A Case Study on Paid Search

 

 

 

 

 

A Case Study on Paid Search

 

Heather Fleischman

DeVry University

Digital Marketing MKTG550

Bob Schaumann

9/10/2023

 

 

Abstract

            Week two case study includes analyzing paid search results from a consumer perspective. Once these observations are complete, it will then address recommendations for improvements from the perspective of a digital marketer. Following the three search topics, “grocery delivery”, “online banking”, and “buy furniture online”, it will be assessed under several questions. These questions include results, repetition, relevance, ranking, and recommendation. Each question will be explored in depth to determine the final recommendations for proceeding with a successful product ad for Phoenix Gold, silver, and Pawn.

Paid Search Results

            The first search was comprised of “grocery delivery” which yielded the following results for grocery delivery in the area. DoorDash, Instacart, and Walmart were at the top of the list. When looking at the links for DoorDash and Instacart it appears that it will take you directly to their homepage. Walmart, however, offers up a landing page link for Walmart plus. This suggests that there is more to the Walmart selection processes on the website. It is assumed under this landing page that grocery from the store is a separate department from the regular Walmart.com. Instacart and DoorDash also appear to be more straightforward. DoorDash features ordering local delivery but also warns of fees associated with their program. Instacart appeared to offer the same services as DoorDash but offered pickup and delivery, which would be free on orders over a certain amount.

            “Online banking” brought up the results for Truist bank, Chime, and SoFi. Chime and SoFi are online banking sites. According to the links it appears that these advertisements will lead directly to the home page of the companies. Truist, a local bank, has a link that will direct to a landing page that is tiled with the words switch, and today. Truist looks to be appealing to those who already have bank accounts with statements about switching with cost savings, improved customer service, and free checks. Chime online banking advertises that there is a quick and easy sign up for services. They also include statements about no minimums, no overdrafts, and no ATM fees. SoFi advertises a better online banking experience. The appeal they appear to make is with a no deposit required, and a no-fee account.

            The final search to conduct was “buy furniture online” which produced interesting results. The first thing to be listed was a scrolling picture banner full of links for purchasing different pieces of furniture. These were direct shopping links to products and were arranged in a way that appealed to a consumer. The first article was featured under this shopping banner. It was for the article titled "52 best online furniture stores to bookmark now” from architectural digest. This is assumed to lead to the digest website through two separate links titled, clever and furniture. There is a basic list of furniture styles included in the advertisement. The final listing is for IKEA featuring shopping furniture online and in-store near you. The link appears to be for the furniture listed in the IKEA catalogue. It stated that modern, affordable, furniture from IKEA makes a house a home.

Ad Relevance

            When addressing the relevance of the search topic, “grocery delivery”, the results were successful in returning sponsored ads that were on topic. DoorDash, Instacart, and Walmart all offer the online purchase of groceries with the ability to pick-up or have it delivered. Each of the options has the qualifications listed to make it worth looking more into. Since DoorDash is at the top of the list, it is easy to assume that this sponsored ad will be selected first even though they all have the same basic functions. These are larger companies that work by connecting the consumer to local shopping offers through the platform. This allows for a greater marketing opportunity should the smaller companies work with each one of the larger companies.

            “Online banking” results were accurate as well. It turned up with one large bank that has local branches, and it also includes two large companies that are online only banking options. Depending on what type of online banking functions a consumer is searching for would depend on which one of these will be followed through with. As a consumer, when looking for online banking, I would stick around the Chime brand. It has one of the largest networks with benefits. The list of these benefits would be why I would choose this above the other two options listed.

            Searching for “buy furniture online” brought up enough suggestions to cause an overload. If you do not put in a specific type of furniture, then you are leaving it up to the keyword system to choose for you. This is what allowed for the long list of images in a shopping banner as the first entry. None of these entries appeared to be local. Most of them had online links for purchasing them. This does follow through with the target keyword search even if it did produce an information overload situation. The second item in the list was not a direct link. It was an article that combined the search into the one place of an opinion column. It also fits the requirements that it is relevant, depending on the definition of relevance, and what type you are looking for. The final listing for IKEA is for a large chain company that offers catalogue purchases both online and in some locations. This company is strictly a furniture business which follows the keywording.

            Each of these searches has pros and cons. The search for food produced some of the more accurate listings from the keyword reference. Taken also into account, Chime’ s online banking also fits the keywords perfectly. It was an online platform for banking. Both ads were good examples of relevant results based on the keyword searching. The one listing that failed to produce enough of an interest I considered to be the SoFi banking option. There was little information on the subject in the ad and it did not have a compelling case through the advertisements to be considered as something worth researching more.

Ad Ranking

            According to WordStream, there is a correlation between quality score and a cost per click. The quality score is the determination of the quality and relevance of your keywords (WordStream. 2023.). This quality score determines the frequency and position of the ad on the google searches. Looking through the ads, most of them appear to have good quality scores. These would include the DoorDash ad, and most likely the Chime ad. These have relevance to the keywords used in multiple places on their platforms. One that appears to be more rated under the cost per click would be the SoFi ad. This ad has very little information on it. This leads me to believe that it has its rating because it paid a higher premium for it. This same higher premium could also be applied to the ad that involved furniture placed in a magazine. This one could also be a combination of both proper keywording and the cost per click. It appears to follow along the line of both.

            Companies such as DoorDash, Walmart, IKEA, and Truist bank have a large presence in business positions. This allows for higher budgeting for marketing. This higher marketing budget could be a strong point as to why there are so many sponsored ads for large companies within the keyword search parameters. It is important to understand that the higher budget a company must work with, the more it will have the ability to pinpoint the marketing campaigns that work for them. Smaller budget companies may only have a limited amount of funds that are available for marketing projects. This smaller budget does not allow room to be wrong in your decisions for marketing channels. A smaller budget could account for many of the searches that were not seen as sponsored on the list. It is not a determination of the quality of the products being sold. It can still stop companies from rising in the algorithm.

Recommendation

            Based on the research, Phoenix Gold, Silver, and Pawn can be best represented in the ad using keywords. Each word in the name of the company is already a strong keyword. Adding these to the parameters will allow for maximum exposure. This will in turn boost the quality score found in Google. Approaching the ad by leading consumers to the home page of the website to learn more about the products and services offered is the goal. It would be good practice to put the logo in the ad. This along with the tag lines “we buy gold, silver, and jewelry”, and “we offer low-cost collateral loans” would be a simple approach that produces strong results in the algorithm. Focusing more on the keywords and the quality score, we can hope to keep the costs down for the ad while producing the best results of increasing page traffic.

Conclusion

            As a marketing professional, it is important to understand how ads function when it comes to a paid search event. Using things such as proper keywording can lead to results just as effectively as using budget alone. But when you combine all the features together, you have the opportunity for success. Looking at which ads produced the most interest also led to advancing the designs of the product that will be added to the paid search campaigns. After defining the pros and cons, looking at effectiveness and relevance, and establishing a baseline, we can take the information gathered and improve the success rate of future situations.

Reference

Google Search. 2023. Appendix II. www.google.com

WordStream LocaliQ. 2023. What is a quality score and how does it affect google ads? https://www.wordstream.com/quality-score#SnippetTab

Week 2 Case Study, Paid Search. 2023. https://devryu.instructure.com/courses/98343/assignments/3078053?module_item_id=12729487

 

Appendix I

Grocery Delivery	DoorDash - Sponsored
	Instacart - Sponsored
	Walmart - Sponsored
Online Banking	Truist Bank – Sponsored
	Chime - Sponsored
	SoFi - Sponsored
Buy Furniture Online	Scrolling shopping banner – Sponsored
	52 Best Online Furniture Stores to Bookmark Now
	Ikea