How do you integrate SEA into your overall digital strategy?

Preliminary analysis: understanding the market and players

Before launching your campaigns, it’s essential to carry out in-depth market research. It will reveal not only who your competitors are and how they position themselves, but also what unmet needs your potential customers have. This understanding is the foundation of a relevant and effective SEA strategy.

Determining goals: setting SMART objectives

As a manager, it’s essential to define clear objectives for your SEA campaigns. These objectives must be aligned with your corporate vision and measurable to assess the performance of your campaigns and their contribution to your overall business objectives.

Cost-per-click (CPC) evaluation: analysis of average costs per keyword

CPC is an indicator of how much you pay each time a potential prospect engages with your ads. By understanding the average CPCs in your sector, you’ll be able to make informed decisions about the profitability of your ATS investments.

Calculating your media buying budget: budget calculation methodology

It’s essential that you have a clear understanding of how your advertising budget is calculated and used. In SEA, the budget determines the desired volume of clicks and thus the number of contacts generated, in direct relation to the CPC. These factors must be carefully calibrated to optimize your return on investment.

The diagram below illustrates a simplified calculation approach for defining the budget needed to obtain a target number of leads through an online advertising campaign, based on estimated cost-per-click (CPC) and conversion rate data.

Firstly, the target is set at 10 leads per month, which are the qualified prospects generated by the campaign.

Then, with a conversion rate estimated at 1%, we understand that to obtain a lead, you need an average of 100 visitors (since 1% of 100 is equivalent to 1 lead).

To reach the monthly target of 10 leads, the diagram suggests that you need to generate 1,000 clicks (because 10 leads represent 1% of 1,000 clicks).

The average cost per click is estimated at €1, which is a key factor in calculating the final budget. Multiplying this average CPC by the required number of clicks (1000), we arrive at a projected budget of €1,000 per month.

The diagram ends with this budget estimate, underlining the direct link between the number of clicks required, the cost per click and the final budget to achieve the lead objective.

Flexibility and adjustment: adaptability of your ATS strategy

As the market is constantly evolving, your SEA strategy must remain flexible. This means regularly readjusting your campaigns according to campaign performance and market trends, ensuring that every euro spent works effectively for your objectives.

Transparency and advanced reporting: the importance of reporting in SEA strategy

Detailed, transparent reporting is crucial if you, as the decision-maker, are to understand the effectiveness of your SEA campaigns. These reports should provide you with clear insights into performance and help you make informed strategic decisions.

SEA, your online visibility gas pedal: key benefits of SEA

SEA is a powerful tool for rapidly gaining visibility. Unlike time-consuming organic approaches, SEA can position you at the top of search results almost immediately, a valuable option when launching new products or promotions.
It’s also a long-term strategy that keeps you visible, despite updates to Google’s relevance algorithm.

Fast and sustained results: comparing the immediate impact of SEA vs. the long-term impact of SEO

It’s important to understand the difference between the immediate benefits of SEA and the longer-term benefits of SEO. As a leader, integrating the two into your digital strategy can create a complementary dynamic, ensuring both immediate visibility and sustainable growth.

Effective synergy between SEA and SEO: a case study in leverage

The combination of SEA and SEO can increase the impact of your marketing actions tenfold. SEA can test the effectiveness of keywords and identify the most effective ones, enabling you to adjust and improve your SEO strategy. It’s a smart investment that can significantly increase your visibility and appeal.

Precise targeting: advanced targeting techniques in SEA

Precise targeting is essential. With SEA, you can address your ads directly to your ideal audience, increasing the chances of conversion and, ultimately, sales.
As a manager, it’s essential to understand the importance of SEA in a global digital strategy.

SEA competitive intelligence: the consultant’s expertise

An often underestimated but fundamental aspect of SEA is competitive intelligence. An experienced SEA consultant has the ability to detect which keywords your competitors are buying when they have active campaigns. This is done via specialized tools that analyze search engine ads. Understanding which terms your competitors are focusing on can give you valuable insights into their strategies, and help you adjust yours to capture significant market share. As an executive, access to this data will enable you to refine your SEA approach and anticipate market movements, so you’ll always be one step ahead.

Optimizing landing pages

A good landing page is crucial to the success of a SEA (Search Engine Advertising) campaign, as it is the meeting point between the user and the offer after clicking on an ad. It has a direct impact on the conversion rate, improving campaign ROI. An optimized landing page ensures a consistent, relevant user experience, which reduces the bounce rate and increases the chances of conversion. It also helps to improve the ad’s Quality Score in search engines, reducing the cost per click and increasing ad visibility. In short, a well-designed landing page is a powerful lever that amplifies the effectiveness of online advertising, ensuring that the user’s initial intent is aligned with the final action desired by the brand.

To create an effective landing page that promotes conversion, it is necessary to respect several fundamental principles:

1. Clear objective: Define a single objective for your page, whether it’s registrations, downloads, sales, etc. Simplicity is key.
2. Impactful headline: Use a catchy, clear headline that communicates the value of your offer immediately.
3. Value proposition: Clarify what you offer and why it’s unique or better than the competition. This should be obvious from the very first seconds.
4. Clean, professional design: Make sure the design is attractive but not overloaded. Use good color contrast, white space and high-quality visuals.
5. Effective calls to action (CTAs ): Your action buttons or links must be clearly visible and motivating. Use active and precise language (“Get your free trial”, “Join us today”).
6. Simplified forms: If you’re collecting information, keep the forms short and sweet. Request only essential information.
7. Social proof: Include testimonials, reviews, customer logos or case studies to reinforce credibility.
8. Mobile optimization: Make sure your landing page is responsive and offers a good user experience on all devices.
9. Fast loading: Optimizes images and code so that the page loads quickly, reducing the bounce rate.
10. Testing and optimization: Use analysis tools to monitor your page’s performance. Perform A/B tests to optimize elements one by one (titles, images, CTAs, etc.).

Each element must be designed with the end-user and the conversion objective in mind. Consistency between the message of your marketing campaign and the content of the landing page is essential to maintain trust and guide the user towards action.

Remarketing strategy

Remarketing is a sophisticated strategy that targets users who have already expressed an interest in your products or services. By personalizing messages for these prospects, remarketing can significantly increase conversion rates and maximize the effectiveness of your SEA budget.

Adapting ATS to cell phones

With the majority of searches carried out on mobile devices, your campaigns need to be optimized for these devices. This means not only ads adapted to smaller screens, but also a seamless user experience on mobile.

Artificial intelligence in SEA

AI is revolutionizing SEA by automating and optimizing bids in real time. It also helps personalize ads for different audience segments, ensuring maximum relevance and better ROI.

Seasonality and special events

Take advantage of seasonal periods and special events to adapt your ATS campaigns. Whether it’s the festive season or a major sporting event, adjusting your message and budget can position you favorably to capture your audience’s attention.

Quality Score management

The Google Ads Quality Score evaluates the relevance of your ads, keywords and landing pages. By optimizing these elements, you can reduce your costs while improving the visibility of your ads.

Leverage Google Discover to boost SEA

Google Discover represents a valuable opportunity in Search Engine Advertising (SEA), allowing advertisers to target users through a stream of personalized content generated by Google based on their interests and browsing history. What sets this platform apart is its ability to present relevant ads to an already interested and engaged audience, without any specific search requests on their part. Using Google Discover in SEA therefore offers brands the chance to intercept consumers in a moment of spontaneous discovery, increasing the likelihood of attracting their attention and driving qualified traffic to their sites or offers.

Synergy with other marketing channels

An ATS strategy should not stand alone. It’s most effective when integrated into a broader marketing mix that includes social networks, e-mail marketing and content marketing. This multi-channel approach strengthens the coherence of your communication and amplifies the impact of your campaigns.

Unravelling the mystery of marketing attribution: which ad converts the most?

Attribution in marketing is a bit like solving a mystery: you want to know which advertising messages convinced someone to buy a product or sign up for a service. Let’s say you see an ad for sneakers on a poster, then click on a Facebook ad, and finally buy the sneakers after receiving a promotional email. Attribution helps you determine which pub had the greatest impact on your decision. Was it the poster, the Facebook ad or the email? Knowing the answer helps companies decide where to spend their advertising dollars for the best effect. It’s a bit like following bread crumbs to see which path has led the most customers to their product.

The importance of video in SEA

In an increasingly visual digital landscape, video has become a powerful tool for SEA. Videos can capture attention quickly, convey a message effectively and create an emotional connection. For certain campaigns, such as those to increase brand awareness or launch a new product, video ads can offer higher engagement and conversion rates.

SEA consultant tools

A SEA consultant uses a variety of tools and technologies to plan, execute and optimize advertising campaigns. Here are some of the most common:

Advertising platforms

• Google Ads: create and manage campaigns on the search, display and YouTube networks.
• Bing Ads: to access the audience on the Microsoft and Bing network.
• Social platforms: like Facebook Ads, LinkedIn Ads, for advertising on social networks.

Keyword search tools

• Google Keyword Planner: For keyword research and analysis.
• SEMrush, Ahrefs, Moz: For competitive analysis, keyword research and positioning monitoring.

Analysis and optimization

• Google Analytics: To analyze website traffic and user behavior.
• Google Data Studio: Create customized reports and dashboards.
• Optimizely, VWO: For A/B testing and conversion optimization.

Management and automation

• Google Ads Editor: For offline management of Google Ads accounts.
• AdEspresso, WordStream: Manage and optimize multiple advertising platforms.

Conversion tracking and attribution

• Google Tag Manager: Manage and deploy tracking tags on your website.
• Platform-specific attribution tools to understand how different touchpoints contribute to conversions.

These tools help SEA consultants stay efficient, strategic and up to date with best practices and campaign performance, enabling continuous improvement and optimal ROI.

How can my company benefit from the support of a SEA consultant?

Whether or not you have in-house expertise, having a consultant on your side can benefit your company.
Here are just a few advantages:

Expertise and experience: EXOCORP’s SEA consultants bring in-depth expertise and hands-on experience to the table, always keeping abreast of best practices and market developments. Unlike the often junior consultants at large service providers, our senior consultants are aligned with your specific objectives, aiming to optimize the budget rather than simply spend it. This ensures a more personalized and strategic approach, tailored to your company’s unique needs to maximize the effectiveness of your SEA campaigns.

Time savings: Managing a SEA campaign can be very time-consuming. A consultant can take over this task, leaving you free to concentrate on other aspects of your business.

Ongoing optimization: Consultants regularly monitor and optimize campaigns to improve ROI, adjusting bids, keywords and messages according to performance.

Outside perspective: A consultant brings fresh eyes and can identify opportunities or problems you may not have noticed.

Measurable results: A consultant can set up rigorous tracking and provide you with detailed reports to measure the effectiveness of your campaigns.

That said, choosing a qualified and trustworthy consultant or agency is crucial to ensuring that the investment is worthwhile.

The key role of the SEA consultant: configuration, creation and follow-up

The role of an SEA consultant in account set-up, campaign creation and monthly monitoring is fundamental to ensuring the effectiveness of online advertising. Initially, it establishes the account structure, ensuring that the parameters are optimized for the company’s specific objectives. When creating campaigns, he carefully selects keywords, writes persuasive ads, and configures targeting to reach the right audience. Monthly monitoring is crucial for continuous improvement; the consultant analyzes performance, adjusts bids, tests new approaches and optimizes ads to maximize ROI. In short, the SEA consultant acts as an architect and gatekeeper, ensuring that campaigns are relevant, effective and constantly fine-tuned to meet changing market dynamics and corporate objectives.

How to choose the right SEA consultant?

To choose a good SEA consultant, consider the following elements:

1. Experience and references: Check experience in similar projects and ask for references or case studies. Good consultants will have tangible results to show.
2. Up-to-date knowledge: Make sure he’s up to date with the latest trends and changes in ATS. Certifications (such as those from Google Ads) can be an indicator of up-to-date skills.
3. Understanding your industry: It’s important that the consultant understands your industry and target audience to create relevant campaigns.
4. Communication: Choose someone with whom communication is clear and transparent. He should be able to clearly explain strategies and results.
5. Strategic approach: A good consultant offers a customized strategy, not a generic approach. It must be able to align SEA campaigns with your overall business objectives.
6. Tools and technologies: Make sure it uses advanced tools for campaign analysis, tracking and optimization.
7. Measurable results: Focus on measurable results, such as ROI or cost per acquisition, and have a clear plan for achieving them.
8. Contract terms: Make sure contract terms are clear, including expectations, deliverables, duration and costs.

Taking the time to choose the right consultant can make a significant difference to the performance of your SEA campaigns and, ultimately, to the success of your business. EXOCORP’s SEA consultants are distinguished by their collaborative approach, combining multidisciplinary expertise to deliver customized, innovative solutions, ensuring a strategic partnership to maximize the success of your SEA campaigns.

Conclusion

By integrating these elements into your SEA strategy, you can not only improve the effectiveness of your online advertising campaigns, but also ensure a dynamic digital presence that’s responsive to consumer trends and behaviors.