"I'm finding that all too often marketers are deciding to spend either more or less money based solely on the conversion rate of how a certain search phrase, ad creative, or banner ad performs," says Todd Miechiels in an article at MarketingProfs. "[I]n other words, the percentage of people who visited the site and requested a whitepaper, a demo, etc."

Miechiels illustrates his point with a report that compares the conversion rate of two search phrases: "Systems Management" and "Green IT." The former delivered 66 visitors, 1.52% of whom converted to a whitepaper; the latter netted 47 visitors and a 17.02% conversion rate. "The 'Green IT' phrase is the hands down winner, right?" he asks. "Well, maybe not!"

The reason, he explains, is that a visitor who doesn't convert at that precise moment isn't necessarily a lost cause. Let's say "Systems Management" drew non-converting traffic from a potential customer who happens to be at the top of your wish list. If that's the case, notes Miechiels, "[T]his phrase may be 10 times more valuable than all of those 'Green IT' so-called conversions combined."

The Po!nt: From Todd Miechiels' perspective, the message is clear. "Don't fall into the trap of optimizing campaigns based solely on quantitative conversion data."

Source: MarketingProfs. Click here for the full article.

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