Google Retail Blog

Here Comes the Bridal Registry

2012-05-24T10:30:00.000-04:00

From June to September, there will be an estimated 1.2 million weddings in the US. And if you’re like me, you have 2 or 3 wedding invitations stuck to your fridge, serving as reminders of the plans I need to make, dress I need to buy and, of course, gifts I need to buy.

Most people think of wedding season and think about the billions spent on planning - the venue, food, flowers, DJ, etc. However, don’t forget this is also a billion dollar opportunity for retailers selling wedding gifts. According to The Wedding Report, Inc.’s 2012 US Wedding Market Insight Report, in 2010 the average number of guests for a wedding was 141. This was up 10% over 2009 where the average number of guests was 128. It’s expected this will jump to between 135 and 145 guests for the 2012 season. That’s more than 170M people shopping for wedding gifts this Summer.

Outlined below are The Knot’s spending recommendations for gifts according to degrees of friendship to the couple:

Co-worker and/or distant family friend or relative: $50-$75
Relative or friend: $75-$100
Close relative or close friend: $100-$150

Now to a more pressing question. What will people buy for the happy couples? Looking at a recent Mintel International Group Limited study on the types of gifts couples are registering for, you can see that household items like bakeware, appliances and even electronics top the list.

And The Wall Street Journal reported that some of the recent top registry picks across a few big retailers include:

premium kitchen cutlery
barware accessories (ice buckets, cocktail shakers)
electronics
camping gear
appliances (stand mixer, hand mixer, coffee makers)
cookware
luggage
bath towels
bedding

Google Insights also provides details on which wedding registry terms are popular.

If you’re selling appropriate items, now is the time to let people know! Talk with your account team about the best way to reach wedding guests as they move through the purchase funnel of gift getting this season.

Posted by Rachel Perrone, The Google Retail Team

Spring Account Maintenance for a Healthy Summer Harvest

2012-05-22T11:05:00.000-04:00

An unusually mild winter this year (along with with a recovering economy) resulted in an earlier jump in search queries for garden, patio and outdoor equipment.

For example, by Mid-March 2012, query volume on Google for the outdoor & patio category had already reached May 2011 levels. Many advertisers benefited from this earlier spike in interest though more sales earlier in the year. Those who succeeded most were the ones with competitive search bids and daily budgets that were already set up to capture demand when it occurred, regardless of the time of year. It is not uncommon for advertisers to lower their bids and budgets in their off-seasons, only to raise them when demand is historically higher. The problem is that by doing this, advertisers unintentionally remove themselves from consumers' consideration sets when consumers are in the research phase earlier in the season. This is particularly true for high-involvement consumer durables with longer purchase cycles (such as higher-end patio and outdoor furniture and grills).

The same philosophy holds true for other marketing channels such as display advertising, mobile search and TrueView video. The most successful advertisers are the ones who respond by putting their message against those queries and content, regardless of the time of year.

With so many sources of information and ways to access the web (tablets, mobile phones, Internet TVs, laptops, YouTube, web forums, etc.), the likelihood of an advertiser getting a conversion just by bidding on long-tail terms at the end of the purchase funnel is becoming increasingly remote. It is important to have brand continuity across both demand generation (i.e. display and video) and demand fulfillment (mobile and search) channels. When the time comes to make a purchase, the advertisers who have been top-of-mind across the entire funnel are the ones who will ultimately be the selected brand.

Recommendations:
Tend the roots. Utilize Top-of-Page Bid Estimates to ensure your ads are always appearing in the top three ad spaces on the Google Search results page.

Maintain and grow your crops. Review how much you invested daily during your peak season last year by visiting the dimensions tab in AdWords and customizing the columns to view Lost Impression Share, and then segment your data by day (or week). Set your new daily budgets for this season based on your previous high-season daily investment and how much impression share you lost due to low budgets.

Use timed sprinklers instead of a hose. Implement Automated Rules and have the Google system automatically adjust your bids and budgets on specific (or all) campaigns and keywords to appropriate levels to ensure maximum coverage against consumer demand.

Reap the benefits of what you have sown. Leverage early outdoor & patio equipment demand by pushing complementary products (such as accessories) to customers who have already made purchases this year. Some of the best ways to accomplish this are:

Set up remarketing campaigns to reach the exact users who have purchased from you already. Show them ads with compelling offers to up-sell them on complementary products (hint: if you have conversion tracking installed, there is no need to re-tag your site to remarket to previous customers. Just use your conversion tag as a remarketing tag too! When setting up this list, just click the drop down to select from "existing tags")

Utilize the new, improved Keyword Tool to scan your website and ensure keyword coverage across all products you sell (hint: be sure to uses the "columns" drop down to show the recommended landing page and approximate CPC)

Leverage Dynamic Search Ads, to automatically create ads and choose appropriate landing pages based on the products you sell

Sell your crops beyond the local market. Reach on-the-go consumers with ad text that appeals to consumers on-the-go (i.e. "Call us today for great deals") and include a click-to-call phone number in your ads. For more information on the explosive growth of mobile and how to adapt to the changing landscape, check out our newly released Mobile Playbook.

Host a harvest festival. Celebrate your successes and learn from your mistakes by including a social component. The YouTube Playbook for Advertisers and G+ for Business provide insight into how to get the party started.

Plant seeds in various soils. Integrate promotions across all devices and platforms. Some crops grow better in different soils, just like customers convert differently according to how they access information.

Now that you have all the tricks for tending to your account for Summer-specific categories, it is time to watch your sales and performance grow. Happy harvesting!

Posted by Joe Rosenberg, The Google Retail Team

Announcing the next series of Learn with Google webinars!

2012-05-16T14:29:00.001-04:00

(cross-posted from the Inside AdWords Blog)

Earlier this year, we introduced the Learn with Google webinar program, and we were delighted to see thousands of you show up to learn about a variety of Google advertising products and solutions. Today, we’re happy to announce the continuation of our series with 10 new webinars over the next few months. During each webinar we’ll share tips and how-to’s to help make the web work for your business.

Check out our upcoming live webinars below:

May 23 at 10am PDT: Getting Started with Google Analytics
May 24 at 9am PDT: Building Blocks of Digital Attribution
May 31 at 10am PDT: Introduction to TrueView for YouTube
June 5 at 10am PDT: GoMo: Mobilize your Site with Quick and Easy New Tools
June 6 at 10am PDT: Our Mobile Planet: Understanding U.S. Smartphone Consumers
June 7 at 10am PDT: Introducing Mobile Apps Inventory in AdWords
June 12 at 10am PDT: Get Local with ZIP Code Targeting to Increase Sales/Leads
June 14 at 10am PDT: Search Optimization: Tips, Tricks, and Tools
June 19 at 10am PDT: Bringing the Power and Control of Search to Display
July 10 at 10am PDT: Account Management Tools for Large Advertisers and Agencies

Visit our webinar page to register for any of the sessions and to access past webinars on-demand. We’ll be adding new webinars as they’re scheduled, so check back regularly for updates. You can also stay up-to-date on the schedule by downloading our Learn with Google Webinar calendar to automatically see upcoming webinars in your Google Calendar.

Whether your goal is to engage the right customers in the moments that matter, make better decisions, or go bigger, faster, we hope that you’ll use these best practices and how-to’s to maximize the impact of digital and grow your business. We’re looking forward to having you at an upcoming Learn with Google webinar!

Posted by Erin Green, Marketing Coordinator

Wireless Shoppers Rely on Digital throughout the Consumer Decision Journey

2012-05-07T10:57:00.000-04:00

Globally, more people have mobile phones than electricity or drinking water! With so many consumers in the market for phones, Google commissioned research to better understand how consumers shop for cell phones in the U.S. We have grouped some of our findings into a variation of the 4 phases in McKinsey’s Consumer Decision Journey:

1) Stimulus: What triggers consumers to shop for a phone?

Upgrades and new devices are most likely to trigger consumers to start shopping. 48% of consumers purchased their phone because they were eligible for an upgrade while 31% purchased because they wanted the latest & greatest device. Consumers were less likely to purchase because they wanted a better deal or wanted to switch to a faster, more reliable network.
While devices prompt consumers to shop, consumers said they care most about network reliability, cost & data plan structure when shopping for a new phone.

Recommendations:

Prioritize device/OEM messaging & search to drive sales
Highlight network and pricing in communication

2) Zero Moment of Truth (ZMOT): Consumers research extensively before purchasing. What sources influence wireless purchases and help consumers decide what brand to purchase?

72% of shoppers considered 2+ cell phone models and 57% visit 5+ different brand sites before purchasing (either OEM, retailer or carrier). They also took their time researching, with 60% of online shoppers starting their research 2+ weeks prior to purchase.
Smartphone shoppers indicated that digital resources are most useful and used most often when researching. Search engines were the #1 resource used throughout the research process.

When it comes to search, consumers used different keyword types: 49% searched on carrier terms, 43% on retailer terms, 26% on OEM terms and 19% on non-brand terms.
Wireless shoppers used video to research and video aided in brand discovery:

41% of smartphone buyers watched videos during the shopping process .
After viewing smartphone product videos, 64% of shoppers became interested in specific smartphone models, 44% were introduced to smartphone brands not previously considered and 36% heard about the smartphone product for the first time.

Consumers are almost as likely to use their mobile devices to look up product information & reviews as they are to research price & seek deals. They also use their phones to look up store contact information.

ZMOT Recommendations:

Digital is core to the purchase process. Ensure it is core to your media mix.
Consumers research extensively: Extend attribution window & remarket to shoppers who don’t immediately convert on your site
Extend SEM coverage across carrier, OEM, retailer, and category/non-brand terms to reach full relevant audience.
Target wireless shoppers watching videos about devices & service
Ensure your mobile site is optimized & scale mobile search coverage to reach all consumers looking for you

3) Purchase: Where and how do they purchase?

According to Traqline 69% of cell phone purchases occurred in-store in 2011 but almost half of all cell phone purchases were influenced by the online channel.
Mobile researchers are more likely to buy in store: 72% of mobile researchers purchased their phone in store vs. 55% of non-mobile researchers.
Video drives consumers to store: After watching videos, 69% of smartphone buyers visited a store that sells smartphones and 36% searched a store’s inventory or availability.

Purchase Recommendations:

Digital ultimately fuels in-store purchases. Measure and incorporate in-store influenced sales into digital ROI.
Mobile & video drive purchases: Include a call to action and ensure it’s easy for consumers to locate a nearby store.

4): Post-Purchase: What can marketers do better to improve the post-purchase experience?

Customer service influences future purchase decisions: 42% of wireless shoppers said that customer service was an “extremely important” consideration when shopping for a smartphone
Customers turn to the web for help:

20% of wireless customers prefer to use an online channel to solve their customer service issues (e.g., email, online chat, video tutorials, etc.)
37% of wireless customers use search engines to look for customer service help

Post Purchase Recommendations:

Increase customer satisfaction, reduce churn and call center costs by activating digital to help customers where & when they need it

Serve targeted ads & landing pages to customers searching on customer service terms
Use video & chat to get consumers answers faster

Posted by Eva Barbier, The Google Technology Team

Sources & Methodology:
1) Google/Compete Wireless Shopper Study: Compete conducted an online survey using panelists who researched or shopped for cell phones online within the past 6 months.Surveys were fielded between Nov 10th and Dec 1st 2011 N=788. In addition to a survey, Compete measured consumer behavior within the industry in Q3 2011 using their panel of 2M US Consumers.

2) Google/Compete Video Shopper Study: Surveys were fielded between Sept. 6th to Oct. 13th, N= 1186, Smartphone videos are defined as product videos watched on youtube.com, retailer sites, oem sites

3) Google/Ipsos OTX Customer Service Study: Surveys were fielded December 29th 2011- January 18th 2012. N=1800

When is a map more than a map?

2012-05-02T17:50:00.000-04:00

With over 20% of Google searches now containing a location element, rising to over 40% of mobile searches, retailers are becoming increasingly focused on using online mapping to their advantage. We’ve just launched a new site www.whenisamap.com/retail aimed at showing the ways in which mapping can be put to work for retailers, and have found it interesting to see the varying ways retailers have chosen to use Google Maps for Business. The site has examples of great implementations ranging from classic store locators, to promoting in-store events, and even indoor mapping.

As well as showcasing the best uses of Google Maps we’ve seen from retailers, the website also includes a Little Book of Google Maps for Business.

The online book gives tips and examples to help your company benefit from online mapping such as:

Locate key store information on the map, such as opening hours, stock inventory, special offers
Customize the map in your store’s colors
Visualize store performance over time and identify clusters of customer addresses

To get more ideas for mapping in your company, visit whenisamap.com/retail or watch this video

Posted by Caroline Mogford, Marketing Manager, Google Geospatial

Announcing The Mobile Playbook

2012-04-26T13:02:00.000-04:00

(cross-posted on the Google Mobile Ads Blog)

We’ve had conversations with hundreds of business leaders about mobile over the past year and two clear themes emerged from these discussions. Today, companies understand that they need to invest in mobile to engage with their customers on this platform. The problem is, most don't know where to start. To help address this issue, we launched a new resource: The Mobile Playbook. In this interactive guide, we pose 5 crucial questions all executives should be asking to win with mobile:

How does mobile change our value proposition?
How does mobile impact our digital destinations?
Is our organization adapting to mobile?
How should our marketing adapt to mobile?
How can we connect with our tablet audience?

Visit www.themobileplaybook.com from your tablet, PC or smartphone today. If you can, visit it from your tablet. Because The Mobile Playbook site is built with HTML5, we had the flexibility to customize the experience for different types of screens. We designed it for tablets first, then scaled the content up for the PC and streamlined it for smartphones. This way, we were able to ensure that readers will have an enjoyable browsing experience, no matter what context they’re in. We hope this resource will help you have productive conversations with your teams and agencies and ultimately help you adapt to the mobile consumer who is waiting to engage with you.

Visit www.themobileplaybook.com from your tablet today.

Mobile represents a sociological shift with how users relate with both the digital and physical world. The companies that understand that all businesses are becoming mobile businesses will be primed to succeed today and in the years to come.

Posted by: Jason Spero, Head of Global Mobile Sales and Strategy

Mother’s Day Gift Dilemma - WWMD (What Would Mom Do)?

2012-04-25T14:40:00.000-04:00

Times have evolved from analog to digital for everyone except my mom. Even my grandmother is more technologically-savvy than my mother. Sorry mom. A string of usually charming emoticons and abbreviations simply won’t do the trick when speaking to my mom. HSIK what 2 get mom 4 Mother’s Day? WWMD?! How can I begin to thank her for everything she’s done, in a language we both understand?

Step One - WWGD? (What Would Google Do?)
Let me consult the “database of intentions” for this daunting task. What gift ideas are other kids coming up with? Looks like traditional gifts are still the go-to this year. That’s good. I haven’t lost hope on winning the best daughter of all-time award. I’m going to dive into each traditional Mother’s Day gift category to see how I can secure my win. Here is what I found:

Gifts
Trending searches: gift(s), gift baskets, gift ideas.

Maybe. Let me see what else is out there.

Electronics
Trending searches: ipod, camera, kindle.

Well this is for the moms with the technological gene. I know there are a lot out there, but this type of gift would not be well received by my mother. Moving on...

Flowers
Trending searches: beautiful flowers, florist, roses.

I love getting mom flowers, but I did this last year. What about a nice Spring outfit?

Apparel
Trending searches: dress(es), clothes, skirt.

That is a possibility, but how about something that sparkles?

Jewelry
Trending searches: jewelry store(s), gold jewelry, silver jewelry.

“Ding”! Or should I say, “Bling”! I’ll throw in an “LOL”, or a “mmk” for my horrible joke. I THINK I have found the way to my mom’s heart.

Step Two - To buy online, or to buy in-store... that is the question
For me, buying online is easiest because I have to ship my gift anyway. For the rest of the population, this can be a tricky situation depending on the category. Last year, in-store sales peaked on Saturday, 24 hours before Mother’s Day (hello last minute shoppers), and online sales peaked on the Tuesday before Mother’s Day.

For Jewelry, there are similar findings; however, there are more dramatic spend increases as Mother’s Day approaches.

Step Three: Where Should I Buy My Mother’s Day Gift?
Easy! I’m a brand loyalist, so I have my favorites. I know, I know... Mom taught me not to play favorites, but it sure is convenient and comforting to use my stored payment information and know exactly what I’m getting. But that’s just me; other shoppers might be more price-sensitive and opt for the “deal” factor. To ensure a conversion, a retailer should touch on as many attributes as possible when choosing the appropriate advertising messaging.

Step Four: Give My Mom the Perfect Gift & Collect My “Favorite Daughter” Trophy
Stay tuned for the reaction to my awesome gift.

Happy Mother’s Day from the Google Retail Team!

Posted by Keri Overman, The Google Retail Team

Reminder: Hangout On Air with mobile thought leaders introducing The Mobile Playbook on April 25th 3pm EST

2012-04-24T18:30:00.000-04:00

(cross-posted on the Google Mobile Ads Blog)

Just a quick reminder to tune in to the Think with Google Google+ page this Wednesday, April 25th, at 3pm EST/ 12pm PST for a special Hangout on Air mobile strategy discussion. We’ll be introducing our new resource, The Mobile Playbook, and talking about how mobile can help businesses win the moments that matter, make better decisions, and go bigger, faster. Our incredible mobile panelists have all been early movers in the mobile space, and we’ll be hearing their perspective on the 5 key questions we feature in The Mobile Playbook that every business executive should be asking today in order to win with mobile. We hope you’ll be there. Leave your questions for the panel in advance by clicking on the scrapbook photo at the top of the Think with Google Google+ page and leaving a comment on the photo.

When: Wednesday, April 25, 2012 3pm EST/ 12pm PST
How: In order to view the Hangout on Air, visit the Think with Google Google+ page at 3pm EST on April 25th, look for the stream post about the Hangout on Air, and click on it to tune in. Don’t forget to be signed into Google+! If you aren’t started yet with Google+, get started here with just your Google account.


On April 25, look for the Hangout on Air post like the image above on the Think with Google +page and click to tune-in!

Posted by: Jason Spero, Head of Global Mobile Sales and Strategy

Get Local with AdWords

2012-04-06T12:47:00.000-04:00

(cross-posted on the Inside AdWords Blog)

Get organized this spring with new location features in AdWords and share your stories

Over the past 30 years, California Closet Company has grown from the brainchild of a college student organizing his dorm room closet to a successful business with more than 77 franchise locations. To reach customers across the U.S. and internationally, the company centered their digital marketing strategy on creating locally relevant campaigns.

It’s no surprise that local campaigns are a focus for many businesses--from finding directions to looking up a phone number, more people are going online to find local information. In fact, more than 20% of searches on Google are related to location, and people often act quickly on local searches. Research shows that using smartphones, 88% of people who search for local information take action within a day.

To help you organize your local ad campaigns this spring, we’re introducing three new features in AdWords to help you create ads that are more relevant to local customers.

Target customers by zip code

If you customize your direct mail, outdoor ads, or newspaper ads at a postal code level, you now can easily do the same in AdWords in the US. We are introducing the ability to target more than 30,000 US ZIP Codes with your AdWords campaigns.

You will be able to add up to 1,000 postal codes at a time to your search ad campaigns with AdWords Location Targeting. Plus, you can get feedback on the performance of your local campaigns by viewing campaign performance statistics at the postal code level.

"Location targeting within AdWords helped us double lead volume and cut the cost to acquire new customers in half,” said Lois Erbay, Director of Marketing, California Closet Company. “We plan on building on that success by using ZIP Code targeting to create even more locally relevant campaigns for our customers.”

More locally relevant ads in less time

To help you easily create a custom ad title, text, display URL, and/or destination URL for all of your locations at scale, we’ve developed location insertion for location extensions. You’ll no longer need to create multiple ads for multiple locations--this new feature automatically inserts the city, phone number, or zip code of your local business into your ad text.

For example, if your ad text says: “Find a {lb.city:Local} Store or Shop Online,” a user viewing your ad in Chicago would see: “Find a Chicago Store or Shop Online.” This new feature cuts out all the work to building out ad text featuring local information for all your locations.

Ad with location insertion in the text and display URL

“We’ve had amazing success manually customizing our creative with local information for our top markets, which shows us that customers want locally-relevant results when it comes to a service like storage,” said Chris Laczi, Advertising Director, Uncle Bob's Self Storage. “That’s why we’re very excited about location insertion. It will simplify the task of creating locally customized ads for our 400+ locations, and we expect it will greatly enhance conversion rate of our ads.”

You must have location extensions set up and running in order to enable location insertion. Location insertion will work even if your location extensions don’t show because of other extensions. We detect location based on where your customer is physically located or by the geographic locations she may have shown interest in.

Find out more about location insertion and location extensions.

Better clarity and control

When we launched advanced location targeting in March 2011, we provided you with more control over how you geographically target your ads. Based on advertiser feedback, we’re implementing four additional enhancements that will make location targeting options clearer and more powerful. Read more about these enhancements in the Help Center and in this blog post.

There is significant opportunity for businesses to reach local customers online and win moments that matter by delivering the right ad in the right context. Stay tuned for more information on how ZIP Code targeting can help you grow your business.

We want to hear from you about your success in getting local with AdWords--share your story here and we might reach out to you to participate in our upcoming blog posts.

Posted by Richard Holden, Product Management Director

Get Inspired with Think Quarterly’s Creativity Issue

2012-04-02T18:07:00.000-04:00

As the internet comes of age, technology is catching up with our wildest imaginations. We can realize ideas that simply weren’t possible a mere five years ago. And you don’t need to be a technologist or have “Creative” in your title; millions of people around the world are making, remixing, and sharing everyday.

Case in point: There are over 800 exabytes of digital information in the world – words, videos, photos, music. To put that in context, a volume of the complete works of Shakespeare is about five megabytes. It would take one billion book-filled pickup trucks to make just //one// exabyte. This is our creative output; the sheer volume is equally inspiring and overwhelming.

Where to begin? Right here. The Creativity issue of Think Quarterly, launching today, documents this far-reaching transformation, cutting through the noise to focus on what it all means.

In “The Curious Case of Creativity,” Google VP of Global Marketing Lorraine Twohill sees creativity through an engineer’s eyes — as a way to solve problems, big and small. Interviews with the founders of two award-winning global agencies, Sir John Hegarty of BBH and Ajaz Ahmed of AKQA, discuss what creativity means in a digital context and how you can encourage it, even at a big company. Creative minds from Mullen, Wieden and Kennedy, Barbarian Group, AKQA, and Anomaly pick their most envy-inducing digital campaigns. And “Lean Communications” looks at how technology is forcing the traditional creative process to get faster, smarter, and more efficient.

We also explore how the web is inspiring entirely new forms of creativity — YouTube remixes, 3D models, data art and infographics — that are reshaping how we see the world. (And if you want to see how the web shapes your brand in particular, try our new “Brand Impressions” tool.)

Take some time to check it out and let us know what you think on +Think With Google.

Posted by Allison Mooney, Think Quarterly Editor

Google Ads - now on Google+

2012-04-02T13:28:00.000-04:00

(cross-posted on the Inside AdWords Blog)

When we launched Google+ Pages last November, we aimed to provide you with a way to post updates and news about your business, have engaging conversations with customers, and send tailored messages to specific groups of people.

We’re now excited to share that Google Ads will be joining Google+ Pages to provide you, our advertising partners, with the latest Google advertising product news, training, tips and Hangouts that can help make the web work for you. We hope it will become a useful resource for growing your business, reaching customers in the moments that matter, and making smarter decisions.

Click to view page

Here’s a quick peek at what you can expect from the Google Ads page on Google+:

Stay ahead of the curve with the latest launches and updates for Google's advertising solutions, including search, display, mobile, social, YouTube and Google Analytics
Receive how-to information, best practices, and recommendations
Learn about upcoming trainings and events
Attend Hangouts with product experts

Add Google Ads to your circles here. We look forward to connecting with you on Google+.

Posted by Christina Park and Katie Miller, Ads Product Marketing

REI’s first daily deal is a success, thanks to Google Offers

2012-03-20T15:58:00.001-04:00

(cross-posted on the Google Commerce Blog)

People love saving money. According to eMarketer, almost 88.2 million people--or half of all U.S. adults who use the Internet--redeemed an online coupon in 2011, and this number should increase to 96.8 million by 2013. So it’s no wonder why so many companies, big and small, are using discounts, in the form of daily deals, to drive increases in sales.

In November 2011 Google Offers partnered with REI, the nationally loved outdoor retailer, to run REI’s first-ever daily deal and Google’s first-ever national offer: $15 for $25 worth of outdoor gear from REI.

Co-branded landing page used with marketing campaign to increase awareness of the offer

“REI was looking for ways to learn how we can use daily deals to drive the business during a non-promotional period, both within our stores and online, and a partnership with Google was a great fit,” said Teresa Harting, REI’s Marketing Manager. “We wanted to partner with a company that understood our brand and could manage it appropriately in the midst of a large-scale promotional announcement.”

In the weeks leading up to the offer, REI and Google worked closely to develop an offer that accurately reflected the REI brand. The companies also worked hand in hand to craft a well-executed pre-offer campaign that would drive interest and awareness among REI customers. The campaign, which ended on the date the offer ran, included the following tactics:

A 10 day teaser campaign on Google’s GDN, which drove people to a co-branded landing page for the offer.

An email campaign sent to REI’s opted-in subscriber base and to Google Offers opted-in subscribers on the day of the offer.

REI Facebook and Twitter posts were published the day before the offer and the day of the offer.

Facebook promotion on the REI brand page, including real-time interaction with customers to answer any questions about the offer.

REI.com site promotion on the day of the offer

Beginning on November 3rd, the REI Google Offer ran for 24 hours and was purchased by nearly 90,000 people across the U.S. The one-day deal has driven a significant amount of sales, both online and offline, and the average order value exceeded REI’s already high expectations. Further analysis will continue through the end of the redemption period to understand the total business impact, but it’s clear that REI will continue to see a benefit from their Google Offer.

“Our objective in running a Google Offer was to understand if we could attract new REI customers and increase traffic to our stores and to our website. Additionally, we wanted to gain a better understanding around how daily deals work for REI and if it would yield similar or higher average order values across both new and loyal customers. We have seen strong redemption and are continuing to track the results through the end of the redemption period. Overall, we are happy with the results of our very first daily deal with Google Offers,” said Harting.

If you’re a merchant and are interested in running a Google Offer, please visit: google.com/offers/business.

Posted by Robin Lien, Google U.S. Retail Team

Visit the Google Commerce Team at the SXSW Google Village

2012-03-09T16:10:00.000-05:00

(cross-posted on the Google Commerce Blog)

SXSW Interactive 2012 starts tomorrow and we’re excited to be a part of this year’s festivities in Austin! As we announced last week, we’re transforming Rainey St. into the “Google Village” on March 10-11. Only a few steps away from the Austin Convention Center, the “Google Village” will consist of four houses packed full of demos and fun, drinks and music. The Commerce team will be at the Google Village too, and here’s what we got going on:

Google Offers
Google Offers will be set up throughout Google Village and our goal is to connect you to our product by allowing you to experience great Austin businesses that we’ve partnered with to run Google Offers.

Your journey begins at the Maps House, where you can pick up a Google Offers passport. This passport gets you access to all the Google Offers carts outside every house in the village:

Developer House: Get a taste of local favorite Frank’s unique artisan hot dogs
Discovery House: Play our record toss game for a chance to win swag from Waterloo Records
Android House: Whip up a refreshing drink while burning some calories by testing out blender bikes courtesy of Jack and Adam’s Bicycles

Like what you see? Then sign up for Google Offers at www.google.com/offers or download our mobile app to purchase offers from our featured businesses in your city.

Google Wallet
As you walk through the Google Village, stop by the Android House to try out Google Wallet. You can play the Google Wallet-enabled claw and pinball games to win prizes, and Google Wallet team members will be on hand to demo the app and answer any questions you might have.

If you’re not able to stop by, find out how you can get Google Wallet here: http://www.google.com/wallet/get.html

Commerce Developer Hangouts
Have technical questions around In-App Payments or other Commerce APIs? Sign up for 15 minutes of one-on-one time with a member of the Google Developer Relations team on March 11th at the Developer House. Get answers and insights from Googlers who are experts on these products.

Posted by Artem Chetverykov and Teresa Jung, Commerce Marketing Team

Introducing the Learn with Google Webinar Program

2012-03-05T12:37:00.000-05:00

(cross-posted on the Inside AdWords Blog)

At Google, one of our goals is to help make the web work for your business. Today we’re introducing the Learn with Google webinar program that does just that, by sharing best practices and tips across a variety of products, including search ads, mobile ads, display ads, YouTube and Google Analytics.

We’re kicking off the program with eight live webinars in March:

March 13 at 10am PDT: 5 Tips to Start Marketing your Business with Video
March 14 at 10am PDT: Introduction to the Google Display Network
March 15 at 10am PDT: GoMo: Mobilize your Site and Maximize your Advertising
March 20 at 10am PDT: Understanding Mobile Ads Across Marketing Objectives
March 21 at 10am PDT: Reaching Your Goals with Google Analytics
March 22 at 10am PDT: GoMo for Publishers
March 27 at 10am PDT: Manage Large AdWords Campaigns with Less Effort
March 28 at 10am PDT: 3 Tips to Get More out of your Video Advertising Campaigns

Check out our new webinar page to register for any of the sessions or to access on-demand webinars. We’ll be adding new webinars as they’re scheduled, so check back regularly for updates. You can also stay up-to-date on the schedule by downloading our Learn with Google Webinar calendar to automatically see upcoming webinars in your Google Calendar.

Whether your goal is to engage the right customers at the right time, make better decisions faster, or get the most from your marketing dollars, we hope that you’ll use these tips and how-to’s to maximize the impact of digital and grow your business. We’re looking forward to having you join us!

Posted by Erica Tsai, Product Marketing Manager

Smartphones and Tablets Influence Consumer Purchasing Decisions on Mobile, Online and in Store

2012-02-13T12:01:00.011-05:00

(cross-posted on the Google Mobile Ads Blog)

Retailers are largely focused on how consumers are shopping across channels and devices. We know consumers love their mobile and tablet devices, but we are just beginning to develop a strong understanding of how they engage with these devices as they make their purchase decisions. To gain greater insight into this key behavior, we partnered with Ipsos during the 2011 holiday shopping season to study online shoppers. We uncovered a number of interesting consumer behaviors across desktop computers, smartphones and tablets. The powerful data we uncovered can drive best practices for advertisers at every holiday and year round.

The first key mobile insight every advertiser should know is that consumers use their smartphones at many different points in their purchase path. 41% of those who used their mobile phones to help with shopping said they made a purchase directly on their smartphone. 46% said they researched an item on their smartphone then went to a store to make their purchase. 37% said they researched an item on their smartphone then made their purchase online.

Another key mobile insight that emerged is that consumers used all three devices throughout the research process, but some activities were more popular on specific devices. Consumers who owned tablets read product reviews and looked for product information more from their tablet devices than from their desktop computer or smartphone. This is likely due to the combination of the large screen and portability of the device that enables consumers to use it more often and in more places. Consumers are carrying tablets with them to the couch, while in the kitchen, and even to bed.

Not surprisingly, more consumers used their smartphones to contact a retailer. With the natural calling ability of phones and many click-to-call phone numbers on websites and in ads, smartphones make it easy to contact retailers, whether to see if the store has the product in stock, get directions or find store hours.

While the 2011 holiday season is now firmly behind us, it’s clear that smartphones and tablets are only going to become a bigger part of the consumer shopping experience. Among consumers that used their devices to shop last year, 80% of smartphone shoppers and 70% of tablet users said they used their device more frequently this year.

To stay ahead of this shift in consumer behavior, advertisers need to make sure they have a mobile optimized site, make it easy for customers to reach them with click-to-call and deliver a seamless experience between online and offline in-store. It’s the advertisers who engage with their customers across all three devices that will have a distinct advantage in 2012.

To learn more about consumer shopping behavior across the desktop computer, smartphone and tablet and view a full report on Post Holiday Learnings for 2012.

Posted by: Dai Pham, Google Mobile Ads Marketing

AdMob auction enhancements

2012-02-08T14:32:00.000-05:00

(cross-posted on the Google Mobile Ads Blog)

To ensure that we deliver the most effective mobile ads marketplace to our customers we are changing the AdMob auction for all cost-per-click (CPC) ads.

Effective February 15, 2012, AdMob will move to an AdWords-style auction, where the winning price is determined by the quality of the ad and the other bids on that impression; the price we charge will never exceed the advertiser’s bid. In addition, we’re removing minimum bids and targeting fees to allow AdMob CPC advertisers to compete for inventory under the natural forces of supply and demand.

Advertisers will benefit from more efficient pricing and could receive cheaper clicks depending on the inventory on which they bid. High quality ads will be rewarded with an improved chance at winning the auction.

This change will occur for all CPC auctions globally on Feb 15th. There are no changes to non-CPC campaigns at this time. Advertisers should monitor their bids to see the effect on their particular campaigns, and be prepared to adjust bids & budgets to ensure they are meeting their volume & ROI goals.

We look forward to bringing AdWords auction components that have been refined over the years to the AdMob platform to benefit advertisers, users, and publishers.

Please visit the Help Center for more details.

Posted by: Chrix Finne, Product Manager

Welcome customers into your business on Google

2012-01-27T12:58:00.000-05:00

(Cross-posted on the Lat Long Blog and the Small Business Blog.)

When we initially announced the Business Photos pilot program, we wanted to give business owners an easy way to get customers in the door online using interactive, high-quality, 360-degree images of places on Google Maps and on Google Search results. With thousands of businesses under our belt — from salons to gift shops — we’ve been hearing the same question again and again from both business owners and photographers alike: How can I participate?

Well, with the overwhelming success of the first pilot, we’ve decided to unveil a complementary initiative that will help us reach more interested business owners, more quickly: Trusted Photographers.

View Larger Map

Click and drag to view the inside of Spice Market, New York City.

It’s simple. Visit our new website and search for a Google Trusted Photographer in your area. Either email or call a photographer in your area to schedule a time and agree on a price that you will pay the photographer for a photoshoot of your business. This self-serve model makes for easier scheduling and quicker turnaround, while also supporting the local photographers in your community. During the hour it should take for the shoot, you can collaborate with the photographer about how best to display and capture your business. When finished, the photographer will upload the images to Google, and shortly thereafter, you’ll see 360-degree panoramic views of your business on Google.com, Google Maps and on your Google Places listing.

See how Business Photos has helped Toy Joy of Austin, Texas.

Trusted Photographers are available in 14 U.S. cities, as well as in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and France. Don’t see a photographer in your area? Let us know, as that will help us determine where more Trusted Photographers are needed.

Posted by Gadi Royz, Product Manager, Google Maps

Love at first Search

2012-01-26T12:00:00.001-05:00

(cross-posted on the Inside AdWords Blog)

More and more people are falling in love with Valentine’s Day. According to a recent survey by ORC International, Valentine’s Day is now the number two gift giving holiday, right behind Christmas, with 88% of Americans saying they plan on giving a present to their loved ones. This should be great news for businesses, but marketers still have trouble making a love connection with consumers based on charts that look more like dated EKG readings than real-time insights into the heart of the consumer.

Since getting the affections of one person is hard enough, below are some timely insights from Google’s “database of intentions” to keep you ahead of the game as you create your Valentine’s Day campaigns.

Search is where the heart is
Already we’re seeing Google searches related to Valentine’s Day increase 35% compared to last year. Not only are more people searching, they’re searching earlier - last year people began looking for Valentine’s Day ideas on January 9th. This year the upward trend began two days earlier, on January 7th.

Across categories, jewelry is seeing a 42% increase in mobile and desktop queries compared to January of last year; gifts jumped 27%, and flowers saw an 18% spike.

Girls are made of sugar and spice and everything nice
The results from this graph show women look for gift ideas earlier and more often than their male significant others. Maybe men are more last minute about buying gifts than women, but it doesn’t mean they’re cheap about it! In 2011 the average man spent $158 for Valentine’s Day, about $80 more than women.

Looking for a change of heart?
Valentine’s Day is less than three weeks away, which means that this is this is the great opportunity for marketers to influence people with their products since consumers are still searching for ideas. If you look at the word cloud below (spoiler alert!), a good chunk of people are searching for “diy valentines gifts” and “valentines day baskets,” which means there will be quite a few people unwrapping homemade gifts or pre-made gift baskets this year. The biggest cluster of phrases, “valentines day border,” “valentines day drinks,” and “valentines day meals,” signal that people are also planning on celebrating in style. Now would be a good time to promote recipes and decoration ideas in your campaigns.

For more useful trends and tips for your campaign, download and review the 2012 Valentine’s Day Consumer Intentions Deck on Think Insights. Hopefully it helps you steal away some hearts!

Posted by Christina Park, Product Marketing Manager, Think with Google

What We Learned from CES

2012-01-25T12:54:00.001-05:00

Well, it’s been just over a week since we wrapped up another exciting CES with some very innovative new product displays. From the world’s thinnest tablet (and a concept tablet...and a waterproof tablet!), to a range of smart tvs, to a surge in ultrabook designs, and of course who could leave out the sleek new smartphones, this year’s show had many talked about products.

But what will have consumers buzzing the remainder of the year, as many of these products gear up for their official releases? While it’s tough to predict that, we did want to take a quick look at what happened after CES last year, to glean insights into some trends we can look for this year.

Insight #1: CES week search volume could be a good indicator of launch week popularity

Insight #2: CES 2012’s Top 5 Products had 50% more Google Searches than CES 2011’s Top 5
ASUS Transformer Prime looks like a potential big winner based on Google search volume, and its volume was even greater than two of last year’s hottest products, the HTC Thunderbolt and Motorola Atrix.

Insight #3: Samsung made a much bigger splash this year with 3 of top 5 mobile searches, while in 2011, HTC had 2 of the top 5 products. Top products are determined based on query volume.

Insight #4: Among top launches, the Nokia Lumia was the most frequent 2012 product searched in a single session on Google.com and heavily searched on YouTube. The ASUS Eee Pad and Transformer Prime were cross-researched on Google.com most often with the Lumia. User activity on Youtube showed top term Nokia Lumia with 1.3 million video views for the Nokia LumiaTV ad.The ASUS Eee Pad had ~400K video views for review and there were about ~540K views for “Ipads2 vs ASUS”.Consumers are searching primarily for products and product reviews on Google.com & YouTube to learn more about new launches during CES.

Keep checking our Tech blog for other insights and trends over the course of the year. Here’s to a great 2012!

Posted by Nina Thatcher and Amy Liu, The Google Tech Team

Think fast in the first Think Quarterly of 2012

2012-01-11T14:05:00.001-05:00

(cross-posted on the Official Google Blog)

In the amount of time it takes you to read this blog post, roughly 382 Android phones will be activated, 250,000+ words will be written on Blogger and 48 hours of video will be uploaded to YouTube. The world is moving faster than ever before, bringing us instant access and split-second connections to people and information.

Speed is important in technology, but equally essential in business. Consumer expectations are rising as we learn to take speed for granted; today’s email is tomorrow’s snail mail. In our hyper-real-time world, nanoseconds matter—which means we need to question old assumptions. How will we respond to consumer expectations as the demand for instant access to everything intensifies? How will we keep pace in a world that moves at web speed?

The new Speed issue of Think Quarterly explores these questions and more. Our SVP of Engineering Urs Hölzle shares our efforts to speed up the Internet, while Astro Teller, Director of New Products, dreams about the amazing inventions these improvements will unleash. Paul Gunning, CEO of Tribal DDB, talks about the rise of real-time marketing. And journalist Jeff Jarvis wonders if we’re really that fast after all.

We hope you enjoy the issue. Let us know what you think on +Think With Google. And if you’re at CES this week, drop by our Room to Think in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center and tell us your thoughts live. We’ll also host a Google+ Hangout there with Astro Teller, author of Speed of Dreams, on Thursday at 2pm PST.

Posted by Allison Mooney, Think Quarterly Editor

Where you’ll find Google and YouTube at CES 2012

2012-01-09T13:38:00.000-05:00

(Cross posted on the Official Google Blog and the YouTube Blog)

Every year in the tech world, thousands of us pack a bag with all of our gadgets and head to Las Vegas for the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES). It’s a tech lover’s paradise where you can check out new technologies and talk about the trends of the future with visionary members of the industry. If you’ll be joining us, here are a few places and dates where you can find Google and YouTube.

We’ll kick things off at 3:00pm PT on Tuesday, January 10 with chairman Eric Schmidt speaking at CNET Presents - The Next Big Thing in CE, in Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) North Hall N255-257. On the following day, January 11, we have a bunch of events across topics:

Google’s senior policy counsel Rick Whitt will participate in the Innovation Policy Summit Session: Spectrum for Wireless Broadband: Putting the Puzzle Pieces Together in LVCC North Hall N264 at 10:15am PT.
On the education front, Angela Lin, manager of YouTube EDU, will present on “High Tech U”—digital tools and services that are changing the traditional ivory tower—at 3:00pm PT in LVCC North Hall N256.
End the day at 5:00pm PT with CNET's Women In Tech panel, featuring Marissa Mayer, VP of product management, in LVCC South Hall, Upper Level Lobby - CNET Stage.

On Thursday, January 12 at 10:00am PT, YouTube will be keynoting the Entertainment Matters program in the Las Vegas Hilton Theatre. Robert Kyncl, VP of global content, will share his thoughts on the evolution of the entertainment industry, and he’ll later be joined by partners and friends for a panel discussion.

Don’t forget to check out Google TV around CES this year. Recently announced new partners LG, Marvell, MediaTek join Samsung, Sony and Vizio having new devices to play with at their booths. You can also find YouTube demos on TVs and devices around the LVCC show floor at LG, Panasonic, Samsung, Toshiba and other booths.

For first-timers, here’s a video overview of the show from the Official CES Channel:

Stay tuned for updates on our +YouTube page and on Twitter—pack your smartphones, tablets, laptops, netbooks, televisions, E-readers and of course, your battery chargers, and see you in Las Vegas!

Posted by Matt McLernon, Communications Manager, YouTube

Online Geo-Targeting Strategies for Retailers

2012-01-04T15:03:00.000-05:00

When it comes to online marketing, retailers often have significant opportunity to expand their presence. However, limited budgets and/or ROI goals restrict them from reaching many customers seeking the types of products and services they sell. Geo-targeting allows retailers to accomplish their goals without an overwhelming incremental investment. Here are four strategies:

1. Increase sales while maintaining ROI goals.
Identify campaigns with low impression share. Then pull an geo report (under the "Dimensions" tab in AdWords) for those campaigns to find local markets with high conversion rates. Develop separate campaigns targeting these markets and increase your CPC bids to ensure your ad is showing up in a top position.

2. Earn market share.
Identify local markets where competitors are attracting more customers, either in-store or online. Beyond your internal competitive intelligence here are other ways to identify these markets:

Use syndicated data like Hitwise or Compete to pull a report that compares each DMA's percent traffic contribution to your site and your competitor's site. Set up campaigns targeting those DMAs that contribute a larger percentage of total traffic to your competitor's site.

Use the "Regional Interest" map on Insights for Search to see which states or metros index high against search volume on your competitor's brand terms, yet index on search volume for your brand term. See the charts below as an example. You can see on the heat map that search volume for "Staples" is higher in New England and the Mid Atlantic while search volume for "Office Depot" is higher in the south and west coast. Office Depot could implement geo-targeted campaigns to a few New England markets while Staples might want to consider geo-targeting markets like Miami, Dallas, Austin, New Orleans and Las Vegas.

Regional Interest in the term "Staples" for the last 30 days (report pulled on 1/3/11)

Regional Interest in the term "Office Depot" for the last 30 days (report pulled on 1/3/11)

Once you have identified your markets, develop separate campaigns geo-targeting these markets and increase bids to push your ad into a top position. Ensure your ad is showing up against relevant non-brand terms and implement geo-targeted display campaigns to heighten awareness of your brand among local consumers. Success metrics for this strategy should be a change in share of sales or new customers, click & impression share and an increase in local searches on brand terms.

3. Increase in-store traffic.
Identify markets where you have a large store footprint and put a higher value on online influenced in-store conversions in those markets. For example, let's say a retailer has 2 stores in Nashville and 10 stores in Boston. When calculating ROI, on your online campaigns your Boston in-store multiplier should be higher than your Nashville multiplier. This should allow you to implement heavy-up campaigns targeted to Boston while maintaining ROI goals.

4. Promote new stores.
If you are expanding your store footprint into new markets, heavy up on geo-targeted search & display campaigns to promote your store opening. Remember to include all promotions, events and offers associated with the store opening in your copy.

Posted by Eva Barbier, The Google Retail Team

Google/Compete Study: Digital’s Influence Over the Wireline Service Shopper

2011-12-22T00:58:00.000-05:00

Between my husband and I, we have 14 devices that connect to some type of wireline service. And with a new batch of cool gadgets clamoring for our attention during the holiday season, that number is sure to grow. Not just for us, but for the millions of other consumers lining up to buy TVs, tablets, laptops and so on.

On Black Friday this year, nearly 40% of shoppers purchased electronics and TV purchasers increased by 30%. With all those new, shiny and sleek electronics flooding the market, many consumers are looking to upgrade their current wireline services.

So what good is the piece of hardware without the service provider to deliver the content? And, more importantly to the bottom line of cable TV, high-speed internet and home phone service providers, how are consumers finding the information to make those purchase decisions?

In Google’s new custom research study with Compete, we looked at the surprising and powerful role digital and mobile play in influencing wireline service shopper behavior.

Online presence and Search are the keys to the consumer’s wireline decision process.
The two most-used resources are: provider websites and search engines, in that order. And in terms of most-useful resources, search engines are leading the way, ranking higher than customer service reps and provider websites.

Recommendation: Almost half (49%) of online conversions were directly referred by paid ads, and 50% of all search queries happen on the day of conversion for online purchasers, so maintaining a constant digital presence is vital to reach these in-market consumers.

Customers are looking for the best price, and are willing to wait for it.
We found 20% YoY growth in “deal” queries for wired services. 40% of online purchasers cross-shopped and visited two or more provider websites prior to conversion. And 66% take longer than a week to research the best deal and make a purchase.

Recommendation: Include comparison and “deal” keywords in your mix and keep creative centered around your value proposition. And utilize remarketing to capture consumers who don’t immediately convert on your site.

Mobile researchers are on the rise.
One in 5 wireline service shoppers used a smartphone or a tablet to help them shop, and search is the most popular mobile resource. Not only is the mobile audience growing, but they are potentially a more valuable audience for wireline service providers as they are less price-sensitive and more interested in specific service features than non-mobile shoppers.

Recommendation: Mobile researchers are 20% more likely to purchase via a phone call, so advertisers should use click-to-call ads to make it easy for shoppers to connect with them. And ad creative should focus on features rather than price for this more-sophisticated audience.

Don’t sleep on “generic” queries.
An average of 18% of search queries made at every stage in the purchase cycle were non-brand queries. Even on the day of conversion, almost 1 in 5 search queries is not attached to a brand or service provider.

Recommendation: Advertisers should maintain a consistent presence on non-branded and generic terms to capture all in-market shoppers.

For more information, you can download the full study here.

Posted by Kristin Sutter, The Google Technology Team

Don't Turn The Lights Off On Your Customers

2011-12-21T14:33:00.000-05:00

Keeping the lights on is a simple phrase, with simple meaning- make sure you leave the lights on so your customers can find you, or find your products- online. When- the week between Christmas and New Years- a week that could easily get left behind, but who would pass on a customer that has intent to research or buy during a week with plenty of time for web surfing, video viewing, social networking and walking into stores armed with their new mobile device or tablet?

Just think of the poor folks that have to work on Monday, December 26th- they will be online, researching and shopping. And if they're not working that day- they're heading out to redeem those gift cards online or in-store (or returning that hideous sweater from Aunt Suzie). Last year, Sunday, December 26th was the fifth largest eCommerce shopping day and ShopperTrak estimates it could be the 3rd largest day this year, since it falls on a Monday. If you're a numbers person, here are some of the stats behind what we see as great motivation to keep your Desktop Search, Display or Video advertising running next week (and of course your mSearch, mDisplay and mVideo campaigns)

55% of consumers shopped post holiday in 2010. 5% of them will do the MAJORITY of their shopping after Christmas (read: self-gifting)

Monday, December 26th Retail traffic will surge by 60% since it's a public Holiday. (read: I have the day off and I'm going shopping)

$27.8B in total expected gift card spending this season- they'll be redeeming them the week after Christmas (and 72% of consumers spent more than the card's value in 2010)

Last year 13 days between December 26th and January 15th saw higher eCommerce sales than Black Friday (yes, you read that right)

Don't underestimate January- last year saw total retail sales growth from January on par with December's y/y growth rate

A final suggestion around the 'Leave the lights on' strategy -- shift end-of-year markdown dollars across categories to upfront paid search to avoid deeper discounts in the New Year. Geo-target your campaigns to help the stores or distribution centers with excess inventory pick it up at the end of the year. The number of paid search advertisers tends to decrease during this timeframe making the inventory sell-through that much more economical.

So enjoy your Holiday over the next few days, but don't forget to 'leave the lights on' for your customers the week between Christmas and New Years. If you don't, someone else might...!

Posted by Jay Bowden, The Google Retail Team

Gain additional sales by taking a new approach to Remarketing

2011-12-19T10:38:00.000-05:00

Shopping cart abandonment is one of the most pervasive concerns among online retailers, and with good reason. Studies show that 75% of your site visitors will likely leave without making a purchase, and 85% of the top 1,000 online retailers are doing nothing to combat this growing issue (Listrak 2011).

If you are investing in channels to drive traffic to your site this holiday season, take advantage of the opportunity to add value to your campaigns and maximize ROI by using your existing AdWords Conversion Tracking pixel to remarket to past converters.

Remarketing using Conversion Tracking (RMCT) adds an innovative and personal layer to your remarketing investments by targeting loyal customers who have already purchased from you. This creative approach to Remarketing has twice the win rate of conventional Remarketing (Google internal research), and is a great way to multiply conversions among loyal customers during the crucial post-holiday period.

By tracking conversions and collecting cookies associated with visitors who have completed a purchase, RMCT targets customers have done their research and chose you. Use RMCT to remind them why they did by separating converters from non-converters. With these two separate lists, you’re able to assign different values to them, and target them with specific copy and image ads. Reach the past converters with “loyalist” coupons, accessory and gift ideas to complement their most recent purchase, or even bulk and last minute discounts.

There are two ways to enable RMCT:

1. Easiest and most simple approach: Create a “Converters” Remarketing List based off the AWCT code (no additional pixel needed). This is a quick and easy solution for upselling or cross-selling to existing customers without having to implement additional pixels, but it is more limited in scope.

Select the conversion code in the section Control Panel > New Audience > Existing Tag > Select your conversion tag

The system will activate your conversion code into a Remarketing mode and will collect AdWords conversions and cookie IDs of people who hit your conversion page (regardless the traffic source they came from: AW, Search, Direct traffic, Referrals, etc.)

2. “You’re Halfway There” approach (a little more advanced): Deploy a basic but high ROI Remarketing ‘Shopping Cart Abandonment’ strategy (one additional pixel needed, placed on the cart page) and collect converters in one click. With this method, the existing conversion tracking tag can double-duty as a Remarketing tag and be used to exclude converters without any additional pixeling (see above). You can also choose to expand to tag Homepage & Product pages if your pixel implementation bandwidth permits. If AdWords Conversion Tracking is enabled in your account, use the same code to create a list of users that are reaching your conversion page.

Select your Conversion Code in the List Creation Panel > “Select from existing tags”

By adding the pixel to your thank you for ordering site, a list of all converters will appear in your Audience Tab--use this list to directly target only those people

Start taking advantage of RMCT now and challenge competitors to win more loyal customers and conversions with this innovative approach to Online marketing this holiday season

Nearly 57% of shoppers plan to do most of their holiday shopping after Cyber Monday this year (Google/OTX Holiday 2011 Study), so make sure you stay top of mind, challenge competitors, and increase conversions for the rest of the holiday season by taking a novel strategic approach to online marketing by implementing Remarketing with Conversion Tracking (RMCT).

Please visit this site for more information on Remarketing, and this site for FAQ.

Posted by Benna Wise & Andrea Cohan, The Google Technology Team