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Posts Tagged ‘Google’

How to Choose your Keywords in Google AdWords

Thursday, February 10th, 2011

In Internet Marketing, defining your keywords can be strenuous and really gets you thinking about the nature of your business. Choosing your keywords in Google AdWords requires researching, creative thinking, and business defining. It is important to determine your goals for your pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns and ad groups. This definitely facilitates keyword generation, and when combined with continual keyword refinement and management, your keyword list will be targeted, driving the conversions you want, and optimizing your return on investment.

To start, keep your keyword list small and manageable; there’s always the possibility to add and remove keywords at anytime. Also, ensure that you are not bidding on the same keywords across different ad groups; your ads may end up competing against each other. So, have very tightly themed ad groups each with its own category and goal.

If you are looking for more keyword ideas or not sure where to even begin, Google has created many tools to help you brainstorm your keywords:

Google’s Wonder Wheel
The Wonder Wheel is a great idea generator for ad groups and more general topics. To access the Wonder Wheel, type in a keyword in Google’s search and in the left-hand column under “All results,” you will find this search tool.
Google’s Keyword Tool
This keyword tool contains substantial information to make your keyword choices. Find details on search volume, competition, and other relevant keywords. You have the option to generate keywords by entering a URL, keywords, or phrases.
Google AdWords’ Search Query Report
The Search Query Report can be found within your AdWords account and will show you search queries that caused your ads to show. You can then add or exclude keywords. This report is better for ad groups or campaigns that have already been running for a while.
Google Opportunities
Check your Opportunities Tab often in your account for suggestions based on your past performance.
Or try the old-fashioned way and ask your clients, co-workers, and even family and friends for ideas.

Once you have established your keyword list, let your ads run for a few days to a week to gather data (sometimes it may take longer, but make sure to keep a close eye on it). Check back for trends and to see what is working and what isn’t. Your keywords could be too narrow or broad and may even require a separate ad group. You may even find ideas and trends for your other Internet Marketing initiatives.

What other ways do you use to find keywords?
How do you find Google’s Keyword Tools compared to external tools?

Leave us a comment below or shoot us an email for information, questions, or comments about your PPC campaigns.

-Love, Danielle

Tags: adwords, Google, Google AdWords, internet marketing, Keywords, PPC, Search, Tools
Posted in Paid Search | No Comments »

5 Free Resources to Find What’s Trending

Thursday, February 3rd, 2011

Want to find out what people are saying about your company, industry, or generally what people are engaging with on the Internet? Keeping up with trends is hard work and requires time and dedication, but with help of some of these tools, you’re on your way!

Google Trends

Google Trends documents the top searches daily. Enter in specific keywords to see historic data of their search volume and which countries and languages search for them the most. Check out Google Hot Trends for hourly updates!
Twopular

Twopular shows overall Twitter trends and for specific keywords you enter. It also is able to customize time periods, compare, show live feeds, and show popular tags, and retweets.
Booshaka

Facebook trends can be a little more elusive due to the fact that people are not there to publicize information to a wide audience, like Twitter. But Booshaka shows you what is most popular, talked about, and shared in real-time. Browse through categories or enter in a search.
YouTube Trends

Created by Youtube themselves, YouTube Trends showcases the most popular videos, trending topics, insight on specific videos from their blogposts. Try browsing and searching categories to catch videos that might go viral and discover ideas for your own videos!
BlogPulse

Brought to you by Nielsen, BlogPulse presents popular topics, links, videos, and stats in the blogosphere. It is a powerful resource equipped with many tools that even shows blogger profiles, blog popularity, conversations/influence, and has a customizable search engine.

*It’s beneficial to check multiple platforms to get better aggregate information (different media can have varied results).

Finding what’s trending can give you that extra competitive advantage. With real-time monitoring, it enhances reacting to customers and providing fresh, relevant content for your Social Media, blog, or website (or even offline content). With more and more Internet users, being aware and an active participant of the online community will benefit your business and Internet Marketing.

Need help with your Social Media or Website Analysis? Come talk to us to find out how you can make the most out of what’s trending!

~ Love, Danielle

Tags: Blogs, Facebook, Google, Social Media, Trending, Trends, Twitter, YouTube
Posted in Internet Marketing | No Comments »

An Exciting Move from Spain to Canada! Job Search Case Study.

Thursday, October 28th, 2010

Using the Internet to Find and Increase Job Opportunities

In September 2009, Ani López moved to Vancouver, BC from Barcelona, Spain. From finding housing, adjusting to culture, to gaining employment, changing residences can present many challenges. For Ani, his priority was finding a SEO and web analytics consultant position that would further excel his career. Before moving, Ani researched over 70 Vancouver marketing firms. Ani gives a compelling look on securing work abroad and online.

Ani’s Initial Job Search – Connecting Across International Boarders

1) Google.ca
To gain a broad snapshot of Vancouver’s Internet marketing environment and what opportunities were present, Ani’s first point of contact were the companies’ websites. Their websites provided key details, such as the type of company, clients, relevancy, services offered, and contact information. Finding and evaluating key leads were essential to solidifying appointments, which proved to be a time-saver.

2) Email
After choosing potential companies, Ani introduced himself and sent his resumes by way of email. To no avail, this approach received very few replies.

Ani’s Second Attempt – A Social Approach to Job Search

1) LinkedIn
Instead of contacting companies at their general email accounts, which have long time lags and may not be directed to the appropriate person, Ani took a more targeted route. LinkedIn provided Ani with contacts of specific individuals and freelancers of the companies he previously targeted. The response was significantly higher, more effective, and personalized.

Yet, some Vancouver professionals expressed apprehension in response to Ani’s LinkedIn Invitations to Connect. However, creating a detailed, reputable, and professional LinkedIn profile minimized this barrier.

2) Twitter
The next step was connecting with Vancouver professionals on Twitter. Twitter provided additional information and evaluation of the companies. Most importantly, it built closer relationships.

3) The Personal Touch – International Marketing Conference 2009
Still, one of the greatest sources of creating relationships and credibility remains in face-to-face meetings. Already knowing much of Vancouver’s market on a macro-level, Ani registered for IMC to meet specific marketing professionals. He soon became known in the market established his career pathway.

Results

Although the Internet, as a medium, is often immediate and viral, Ani’s job search lasted two to three months. However in comparison to the traditional route, Ani gained several advantages: an in-depth look into Vancouver’s Internet marketing industry, strong professional connections, job offers, and all accomplished from across the Atlantic Ocean. What differed in Ani’s second job search attempt was that his approach, facilitated by social media, allowed personalization, customization, and more conversation. He treated each connection as though it was conducted in person:

Social Media is just like plain social with a layer of technology. It must be managed the same way you do with your personal, face-to-face relationships. Sending an unrequested email is like jumping suddenly into a group of people loudly claiming attention to advertise. It does not work in analogical life nor does it in a digital one. If you want to get noticed, introduce yourself politely, know your interlocutors, listen to them first, and opportunities will show up.

Ani now works with his first company of choice and leads the Vancouver SEM MeetUp group.

Future of Social Media On Businesses

Because of Ani’s Mediterranean background and sociable personality, he remains sceptical about using social media and, rather, opts for offline experiences.

The most ironic scene you can see in this city is six people in an elevator all checking their SM applications on a smartphone and nobody is saying ‘hello’ or ‘good morning’. If this is the sad impact of SM and ultramodern devices, do you really think it is going to have a positive one on business?

He does acknowledge social media’s prevalence and long-term impact in the future. Social media is quickly being integrated to many facets of the Internet and Ani aims to harness this medium in his work as an SEO specialist. Social media has proven benefits and Ani continues to use it to grow and connect professionally.

To download this case study: click here

Tags: Case Study, Google, Job Search, Linked In, Social Media, Twitter
Posted in Internet Marketing | No Comments »

Google Instant Thoughts

Friday, September 10th, 2010

Google Instant – Search Results Before You Finish Typing

Google will soon (soon in Canada, now available in US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Russia ) dynamically display search results as you type, suggesting, predicting and ‘helping’ users find what they want faster.

Each time a new recognizable keyword or phrase is perceived, a new set of Google results will be displayed.

E.g. car, career, career builder

What impact will this change have on PPC?

Its early days still, but these are likely:

-          Increase in unwanted impressions
-          Longer Tail Keywords Emerging is really important
-          Quality Score impact due to unwanted impressions (if these are counted by Google)
-          Increased importance on strategic negative keyword list
-          Increased importance on match types
-          Increased potential for branding keyword impressions

What impact will this change have on SEO?

- SEO is not dead, it’s changing, sure, but as long as there is search, there will be SEO
- Need to create relevant content more than ever
- Make sure your website has simple, easy to access structure
- There’s no need to panic, still remember to integrate social media into your SEO strategy
- Monitor keyword trends to ensure you are creating relevant content
- Don’t get distracted by the buzz, the fundamentals are still the same, just keep doing whatever you have been doing (staying on top of industry best practices).

What do you think about Google Instant so far?

Tags: Google, google instant, PPC, SEO
Posted in Internet Marketing | No Comments »

How Long Will it Take to Get Indexed in Google?

Thursday, August 12th, 2010

Q: How long will it take for my new site (page) to get indexed in Google?

A: This is a great question! I will answer using a metaphor ☺ It will take the same amount of time as for my new haircut to “get indexed” in my husband’s head! ☺ Sometimes he would notice it right away, but sometimes it might take him a bit longer. Here are some factors that would help my haircut to “get indexed” faster (don’t worry, we are still talking about your web page ;)

1) Size does matter

One of the factors is how dramatic of a change my haircut was. If it’s just a little trim, then I would need to try hard for it to get noticed.

If it’s a major makeover then my chances are way higher.

Same with your website. If it’s a small tiny page, or a minor change on your (not-so-frequently-updated blog), then it will take longer (without extra help) for your page to get indexed. If it’s a full -on, user-friendly, ( or user-generated) website with valuable information, then the chances of being noticed by search engines are much higher.

2) Clues

So, what would be a decent clue that my husband needs to get in order to notice my haircut?

To look at the Visa statement, of course!

Same with search engines. If another website links to your new site or page, that’s one of the best ways to tell Google (and other search engines) that your site (page) exists. The more links you have, the faster your page will get indexed. The more important the linking sites are the better.

Simple things that you could do yourself:

- Use social media. Tweet your new site or page
- Bookmark your site on social networks like delicious, stumble upon and digg, etc.
- Share it on Facebook and Linked In

That being said, search engines are getting smarter and smarter at finding new content on the web. So, don’t get discouraged if your page is not indexed the next day you publish it.

Quick tip: Make sure to install an xml sitemap on your site or a blog. This will make search engines’ lives easier and your pages get indexed faster.

Need help with your internet marketing? Give us a shout!

Tags: Google, Indexation
Posted in SEO | 2 Comments »

How long will it take for my site to rank well in Google?

Wednesday, January 27th, 2010

I’ve (SEO) optimized my site, now what?

Just like any other SEO (Search Engine Optimization) specialist I get this question all the time. Needless to say, this is probably one of the most desired answers people would love to know, too! So, I thought I would write a post about it, hoping to shed some light, and make your site’s SEO prospects more clear for you.

First of all, , SEO is a long-term process and nothing happens overnight. That’s just how things go. There are some rare species that get indexed overnight and start ranking well within a month, but this is not the usual scenario, especially if you are in a highly competitive industry.

After you optimize your site, all you can do is to continue building links to it, be patient and hold your breath hoping that your competitors are not as hard working as you are (SEO-wise).

Why?

Example.

Your site has been optimized recently and you are now super excited, checking your ranking position in Google every morning, hoping to see it on page one any day now.

Hold your horses and let’s put things into perspective here. There are roughly 234 million websites out there (as of December 2009) and there were 47 million NEW websites launched in 2009. Obviously, just like you, owners of all of those new sites want to be ranked on page one in Google and other search engines, too.

Now think of this situation as if you WERE Google. How would you choose those top ten for that lucky first page of yours? That’s a pretty tricky task I would say, wouldn’t you? Just like when you meet a new person, it takes a while for you to start trusting them. You, most likely, will ask some mutual friends if that person is trustworthy or not. You will then meet with them several times before you start talking about personal stuff or invite them to your home.

The web world is the same.

-    It takes time for Google to gather information about your site.
-    It takes time to compare your site to other similar web properties
-    Lastly, it takes time to decide why your site should be trusted more than your competitor’s

What can you do now?

There are several things that you can (and should) do if you want to gain a decent ranking position and stay(!) there. (Given that your site is optimized and all basic on-site SEO factors are all intact.)

Three SEO must-dos:

Continue building links to your site. This should be your number one priority.
Build content. Write useful articles for your clients and partners. If Google sees that you provide helpful information to users it then will add some brownie points to your site.
Watch what your competitors are doing. You want to make sure that you are not only on par with their SEO initiatives, but that you have a plan on how to out-smart them.

One last thing. If you do meet an SEO company that promises you page one in a month, that’s not a good sign. No one can promise you that, and if they do that, it means that they are using some dirty SEO techniques (black hat SEO) that you could pay for in the future. If your site gets caught, Google may penalize and remove it from its index for good.

So, how long will it take? It can take anywhere from one month to a year (in a highly competitive field).

Evaluate your objectives, set realistic SEO goals and keep up the hard work. SEO is a long and tedious process, but it’s so worth it once you see your site on that so looked-after page one (or even two) of Google.

Still have more SEO questions? Give us a shout and we will be happy to provide a free SEO evaluation of your site.

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Tags: Google, Indexation
Posted in SEO | No Comments »

Google Analytics Intellegence

Thursday, November 19th, 2009

If you are using Google Analytics on a regular basis, you might have already noticed it in your account, a new feature called Intelligence and marked as “beta” for the time being.

If you are not familiar with it – Google Analytics is a wonderful (and free) tool for tracking your website’s statistics, and if you are not using it yet on your site, I would highly recommend it. It’s extremely user-friendly, like any Google product.

Analytics Intelligence monitors your website’s traffic and allows you to create custom alerts and notify you in real time if something significant happens.

Have a look at Google’s video for more details:

Need help figuring out how to use your Google Analytics data and improve your website’s performance? Give us a call and we will be happy to clear this up for you!

Tags: Google
Posted in Analytics | No Comments »

Happy Birthday Google!

Sunday, September 27th, 2009

Yay! Google is celebrating it’s 11th anniversary on Sept 27th. Happy Birthday Mr. Google! :)

And of course there’s a Doodle for that. A lovely Google logo with the number 11 instead of the usual double L.

Well, this is exciting! In the past 11 years Google has firmly positioned itself as the Search Engine. Google is not just for search anymore. Providing Google Apps, Maps, Mail, blogging platform, news, video, etc, I think it’s safe to say that one way or another we all are using Google’s products in our every-day life.

Happy Birthday Google, and keep up the good work! :)

Tags: Google
Posted in Internet Marketing | No Comments »