There are a few misconceptions about search marketing one quickly realizes after spending some time entrenched in the industry. I started working in search two years ago. When I came across the listing for a position at a search marketing agency, I had a very vague, if any, idea of what search was. I skimmed the description: marketing experience, ability to work with account teams to plan and implement campaigns, computer skills, etc… Yes, yes and yes. Sounded good to me! (To be honest, I probably would have been happy to do all of that while tap dancing and spinning plates on my head if it meant a paycheck.) So, after doing research and asking my share of search questions, I thought I had a pretty good idea of what it was all about when I started. Now looking back, despite my efforts early on to understand it all going in, I realize I had a few basic misconceptions about search that may be pretty common among those unfamiliar with or new to the industry.

1. Just get users to your site; they’ll find what they are looking for when they get there

Actually, no. They probably won’t. In fact, they’ll probably leave about 2 seconds after realizing that the page they’ve been taken to doesn’t have what they want. I feel like this happens to me a lot when I’m shopping online, constantly taken to sites that have nothing even resembling what I’m looking for. I remember a specific time when I was searching for “beige pumps.” And, thanks to dynamic keyword insertion, I was greeted with a page full of ads claiming to have the perfect beige pumps for me. I then clicked on an ad and was taken to a page displaying pumps in every color of the rainbow. Every color, except beige (despite what the ad told me). Maybe this site had my dream shoes somewhere, but I didn’t stick around to find out.

It’s easy to think that just getting a searcher to your homepage is enough, but if you can’t take them to something relevant to what they’re looking for – better yet, exactly what they’re looking for, they’ll leave just as quickly as they arrived. It is important to customize your landing pages so that when a user clicks on your ad, they’re taken to what they’re looking for, right away.

2. More traffic equals more money

I think it is a natural compulsion of advertisers to try and get as many people to their site as possible. When I started working in search, clicks seemed like a big deal to me. Clicks, click-through-rates, even impressions — people who saw an ad, hadn’t actually clicked but could have — all seemed terribly important to me. I quickly realized it is not about clicks, it is about conversions. Sure, clicks are important. They are what make your online conversions possible. But, what good is it to run thousands of people through your site if only a couple of them result in a sale or sign up? Wouldn’t it be better to only have a few hundred visitors that result in a couple dozen sales or registrations?

More traffic does not equal more money, it just equals more traffic. More qualified traffic, on the other hand, is a different story and that’s where search’s impact on your business takes place. It’s important to remain focused on quality, not quantity, to maximize your return on investment.

3. Search is its own marketing effort, independent from other media

It may seem as if the online and offline advertising worlds are completely separate, but that kind of thinking does the advertiser a huge disservice. Advertisers should use search to leverage what is happening offline in their online marketing efforts. If a product or ad catches a consumer’s eye offline, it’s a safe bet that his/her next step will be to go online and search for it. Search marketing should be used in conjunction with other marketing efforts to present a cohesive brand image. If online and offline marketing are completely independent of one other, it sends a confusing message to the consumer. Just as the McDonald’s tag line “I’m Lovin’ It” can be found in their television, radio and print ads, search ads should contain this same slogan to affirm their brand messaging.

4. Search leads are equal to traditional leads

No, they’re not equal. In most cases, leads generated from search marketing are probably better because people are actively seeking you and your services. Instead of being one of the thousands of traditional advertising messages that people are bombarded with every day, search ads bring the consumer to you, rather than vice versa.

5. Search is a transactional marketing tool, not a branding one

A lot people view search merely as a means to an end. A vehicle that takes the consumer to the buying process and closes the sale. And sometimes it is. But search can also be used to build a company’s brand image online and reinforce their branding efforts offline. One way to do this is by ensuring search ad copy reflects the messaging in other media. (Like the previous McDonald’s example.) Another way is to ensure high frequency online. Some advertisers don’t see the value in buying paid listings on brand terms when they have great organic results. But the point is to increase the frequency your ad and message are displayed, thereby increasing your brand exposure and recognition. It also gives you visibility when your competition might be present.

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