Paid search is becoming an increasingly important part of an overall marketing and advertising budget as consumers are exposed to more and more every day. With companies needing to consistently fight for attention in order to get their products and services noticed, it’s essential to know which traditional and online channels are the most effective and plan paid search accordingly. In addition to recognizing which channels are being used, it’s equally important to focus on and learn more about when customers are ready to make key purchasing decisions.
Often during those key purchasing moments, people turn to online search to find answers, products, and services that can improve their lives. A recent from Forrester reports that around 49 percent of consumers turn to online search engines as their number one source in regards to researching a purchase. While the channels customers use when researching may vary, it’s essential for advertisers to allocate budget across all channels to adequately cover bases. During the allocation phase, it’s equally important to remember that while consumers view search as key to their decision-making process, marketers simply view search as a channel.
You Need to Be on Both Screens
As quoted above, 49 percent of consumers turn to online search engines to assist with purchase decisions. Surprisingly, only 45 percent of marketers are using search within overall channel mix. The rest are choosing not to use search in marketing campaigns, which not only represents a wide disconnect but also shows a large and growing opportunity for businesses. Alternatively, money spent on TV advertising is currently 3 times the budget of search, making it important for marketers to recognize the need for better-balanced budgets.
Paid search is becoming increasingly paired with TV buys due to one phenomenon: the second-screen. Now more than ever before, consumers are watching TV while scrolling on their phone or searching on their laptop. A recent study by Bing reported that there is a 50 percent decrease in branded searches when TV buys are turned off. This creates and interesting and actionable area for marketers.
First, it’s becoming increasingly important for companies to bid on relevant keywords and target both brand and non-brand terms, seamlessly incorporating both TV and online possibilities. From there, companies should seek to test the best ad copy available and then share with non-search terms. In the next essential step, companies should align paid ads with media flights in order to be prepared for TV watchers to then search for terms. In conclusion, companies should plan campaigns that seek to capitalize on competitors copy and relatively low ad spend.
The Bottom Line
By increasing TV buys along with paid search, companies can see a general increase in views and eventually, services needed. By pairing TV and search ads together, companies can create seamless ads that work on both television and the internet, attracting further attention and spreading brand awareness. If a particular online ad is performing well, TV ads can then be tweaked to better reflect the message.
The two screen phenomenon represents a complete shift in how people search and buy while watching television. With the average American watching 5 hours of TV daily, it’s essential to plan both TV buys and online search accordingly to capitalize on the possibilities for both.
