PLAN YOUR ONLINE BUSINESS STRATEGY
From identifying your goals to knowing how to track your progress, this topic will
show you how to put your best foot forward when creating a digital business
strategy. Learn how to stand apart from the competition and how to impress
customers at every point of their experience.
- The benefits of an online strategy
Key Learnings
An online business strategy can boost your chances of digital success, helping
you to define clear goals and focus your online activity. In this lesson, we'll explore:
- how an online business can benefit from a business strategy * best practices
when creating a business strategy * examples of common goals and popular
strategies to achieve them.
Transcript
So you want to know more about online business strategy, or perhaps improve
your current strategy?
In this lesson, we’ll explore how creating an online business strategy can have a
positive impact, what a good strategy looks like, and common things you can
implement to achieve your business goals.
An online business strategy helps get all the ideas out of your head and into a
usable format. This can help define objectives to work towards, and increase your
clarity and focus.
Imagine you've set a new fitness goal to become more flexible. Now, going for a
10 mile run may be great for your cardio, but it won't help you achieve that bendy
yoga position you’ve got your eye on.
In order to do that, you’ll base your workout around key areas that will help you
achieve your goal, in this case becoming more flexible. Running may be a part of it,
but stretching is more likely to help you succeed. Likewise, identifying actions
tailored to your goals will provide you with a better understanding of how to meet
your business needs.
So where do you start?
The first step is to clearly define your goals. Perhaps you’d like to increase sales
by 20%, or identify 100 potential customers? Setting goals will provide you with
direction and a clear path to follow.
Next up is articulating what your business stands for. This can be represented by a
simple sentence, generally referred to as a mission statement. For example, this
might be “to inspire healthier communities” or “to provide fun spaces for everyday
fitness".
You also need to identify your Unique Selling Point (or USP) - this is what makes
you stand out from your competition online. Find out what makes you different by
looking at businesses doing similar things, and work out what sets you apart. For
example, if customer service is what sets you apart from your competition, this is
your Unique Selling Point.
Understanding what you want to achieve can help you make the right decisions at
the right time. Here are some typical goals and the strategies that can be used to
address them:
Increase sales: If your goal is to improve online sales, driving more traffic to your
website can help.
There are many many ways to achieve this, from paid advertising to content
marketing.
Next up: Increase awareness of the business or brand
Social media is a popular way to increase brand awareness to both new and
existing customers. It provides a platform to express your values, personality, and
engage with your audience.
Finally: Grow your email marketing list
To encourage customers to sign up to email marketing, try clearly communicating
what your audience can expect to receive, whether it’s exclusive content or
member-only updates.
So how do these benefits stack up in real life? Let’s take a look at Rachel's Kitchen,
who used a strategy to maximise their impact online.
If this lesson has got you thinking about your own online business strategy, be
sure to explore the additional resources at the end of this topic to learn more.
- Taking a business online
Key Learnings
When taking a business online, understanding how customers browse on the web
is an important factor in ensuring your online efforts are rewarded. In this lesson,
we will explore: * customer behaviours online, and how these overlap with offline
behaviours * the "See, Think, Do, Care" framework, and how to use this to help
understand the online customer journey * how to group your audiences using
audience segmentation.
Transcript
In this lesson we will look at the differences between online and offline customer
behaviours. We’ll also cover how audience segmentation can help you choose
where to focus your digital efforts when moving online.
So what are the key differences between a customer in a physical shop and a
customer online?
Imagine you just set a personal goal to improve your fitness, and now need new
running shoes. In the offline world your journey might go a bit like this:
You visit the local shopping centre, going from shop to shop. Ultimately, you make
a decision based on price, quality, returns policy, friendliness of staff, and stock
availability. You process all that information, head back to the store with the shoes
you liked best, and make the purchase.
When it comes to online purchasing, you’re likely to engage in four distinct stages
throughout your online shopping journey. Theses principles are described in the
“See, Think, Do, Care” framework, and offer a useful way to identify where a
business should invest effort in connecting with customers. Let’s take a look at
our shoe shopping example, while highlighting these four stages:
In the SEE stage, you notice that some of your friends have taken up running, and
are posting maps of their favourite routes on their social media accounts. This
inspires you to start running yourself. In the THINK stage, you get your phone and
type ‘what are the best running shoes for beginners?’. This introduces you to a
whole lot of online content, from blog articles to targeted ads, giving you more
factors to base your decision on. Eventually, you make your purchase, which
makes up the DO stage, and perhaps post a photo on social media. This last step
of sharing your purchase is part of the CARE stage.
Keep in mind that customers don’t necessarily experience all four stages every
time - your individual journey might begin at the THINK stage, or end at the DO
stage.
Now let’s combine offline and online activities together. Imagine you are in the
sport shop having just tried on the new running shoes. You get out your phone and
search for them online - perhaps checking if they are cheaper elsewhere. The
chances are you might buy online after visiting a physical store- an approach
called ‘showrooming’.
Understanding the differences and similarities between online and offline
shopping can help you create a more balanced online customer experience.
So how can you identify where to focus your efforts online? To choose the right
channels, find out out who you’re talking to, when you should talk to them, and
what you should talk about. This is called audience segmentation.
You can segment customers in many ways, from basic demographics like age and
gender, to specific interests. For example, segmenting customers by location may
benefit an e-commerce store if certain products are only available to ship to
specific areas. Segmentation can also help with your online advertising; as most
channels allow you to target paid advertising to specific audiences, based on
information like what an audience likes or dislikes. You can also make your ads
appear only to people within a certain radius of your shop or business, which can
be handy when offering promotions to local shoppers.
To wrap up, when it comes to taking a business online, think about the customers
and put yourself in their shoes: which channels do they use most? How do you
engage differently with them online and offline?
- Understanding customer behaviour
Key Learnings
Create the best possible online experience for customers by understanding how to
make the most of the moments when they interact with a brand. In this lesson,
we'll explore: * what customer touchpoints are * how to map common online
customer journeys * how to identify customer touchpoints that generate business
goals.
Transcript
Customers are the key to success, which is why understanding and nurturing them
is so important. In this lesson we’ll look at the importance of customer
touchpoints, how to use them to map the journey customers take online, as well as
how improving the customer experience can help you achieve your goals.
So how can you make a customer’s experience better? Let’s start by explaining
customer touchpoints and why they’re important. A touchpoint is any stage when
a customer, or potential customer, comes into contact with a business.
Touchpoints are used a lot in offline business, particularly in retail. They can be
receipts, bags, signage, customer service counters, and many other points along
the way. Online, they can be a valuable way for businesses to build brand loyalty
and trust. When a customer encounters a touchpoint multiple times, such as
online ads, this provides consistent value and creates ongoing positive
associations with a brand.
While people don’t all look and think the same, the way they buy things, and the
touchpoints they interact with, have many similarities. To understand online user
behaviour, you need to establish what those touchpoints are and where they take
place.
To identify them, try mapping the journey a customer takes. Once you know the
steps they take to get to you, you can plan how to impress them at every stage.
Imagine a marathon - once you know the route, you can plan in strategic points to
rest, drink, or top up your energy levels. The purchase journey is the same -
knowing the route gives you an understanding of exactly how you need to
strategise your online approach.
Because there are so many potential interaction points, figuring out the journey
may seem overwhelming at first. To make it easier, try putting yourself in the
customer’s shoes.
Ask yourself:
where do I go when I need answers?
where do I normally spot new brands or businesses?
what helps me make a purchase decision? and
do I see a brand again after I’ve made the purchase?
Another option is to ask customers directly about the route they took to find you. A
simple face-to-face or online survey can break this journey down step-by-step,
making it clearer and easier to visualise.
Once you understand the route a customer takes, it’s all about making sure the
relevant touchpoints chosen are effective in drawing people in. If you have a
website, does it tell a potential customer what they want to know whilst keeping
existing customers interested? The more value a site has to someone, the more
likely it is they will want to return to it.
Social media is another great tool to develop touchpoints and can help give a
business character and a personal feel. Remember your customers are real people
- so connect with them in a way that’s relatable and engaging.
Once your touchpoints are set up, remember to regularly review how they’re
performing. For example, if your product or service is suddenly becoming popular
with a new audience, like teens, you may need to make adjustments to your
touchpoints, so that they resonate directly with that age-group.
To wrap up, here are some quick reminders to help you work on your own
touchpoints:
- think about the journey you take as a customer when you buy something, and
apply this information to your business scenario
- if you can, talk to customers to get real-world info on the touchpoints they
encounter
- analyse touchpoint performance and optimise your message if required, so that
the customer’s needs always come first.
- How to stand out from the competition
Key Learnings
Understanding the competition is a key component of your online strategy,
enabling you to position a business correctly in the marketplace. In this lesson,
we'll explore: * how to identify what makes a business stand out in a busy
marketplace * why Unique Selling Points (USPs) are important and how to
construct them * online tools available to help you research the competition.
Transcript
Healthy competition keeps us on our toes and increases our drive for success. In
this lesson, we’ll explore how to identify what makes a business stand out online,
why you should be checking out your competitors, and what tools can help you get
ahead of the game.
Let’s start with this question: what makes you stand out?
Imagine you own a basketball gear shop. What would make your brand distinct
compared to other sports shops selling basketball equipment?
Maybe your shop’s exterior is painted in bright red, or you have an eye-catching
window display, or perhaps you’ve even hired someone to shoot some hoops
outside to grab people’s attention as they walk by.
As a physical store you need to stand out. The same is true in digital. When we
identify what makes us different from the competition online, we call that our
Unique Selling Point, or USP.
A Unique Selling Point is a clear statement that describes the benefits you offer,
how you might solve your customer’s needs, and what distinguishes you from the
competition.
4 key questions to ask yourself when defining your USP are:
who is my target audience?
who are my competitors?
what problems does my target audience have?, and
how can I solve them?
Once you ask these questions, you can piece together a concise statement that
incorporates the answers. Here are a few pointers to remember.
Speak in a human voice. Be as natural and relatable as you can and remember,
you are trying to attract people, not robots.
Shout about it. Your USP should be displayed on your website, social media, and
other marketing materials. A good USP won't appeal to everyone, but that’s ok.
Build a USP that is tailored and speaks directly to your target audience.
Other things to consider while working on your USP are your strengths and
weaknesses.
To do this, use a SWOT analysis, which will help ensure business decisions are
well informed. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and
Threats.
Ask yourself:
what is it we’re good at? These are your strengths
what can we do better? These are your weaknesses
how can we grow, change and improve? These are your opportunities
what is happening or could happen, both internally and externally, that might
affect us negatively? Those are the threats.
While constructing your USP, it’s a good idea to check what the competition is up
to. When starting a competitor analysis, make sure to utilise the free tools
available online. Start with search engines, which can offer the most immediate
answers.
Simply search for your key terms and make note of:
who appears in the top results on search engines for your product or service
which keywords appear on their website, that is, what words are they using in the
page titles on their website, and
- what messaging they use on their social media.
Another way to stay up to date with what competitors are doing is through signing
up to alerts systems. Free tools like Google Alerts show you who is talking about
certain topics online, so they help you keep your finger on the pulse. Try setting up
alerts for key products or services, as well as your own business and competitor
names. You’ll then receive notifications when the terms you enter are discussed
online, and be able to see how your business or the business you work for
compares.
Let’s take a look at how these tips can be applied to help you stand out online:
So what makes you different online? Use the tips from this lesson to find out what
your competition is doing, and use a SWOT analysis to identify what makes you
stand out.
- Using goals to improve business performance
Key Learnings
When marketing your business online, it's important to use the data and metrics
available to evaluate how your online activities are performing. In this lesson, we'll
explore: * why setting goals and KPIs is so important to online businesses * how
to construct a KPI using the SMART framework * how to analyse data gathered to
help improve online marketing efforts.
Transcript
In this lesson, we’ll cover how setting and tracking specific goals can help you
understand and improve business performance. You’ll also learn about Key
Performance Indicators and how these can be used to evaluate the effectiveness
of processes most important to achieving your goals.
Let’s dive in: Key Performance Indicators, or KPIs, are quantifiable measurements
used to focus attention on the metrics most important to meet business goals.
They are also useful in helping a team understand how progress will be tracked
and measured.
There are many ways to construct KPIs, but they should all be measurable,
practical, achievable, and provide direction. So what does a KPI look like in the real
world?
Meet Ryan. He owns a chain of fitness centres called ‘Fit Gym’. He needs to make
sure that he has enough customers to keep the business growing. To do this, Ryan
wants to sign up at least 50 new members per gym a month. This would be his
goal. To help achieve this goal, Ryan now needs to set KPIs that will measure the
efforts his staff make towards meeting this target.
Here are the KPIs Ryan has identified for his sales staff, based on actions that can
help improve membership sign-up rate.
The sales team should:
reach out to 20 prospective customers per day
respond to all online queries on social media and email within 15 minutes of
receiving them during working hours; and
- renew or upsell 8 existing gym memberships per month.
Analysing results against these KPIs will accurately assess which employees meet
the expected standard, and help identify who needs additional sales training.
When you consider your business or the business you work for, remember that a
KPI can be anything that gets you closer to achieving your goal. From sales calls
to posts on social media, email list sign-ups to customer satisfaction ratings,
make sure you choose the KPI that best fits your needs.
So how do you know what your KPIs should be, and how do you measure them?
KPIs should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound. By
creating them this way, you can ensure they will be clear and achievable. Try
creating your own KPIs and see if you can answer the following:
a. Is this KPI specific enough?
b. Can it be measured?
c. Can employees attain this?
d. How relevant is it to the wider business objective?
e. And lastly, when is it due to be delivered or carried out?
An example KPI could be to increase sales figures by 25% compared to last year.
This is both specific and measurable, and reviewing your previous sales figures
will allow you to determine whether or not it’s attainable. Increasing sales is key
for business growth, which would be an overall business objective, and comparing
year on year makes it timely.
Remember to evaluate both KPI results and the KPIs themselves on a regular
basis, and respond to the data accordingly. For example, if Ryan’s sales
employees are struggling to meet the 15 minute average response KPI due to the
volume of enquiries, perhaps he needs to consider increasing the number of staff
per shift to meet the demand. This will ensure prospective customers remain
happy when their enquiries are responded to quickly, as well as ensure his staff
don’t burn out.
When it comes to setting goals and KPIs in your own business environment,
ensure that they’re specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and have the forward
thinking to help you achieve your long-term plan. Take some time now to think
about the KPIs you would set, and how you could measure these to get closer to
your goals.
GET STARTED WITH SEARCH
Search engines make it simple to find what you're looking for with a click of a
button. But how do they work, and how can you improve your visibility on them?
Learn the difference between organic and paid search results and why advertising
on search engines is so effective.
- Search engine basics
Key Learnings
Search engines catalogue the Internet to help connect searchers with exactly what
they're looking for. That makes them a great marketing tool. This video covers: * a
brief history of search engines * how search engines changed business * why
search is a good place to start.
Transcript
Hey! In this video, we’ll talk through some of the history behind search engines.
We’ll explain how search engines have changed business, and tell you why they’re
a great place to market your business on.
OK, so where did search engines come from? One of the earliest search engines
was a program called Archie, which debuted in 1990 and allowed people to access
and search file names—basically the names of the web pages. But, Archie couldn’t
tell you what was on those pages.
Fast forward a few decades, and search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo!,
Ask.com, AOL, Baidu, and Yandex have come a long way. These search engines
use incredibly sophisticated computer programs to sort through a massive
number of web pages.
Most search engines basically work in the same way. When a person wants to find
something, they type in a word or phrase, called a search query.
Then, the search engine compares that query to its catalogue of web pages,
pulling out the best matches to show the searcher. These are displayed on a
search results page.
Their goal is to create the most relevant list of results possible, to help searchers
find what they are looking for. The results page includes links to websites, but you
might also see local business listings, items for sale, advertisements, images,
maps, videos and more.
So how does this apply to you?
Well, imagine you own a coffee shop. If someone searches for coffee shop
Cotswolds— that’s you!—this is the perfect opportunity to appear on the search
results page.
In the same way, if you’re a technician who repairs air conditioning units, or a local
takeaway ready to deliver dinner, you want to show up when people search for
related words and phrases.
Why? Because the words entered into the search engine indicate the searcher is
interested in your products and services, right now.
See why search is such a great place to be? It’s a way to target people who are
already looking for you.
Don’t just take our word for it. Many marketers will tell you that search is essential
to their online marketing strategy, and the numbers back this up.
Does this mean you should ignore other ways of advertising online? Of course not!
Your plan can and should include lots of different ways to promote your business,
like social media, email marketing, and display advertising.
But, if you’re a business interested in promoting products and services online,
being on search is a pretty safe bet.
- How search engines work
Key Learnings
Search engines examine all the pages on the World Wide Web, categorise them
and put them into a logical order when you search for something. Understanding
how this works can help your business. This video will cover: * how search engines
find web pages * what they do with the web pages they find * how they decide
what to show on search results pages.
Transcript
Hi there! Welcome to our video explaining how search engines work. We’ll give you
the basics on how search engines find web pages, what they do with the pages
they find, and how they decide what results to show.
When you’re using a search engine to find the closest coffee shop, you’re probably
not thinking about search engine technology. But later you might wonder, how did
it do that? How did it sort through the entire Internet so quickly, and choose the
results you saw on the page?
Each search engine uses their own software programs, but the way they work is
pretty similar. They all perform three tasks:
First, they examine content they learn about and have permission to see (that’s
called crawling).
Second, they categorise each piece of content (that’s called indexing).
And third, they decide which content is most useful to searchers (that’s called
ranking).
Let’s take a closer look at how these work.
Search engines “crawl” the Internet to discover content, like web pages, images
and videos. Each search engine uses computer programs called “bots” (short for
robot), “crawlers” or “spiders” to make their way through the pages.
The bots hop from page to page by following links to other pages. These bots
never stop; their sole purpose is to visit and revisit pages looking for new links and
new content to include in the index.
Indexing is the second part of the process. The index is a gigantic list of all the
web pages and content found by the bots. The search engine uses this index as
the source of information displayed on the search results pages.
But, not everything the bots find makes it into a search engine’s index.
For example, search engines may find multiple copies of the exact same piece of
content, located on different websites.
How is that possible? Well, imagine you’re not searching for a coffee shop, but a
coffeemaker. You might notice that the top-of-the-line CoffeeKing2000 has the
same word-for-word description on the websites of many major retailers. The
description might have been provided by the manufacturer... but now the search
engine has decisions to make: which version to keep in the index? There’s no need
for hundreds of duplicates, so it’s unlikely that every page will be added.
So if you own a website that’s selling coffeemakers, you’re likely better off writing
your own description of the CoffeeKing2000.
Make sense?
That covers crawling and indexing, which just leaves us with ranking. When you
type in a search, the engine compares the words and phrases you use to its index,
looking for matching results. Let’s say, for example, the search engine finds 230
million matching results. Now it’s time for the last part of the search engine’s task:
ranking.
The way search engines rank pages is top secret—it’s their ‘special sauce.’ There
are hundreds of ways search engines determine rank, including things like the
words on the page, the number of other websites linking to it, and the freshness of
the content.
But no matter what formula they use to determine rank, the goal remains the
same: to try to connect the searcher with what they are looking for.
Say you’ve read about an Australian-style cappuccino called a flat white and you
want to try it. If you search for “flat white coffee near me” the search engine will
show you nearby shops selling the drink, because your search indicated your
location. You might even see a map to help you find them.
So, what have we learnt? Search engines are constantly working to scour the web
for content, organise it and then display the most relevant results to searchers.
Understanding this process will help you make your website the best it can be.
- How search engines see the web
Key Learnings
If you want to make sure your website turns up in more search engine results, stay
tuned for this video, which includes: * how search engines understand what's on a
web page * which parts of a web page help search engines do this * how to make
your web pages more visible to search engines.
Transcript
Hello there, and welcome to our video looking at how search engines see web
pages.
We’ll go over how search engines understand what’s on a web page, which parts
of a web page specifically help them, and how you can make your pages more
visible to search engines.
In simple terms, when you ask a search engine to find something, it looks through
a huge list of previously indexed pages, called “the index,” and pulls out relevant
results based on what you’re looking for.
Pages make it into “the index” only after the search engine has determined what
they’re about. That way, it can file them in exactly the right place amongst the
other pages, and find them the next time a search relates to their content.
By knowing how a search engine decides what a page is about, you can optimise
your pages to make sure they show up in the search results of people looking for
websites just like yours.
Let’s say you own a coffee shop, and you’ve got a website to promote it. When you
look at a page on the site you see this.
But when a search engine looks at the same page, in addition to seeing what you
see on your screen, it also sees the code behind it, called HTML.
Specific parts of this code help the search engine understand what the web page
is all about. And knowing which parts are important can help you to optimise your
site.
First, the title of the page in the code.
In this example, you can see the title in the tab at the top: “Cotswolds Coffee
Shop.” The search engine sees the title enclosed in a piece of code called a title
tag. It looks like this:
Cotswolds Coffee Shop
Many websites can be edited using tools that handle all the HTML coding for you -
that’s called a content management system, or CMS. If you use a CMS to make
changes to your website, there’s probably a place to add this title, too.
You can help the search engine index your page properly by making sure your page
title accurately describes its content. That way it can show up in relevant
searches.
The next thing you’ll want to think about is the page’s text. Think about who you
want to visit your page, and what words they’re using to describe your products
and services. Do they talk about fair trade coffee? Do they use the term
cappuccino instead of macchiato? These are probably the terms they’re also using
to search.
Try to speak the language of your customers when you write your content.
Because this can help ensure they’ll find your pages when they search.
Finally, let’s talk about the page’s images.
Search engines won’t see the mouth-watering photos of your coffee creations in
the same way we do - which is a shame. But what they will see is the code behind
it.
To help search engines identify the image, give it a descriptive name.
For example, image.jpg is not a great file name for search engines. Whereas,
something that describes exactly what’s in the picture, like
iced-peppermint-mocha.jpg, is.
You can even take it one step further by adding “alternative text” in the code with
your image. Known as an “Alt tag,” it describes the image, which is useful for
people using web browsers that don’t display images, or for people with visual
impairments who use software to listen to the content of web pages.
In the HTML, the ALT tag will appear something like this:
src="
" alt=”Iced
Peppermint Mocha”>
Again, if you use a content management system to update your website there’s
probably a place to add an Alt tag, too.
So remember: Use descriptive, unique titles for each page on your site. Write for
your customers, but remember to include important words and phrases that can
help search engines understand what your pages are all about. And don’t forget to
name image files with descriptive words and include alternative text.
Together, all of these tips can help search engines understand your pages and put
them in front of the people that matter - your potential customers.
- Organic search explained
Key Learnings
When a person types in a word or phrase on a search engine, a list of results
appears with links to web pages and other content related to the search. This
video covers the content found in the organic results. You'll learn: * what organic
results are * what search engine optimisation (SEO) is * how good website content
affects the organic search results.
Transcript
Hi! Are you ready to dive into the world of organic search? In this video, we’ll
explain what organic - or unpaid - results are. We’ll find out what search engine
optimisation means. And discover how good website content affects the organic
search results.
OK, let’s get started. Back to the coffee shop, and imagine that you’ve just started
offering authentic French macarons, using an old family recipe.
You know there must be other people in your city who would enjoy this
international treat. Someone might even be searching for it right now. So, how do
you help them find you?
Well, when someone searches for something using a search engine, the results
page they see contains a list of organic, or unpaid results.
Organic results typically appear in the centre of the page, and are the results the
search engine decides are the best match for the search query, or words, that were
typed in.
Results pages will also display advertisements, or paid results, though they’ll be
separate and labeled as ads. Although organic results and ads appear on the
same page, there’s one big difference: there’s no cost to appear in the organic
results.
Websites do not—and cannot—pay to appear here.
So how can you improve your website’s chances of appearing in the unpaid
results?
It all comes down to quality.
Think of it this way. The search engines’ primary goal is to help people find what
they are looking for. If you can help the search engine decide that your website is
what people are searching for, you’re in good shape.
Making improvements to your website to help it appear in the organic results is
called search engine optimisation, or SEO. Good SEO involves helping a search
engine find and understand your site.
So what do search engines like? Good, relevant content. Think about exactly what
your coffee shop’s potential customers might be searching for.
If they want a macaron,they might search for those words. But that’s a pretty
broad search and could also mean a searcher’s looking for a recipe, or an image,
or the history of the pastry.
Understanding that, it would probably be more useful for you to focus on
appearing on searches for homemade macarons, in your city. So your focus might
be to create relevant, original content that reinforces the “how”—that all your
macarons are made from scratch at your location, and the “where”—that your
macarons are available at your bakery, or delivered to certain areas. This can help
your website appear on searches for “macaron bakery”, or related searches like
“the best macaron in Cotswolds” or “readymade macaron for pick-up now.”
That’s organic search results. Showing up in them is a great way to help
customers find you—and it won’t cost you a thing.
All you have to do is make sure that your content is relevant to the people
searching, so they’ll click and stay for a visit. We have a whole lesson coming up
on this, so stay tuned!
- Paid search explained
Key Learnings
When a person types in a word or phrase on a search engine, a list of results
appears with links to web pages and other content related to the search. This
results page is organised into different sections; this video covers the adverts.
You'll learn: * a bit about advertising on search engines * why advertising on
search engines is so effective * how advertisers compete for an opportunity to
show ads on the search results page.
Transcript
Hey there, ready to learn a bit about advertising on search engines? We’ll cover
how advertising on search engines works—that’s called SEM, or search engine
marketing. We’ll explain why it’s so effective, and how businesses compete to
show ads.
Imagine you live in the Cotswolds, you’re out running errands and are desperate for
a coffee. You pull out your mobile and search for 'coffee shop Cotswolds'.
Now you have a page full of options to consider. Every section on the page —the
map, the ads, and the search results — presents options. Who knew there would be
so many?
Some of these results are selected by the search engine’s organic formula. These
pages are considered the most relevant web pages the search engine can find for
this search. The other sections are ads.
If you take a moment to compare the ads you see to those in a print magazine, you
might notice one big difference - every ad is for a coffee shop.
You don’t see ads for unrelated things, and interestingly enough, the adverts seem
quite similar to the organic results.
This is by design, and it’s what makes paid search advertising so effective. A
search engine’s most important job is to show people the results they are looking
for, and this extends to the ads. The ads you see complement the search results
page, with the ultimate goal of helping a searcher find what they’re looking for.
So how exactly does search engine advertising work? There are several models.
Let’s take a look at one popular option, the text ads you see on search engine
results pages.
Every time someone searches advertisers compete for the opportunity to display
ads. It happens in milliseconds and the searcher won’t see the details, only the
winners: the ads that appear on the page.
So, how do search engines decide who wins? The primary components are the bid
and the quality.
The bid is the maximum amount an advertiser is willing to pay for a click on an ad.
If someone clicks the ad, the advertiser is charged an amount equal to—or
sometimes less than—the bid.
So, if an advertiser bids £2 for a keyword, that’s the most they would pay for a
single ad click. If an ad shows on the page but no one clicks, it doesn’t cost the
advertiser anything at all.
Ideally, bids correspond to the value of the keywords to the business but the
amount is up to each advertiser. Some advertisers may be willing to bid 50p for a
keyword; others may be willing to bid £10.
Bid averages vary industry-by-industry, and keyword-by-keyword.
Bids are important, but so is quality.
Winning the auction doesn’t always hinge on having the highest bid. Search
engines reward ads and keywords with strong relevance to the search. In fact, it’s
possible that relevant ads can “win” higher spots on the search results page, even
with lower bids. In some cases, no matter how high a bid, a search engine will not
display the ad if it’s irrelevant.
To summarise, paid ads offer another way to promote your products and services
on search engine results pages.
With a well-constructed search advertising campaign you can reach customers at
the very moment they’re looking for what you offer.
Want to learn more about SEM? Check out the search advertising lessons.
- Google search console
Key Learnings
When it comes to your website, the more information you have, the better. In this
video you'll learn: * what Search Console is, and how it can help * some of its
useful features * how to set it up.
Transcript
Hey! Want a great tool to get your website more traffic? Then this is the video for
you. We’re going to tell you all about a free Google service called Search Console.
And show how it can help you, and how you can get it set up.
So what exactly is Google Search Console? Well, it's a service that gives you
feedback about how your website is doing in Google search results.
It has two primary functions. It monitors your performance in Google Search
results. And it also shows you how Google “sees” your site.
Say you own a coffee shop, and your website needs some updating. Let’s take a
closer look at a few ways Search Console might be able to help you out.
One way is through its “Search Analytics” reports. This can help you answer a few
important questions like which searches bring people to your site. Or tell you when
searchers click on your links. They can even let you know which other sites link to
yours.
Why is this important?
Well, the “Search Analytics” report shows lots of things, including the most
common searches bringing people to your site. Ideally you’d see words and
phrases relevant to your business, like:
'Coffee shop Cotswolds', 'Coffeehouse near me', 'Pastries near Cotswolds', or 'Fair
trade coffee near me'.
If you review the report and see unrelated or irrelevant words and phrases, it’s a
hint that the text on your website needs some attention.
Another thing to look for is the number of clicks. You’ll want to know how often
your site appears but gets no clicks—that’s a sign your content doesn’t match
what people are looking for.
The “Links to your site” report shows websites that link to your site. Think of these
as “referrals.” The list should include websites relevant to coffee.
More and more people use mobile devices to access the Internet, so while you’re
in Google Search Console you should also check out the “Mobile Usability Report”.
This’ll point out pages on your site that don’t work well on mobile phones, which
you can then fix to improve your website performance when people search on
mobile.
There are two more really handy features within Search Console to know about:
“Crawl” reports, and “Google Index” reports.
“Crawl” reports let you monitor whether Google can visit your web pages. This is
important because if Google can’t access your web pages, your content can’t be
included in Google’s search results.
The “Google Index” reports show what information Google recorded about your
site and tells you if your pages are accessible.
It’s easy to get started with Search Console.
Go to www.google.com/webmasters.
Once signed in, add your website and complete the verification to prove you own
the website.
Now Search Console can generate reports for your site—for free! It might take a
few days before you see useful information because it must first gather and
process the data. If you see a "No data yet" message, check back later.
Now that your site’s set up in Google Search Console, you can use the reports to
figure out how to improve your presence on Google. Using the reports, you can
make changes to help Google better understand your web pages and as a result
make your website perform better.
to be continued in the next article....................................