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Issue #035: Google Disappoints WallStreet

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                    SearchReturn Discussion List
             "Understanding Internet Search Technology"
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Moderator:                                          Published by:
Disa Johnson                                       SearchReturn
               http://www.searchreturn.com
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February 02, 2005                                      Issue #035
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                   .....IN THIS DIGEST.....

// -- FEATURED POST -- //

           "FTD Management Changes"
                     ~ Jennifer Laycock

// -- NEW DISCUSSION -- //

           "Search Referrals"
                     ~ SearchReturn

// -- ESSENTIAL NEWS -- //

           "Google Disappoints WallStreet"
           "Search Ad Performance Survey"
           "Newspaper Quagmire"

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// -- FEATURED POST -- //

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==> TOPIC: FTD MANAGEMENT CHANGES

"The head of marketing for FTD that was replaced because of 2005
decisions to forego search marketing, missing sales expectations
as a result."

From: Jennifer Laycock 

Refreshing! Not that I'm glad to hear about anyone losing their
job, of course... but seeing that a large company is beginning to
recognize the power of search marketing and the dangers of
ignoring it... very refreshing.

While I'm mostly out of the consulting business these days, I
still occasionally do some consulting work with some of the
larger advertising and PR firms in the Ohio area. It continues to
amaze me to no end to see their abject dismissal of search
marketing in nearly all circumstances. These firms, dealing with
Fortune 500 clients, continue to believe that search marketing
doesn't work, isn't needed, etc.. They honestly think that their
clients are large enough that people just type in their URL.
They think they have the brand power to be able to afford to
forgo search marketing.

One firm is currently working on a half a million dollar web site
project for a very large international company that specifically
requested search marketing. They've proceeded to build an
all-Flash site full of mystery meat navigation that looks like
something out of the year 2000. I've asked them if they
understand that they're going to lose the client when the client
realizes that their half a million dollar web site doesn't show
up in the search engines. Their response? "Oh, they won't
notice."

Wow. Will you notice the loss of a half million dollars from your
billings?

I predict that within the next two to three years, we're going to
see the death of many of the old-name marketing and PR firms that
litter the country. We're quickly reaching the point where these
types of firms are going to have to face the music and either
find a way to offer search marketing services, or close their
doors. A few years ago, I thought that many of these firms could
simply turn to public relations and lose their focus on
advertising and they'd survive, but the reality is that even
public relations is now becoming so closely tied to search
marketing and online reputation management that there will be no
more "traditional PR firms."

There will be the firms that do good work (i.e. include search in
their offerings) and those that do not.

-Jennifer Laycock
Editor - Search Engine Guide
http://www.searchengineguide.com

 

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// -- NEW DISCUSSION -- //

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==> TOPIC: SEARCH REFERRALS

Hello everyone,

Queries you will find analyzing log entries can be quite
perplexing. If you wonder how someone came to your site using a
peculiar query, and you know you aren't in the result set for
that query, then don't worry about it. When you have no matching
content, it is not always a search referral just because it looks
like one.

Your visitor could have typed in the address field while having a
result page loaded, visiting your site directly. This referrer
looks like it came from search, but it didn't. Avoid being
obsessive about search referrals that are way off topic.

If you've got tracking stories, advice or insight to share with
the group, we're starting a thread dedicated to tracking. Maybe
you have a tracking question to ask. Ask it now. The convenient
comment link makes it easy to post.

Thanks!

Stay tuned.
-SearchReturn

 

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// -- ESSENTIAL NEWS -- //

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==> Google Disappoints WallStreet

http://www.searchreturn.com/digest/refs035.shtml

Essentials: There really isn't that much to the story, except a
milestone has been reached. Google has not met with the lofty
expectations of WallStreet for the first time, despite the fact
that their earnings were still staggeringly high with tremendous
growth over the previous year. This is the same thing that
hammered Yahoo! a short time ago when they reported their
earnings to the same fickle audience.

 

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==> Search Ad Performance Survey

http://www.searchreturn.com/digest/refs035.shtml

Essentials: While Google disappointed WallStreet, they continue
to please advertisers. In fact, all search advertising came out
looking really good in this survey of 1,200 advertisers. It is
predicted that search advertising will grow 26% this year,
far outpacing the expected growth rate of print, radio and TV.
It looks to be the fastest growing segment of online marketing.

 

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==> Newspaper Quagmire

http://news.com.com/2100-1025_3-6033574.html

Essentials: The advent of online search engines has been tough
on newspapers. Their advertising revenues continue to dwindle in
the face of their clients turning more to the Web. Consumers now
use the Web much more for news information, and rely less on
physical papers for their daily dose. The match between search
engines and news information is just too perfect. The newspapers
rightly argue though, that the search industry owes a great deal
of its success to the news industry.

 

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