An example of a "happy" shopper.

So what type of numbers can we expect to see this year when it’s all said and done?

That’s yet to be seen. However, optimism and hope exist! Some believe we will experience major capital gains, whether those opinions are grounded or not. Inevitably, online retail growth will eventually occur and optimism is no longer an entirely lost cause. Realistically, it probably won’t be a major shift, but we’ll be headed in the right direction.  One thing is for sure—we will try our hardest to improve upon our current economic situation.

Here are a few quick, basic tips to use online marketing to target the “happy” holiday shoppers this year—and ultimately cash in on the increased demands that occur this time of year.

Keywords:

• Generate keyword lists that appeal to holiday consumers and target specific holidays.
• Use Google’s insights for search tool to identify top/rising search terms.

Ad copy:

• Create ad copy using language exclusive to certain holidays. Boo! Scared yet?

• Concentrate on products associated with holidays and particular product category searches (costumes, decorations, party supplies, gifts).

• Use promotions, special offers, and free shipping to enhance ad performance.

Ad Placement:

• Serve graphical/textual ads on web pages, apps, widgets etc. to correspond with holidays.

• Remember that the time frame of when these ads are runnig is crucial to success. In the words of the Grail Knight in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade—Choose Wisely.

• Start with branded ads to establish name early in the shopping process.

• Use site-centric targeting in order to re-target individuals (high ROI, low search volume).

• Be present in the consumers’ peripherals throughout all phases of the shopping experience.

Landing Pages:

• Make seasonal promotional pages and products the focal point of landing page strategy.

• Confirm that the content on the page is consistent with the themes in ads, keywords, etc.

• Adjust your sites navigational schemes and consider modifying internal linking structure to reflect seasonality.

There is obviously more you can do to maximize ROI other than the suggestions I’ve made, but hopefully I’ve provided some options to ponder while you’re out munching on chocolaty, sugary goodness and egging unsuspecting victims this weekend (support your local dentist, promote tooth decay).

If you agree or disagree with anything mentioned in this blog we’d love to hear your thoughts and comments. Happy Halloween!

That’s it folks, show over – no more suing Google over terms contained within a keywords tag and the ranking of competitor sites.  Gone are the days of strategically crafting a keywords tag to accurately reflect the content and information on a page, in the hopes that the major search engines will use that to shoot your site to the top.

Now, because of the recent buzz around this topic, you may be thinking – “Wow!  This was totally out of left field, I had no idea!”  However, as I just mentioned, this topic has been discussed before.  Back in 2007, Google actually officially announced that they were no longer using keyword meta tags in determining a site’s position.  In fact, conversations regarding keyword tags and their merit date back to 1996, according to a report published by http://w3.org! So, for over a decade search marketers and SEO’s alike have been debating the use and importance of these keyword meta tags.

Before we get too carried away and start deleting keywords meta tags like crazy, it is important to remember that there is still a general consensus that Yahoo! still uses keyword meta tags to some degree.  Therefore, you might want to hang on to those tags for a little while longer.  I don’t think I’ll be hanging up my keyword meta tags just yet! What do you think?

As much as I love gear shopping, I’m as cheap as they come and refuse to pay full price for any piece of equipment.

This past winter I chipped away at my parts and accessories wish list in preparation for the 2009 cycling season. I’ve been patient, knowing what I needed and relying heavily on Google to research products, find deals and learn what NOT to pay for parts and accessories. And this past weekend I did the math and was completely geeked by how much really expensive gear I was able to snag – and how much money I saved.

It all got me thinking. My ability to find everything I needed and save as much money as I did hinged on the strength of the titles and descriptions of the pages I eventually landed on.

When optimizing a page, it’s so important that your titles contain keywords that accurately reflect the content of your page. It’s also equally important that your descriptions reflect what your page is about, and contain a strong call to action that will draw in traffic.

As I was researching and shopping for my gear, I knew what I was looking for and, therefore, used very targeted keyword searches to sort through the clutter to find the most relevant pages. The sites that I frequented (like the ones below) were those that caught my attention with relevant titles and drew me in with strong meta descriptions.

When building your titles and descriptions, try to think like the user would. It helps to cover all your bases; go after the specifics, but also use instances of broad terms. Taking the road less traveled, by going after less used, yet more specific keywords, will often yield better results than going after broad keywords with high traffic and even higher competition. People who know what they want will use specific keyword searches.

One neat feature recently implement by Google that will help your keyword research is a latent semantic indexing tool. It’s embedded at the bottom of their Search Engine Results Page (SERP). Search for a keyword or keyword phrase and this feature will show you additional keywords that are related to your target keywords that other searchers have used. Utilizing this information gives you the ability to discover other keywords related to your content that you may not have thought of. The feature is always there and easily accessible, which makes it a no-brainer to use.

So if you’re writing your titles and descriptions, or even just writing item descriptions for an eBay sale, take the time to utilize some of the tools out there to do a little keyword research. Strong titles and descriptions are part of the equation that can boost a page’s relevancy and ensure your content will be seen by the right people – i.e. a cheap guy like me looking for an expensive cycling jersey at a blowout price.

A recent post by Robin Goad of Hitwise suggests that in many cases, plural keywords drive more traffic to retail websites than singular versions of the same word.

The post compares search volume and percentages of searchers who ended up on retail or shopping sites, as they relate to a list of singular and plural keywords such as laptop(s), mobile phone(s), dvd(s), and six others. The results favored plural keywords in a 6-3 victory.

Does this mean we should alter our primary focus and only target keywords with that extra s, -es, or whatever their plural variation might be? With the above information, you may be quick to favor this idea instead of going with singular terms. However, Goad does tell us that we shouldn’t abandon singular terms just yet.

In response to his results, Goad states,

Of course, this isn’t to say that ‘laptops’ is a better term than ‘laptop’, just that the plural and singular searches display different behaviors. Indeed, if you are looking to sell accessories rather than computers then it would be much better to optimize for terms containing ‘laptop’.

So where does this quick bit of research leave us? Which type of keyword should we target? Plural? Singular? It all depends on the products being offered.

The variation in which keywords drive the most relevant traffic is simply one more thing to keep in mind when optimizing your content. Though it seems in the majority of searches, the plural wins the traffic battle, singular terms still have their niche. When in doubt and when you can, it doesn’t hurt to target both.

• Popularity: How frequently do people search using this term?
• Competitiveness: How difficult could it be to position for this term?
• Relevance: How relevant is this keyword to the products or service the client offers?
• Conversion Potential: How likely is someone searching on this term to convert on the client’s site?

The dream keyword is one that’s frequently searched upon, yet relevant enough to achieve targeted, qualified traffic that’s likely to convert. Who could argue with that?

You’d be surprised.

One of the first obstacles SEOs can run into is when keywords don’t mesh with client messaging. What does it look like when websites take the common terms that 99.9% of searchers use and transform them into something more “branded”? Here are just a few examples:

• Software becomes a Solution
• Snow Removal becomes Snow Management
• Herbal Teas become Herbal Infusions
• Wool Sweaters become Handknit Creations

You get the idea. Unfortunately, what happens when you can’t use the descriptive words on your website that searchers use?

You won’t get found.

As a marketer, I understand that certain words can be at odds to the image your business is trying to convey. If you sell “discount children’s clothes”, then how can you also harness traffic for “cheap children’s clothes” without using the word “cheap” on your site?

There isn’t an easy answer. Sometimes, we have to discard high-traffic keywords with tons of conversion potential because they just won’t fit with branding goals.

While I might be able to understand not using the word “cheap”, I have also seen clients reject entirely reasonable keywords because of branding expectations that are dramatically out of touch with their target market.

This is unfortunate, because for all I know, a “handknit creation” could be a gigantic raspberry-colored thneed that’s straight out of a Dr. Seuss novel.

In my work I occasionally am provided a glimpse into a world that most of us have chewed up, spat out, chewed up again, then spat over the side of a fifteen-story parking ramp. Then run over on the way out. The idea that the Internet is a place of magic, that computers and search engines are the stuff of wizards, demons, unicorns, and Tron. And all I can say is “awwwwwwwwwww!” And I want to tousle peoples’ hair. And my burnt-black popcorn kernel of a heart grows three sizes.

Recently while doing keyword research for one of our clients, I generated a list of terms that people have plugged into search engines. Near the bottom of the list were a few phrases that had been used, surprisingly, more than once (admittedly, maybe by the same person) that made me go all Care Bear inside. I’d like to share them with you (industry-related and thus potentially client-confidentiality-ruffling identifying terms replaced by Smurf language):

“Where do I [Smurf Smurfy Smurf] in Ottawa County, Michigan?”

“I need help [avoiding Papa Smurf and his incessant slavedriving] by five o’clock on Tuesday.”

“Please help me find a [pretty Smurfette dress and matching Smurfette shoes; indeed, an entire Smurfette ensemble] before next week.”

Holy Smurf!

So, I guess what I’m saying is that, even in our jaded, rarified world, a world in which if we don’t get what we want on the first search, and if the time required to wait for the results of that first search is longer than five seconds, we’re liable to throw our computers into the street, there are still people out there for whom the Internet is a thing of magic, to be spoken to humbly, as though it’s a reference desk librarian. There are still people out there today who ask the Great and Powerful Internet for help, as though it’s a bush-league Wizard of Oz.

Awwww, you little cuties!

Over the last few years, I have found that not only are keywords important in search engine optimization and marketing, but also hold value in relation to employment. Not that I’ve stood in long lines at the unemployment office or found this information on the tongues of those looking for the “perfect” job; I’ve learned this from my own experience as a human resources professional.

For example, Wayne State University allows its students and alumni members to post resumes on its website for potential employers to peruse. If that resume does not include those specific keywords that employers select as job qualifications and skills in a query, it’s very likely that resume will be overlooked by the “perfect” company. Of course, we can equate this with a company that forgets to include the right keywords in its website copy, thus making it difficult for search engines to position the website for specific search queries.

Michigan Works, also known as Michigan Talent Bank, which is the State of Michigan’s Unemployment Office, offers resources to both employers and job seekers to assist them in expediting the employment process. Unemployed workers are now required to post their resume on the Michigan Works website to be eligible for benefits, in addition to using many available resources offered in various Michigan Works locations.

Over the last several years, technology has changed the face of employment search. The days of filling out an application in person, on site and in the human resources department is virtually non-existent. We have ventured upon an era where speed, efficiency and response are in the forefront of every industry. For those who are in the job seek mode, having company data at your fingertips has become an important tool in deciding whether a company is a good fit or not. It’s common practice for company websites to include “Career Opportunities” with alluring and brief descriptions of pending job vacancies within the company. It’s as easy as 1-2-3 for an employee-to-be to submit a cover letter, resume and level of interest through the company’s website, only to be successfully retrieved within a few short moments.

So the next time you update your resume, make sure that you have included those keywords that will draw the eyes of a potential employer. And yes, please remember that the standard rule of one page for a resume still applies, so you may want to change your font size if necessary! But then again, sometimes less is more.