Why Google has removed right hand side ads on SERP ?

Recently, search engine giant Google has announced to roll out removal of right hand side ads during desktop SERP, worldwide. The reason for such a major change is not so convincing as company has cited “matching it with mobile view” as the prime factor but as per Search Engine Marketing experts, “the move is absolutely revenue driven & intends to blur a thin line between ads & organic results in an SERP”

SERP now contains 04 tops ads hence lowering down the placement of organic listings, thus forcing users to click on ads. As per sources, Google internal analysis has revealed the CTR for RHS ads had always been low with respective to top & bottom ads hence forcing advertisers with relatively low CPC strategy / budget to look into other platforms.

After this move, it is assumed that CPC will go up drastically because the competition for top 04 placements will go up hence impacting Adwords budget for marketers. If we talk about user experience , the user now have no choice but to scroll down the page or move to next page to view the organic results (as like skipping pre-roll ads on You Tube)

The consequences of this move is expected to hit the SEO Industry as well AdWords ecosystem itself

The Evolution of Online News Portals

When trending a sponsored topic backfires for a brand

“Great Minds think alike”, this famous phrase comes to life during recent Reliance Jio Twitter campaign

Some publishers applauded the recent launch campaign of India’s largest private sector company Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) 4G internet service “Jio” on Twitter with the power headlines as “RIL’s #CelebratingJio beats the best of Twitter campaigns” while some found quoted “#CelebratingJio: Reliance Jio 4G launch event sweeps Twitter” . Not just impressive but these headlines seems realistic aswell since the hashtag holds the number 1 spot for so many hours as a trending topic on the micro blogging website. Also, if we go by the engagement, reach & impressions numbers of the tweets containing the official hashtag #CelebratingJio, undoubtedly campaign looks like a mega success.

                   But the question arises here “what is unusual about it” ?

So, the answer to the curiosity is that this is the first time when the influencers responsible for creating this trending topic, caught red handed for tweeting almost similar content. These influencers were none but the famous & popular Bollywood celebrities having verified Twitter handles. Take a look into the complied image containing all the tweets

But as always Twitterati immediately responded to this collective endorsement by kicking it in their own style

 

So, it can said that endorsing something is good but "mass endorsement" can sometimes be risky"

How to create "performing Landing pages" for PPC campaigns

The structure & look of landing pages plays extremely vital role in the success & failure of a PPC campaign. If the Landing page is not properly optimized, the performance of your paid campaign will get affected. 

There are several points to remember while creating a landing page, as

1. Be consistent with the color scheme – The color scheme of your landing page should resemble with the banner creatives used during the campaign. This will keep the user experience in tact while landing on the page. Also, while creating the banner creatives, marketers should consider the color scheme of the parent website (if exist)
2. Think Mobile – As the majority of traffic comes from mobile devices (Mobile phones, Tablets) hence landing page should be mobile optimized to fit into the standard screen of the devices used by the visitors. There are many online tools available to test the mobile readiness of the landing pages
3. No Outgoing links – To restrict the visitors to bounce or exit from the landing page, it is always advisable to avoid outgoing links on the page like navigation etc. Even if required, open the links either in new tab or new page. Don’t direct the page.
4. First Scroll to say all – As a normal behavior, visitors avoids scrolling the page for information. Hence, placement of important communication and “call to action” button / lead / registration form should always be in the first scroll of the landing page.

5. Don’t be greedy – Avoid asking too much information from the visitor through the lead / registration form rather try to capture mandatory information like Name, Contact Number, Email, and Location only

6. Give-away works – Offer some information brochure, tutorial to the visitor after successful submission of the information through email. Give away motivates visitors to provide accurate information during registration hence also acts as verification model for leads.

7. Be Universal – Before launching the campaign, test your landing page(s) on all the browsers & check the page functionality

8. Say Thank You – Acknowledge the information provided by the visitor after successful capturing through a Thank You Page or Pop-up alert.

Following above steps, you can easily achieve desired results from your paid campaign.

Why a better online presence is necessary for Education Institutions?

With the emergence of web 2.0 & smart telephony, no industry has remained unaffected by the influence of digital media. Education is among the most penetrated sector. With the prospect (customer) aged between 16 years to 30 years, the decision making related to admission is highly influenced by the secondary research related to reviews, ratings, opinions, information available on the open web and as a result marketers are spending more on digital media management than conventional advertising & PR channels

Some important tricks for Education marketers to boost their online presence

1. Updated Website – Up, running & updated website is first step towards ensuring an effective online presence for your brand. This can help you to draw the confidence of your prospective students towards your establishment
2. Social Media – Social media is now a days is a child’s play. According to a recent report by “We Are Social”, in India, people spent on an average 2 hours & 31 minutes on social media channels especially Facebook. This is the clear indication about the growing importance & effective usage of social media.
3. Being “Mobile’ – According to insights released by “We Are Social for 2015”, an average user spent 3 hours & 24 minutes on a daily basis on the mobile phones to surf internet. Also, data analytics can show that majority of web traffic comes from mobile devices for majority of web portals. This means that if not a mobile application then at least a mobile responsive website is necessary for  better user experience & ultimately a conversion
4. Word of Web – Online reviews & ratings also play extremely vital role to create positive sentiments for the brand & as a result influence the admission decision by the students / parents. Hence, it is recommended to keep a good eye on the reviews & comments posted by current students / alumni / media channels and spread achievements of the institution.
5. Listings – Listing your institution name in popular education directories & discovery platform is also a recommended way to boost the online reputation of the brand among the students.

   Using the above tricks, education marketers can help their brand to stay different in the crowd of education players in the market.

   

    Disclaimer - The writer of the article is an Education Marketer & Digital Marketing Expert. The above insights are based on real work experience.