Marketing Communications

492 CHAPTER 15 E-COMMUNICATION

A specifi c type of targeted online advertising is keyword buying , also known as search engine

advertising (SEA). Th is is advertising on large search engines such as Google, Yahoo!, Bing, etc.,

that is triggered by specifi c keywords and search terms and which appears alongside and some-

times above or below the search results. Keyword buying is all about placing a catchy ad on several

relevant websites, blogs and social media to bring more visitors to the target website if the user

clicks on the ad. Th ese ‘smart ads’ ensure higher impact and low waste for advertisers looking to

target genuine potential customers. Th is type of advertising uses the unique benefi ts of the Web

as a pull medium.^22 Unlike the other types of online advertising that are CPM-based (cost per

thousand) ad formats, keyword buying uses a pay per click model. Th is means that advertisers

only pay for each click-through on their sponsored link. Th e prices per click vary and are set by

bidding on keyword combinations. Th e more popular the keyword, the more expensive it is.

Search engine marketing (SEM) is one of the fastest-growing online advertising businesses.

Gulf Stream Gear sells custom boat lettering and apparel online through nationally targeted campaigns. Over 11 months,

127 403 visits were driven to the site of which 1594 produced sales. As the average cost per sale is $37.78 and the

average basket is $175 and up, the Adwords campaign turns out to be very profitable. The sales tend to slow during

winter. Therefore a special holiday season campaign was created. To increase sales the focus was on boating, yachting

and fishing gifts tailoring keyword and ad text to holiday sales. During December 2009, there were 10 068 visits,

162 of which made a purchase at an average of $31.98 per sale. During winter, the focus was on the trade shows to

drive traffic and sales at these trade shows. Advertising is responsible for over 80% of the site’s overall traffic.^23

BUSINESS INSIGHT

Gulf Stream keyword advertising campaign

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