by Julia Vyse | Feb 8, 2018
Despite innovations in images, videos, locations and social content, keywords are still the foundation of getting found in a search engine. Understanding which keywords are right for you doesn’t take too long and will help you organize your content. So what is the difference between a short tail and a long tail keyword?
Short Tail Keyword
Short tail keywords are just as described: short. Your brand name is probably a short tail keyword, as-is the industry you belong to. For example, Plumber is a short tail keyword, and so is Mario Plumbing Bros. These keywords are very broad and only describe the very general idea of who you are and what you do.
Long Tail Keywords
Long Tail keywords are longer and more specific than short-tail keywords. They pull in descriptors, and sometimes resemble phrases you might hear in a conversation. Mario Plumber on Koopa St. is a long tail keyword that describes where you are as well as who you are. Pool Renovation Plumbing Quote is a very descriptive long tail keyword that includes the industry (plumber), the specialty (pool), the offer (quote), and the activity (renovation). The person using Pool Renovation Plumbing Quote is ready to compare prices and probably closer to a sale than the person searching for Plumber.
Voice Search
Up until recently, all internet searches took place with a keyboard, on a desk, phone or tablet. With the advent of Siri, Amazon Echo, Google Assistant, and Cortana, people can now speak directly into a device and ask it to search for anything they’d like. That changes how search is executed, because people generally don’t just search for ‘plumber’ out loud. Rather, they’ll say something like, ‘emergency plumber’ or ‘Best reviewed plumber for renovation.’ The phrases are much longer and the results are likely to be delivered out loud rather than in a list.
As of today, AdWords and Bing Ads don’t allow you to parse voice vs typed searches, so start your research with mobile devices, ‘other’ devices (like an Echo, or an Apple Watch) and focus on long tail keywords. Learning about the long tail keywords that mean the most to your business is a great way to ensure that you show up when someone searches for you out loud.
In conclusion
The devices we use for searches will continue to evolve, but our basis for language – words and phrases – will remain stable for now. Start looking at long tail keywords that bring your business sales and good quality leads, and start thinking out loud about the way you can optimize your content for voice searches.
by Julia Vyse | Feb 8, 2018
Store Visits are a conversion type in AdWords. It tells you when someone has clicked on a paid search ad, and then crossed a threshold into your location. It’s great for retailers and for event locations as it directly connects search behavior to your ad programs. Store Visits are based on aggregated, anonymized statistics. AdWords uses current data and past data on the number of people who click your ads and later visit your store.
What do you need?
Google has certain requirements for using this conversion. These change regularly so it’s worth keeping an eye on if your business is growing (and we hope it is!).
- 30+ locations in your Google My Business account. This is a stretch for some, but if you run a franchise, this is very doable.
- Over 100,000 search clicks over a 1-3 month period. If this is a goal rather than a norm, think about making it a target for your next big promo.
AdWords needs to be linked to your Google My Business account to manage your location extensions, so as long as you reach the volume requirements, you’re ready to go!
What will Google tell you?
Google will report on visits to a location if someone clicks on one of your ads and then crosses a threshold (goes inside) within a 30 day period. For privacy reasons, AdWords will not supply data about the visitor, or the particular location visited if more than one location is in a campaign. We recommend looking at Store Visit trends and comparing that with your sales data to get a better understanding of how ad clicks help drive in-store behaviour.
How do you use this conversion?
This conversion type will help you understand when people choose to visit your location after clicking on an ad. These conversions could tell you about events, real estate presentation centers, new store openings, and shopping behaviour.
How does Google know all this?
Google has done a lot of work to understand geography, and in-store layouts. Google Maps teams have laid a strong groundwork for understanding where stores are, how walkable the location is and the interior layout of the store. They can connect Wi-Fi, cell towers and GPS location signals to their maps to understand a lot already about which stores receive visits. Google also uses an on-going panel to confirm data, so they can actually update their data with discrepancies regularly.
About timing: Google knows the difference between a 1 minute visit and a thirty-minute visit, along with employees who would spend a long time in a location (they aren’t counted, don’t worry). Finally, users: Google store visits use location history enabled on phones to add to their dataset. All of these different data points – location history, Wi-Fi, cell tower data, map data, GPS and panels to create a statistically significant model of people who interact with ads and then visit a location.
What if my numbers are low?
Sometimes Store Visits conversions will show small numbers, even 1 or 0. This can happen if you over-segment your data, such as filtering by device, or by a small area. It’s good to keep in mind that that number is an average of 1, rather than a direct line of only 1 person clicking and then going to a location.
Store visits are most accurate when numbers are high. That means a result of 100 or higher will more accurately reflect campaign performance.
Best practices?
Segment your ad groups to cover different products and observe which ones drive Store Visit and offline sales, then budget those accordingly. Next, look at location and mobile bid adjustments to bid more aggressively on a radius around your front door. Finally, use your Days to Conversion segment to understand how soon after a click someone visits your store.
In conclusion
Store Visits are an important metric for local businesses. It is based on highly accurate, anonymized data and it gives us a way of connecting your digital activities to your in-person experience.
