Roman Godzich, director of e-marketing at the American Management Association (AMA), knew that search marketing was a crucial piece of his team’s marketing strategy for training seminars. But it wasn’t an impulse buy. Customers typically had to get their supervisor’s approval, which meant a longer research process often involving multiple searches and comparison of options. Yet Godzich’s team recorded most of its search-generated conversions from branded keywords or direct navigation.

“We started to realize that the conversation we have with customers [before purchase] becomes more and more important,” says Godzich.

The team wanted to understand which nonbranded keywords played a role in the research and education process, and how those search terms drove the eventual, branded searches that led to sales. It undertook a methodical testing and measurement process to determine which generic search terms played the biggest role in driving branded search and ultimately, conversions. Once it could attribute more conversions to nonbranded search terms, the team adjusted its pay per click advertising budget to favor terms that delivered the best return.

Here are the five steps of the initiative:

Step 1. Implement technology to track visitors from entry search to conversion.

Step 2. Establish groups of nonbranded keywords to test.

Step 3. Track search activity to determine which keyword groups assisted conversions.

Step 4. Adjust keyword bids according to assist value.

Step 5. Track impact of bidding strategy changes.

The company was not looking for a quick fix, but a long-term solution that would provide maximum business continuity through a resilient system and an empowered workforce. We continue to work with this client on additional operational efficiency initiatives.