Brides, Dads, and Grads

Now that Memorial Day has come and gone, we've officially entered the season of Brides, Dads, and Grads. And you know what that means -- a summer full of planning parties and giving gifts! Whether you are in the travel industry, or you sell household items through your online store, or you offer catering services, there's a great opportunity for everyone to gain new customers this summer.

Right around this time last year, we shared some ways to make the most out of summer gift-giving. Take a look at these extensive suggestions for ideas on how you can reach gift-givers and party planners this summer.

You may also want to check out demographic bidding when you set up your summer gift-giving and party planning campaigns. Demographic bidding is a way to help your ad reach audiences of a certain age or gender. For example, if you want your ads to be seen by young brides-to-be who might be planning a honeymoon, you could target women aged 25-35. Learn more about how demographic bidding can help you reach new customers.

We hope you'll enjoy these tips -- happy start-of-summer!

Posted by Heather Lane, Inside AdWords crew

CAVE People

If you have been living in a CAVE you don’t know who Hanna Montana is, how she’s related to Miley Cyrus and what the Disney Channel has to do with all of it. You probably haven’t opened a checking account online, read a blog, or landed a HUGE account without taking the new client golfing.

I was talking with a colleague the other day and he was filling me in on the incredible marketing conference his company hosted for the eleventh consecutive year. The final session of the conference featured a presentation by Brian Grubb of the Ritz-Carlton Leadership Center. In his presentation, Mr. Grubb introduced the CAVE people, and in my humble opinion (I was going to write IMHO until it occurred to me that I have a job because not everyone understands that yet) these are the most dangerous group of people. CAVE people are to us marketers what Lord Voldemort is to Harry Potter, Kryptonite is to Superman and Jessica Simpson is to the Dallas Cowboys.

Are you wondering what a CAVE person is and why the letters are in all caps? C.A.V.E. people are those people who are Consistently Against Virtually Everything. Do you know any? Think harder. I have never stepped foot in a bank that didn’t employ at least one CAVE dweller. So how do you overcome that? Simple. Here are three ways to help the dark dweller overcome their fear of the light:

1. Get him/her involved. If you have a marketing team in place (the kind that consists of leaders from each department) make him/her the leader of the team. Help them develop ideas, implement a few of them and make sure that he/she is recognized PUBLICALLY for their outstanding participation and idea generation.

2. Try to understand why they hate the world. Do they subscribe to the theory of “if it isn’t broken, don’t try and fix it?” Or perhaps they have been around the block a time or two and believe there is no other way to do things. Try to learn what makes them tick and why they don’t want to try new things.

3. Embrace those things you cannot change, rise above, and move forward. Sometimes gently carving your path rather than blazing the trail will lay the footwork for others to follow your lead. Accept differing opinions—never dismiss them.

As you find creative ways to deal with your CAVE people, remember that while they may be against everything, they probably stand for something. Learn more about their passion and try to appreciate it…it will probably provide great insight into their negativity. You know, mutual respect while working with others goes a long way in many different aspects of the day-to-day work.

Here's to seeing the light!
Jenna

More partner site examples from the Google content network

Our advertisers have often asked: 'What kinds of web sites make up the Google content network?'

To help answer this question, we just re-launched the Partners page on the Google content network microsite to include a more comprehensive set of examples of where your ads can appear. After all, the content network is comprised of hundreds of thousands of web sites, from information and news sites like About.com and the New York Times, to blogs like Ask the Builder. And while it's not possible to individually name all the sites in the content network, the revamped Partners page is meant to better demonstrate the variety of sites available. Below are some features of the new Partners page:

• Sites are organized by category. This will help you browse sites by categories that represent your target audience, such as Finance, News, Entertainment, Technology, etc. For example, if you sell herbal teas, you might browse through the Health & Fitness or Home & Garden categories to see examples of related sites. Or, if your target demographic is female, you can try the Women's Interest category.

• Once you find a site that's relevant to your product or service, you can use placement targeting to target your ads to that site directly. We recommend you use the Placement Tool to determine whether a specific site is available for targeting, and to identify other relevant placements to target. Further, if your campaign is already running on the content network, you can see the sites where your ad has appeared by running a Placement performance report.

• For those of you targeting users in other countries, a drop-down menu lets you browse partner sites in countries in Europe, Asia, and Latin America.

(Click on the image for a full size version)

So while the simple question "Where will my ads appear?" may not be the simplest to answer, we hope the new Partners page will help you better understand the variety of sites available to you to help you meet your advertising objectives on the content network.

Posted by Emel Mutlu, Inside AdWords crew

Google Analytics training in NYC

Lunametrics is a Google Analytics Authorized Consultant led by Robbin Steif, one of the board members of the Web Analytics Association. She and her team are leading a day of training called "Getting Ahead with Google Analytics" in New York City, June 4 at the Harvard Club - see the agenda or register here.

This is going to be a fun and informative training if I know Robbin (which I do) geared towards the online marketer, analyst or webmaster. Her team will touch on how to set up Google Analytics, and then take a practical deep dive where you'll learn how to get insight from all the data within Google Analytics, as well as how to optimize your online marketing and how to test and create a testing culture. They're offering some breakout sessions and different tracks so you can learn the stuff that's most valuable to you. Take a look at the topics that will be covered:

• How to get actionable data out of your analytics
• How to use your analytics to understand where your users are having trouble
• Which little-used but valuable features of Google Analytics will shine light on special opportunities
• How to decrease your AdWords spend (and increase your conversions)
• How to use Google Website Optimizer to increase your conversion rate
• How to get everyone in the company to love their data
• How to set up profiles, filters, goals, cross-domain tracking and user defined variables.

Posted by Jeff Gillis, Google Analytics Team

Analytics Seminars for Success coming to Boston, Orlando and Chicago

Seminars for Success are day-long seminars designed to help you improve your online marketing and get the most out of Google Analytics (separately offered for AdWords as well). We've selected industry professionals from our Google Analytics Authorized Consultant network to teach these seminars in cities around the U.S.

You can take an introductory seminar or an advanced seminar or both. They are being offered consecutive days for your convenience.

• The "Introduction and User Training" course is designed to provide high level overview of Google Analytics and will cover key features and reports. It's perfect for a marketer or account manager who is interested in learning more about how Google Analytics works and who wants to understand how to use the information in reports to make decisions about online marketing, website traffic analysis, and website optimization.
  
  
• The "Advanced and Technical Implementation" course is for those who need hands on implementation training. You'll learn how to install Google Analytics on your site, whether you're running an e-commerce store, tracking branding, rich internet applications, leads generation, or more. You'll learn how to optimally set up Google Analytics to get the types of information that you need.
  

Both classes will include an introduction to Google Website Optimizer.

Register here or see dates and locations, also below. We will let you know when future dates have been added.

Boston
- Introduction and User Training Seminar, May 26
- Advanced Technical Implementation Seminar, May 27

Chicago
- Introduction and User Training Seminar, June 2
- Advanced Technical Implementation Seminar, June 3

Orlando
- Introduction and User Training Seminar, June 24
- Advanced Technical Implementation Seminar, June 25

Posted by Eva Woo, Google Analytics Team

Another American Idol Blog?

So what does the mot popular television show in recent history have in common with banking…A LOT! I am going to make some generalizations that are backed up by fact.The objective of American Idol is to find the next Top-40 superstar that can rival Beyonce, Matchbox 20 and Miley Cyrus. I am not sure about you, but my baby boomer parents wouldn’t know who Miley Cyrus was even if I called her Hanna Montana (OK, bad example…they haven’t been hiding under a rock for the past year, but you get the point.). It is safe to assume that the target audience for American Idol are teens, tweens, gen Y and maybe a few young Xers.
Demographically speaking, American Idol is drawing viewers significantly outside their target audience. The Neilson Television Ratings were released a couple of weeks ago and here’s we’ve learned…

According to The Nielsen Company, 29% of the audience (audiences average more than 30 million viewers each week) is between the ages of 35 and 49. This is the single largest group of viewers.

How does this relate to banking, you ask? I’ll make this easy…just because you INTENDED to appeal to a specific audience doesn’t mean that you won’t experience GREAT success with a different group incidentally. American Idol is setting viewership records left and right. Hopefully the executives at the record labels are learning to be prepared to cut records that reflect the buying behaviors (or listening behaviors) of those who cast their votes for the next Idol…keeping in mind that that they are not necessarily those you intended on appealing to.
What I am trying to say is that if you have an amazing promotion that is aimed to get lots of stable, reliable deposits (probably from those that have been in the workforce for 10-15 years), be prepared to attract smart Generation Y kiddos who have a good college job and want to open an interest bearing checking account. They are a smart, savvy and very thrifty group those GenYers!

So maybe it’s a bit of a stretch…but it’s important that you think about it. They may not be your target market but they are your inevitable market. As bankers, we need to think differently about the way we do things. What we did 10 years ago that attracted the savvy generation X will not work for this new group. Their expectations are higher, their reliance on technology to accomplish most tasks is unprecedented and they have grown up in a world where it is easy to jump a fence if the grass is greener on the other side.

I suggest your start watering your lawn.

Happy Monday!
Jenna

Introducing the Google Marketer's Playbook

Are you interested in reaching your target audience through offline advertising, while also driving online searches and boosting ROI? If so, you can get help from experts at the Google Marketer's Playbook talks at upcoming ad:tech digital marketing conferences.

The Google Marketer's Playbook is a new series of educational talks where our experts discuss strategies for making the most of AdWords and other Google products helpful to advertisers such as Google Analytics and YouTube. Topics include optimization strategy, measurement and tracking, and increasing reach.

These sessions will be held at the 2008 ad:tech Miami, Chicago, and New York shows starting June 3rd and are open to all exhibit hall pass holders. To obtain a free exhibit hall pass to the event of your choice, visit www.ad-tech.com and click on the 'register' link next to the show you will be attending. Following the talks, attendees will be able to participate in the live Q&A sessions with the experts.

The Google Marketer's Playbook at ad:tech San Francisco has already passed, but you can watch recordings of the sessions in this YouTube playlist. These videos are also live on the Google Business Channel which contains even more presentations and webinars about Google's business products and advertising solutions.

Posted by Christian Yee, Inside AdWords crew

Google Analytics How-To Videos

If you've recently signed up for Google Analytics, but aren't sure how to start interpreting and acting on your data, we've posted a couple of videos to our Conversion University Playlist on YouTube to help you out.

For an under-10 minute lesson on the data to look at first, what it means, and what to do about it, watch Beginning Analytics: Interpreting and Acting on Your Data. Also embedded here:



Do you know how to use the date-range selector to compare Mondays to Mondays? If not, you can see how in the Google Analytics Interface Tutorial. The video's other tips include how to jump directly to data without clicking through reports and how to quickly create a print-ready presentation within the interface. Here it is:



More videos are coming to the playlist, so stay tuned :-)

Posted by Alden DeSoto, Google Analytics Team

AdWords system maintenance on May 17th

On Saturday, May 17th, the AdWords system will be unavailable from approximately 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. PDT due to scheduled maintenance. While you won't be able to sign in to your accounts during this time, your campaigns will continue to run as usual.

AdWords system maintenance typically occurs on the second Saturday of each month during the above times -- with this month being an exception to that rule, as previously noted in our April maintenance update.

We'll continue to update you via the blog as we always have, but you may want to take note of our intended dates and times to help you plan for any scheduled downtimes further down the road.

Posted by Trevor Claiborne, Inside AdWords crew

Energy

Greetings...

May is officially 1/2 over...which means the year is nearly 1/2 over, too. So, what does that mean? It is (again) time to evaluate where you stand in relation to your goals, expectations, and planning.

I say it is again time because evaluations of your position and progress should be ongoing and constant. Check in with yourself on your personal progress, bank progress and progress toward your year-end strategic planning goals.

This past week, I had the pleasure of once again being part of the faculty for the ABA School of Bank Marketing and Management. I am continually energized by the quality of the student, focus, and effort that is displayed during the week. The school is an intense experience that is a vital step in any ones financial marketing career. Tip of the hat to the Class of 2008 (what an amazing group of talented individuals!) as they graduated from the school. The Class of 2009 is an energetic, inquisitive group that will, undoubtedly, leave their mark on the school, too.

The school is a stepping stone in a progression of personal and professional growth. The school, the ABA conference, Stonier Graduate school (where I also teach) and more...all geared to deliver you to the Senior Management team at YOUR bank.

So....as we near the mid-point of the year, check in with your goals, evaluate your progress, make changes where needed, and explore outlets for professional growth for yourself!

Cheers!

Bruce

Landing page load time now available on the Keyword Analysis Page

In early March, we announced that we'd soon incorporate an additional factor into Quality Score, namely landing page load time -- where load time is defined as the amount of time it takes for a user to see the landing page after clicking an ad. Now, we'd like to post with an update.

Starting today, load time evaluations will be displayed on the Keyword Analysis page, for your review. We suggest taking some time to evaluate and understand this information because, starting mid-June, landing page load time will be incorporated into your Quality Score.

Once you've had the chance to review and evaluate this information, you may wish to make changes to improve your landing page load time. People who click your ads may well thank you for it, by becoming your satisfied customer.

To learn more about load time and landing page quality, please see this article in the AdWords Help Center.

Posted by the Inside AdWords crew

More Analytics Seminars coming your way

Based on the positive response to our new Analytics Seminars for Success, we've added 6 additional sessions in Boston, Chicago, and Orlando. Industry experts will teach you how to use and apply Analytics knowledge to make smarter marketing decisions.

Sign up seven days before the seminar date and we'll even throw in a $50 AdWords advertising credit. (View the terms and conditions of advertising credits.) You'll find more information about these seminars, including dates, locations, course outlines and registration instructions, at http://www.google.com/awseminars.

And of course, if you'd like to be informed when AdWords and Analytics Seminars become available in your area, simply fill out this form.

Posted by Vivian Leung, Inside AdWords crew

Additional TV Ads webinar now available for sign up

Due to overwhelming demand for the Google TV Ads webinar, we've added an additional session. If you're interested in learning more about Google TV Ads, we'll be hosting another free webinar next week.

Our online webinars are led by AdWords and TV advertising specialists and cover tips on how Google TV Ads can help drive more web traffic and increase your sales volume, turning TV viewers into your customers.

The 1-hour webinar is being held on Tuesday, May 13th at 10am PDT. Please visit the sign-up page to register.

Posted by Trevor Claiborne, Inside AdWords crew

Tips on converting last-minute Mother's Day shoppers to customers

Mother's Day is only 5 days away! And this holiday is surely no exception to the rule that many shoppers procrastinate. Below are some tips to capture a bigger share of the 'late-shopper pie' -- both on Mother's Day this year, and next!

• Create ad groups containing keywords and ad text geared specifically toward Mother's Day, with keywords like 'mother's day gifts' and 'mother's day gift ideas'. You can then pause this ad group and re-use it with minor tweaks next year. You can find detailed suggestions on creating effective keyword lists in our Keyword Basics and Beyond Keyword Basics blog posts.

• Write compelling ad text that features the products you offer on your web site. This invites shoppers interested in those products to click through, and prevents clicks from shoppers who aren't interested. You might also find our previous post on ad text optimization helpful.

• Highlight gift cards as an alternative. This year, almost 40% of shoppers will buy a gift certificate for mom.* If you offer gift cards, highlight them as another option to last-minute shoppers, as gift cards are delivered more quickly than standard packages.

• Extend shipping deadlines. You can convert more last-minute shoppers into customers by offering delivery options, such as overnight delivery, and free or discounted shipping. Also, it's important to clearly inform buyers of delivery deadlines on your home page as well as on specific product pages.

• If you offer gift wrapping, highlight this option along with shipping directly to the recipient.

• Many last-minute shoppers turn to the Internet, but are hesitant to use their credit card on websites. Cater to these shoppers by offering other payment options, like Google Checkout.
  

As you read this, late shoppers are busy searching for the perfect last-minute gift to buy mom. This is your opportunity to persuade them to buy from you.

* National Retail Federation 2008 Mother’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey (PDF)

Posted by Emel Mutlu, Inside AdWords crew

Audio, and Video, and Print, oh my!

Google AdWords has come a long way since its launch in 2000 -- gone are the days of only serving simple text ads on search results and various pages across the Internet. Over the years, we've introduced a number of creative formats for advertising online, and now you can even use your AdWords account to create campaigns that will reach customers when they aren't online.

Here's a quick overview of all the AdWords ad types available:

Online

Text ads: When displayed on Google, text ads are four lines of text: a title (25 characters), two lines of ad text (35 characters each), and a URL line. The format of text ads on partner sites may differ. For example, your ad text may appear on a single line, or it may look like the ads on this page.

Image ads: Appearing on select content sites in the Google network, images ads are just that -- graphical AdWords ads. Unlike traditional online graphical ads, image ads can be matched to a page's content. See examples of image ads and placement options.

Video ads: Like image ads, video ads appear on content sites in the Google network, but are user-initiated. That means a user must click "play" to watch your ad. Think of video ads as a type of commercial on the Internet. Watch examples of video ads.

Mobile ads: Available as text or image ads, mobile ads appear on mobile websites, and direct users to your mobile website. Mobile text ads can also appear when users search Google from a mobile device. If you'd like to run mobile ads, you'll need a mobile website. Learn more about where mobile ads are available.

Offline

TV ads: That's right -- TV ads! Through your AdWords account, you can launch a television campaign in minutes. Google TV Ads is available to advertisers located in the United States, billed in U.S. dollars. Watch a demo to learn more.

Print ads: Place your ads in newspapers across the United States. In fact, you can choose from more than 750 newspapers, and set a price that matches your budget. Learn how other advertisers have used Print Ads by reading our success stories. Google Print Ads is available to advertisers located in the United States, billed on credit card postpay.

Audio ads: Broadcast you message on over 1,600 radio stations across the U.S. Audio ads are just like traditional radio commercials, but they're easier to buy and manage. Google Audio Ads are available to advertisers located in the United States, billed on credit card postpay. Listen to examples of audio ads, all of which were created using the Google Ad Creation Marketplace.

We invite you to experiment with the various ad formats available -- advertisers often find that offline ad formats are a great complement to their online campaigns, helping them reach new customers. You can find more information about each ad type in the help center.

Posted by Heather Lane, Inside AdWords crew