Search is the most cost efficient customer acquisition channel for measurable responses and customer conversions. In controlled experiments across 4 channels, we've tested the effectiveness of marketing to existing internal customer databases, external email databases, online banner buys and keyword search networks, and the findings are presented below:
SEARCH DOMINATES AS THE MOST EFFICIENT CHANNEL
In terms of click efficiency, Search dominates as the most cost efficient channel when compared against each of the other media. In terms of purchase conversions, Search is again cheaper than media driven registrations at an index 105.
On a Pay-per-Click model, clicks are of high quality given the higher relevance and customer indicated intent. However, we're not just talking about text links on search engines. By using Contextual and Site Targeting, we are able to gain reach for building awareness on a performance pay basis, by using different form factors such as flash banner ads and video ads in addition to plain vanilla text ads.
Your media outlay is also substantially less risky, as we are in real-time control of the campaign velocity by moving budgets to better performing and efficient search distribution channels such as Search vs Content vs Site on Text or image ads. We can throttle your campaign up or down at any time to match your ability to handle the demand, and to best optimize the performance across the different channels.
It's interesting to note that the conversion index for search is even higher than marketing to your internal databases of customers. Why? Because searchers pre-qualify themselves before they click on your ads. They are actively seeking you out to make a purchase decision, whereas a past customer in your database is just someone who chose to buy from you at some point in the past. There's nothing to say that he needs your product again, right at this moment. But a searcher does…
All of this is why the Investment Bank U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray predicts that search revenues will grow to a staggering US$5.7 billion in 2008 for the US Market alone. Remember, that 80% of the Internet population is outside the USA, and 64% of them don't speak English as their first language!
