"It may be dry, but it’s massive…"
Yesterday, one of my colleagues, (a big search advertising fan) was waxing lyrical to me about search, ahead of our event, IAB Engage for Search this morning. “It may be dry, but it’s massive” he said… Like I needed any persuading!But actually, I only agree with half of that statement. Search IS massive. Even in this wonderful, happy, silver-lining of an economic climate that we’re currently dwelling in, it’s proved itself an infallible medium, and based on the presentations today it seems like the industry’s only just getting started in many ways – mobile search for example is set to be huge. But I totally disagree that it’s dry… In reality – and thanks to some great speakers today – search is a very dynamic place. It’s an area of online that’s constantly improving and adapting as consumer behaviour gets more sophisticated.
I always talk about social media, and this blog post will be no exception, but what interested me today is the extent to which search and social media are so inextricably linked. Like a ‘horse and carriage’ in fact, according to Antony Mayfield from iCrossing who spoke today about how search should be at the heart of your brand marketing strategy – it’s a reputation management tool and consumer search activity can provide us with excellent insights into what they’re looking for (obviously!) and when, and why. Search results tell you (and the general online audience) what people are saying about your brand, and whether you’re doing enough (particularly in terms of SEO) to manage that, and provide consumers with sufficient signposting to the rest of your social media activity – the fun stuff! Search should be considered a core part of your social media strategy, and should be monitored regularly to ensure that you’re making the most of it, because on the search pages (whichever search engine you may be using…) is where your audiences are starting the bulk of their online sessions.
At the IAB, we like to bang the drum for integration – too often specific online disciplines are dealt with in isolation, which brings me to another great speaker from today. Brandon Keenen from Platform A urged our delegates to talk to each other, not literally during his presentation of course (imagine the distraction!) but in terms of the different departments within our organisations. Your search folks need to talk to your social media folks, and your social media team to your ecommerce team and so on, because every single part of a brand needs to know what your strategy is, what your values are, and how you can best talk to people to communicate these objectives.
I’m hoping that one day we talk less about ‘search’ and ‘social media’ and ‘display’ (etc etc) as standalone tools, but more about ONLINE marketing, as a whole, which essentially puts the consumer first and follows them wherever they may be (again, not literally, there’s privacy issues here too!) and presents to them one key marketing message that they understand and can act upon if they wish. None of it’s dry, all of it’s essential, and as a medium, it will stay unequivocally massive.
For pictures of the event click here.
