ON THE KEYWORD TRAIL: DIGITAL NET AGENCY HELPS eTAILER TOP PROJECTIONS AND EXCEED EXPECTATIONS Case Study:

How DNAs Search Team Dramatically Increased Campaign Performance for a Major eTailer and Unraveled the Mystery of Better ROI Overview With the economic recovery still sluggish, retailers continue to be rigorous about online marketing campaign performance demanding far more precision and ROI from their online campaigns than they do from their offline marketing efforts. Quick access to data - and the ability to track consumer behavior through keyword performance - generates the efficiency advantage of online campaigns, but also means that etailers demand laser-accurate performance projections from online agencies before signing on the dotted line often without providing access to key internal metrics, such as specific keyword performance. With billions of pieces of data floating around cyberspace, what kind of business intelligence methods/tools are necessary for agencies to generate projections blind? And, once those projections are accepted, what tactics should be utilized to meet and exceed them? This case study demonstrates how DNA turned its team into detectives, following clues needed to make precision projections to win the account of a category-leading etailer who had provided them with almost no data clues; and then, once the account was in hand, to significantly ramp up performance. The study also reveals key best practices that helped the DNA team not only meet projections, but exceed them -- all within six months. Client X The retailer used in this case study (Client X) is an industry-leading retailer and one of the top brands in its vertical, generating upwards of $1.7 million in revenue and over 1 million visitors a month from Pay Per Click alone. The Mystery Client X was achieving moderate, but inconsistent, returns on their online campaigns, averaging about $1.50 for every $1 they spent. Client X approached DNA for help on improving their online campaigns however, before securing the relationship, the client required the agency to project campaign performance over the next 12 months. The search team was given a spreadsheet of basic top level data on the previous years campaign - Impressions, Clicks, Cost, Conversions and ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) little other information was given as the client was prohibited from sharing proprietary information with any agency prior to entering into a contract on the account. What does all this mean? DNA had zero access to prior/current keyword performance: no information on what the client had been buying and how much they were paying; no data on landing pages, and absolutely no direct data they could use to identify where they could improve performance. Essentially, the agency was operating blind with only the most generic of trails to follow.

First Impressions Because one of the clients key concerns was whether or not they actually could grow in their online space - i.e. was the available market already tapped? - the initial focus was on impressions, a success metric that the agency would not normally focus on. However, the team knew that once they were able to assess the available impressions and the growth opportunity, they could then utilize that impression data to project increases in traffic and potential revenue. The projection formula they used follows: increase available impressions + optimize for best performance = improve click through rate + improve conversion rate = increased revenue and better ROAS.

Trail of Clues
With little information to go on, the DNA teams first task was to detect the data clues they needed to make the projections, which meant taking agranular look at the space that Client X operated in. Using brand protection technology, a proprietary crawler, and numerous third party tools the team was able to crawl the major keywords thought to be used by the client in order to pull relevant data. Additionally, Client Xs key competitors were crawled and analyzed to determine what keywords these competitors were buying, project the number of impressions received on given keywords and as well as thepotential ad spend per word. After compiling this data, and looking at Client Xs top level data, the DNA was able to identify a value per impression and per click of Client Xs existing accounts. Armed with a realistic idea of how many impressions were available, DNA was able to project a strategic growth in impressions. Measuring current optimization strategies for the client, they projected a slow growth in click through rate and, calculating forward from this click through rate, they projected a baseline conversion, revenue and ROAS. CHART With this data in hand, DNA then looked at the impact a restructure of the account might have on the baseline projections, and were able to calculate that they could quadruple the number of impressions over twelve months, along with the corresponding increase in click through rates, baseline conversion, revenue and ROAS. Next, utilizing technology partner Kenshoos proprietary ad copy crawler, the DNA identified competitorads, pinpointed the best performers in the space, and projected an increase from the current 3% in click through rates to 3.5%. The team also analyzed landing pages with poor conversion rates to see if there was room to increase sales. Discovering there was, enabling them to not only increase revenue projections, but, importantly, to make them more precise.

The 525+% Solution.

Client X was presented with DNAs projections, which significantly exceeded prior performance metrics. Initially skeptical, once presented with the trail of evidence developed by the team, the client agreed to sign on and watch for performance. At this point, the DNA was provided with access to the clients proprietary data. As anticipated, a deep dive by the search production team, made up of Strategists with over 8 years of experience, revealed the account needed a full restructure to ensure all keyword gaps were filled. The restructure would ensure every brand, category, sku, product, and more, were in the account and able to perform at their peak. The search production team was able to break out the account, building out keywords, keyword groups, long tail keywords, etc. into every variation imaginable, which in turn enabled extremely targeted ad copy. With the help of DNA creative team and intelligence from the account breakout, a more successful landing page strategy was implemented, all of which resulted in increased quality scores and click through rates and, ultimately, a better consumer experience. Bottom line: consumers were landing exactly where they wanted to, which naturally brought them closer to a sale and the client to improved, more efficient conversion rates. With impressions now performing, the team turned again to Kenshoo to assist in the creation of unique multiple model-based bid policies. The purpose? Ensure different portions of the account had corresponding rules or models running. With data records stretching back for months, as well as real-time reporting, the team was able to understand the return on each keyword or keyword grouping, so they could assess whether, for example, to bid up a keyword and gain more volume, or if they could lower the bid and still achieve volume all of which prompted critical increases in performance and cost efficiency. Kenshoo also enabled the DNA team to track the path to conversion, i.e. algorithmically attributing portions of each conversion to each click within the conversion funnel. After six months, the ROAS was over 525+%, far surpassing the 12-month business goal of 350%. The Payoff With smarter bids, sharper projections and a clear path to conversion, the account rapidly exceeded projectionsand client expectations. Keywords were receiving massive impressions and click growth and, within four months, DNA had exceeded its twelve-month goal on impression level and click level, exceeded revenue goals and increased client return to 525%, an increase of more than 300% . While these results were great, they represented the beginning, not the end, of the road, as optimization is an ongoing process. But, with a restructured account, better analytics and greater ROAS, the client was now well-positioned to invest more resources into continuing to scale their business.

DNA Tips for Success Know Your Space: Understanding what the competitive marketplace looks like is the first step in controlling a space or vertical. SEM isnt just about what youre doing, but also what your competitors are doing. For example, are all your competitors undercutting your price, or are offering free shipping? Staying up to date with the competitive landscape not only keeps you in the game, but can help push you ahead. Give Consumers What They Want: The easier for a consumer to get to the exact product they want, the more likely they are to buy. If someone is looking for a black leather couch, dont land them on a page with leather couches - put them on a page with all available black leather couches. The less consumers need to think and search the more likely they are to buy. Run the Full Keyword Gamut: Ensuring you have identified every possible keyword combination, misspelling, etc. will help reduce overpriced CPCs and cut down on affiliate hijacks. Never let an affiliate or competitor take away your sales just because you missed out on buying a keyword. Track the Path to Conversion: Kenshoos Path to Conversion revenue attribution models helped scale this clients business, while still keeping them within the return constraints. If you want to know whether or not a broad keyword (i.e.: Insurance) is having an impact on your business, Path to Conversion is the solution for you. Get Granular: There are no magical short cuts to search, only constant strategy, analysis and optimization. Think analytically; utilize available tools, such as Kenshoo, and optimize accordingly.