november 2011 | Issue 02
the
magazine Predictions for 2012 Edition
adam bunn | greenlight
jon baron | tagman
miki clarke | debenhams
“It’s time to stop thinking of SEO as a bubble, and time that SEO becomes more than SEO, more than just links.” Read more articles from Greenlight’s Directors.
“2012 the year when attribution will move from being a topic of discussion to a mode of reporting.” See inside for Microsoft, Yahoo! and Google’s predictions for 2012.
“The online channel is a major traffic driver for Debenhams. In 2012, our challenge is to continue achieving more with our budget.” Read more from Santander, BSkyB and Dreams.
original cover illustration by Arnold Bryant
THE GREENLIGHT BOARD
Warren Cowan | CEO Warren has worked exclusively in the search marketing industry for over 13 years and founded Greenlight in 2001. He has developed unrivalled search knowledge and a unique perspective on the growth and movement of the industry, whilst actively directing and driving the company’s 100 strong team in its global growth and product development.
Andreas Pouros | COO Andreas has been involved in search for 11 years, joining Greenlight in 2003. He is an expert in both business and technological principles and directs Greenlight’s client services and implementation teams. Andreas also plays a pivotal role in product development and business growth strategy.
Alicia Levy | CMO Alicia has worked in digital marketing for 12 years and joined Greenlight in 2003 to set up its paid search division. As Managing Director of Paid Search, Alicia was at the helm of Greenlight’s PPC technology launches including the multi-award winning Adapt. In her current role, Alicia provides a strategic lead in product development, marketing and training.
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FOREWORD
Andreas Pouros | COO
Possibly my favourite prediction of all time is attributed to Thomas Watson, Chairman of IBM in the 1940s. He allegedly stated that there was a global market for ‘maybe five computers’. Computers at the time were the size of entire homes, let alone capable of sitting discretely on your coffee table, so you can see how he’d have come to that statement, if indeed he actually made it. Another similar prediction, one that was inarguably made but apparently misunderstood, is attributed to Ken Olsen, the founder of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) who said, in a meeting in 1977 of the World Future Society in Boston, that “...there is no reason why anyone would want a computer in their home”. He apparently meant computers that controlled everything in the home, not PC-type machines. Sounds like a poor attempt to cover up a blunder to me.
make lots of them, because that way some of them will actually come true. And the third rule would be to make sure your prediction isn’t immortalised in print, otherwise it might be difficult to convince people that you were ‘misunderstood’. With these rules in mind, we asked a reassuringly-sized group of notable experts to share with us, and with you, their predictions on what they believe will come to pass in the world of search and social in the relative short-term, i.e. the next 12 months. To that end, in the pages that follow, we have contributions from some of our own experts, as well as those that constitute the fabric of our sector – Google, Yahoo, Tag Man and Microsoft. Last but not least, we have contributions from those at the frontline of online commerce Catherine Daniel at BskyB, Miki Clarke at Debenhams, Matt Reid at Santander and Gary Robinson at Dreams.
It obviously came to pass that both of these alleged predictions were exceptionally wrong; not only would every person on Earth want a computer in their home, two billion of them now exist and if that were not impressive enough, many of us also own portable adaptations for vital tasks like playing Plants vs. Zombies whilst commuting into work. If Thomas Watson had said that only five people in the world might not want a computer, he’d have been vastly more accurate.
Covering off the third rule - making sure there’s no physical evidence of our predictions - is a tad more difficult, particularly with all these computers everywhere. So contributors, thank you for your contributions, good luck and no pressure!
So predictions are funny things - even the experts can get them wrong and routinely do. That said, the Editor-in-Chief of Wired Magazine once said that more predictions are correct than we might immediately assume, but it’s the ‘when’ that they miss the mark on. Greenlight’s own predictions this time last year for 2011 are a good case in point. Whilst most of our predictions for 2011 actually came true - from the emergence of display type ads being tested in Google’s results to QR codes making their way into above the line advertising - several of our predictions haven’t, but may quite feasibly materialise in the next 12 months, such as our prediction that Google and Bing will offer some type of ‘app search’ functionality in their search results.
On behalf of all at Greenlight, we hope you have a prosperous holiday season. - AP
Upon reflection therefore, the first rule in making predictions seems to be that you should only predict a year ahead, two years tops if you’re interested in being right, otherwise you’re making it incredibly easy for the universe to effortlessly embarrass you down the line. The second rule I’ll appropriate from Alan Cox, the renowned British computer programmer, who said that if you’re intent on making predictions, you should... 2
We asked some of our clients and partners to put pen to paper and tell us what they think 2012 will bring. Read contributions from Debenhams, TagMan, Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, Santander, BskyB and Dreams and find out what they think the key industry trends in 2012 will be for search and social. Amongst other important themes, find out what our contributors think will happen in the year ahead for Google Shopping, Augmented Reality, Apps and Multi-channel strategies.
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Catherine Daniel Display SEO and PPC
As social media channels become more powerful and start to genuinely influence other above the line spend (notably PPC and SEO), I think we will start to see social media budgets become more of a business opportunity, rather than an afterthought. As a result social media will no longer be allowed to be something brands are sure they should do but are not exactly sure why. It will instead need to be a measurable activity that delivers return on investment.
“An essential for 2012 is a multiple device, cross channel strategy. Customers are consuming content/products across numerous platforms and engaging with brands across many different channels.“ Consumers don’t consciously think that they are switching channels and many may consume several at once or in a very short timeframe. In the space of a day a customer might see a Sky Bet ad on Sky Sports, Google it, register via a PPC link on their laptop pre match, check out predictions on Twitter or Facebook, then later search on their iPhone, come through an organic listing and bet live in play using their mobile. It’s important that the strategy is aligned across all of these touch points to make the users’ device transition as smooth as possible. Products such as Google+ that work to integrate digital channels will become increasingly difficult to ignore. An aggregation tool that can monitor sentiment, influence organic and paid search, pull in articles from across the web, allow users to share content and stream videos and also act as a social media platform could become very powerful, very quickly.
Miki Clarke SEO Manager Miki Clarke SEO Manager at Debenhams, shares a snapshot of the exciting things this leading high street retailer has been up to - from Google Shopping to Augmented Reality, and why in her view, 2012 will be the year of exploring new ideas in search and social. 2012, will be the year of exploration and experimentation in search and social. The online channel is a major traffic driver for Debenhams and as we head into 2012, our challenge will be to continue achieving more with our budget. Both search and pay per click (PPC) are becoming more competitive. This year, Google has made frequent updates to its algorithm. This meant we had to change our marketing 4
strategies and tactics to line up with them - just one of the other adjustments we have had to routinely ‘build in’ to ensure we maintain our competitive edge and convert on what is already a limited pool of demand. User signals and retargeting to engage and convert User signals are becoming more important for natural search and with the paid quality scores, bounce rates are something we are focusing on. We are looking at ways to better engage users once they get to our site and improve these, by increasing conversion rates whilst we have the prospects’ attention. User signals and social will continue to grow in importance as people’s engagement with brands develops. Google+ is one approach to trying to ramp this right up and getting brands on board – this is something which I expect Google will really push and start to incorporate into its algorithm more. Retargeting, an area still in its infancy, is proving hugely effective and a channel where results can clearly be seen. It is one we will continue to look to develop. However, a lot will rest on the final outcome of the recent EU privacy rulings surrounding cookies which could significantly impact retargeting activity. It’s a hot topic, one we will continue to follow closely in 2012. Google Shopping – where local and mobile search are heading Debenhams was one of a limited list of launch partners of Google Local Shopping which launched back in September. I expect it to take off and become more widely used by both brands and consumers in 2012.
mobile and other channels that work – it’s going to be a year of exploring new areas.
Retailers provide Google with an inventory feed which shows local stores and corresponding stock availability. Searchers using Google can then return a list of retailers with the corresponding number of products and items - they have in stock. At the moment Google Shopping is still very much a hidden feature in Google. It is very hard to track whether people actually go into the store and buy something on the back of having seen availability online. However, this will continue to be developed and ways of getting this data will be established. Google Shopping currently works well for White Goods. With clothing however, there are different options and variations that need taking into account such as sizing and colour. But overall, this is the foundation of where both local and mobile search are heading - Google trying to map against searches and the physical world through the browser, perhaps leading to a greater emphasis on ‘reserve and collect’. Ultimately, if a checkout service is provided within this, then all you need is Google! Additionally, this approach is potentially addressing the all too familiar green issue – sourcing locally is better for the environment all round, surely? And this result will leave retailers happy too.
Jon Baron Chief Revenue Officer and Co-Founder TagMan Chief Revenue Officer and Co-Founder Jon Baron discusses his predictions for managing complexity in today’s online marketing world and the future for attribution. One of our predictions for 2012 would be ‘complexity managed’- that’s to say managing the complexity and vast array of new tools available. The last couple of years has seen an explosion of technologies and services, all of which deliver advertisers greater efficiency in their online marketing activity (Data Management Platforms, Exchanges, Demand Side Platforms, Ad Verification, Online Customer Service, Attribution Management, Retargeting etc.). 2012 will be the year advertisers start to make sense of all these new services - not only in their minds, but also technologically - using platforms like our own (TagMan) to house and integrate them to build a single view of their online audiences, delivering a managed approach to actually acting on that view.
Augmented Reality, Multichannel Retailing and Experimentation 2012 will be the year when we see multichannel retailers growing at a faster pace than pure-play. Data suggests that retailers who have embraced it are profiting from it and capitalising. There will always be certain products consumers will want to physically see or try on before purchase, so multichannel is the way forward. For Debenhams, next year will see a lot more experimentation, particularly in the areas of mobile, and use of data and learnings - using evidence of what the customers like best and running with that.
We also envisage 2012, as the year when attribution will move from being a topic of discussion to a mode of reporting. In other words, more advertisers will plan their spend and optimise their campaigns based on attribution analysis of consumers responses to marketing and non-marketing channels (direct to site, online chat, call centre activity from web). Using this, we should, for example, expect to see the bidding of search and display start to work in harmony. In general, display has the most to gain as full channel attribution analysis will demonstrate that banners do work as an upstream channel, which will redefine development in the display sector away from its current uncomfortable chase for the
We have also tested augmented reality with our virtual pop up store, combining geolocations with augmented reality via a clever little app designed by GoldRun which runs on iPhones or iPad2 devices, incorporating geolocation know-how. Shoppers were able to view ten party dresses (only available at a particular location), virtually try them on, order them and get them delivered to an address of their choice. So we for one are trialling all sorts, and this is set to continue. In summary, retailers like Debenhams will be investing in
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last view. Also, clients who start to examine the mix between paid and natural search will find ‘target busting’ efficiencies in both - if Google lets them.
search for can tell search engines about the strength of a brand, because the strength of a brand directly influences those searches. What is the best means of influencing brand perception online? Right now I would argue social media. At the same time, more and more marketers are cottoning onto the fact that social media can dramatically catalyse SEO campaigns, by increasing the speed of accrual and volume of natural links pointing to a site, as I wrote about at length in the last issue of Greenlight’s magazine.
Adam Bunn Director of SEO “I’m going to start my prediction by winding back the clock a bit, to July 2009, when Google launched its so called ‘brand algorithm update’ (officially titled ‘Vince’ for the trivia buffs amongst you).” This update attempted to incorporate user search behaviour and click patterns directly into the algorithm, so that searching for keyword X, not finding anything of interest, then immediately searching for a particular Brand Y, would help Brand Y rank for keyword X even in the absence of the usual ranking signals. As it happened, at the time Google turned this new algorithm element up too high, resulting in too much emphasis being put on user search behaviour and causing some very strange search results, such that Vince was rolled back in fairly short order. What does any of this have to do with SEO in 2012? Well, even though Google bungled the implementation of Vince I think the intention was pretty clear: what users
All of this is known information, so here’s my prediction: next year, the confluence of user signals influencing search engines perception of brand strength, and everyone being on the “social media helps us build links” bandwagon, will make 2012 the year of social link building. You could argue that this has already happened, but I don’t think I’m alone in believing that collectively we’ve barely begun to scratch the surface of what’s possible when SEO and Social are properly integrated. Sure, people have been creating infographics and promoting them virally for two or three years (to the extent that many infographics these days are starting to seem a bit “me too”), and the idea of link bait of all stripes has been around for considerably longer. Don’t get me wrong, that kind of activity is still important as part of a campaign, but what I’m talking about are full blown, off the wall campaigns that integrate innovative content, competitions, blogger outreach, social, PR... the lot. In fact, why stop at online? Make TV shows! Throw events! I know from some of the stuff being planned with our clients that we will be, and I’m very excited about it.
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It’s time to stop thinking of SEO as a bubble, it’s time that SEO becomes more than SEO, more than just links. It’s SEO = Digital PR. SEO = your brand. Next year marketers who think like that when planning their campaigns will win, and those who do not will be “also-rans”.
Matt Reid Head of e-Marketing “The media landscape is ever changing, but the next few years will see significant developments in how organisations buy and plan their media to meet consumer demand.” Investments in more traditional awareness channels, be they TV, Outdoor, Sponsorship or indeed digital display, are all valid and important parts of media plans. But many companies are going to have to think hard about these, as there are significant changes in the way that brands are perceived, and the product evaluation process for customers. We have seen a phenomenal growth in price comparison sites. Now, these companies themselves represent some of the biggest budgets in the UK, some passing the eye-watering £100 million mark.
Equally, customers have less in their pockets, and are demanding more. Often this includes turning online to look for vouchers, best buy prices, or just the latest discount offer. The proportion of full price paying customers at Zizzi’s and Pizza Express, for example, is decreasing each year. The key question is where is this heading? Whilst price comparison is growing, I think this is just a sign of things to come. Many of the items we buy and use are relatively commoditised – the exceptions become less every year – perfume, Apple hardware, and some items of clothing remain dominantly brand oriented in the purchase process, but these are at risk of being compared if the distribution sources cannot be controlled.
Simon Turner Search Business Strategist “Search is about to change quite radically. For more than a decade, search has been stagnant: the core product has not changed much. Users have changed radically in that time frame. Even though the kind of content users consume is different, search engines are still focused mostly on web pages.”
Arguably, only Apple truly falls outside this at the moment – with manufacturing, pricing and distribution clearly locked down and controlled. This stacks up whilst differentiation is there, although many will argue that this is not sustainable in the long term. Google have tried a lot of things, and arguably only succeeded in a few well documented ways. It’s ability and capability is at the heart of the changes we have seen. This is the ability of a customer to see what the best results for their needs are.
One aspect of all the major engines’ Search Results Pages that has remained constant over the years are the blue links. In 2012, we could start to see less and less real estate being taken up by plain blue links, as engines move further into the realms of rich results.
Growth of comparison, coupled with real time customer input and feedback will commoditise many brands. Value for a business is hard to find, and will not get easier.
This supports the belief that 2012 will bring an innovation arms race, more competitive than it’s been for a long time. Yahoo! and Microsoft are expected to execute the Search Alliance in the UK next year, and this should bring with it a range of product innovations from both companies.
For a company in the UK, spending more on awareness will not necessarily improve things, and is harder to justify as budgets get tighter. What will help businesses to succeed, is to realise that times have changed and to accept that there is still much more to come.
It’s difficult to write predictions for 2012 without mentioning mobile. Advertisers will see increased consumer confidence in purchasing big ticket items through their mobile devices, especially considering the 2011 impact of tablet computers. In the first six months of 2011, UK mobile web users grew by 25%, but this was over-indexed by the 40% growth in mobile searches (ComScore 2011). So 2012 may perhaps not quite be the fabled ‘year of mobile’, but then what exactly are we expecting when we say that?!
Socialise with Greenlight Catch up with us on Facebook facebook.com/GreenlightLtd Join the discussion on LinkedIn linkedin.com/company/greenlight
Some other predictions worth a thought are:
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4 Innovation in new ad formats will result in rich ad adoption increasing. Continued on page 9 7
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4 Is a managed solution designed to allow global organisations to respond to the search and social demands of modern online business.
4 Provides a home for all your media assets – press releases, videos, Twitter and blog posts, guides, surveys, forums, polls, widgets, graphics, podcasts, promotions, voucher codes, and much more.
4 Empowers marketers to engage more effectively with journalists, social networks, and consumers by giving them direct, rapid publishing power for the first time.
4 Responds directly to the very real danger that big brands will be left behind due to their relative inability to be dynamic in the online search and social spheres.
Essentially, brands are often great at being corporations, but need GOSSIP to build leadership in the fast-paced world of real time search and social media. Greenlight’s solutions are used by many of the world’s best known brands to enhance their performance why don’t you join them? 8
4 Consumer behaviour will be more influenced than ever by their online social environments. This may mean more research before purchase, and higher bounce rates. 4 There are around one million mobile and tablet apps in the Apple and Android stores. App search currently available, is akin to web search back in 1996 – unreliable and unstructured. Advertisers want it to be easier for consumers to find their apps, so we’re likely to see advancements in app search. Yahoo! seem to be leading the way in this particular space.
really need to invest elsewhere when Google could potentially provide it all? Hannah Kimuyu, Director of Paid Media explains. One of my predictions in 2008 was that Google would, by 2009, have expanded into display advertising following its acquisition of Double Click. In 2009, three of my five predictions for 2010 hinted at a new wave of display, pegged ‘performance display’. Two years later the Double Click acquisition and some incredible developments such as Remarketing and Placement Targeting have turned a once struggling Content Network (AdSense to the Publishers), into a success story - one we now know as the Google Display Network (GDN). Google’s noteworthy acquisitions and investments this year combined with the mighty AdWords suggests that by the end of 2012, not only will 90% of advertisers search budgets be in AdWords but also that this trend is set to be the case for display as well.
Yahoo! and Bing’s combined search efforts. However optimistic this may sound, it is obvious there is a long way to go before Google starts to see a dent in its market share. Assuming Google and Yahoo! pull this off; I believe this will support another big subject being debated by online marketers across the UK – attribution - one of the biggest buzz words for 2011 and definitely a hot topic for 2012. If all of my advertising budget can be spent in one place (this one-stop shop scenario) then surely it makes my attribution modelling easier and more transparent. What is clear is that the developments Google has made in 2011 and the past few years should see it become a serious authority - if not the leader in display, overtaking Yahoo!, as well as search by the end of 2012.
Where does this leave other networks such as Yahoo!, if Google can potentially provide it all?
“2011 has been a busy year for the search industry with Google acquiring Invite Media and Teracent.”
The last ten years is evidence that when Google sets its sights on expanding and changing the digital space, it does it properly. However, if Google is creating a one-stop-shop for all digital advertising, where does this leave the other networks? And as advertisers do we really need to invest elsewhere when Google could potentially provide it all?
As we head into 2012, Google is about to officially launch its DoubleClick Search V3 platform DS3 - a bid management programme which will combine Yahoo! and MSN into an AdWords type interface, and significantly invest in the DoubleClick platform, specifically DoubleClick for Advertisers (DFA) and the Exchange. As advertisers will we
Interestingly, in the last 12 months, Yahoo! has finally woken up to the integration of search and display. It now strategically places its two teams together, making it easier for advertisers to get into the Right Media Exchange (RMX) and the Direct Response (DR) networks. Also with the Search Alliance finally hitting the UK in 2012, this should improve
Hannah Kimuyu Director of Paid Media
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Colm Brachen Group Search Manager “If 2011 was the year that technology really started to deliver the promises of real-time bidding, mobile and social advertising, then 2012 will be the year when we start to see the beginning of hockey stick spend growth in these spaces.” Recently at IAB Engage, AppNexus
where to spend their budgets.
CEO, Brian O’Kelley predicted that by 2015 over half of the global display spend will be auctioned and sold through exchanges. Mobile advertising, particularly in search will accelerate even more quickly as smartphone penetration hits 50% in the UK.
Social media spend should be focused on whatever the desired objective and audience is for that advertiser. This has always been the case and should be no different for social. If you’re looking to find a very specific type of person, you can achieve this using very advanced targeting that’s on offer. If you’re looking to broadcast to a large audience, then this is also available to you. If you’re looking to reach an audience across multiple entry points, then social (and search) has more to offer than most.
One of the most profound recent changes to digital marketing will occur on TVs. In the past few weeks, Xbox announced that a new era in TV will begin this Christmas as nearly 40 world-leading TV and entertainment providers will begin rolling out new entertainment services worldwide to Xbox 360. In the UK, these will include the BBC, Channel 4 and LoveFilm. This will open up a world of opportunities for advertisers as more and more digital entertainment will be consumed on TVs.
How will internet usage and habits affect the way your business operates? For us, our big challenge is to connect advertisers with the right consumers as they increasingly adopt new technology and react to challenging economic conditions. We will continue to innovate across devices to enhance the user experience but also provide advertisers with really engaged audiences who are interacting with advertising in ways we could only have dreamed of in the past.
The next big thing in search for 2012 Without question, search is undergoing a lot of change in how relevance is being determined. At the heart of this change will be the humanisation of the search experience, as more and more social signals are being used to personalise search results. The power of social graph data will be used to create search results that vastly improve the personal search experience. Therefore, optimising social media strategies will play a large part in ensuring a brand is found on Bing and other search engines. A key theme will emerge around the “appification” of the Web, and in particular in the search domain. Bing will continue to find new ways to help users complete tasks and not just return information. It will be more a case of “Search and Do” rather than “Search and Find”. Finally, how we search will change. Search need not solely be about typing keywords, but rather the potential to search using sounds and images. With Bing on Xbox, the Mango release of Windows Phone 7 and Siri, voice search has shown us how much more naturally we can interface with technology.
Gary Robinson Head of e-Commerce “As an online advertiser, we at Dreams have become reliant on our spend levels in Google, and to a lesser extent Yahoo and MSN. Over the years however, more and more advertising options have become available to us to help avoid saturating the traditional paid search providers, specifically Google, and leaning on it.”
Will we see an increase in budgets for both search and social in 2012? Indeed we will. Search may have taken a step out of the limelight with the recent innovations we’re seeing in Real Time Bidding (RTB), mobile and social. But, new exciting rich ad formats are enabling advertisers to do brand campaigns. In what will be an uncertain economic climate in 2012, the value of search advertising will once again be sought after. The supply of social media inventory will increase with the arrival of Twitter, offering advertisers yet another headache of figuring out
Social media advertising options, such as Facebook and LinkedIn, show promise of being able to deliver branding as well as sales at competitive Continued on page 12 10
At Greenlight, we pride ourselves on being the pioneers of thought leadership within the search industry. From our Sector Reports to our Greenlight Academy training programmes, we strive to offer companies and individuals the unique opportunity to gain contemporary and relevant insight into the search industry.
Greenlight Academy The Greenlight Academy is our training division through which we offer the most advanced and comprehensive search training courses in the country. Our programmes are designed to meet the needs of business’s or individuals interested in understanding and using search and social media. Our courses on offer range from an ’Introduction to SEO and PPC’ to ‘Link Building Masterclasses’. “I recently attended the Social Media for Business course hosted by Greenlight’s Social Media Director, Anna O’Brien. It was absolutely brilliant and I would recommend it to anyone looking to broaden their knowledge of Social Media for business in the online marketing space.” Ashish Khungar | Search Specialist | Dixons Retail Plc
Sector Reports Our industry renowned sector reports are used within the search industry to benchmark websites and brands’ visibility against that of their competitors. Each report examines the total search engine audience size; the most visible websites in Google natural search and paid media results; paid media ad copy analysis; budget allocation strategies and social media analysis. We have now also included a magazine at the back of our reports featuring articles from the Greenlight Board and Directors of natural search, paid media and social media. Our latest edition focuses on the ‘Social Search phenomenon’.
Roundtables Our filmed roundtable discussions are designed to provide an open environment for debate and discussion on a regular basis. In recent weeks, we have successfully hosted Fashion and Finance themed roundtables. Participants from major brands, including Debenhams, Next, Reiss, Barclays Wealth and Google Finance gathered to discuss what issues they have experienced with search and social within their sectors. “The Greenlight Fashion Roundtable was really interesting for us as a small brand. We gained insight into what larger fashion brands and retails are doing, as well as what we can do better. We’ve learnt a lot.” Guusje Wentrup | Ecommerce and Marketing Coordinator | MiH Jeans
For further information on Greenlight Academy please contact academy@greenlightsearch.com To download our sector reports and view our roundtable videos, visit www.greenlightsearch.com 11
cost per acquisition (CPA) rates. Meanwhile, display advertising continues to reinvent itself, with many platforms now offering highly targeted “performance display” options, rather than the traditional cost per million (CPM) arrangements.
mobiles in the past 12 months, and we expect this number to rise even further as smartphone penetration increases. In some countries, they’ll actually bypass the desktop altogether, and the mobile phone will be the default internet device.
One advertising option that has been available for a number of years, and has rarely been utilised by the majority of advertisers to its full extent, is mobile. Since 2006, Google has claimed annually that each subsequent year will be the year for mobile. In reality, advertisers’ take up has been relatively low.
As this shift happens, new types of online content and services are emerging. If content is king, context is its’ crown – and one of the most important contextual signals is location. If you search for sushi from your mobile, chances are you’re looking for the directions to a nearby restaurant, and not for a Wikipedia entry.
However, it seems mobile is showing very clear signs of the ‘perfect storm’. With the usage of smartphones and tablets, the volume of searches conducted via mobile devices is now significant. This is sign enough for us that 2012 is the year we will fully seek to embrace mobile search as a serious and viable channel to expand our visibility online to deliver more sales.
Social signals are another powerful driver of behaviour. If you’re looking for a review of a movie, you might be interested in what TotalFilm or the BBC has to say about it, but you’re also likely to be interested in what three of your friends made of it. We’re still at an early stage of learning how best to use social signals and other taste indicators to provide more personalised content and services. The Google+ project has only been live to the public since September, but already we’re seeing ways in which you can add a social layer to web activity. Brands can now hold face-to-face conversations with customers via Hangouts from their Google+ brand pages, and use Circles to tailor specific messages with specific groups of followers.
Finlay Clark Industry Manager “The key trends to watch out for in 2012 can be summed up in three words: social, local and mobile (or So-Lo-Mo for short).”
New technology will continue to come from nowhere right to the forefront next year, the companies who ‘leap and learn’ – dive in, try things and learn to improve them – are the ones which will stay ahead.
Already we’ve seen huge jumps in the numbers of users searching on 12
Anna O’Brien Director of Social Media “When I was first asked to write about my predictions for social media next year, I panicked. It seems when looking generally at the landscape there are a lot of things developing, but nothing that jumps out as the next big thing.” Some clever things like relocation and augmented reality are still struggling to gain the full respect of the tech community let alone the general public. This led to much head scratching, deep thoughts of the Jack Handey persuasion, and hours trolling blogs for some much needed persuasion/inspiration. During my inspiration scavenger hunt my mind kept coming back to a quote by Chris Poole, founder of 4chan, that I had bookmarked a month or so ago. “[Some social sites] would have you believe that you’re a mirror,” he said, “but in fact, we’re more like diamonds.” - multi-faceted. When I first read it, it struck me. And, each time I’ve returned to it, I’ve found myself equally inspired. I, for one, Anna O’Brien am not the same person day to day. In the words of a 90’s pop song that may be better
left unrevived, “I’m a bitch. I’m a lover. I’m a child. I’m a mother. I’m a sinner. I’m a saint. I do not feel ashamed…” Well, that’s not quite true. I do feel ashamed. I feel very ashamed. I am the first to admit that there are thoughts, ideas, and dreams I have that I never want anyone other than my closest friends to know. Still others that I don’t want anyone to know. Those secrets I am only comfortable sharing with strangers on the internet cloaked in anonymity. These are the juicy bits that will come in the tell-all book my brother’s sister’s cousin will write. I fear it. What I am getting at in a not so subtle way is that, social media as it stands now, does not support the multitude of different relationships and personalities we have. While sites like Reddit and 4chan appeal to the user who wishes to share information [read troll] cloaked in anonymity, Facebook provides a mass audience with live feed that even your mother would feel comfortable reading. And she will. Often. However, whilst these sites currently thrive, they live at opposite ends of the spectrum and both only currently provide a single use view. When Mr. Poole first made his point, he was attempting to attack mainstream social sites in their approach. What he did inadvertently was attack his own in the discussion. The future of social media and the prediction I am most certain of, is that somehow one of these mainstream sites will evolve to allow you to become more multifaceted. This is more than Google Circles or Facebook friend groups. Those cater to organisation of content rather than the accurate portrayal of multidimensional identities. What might this look like? It’s hard to say. Perhaps it will be multiple usernames underneath a single user identity. Maybe it will be the ability to choose to post content to a public feed anonymously. Something tells me that whatever the solution will be, it is likely going to be much more exciting than that. And that’s a good thing. Personally, I think social media could use a little more genuine innovation and excitement these days.
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60 Second Interview Allan Schoenberg - Director of Corporate Communications
In September, Greenlight hosted its ‘Social Media and Finance’ roundtable, which can be found on our website. Representatives from major financial institutions, including Barclays Wealth, HSBC, Currencies Direct and Google, discussed how search and social media has helped them to market their brands in the online space. We grabbed CME Group’s Allan Schoenberg for a 60 second interview.
“Ask a lot of questions– people love to offer advice and be asked for their opinion” What is your favourite social media network and how often do you use it?
What celebrities are you following on Twitter and why? Tony Hawk – professional skateboarder! I follow him because he’s a Dad like me; I used to skateboard and grew up with him being in the limelight so it’s good to be able to connect with him on a personal level. I also like that he uses Instagram, so you can see what he’s up to.
Twitter and I personally use it on a daily basis. How are you using this on a professional basis? We are using Twitter and StockTwits because of the way they are integrated specifically for traders and those interested in the markets. We have been using these for the last three years, particularly because of the real-time element.
Who would you engage with on a social media level to promote your brand if you could have anyone retweet you? There are a few people I could mention: Matthew Bishop from the Economist, Howard Lindzon from StockTwits as well as other journalists from Dow Jones or Bloomberg – all of those that are influential within our market, but that could offer third party support for our brand.
What advice do you have for budding Community Managers? Ask a lot of questions– people love to offer advice and be asked for their opinion. Be timely – set expectations, so people know what to expect. Deliver guidelines that set out when someone contacting you can expect to receive a response. It doesn’t need to be immediate, but set the expectation of 24 hours for example as standard practice with a different response time for crisis management. Also make sure you know about your brand guidelines and that all teams are aware of them and are working together to adhere them.
How do you see the future of SM within the FS industry? We are still in the early stages and there’s a long way to go. I believe the focus will be outside of the traditional English speaking markets and locations; with a move towards China, Japan, Latin America and other emerging markets looking to build interest and awareness amongst their networks. 14
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