/Reviews

Vendors/Outlets

- Newegg®

- TigerDirect®

- BestBuy®

- Costco®



Conversion Process



How We Buy

Need/Interest/Desire

Re+Search

Comparison/Selection

Assurance/Verification

Decision/Commitm

ent/Conversion

Satisfaction/

Appreciation/

Regret

Repeat

Wh

ere

is m

y c

usto

me

r sp

en

din

g tim

e?

Wh

at w

eb

site

s?

H

ow

ca

n I h

elp

my c

usto

mer m

ake

a

right d

ecis

ion?

BR

AN

D F

OC

US

BR

AN

D F

OC

US



The Customer Journey to

Online Purchase



https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/tools/customer-journey-to-online-purchase.html#!/the-us/home-and-garden/medium/social

“These days, the customer journey has grown more

complex, touching many different marketing channels...”




















It’s all about interaction

Beginning 39%, Middle 43%,

End 17%


End 20%


End 14%



















Semantic Search

A Key To SEO



it helps knowing this…!

What is Semantic Search?

Expand your imagination to how granular this could get…:

“Semantic search seeks to improve search accuracy by understanding searcher intent

and the contextual meaning of terms as they appear in the searchable dataspace,

whether on the Web or within a closed system?, to generate more relevant results…

Semantic search systems consider various points including context of search, location,

intent, variation of words, synonyms, generalized and specialized queries, concept

matching and natural language queries to provide relevant search results. Major web

search engines like Google and Bing incorporate some elements of semantic search.”

Read more details here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semantic_search

(More valuable information can be found at this link that will “wow” your mind if you are a “creative thinker”)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semantic_search









What Does It All Mean?

Simplifying Semantic Search

“diamond jewelry” > “diamond rings” > “diamond earrings”, “engagement rings”, etc...,

“tennis bracelets” > “diamond tennis bracelets” > “gold bracelet” > “3 carat bracelet”, etc…

“new car” > “new car loans” > “lease vs. buy” > “new car incentives” > “dealer outlets”, etc…

“plumber in {city/zip}” > “plumber DIY tips” > “fix clogged toilet” > “plumber network”, etc…

“saas software” > “cloud based software” > “saas software reviews” > “SAP”, etc…

“Italian food” > “Italian recipes” > “Italian restaurant {city/zip}” > “top rated Italian

restaurants”, etc…



SEO Was Easy



Wonder wheel – It Was That GOOD! Yes!



Hmmm….??!?!?



Final Takeaways



Audience Segmentation



Different Channels = Different Terms

Prospects use different phrases when they navigate through different channels:

PPC queries

Social Media queries

Organic/Natural Search queries

Review Type queries



Customer Thought Process

I need…(Item name or Service name)

I need it/this… > Now / Today / Soon / When???

I need it/this for… > myself / boss / spouse / friend / family member / Who???

My company needs it/this or My house needs it/this / or Who needs it/this???

eCommerce and/or Lead Gen

How to…? > Learn… vs. Teach…

Travel (to / at / from / on / in) > Flying / Driving / Sailing / Biking / Running / Walking

Where… / Why… / What… / When… / Who… > Need vs. Offer



eCommerce Keyword Focus – Building Silos (Quarterly)

I want you to buy it now persona

I want to buy it soon (3-10 days) persona

I want to buy it later (2-6 months) persona

How would you change your keyword focus if instant gratification wasn’t available?

Imagine: All purchases can occur only 1 month after original discovery?

Brands should focus on:

If you want to buy it later buy it from me

When you buy it you should know this

Search Term Version 1 Version 2 Version 3 Version 4 Version 5

Original

Reviews

Discounts

Competitors

Blogs



Lead Generation Keyword Focus – Building Silos (Quarterly)

It’s an emergency - I need it now/tomorrow persona

I need it soon (3-10 days) persona

I need it later (2-6 months) persona

It’s for someone else persona

Brands should focus on:

Trust

Options

Customer Satisfaction

Search Term Version 1 Version 2 Version 3 Version 4 Version 5

Original

Reviews

Discounts

Competitors

Blogs



Other Ideas and Recommendations



Few Generalizations

Cheaper items have a shorter buying cycle than expensive items do…

Example: $3.99 vs. $399 vs. $150,000

eCommerce vertical – more product oriented and very price driven. Who the item is

purchased from is often not as important as its cost. Except when dealing with

Luxury goods or Brand Loyalist.

Lead Generation – more vendor/brand/trust oriented and moderately less price

oriented, meaning a customer will pay a little extra if they like who they purchase

this service from. However, Lead Gen is also strongly reliant on satisfaction and

reputation thus no matter what the price difference is an excellent customer

experience is universally expected.



Silo keywords based on customer funnel and intent not single broad root variations.

Ask a question: How would this be searched for on Social Media Network?

Cover Negatives – We all ache for some drama and it makes content stand out

Search for Negative Keywords (including PPC Campaigns) and Negative

Sentiment. Turn negative into positive.

Have fun – write about fun facts about Industry, Brand(s) or Client(s) or Product(s).

Quality over Quantity – Make content sharable and searchable not spamable.

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