Embrace search to maximize on sales for the 2019 festive season

How to maximize online revenue for the 2019 festive season

Businesses that currently rely solely on paid-for Google search to attract consumers to their offerings should also be incorporating organic search as part of their digital strategies if they want to capture an even bigger slice of sales this Black Friday, Cyber Monday and festive period.

A brand’s organic search ranking, or Search Engine Optimisation, determines where it appears when would-be customers search for the products or services a business offers.

Consumers don’t scroll through pages and pages of results – they place their trust in the results ranking at the top of the first page – and that’s where a business needs to be. The hard truth is that if your brand is not in the top five search results, it probably won’t be seen or engaged at all.

Latest Google algorithm updates

According to Google’s ‘Webmasters blog’ and as part of its ongoing updates to search algorithms, the search engine will no longer display review-rich snippets for local businesses and organisations. In line with ensuring quality, transparent search results, these will be removed as they could be perceived as ‘self-serving’ and not in the best interest of consumers.

Results will be driven by trustworthy user-generated content rather than potentially biased reviews, which will have an impact on a business’s ability to rank higher on the results page, highlighted recently by Mordy Oberstein from Rank Ranger.

Local is Lekker and profitable too

Brands would be wise to focus on their company’s Google My Business (GMB) review management strategy to increase their local search rankings, as the top three results appearing above organic web rankings make up as much as 15% of how Google ranks a local business and appearing here will directly impact your ability to maximize online revenue.

Despite this, brands still direct the bulk of their online media spend to paid media, which accounts for 60% of clicks at best (based on flight-related search data). By insisting that media spend be allocated solely to paid search results, they’re ignoring 40% of their potential customers – and it’s clear that no business can afford to disregard nearly half its potential client base. On average organic search makes up at least 80% of the click engagement.

Consider consumer intent when looking at social media

There are also brands that only use Facebook, Twitter and Instagram advertising to attract consumers. However, they’re effectively ignoring the massive pool of savvy online consumers who appreciate (and actively look for) an honest review that ranks a brand highly in an organic Google search – more highly than a paid-for advert.

Customers have wisened up to paid placements, realising that they carry little integrity, while top-ranking organic search results have earned their place at the top of the page by being deserving of a good review. Simply put, it’s ‘In Google we trust’ for most South Africans when searching for gifts to buy, places to go, ordering food online and destinations to visit over the festive season.

Always be at the head of the pack

Staying ahead (and high up in search rankings) relies on staying on top of changes to Google’s algorithm in conjunction with tailored content strategies that build trust and ‘link equity’ within the Google My Business ecosystem. This is where Specialist Performance Marketing and SEO Agencies like Mickey Llew come into play, working with clients on customised strategies that help them rank high on Google through paid and organic search optimisation.

And with Google updating its algorithms as much as several times each day, it’s simply impossible for a multitasking business owner to achieve the same level of results without a specialist team dedicated to tracking and decoding Google’s tweaks, quirks and ever-evolving features.

Brands wanting to reap the rewards of the upcoming shopper-rush must rethink how they allocate their digital marketing budgets to make sure that they’re capturing the biggest possible audience. They need to find better ways of balancing between the percentage of clicks from conventional ad spend, and the percentage of users who prefer trustworthy non-paid resources to inform their buying decisions.

We work with

Banking Retail Manufacturing Automotive IT & Telecoms Agencies Hospitality

Mickey Llew is lucky to have an incredibly diverse client base which has given us valuable experience in different industries across continents and markets. Depending on our clients’ needs, we’re able to take the lead on projects and accounts when needed, or to complement other agencies, organisations, or internal teams.

What
our clients
are saying