Internet Marketing Start to Finish: Drive measurable, repeatable online sales with search marketing, usability, CRM, and analytics

About

Features

• Supercharge Internet marketing results by measuring performance more consistently, and reflecting what readers learn more systematically
• Get beyond silos to develop more cohesive, metrics-based Internet marketing programs
• Teaches how to build an "online sales engine" that can track customers through the entire relationship
• Teaches users how to avoid five common pitfalls that kill Google AdWords campaigns
• This book comes with an instructor's guide and chapter exercises for course use.

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Description

• Copyright 2012
• Dimensions: 6" x 9"
• Pages: 320
• Edition: 1st

• Book
• ISBN-10: 0-7897-4789-8
• ISBN-13: 978-0-7897-4789-1

Internet Marketing Start to Finish

A breakthrough system for attracting more customers on the Internet

Internet marketing is the fastest, most efficient way to attract profitable new customers—if you run it strategically and systematically. This book shows you how. You’ll discover how to integrate marketing, sales, and operations functions to work together far more effectively, capture the right real-time data for decision-making, and apply it to drive dramatic improvements in performance. Drawing on extensive in-the-trenches experience, the authors help you implement a more iterative, measurable, and repeatable approach to Internet marketing, deliver better-qualified leads, build an online sales engine to track and improve every customer relationship…and, above all, grow profits!

You’ll Learn How To:

• Craft flexible strategies that can quickly learn from experience

• Eliminate "silos" that prevent effective measurement and execution

• Overcome obstacles ranging from culture to processes to individual behavior

• Build a powerful online sales engine to track customers through the entire relationship

• Avoid dangerous data and weed out junk leads

• Integrate web KPIs into business decision-making

• Link web to lead to CRM analysis

• Redefine messages to respond to your key audiences’ personas

• Architect and design sites to improve user experience and conversion

• Write highly findable content, and then make it even more visible

• Start a feedback loop for continually optimizing both tactics and strategy

• Globalize Internet marketing for diverse languages and cultures

• Translate your performance into boardroom-ready reports

CATHERINE JUON, Co-Founder & Catalyst of Pure Visibility, has worked in the Internet space for nearly 20 years. She has extensive experience helping companies develop integrated online marketing strategies that leverage online advertising, search engine marketing, and social media.

DUNRIE ALLISON GREILING, Director of Happiness at Pure Visibility, works with analysts to derive actionable recommendations from complex web data and develop strategic Internet marketing plans. She has more than a decade of web content and project-management experience.

CATHERINE BUERKLE has 18+ years of experience in usability design, web-based media, technical communication, project management, and marketing. She founded ArborComm, Inc., and co-founded the Digital Design Institute of Michigan.

ISBN-13: 978-0-7897-4789-1

ISBN-10: 0-7897-4789-8

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Extras

Author's Site

Please visit the author's site here.

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Sample Content

Online Sample Chapter

Why Online Sales Matter

Sample Pages

Download the sample pages (includes Chapter 1 and Index)

Table of Contents

1 Why Online Sales Matter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

First Things First . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

    Internet Research Equals Internet Sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

    Advantages of Internet Marketing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

The Bird’s Eye View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

    Standard Practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

    Your Online Sales Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Back to Basics: Business Strategy 101 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

    The Customer Is King . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

    Understanding the Buying Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

    Remove Organizational Silos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

    Get the Most Bang for Your Buck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

    Find Out What’s Working . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Lessons We’ve Learned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

    Keywords, Keywords, Keywords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

    Paid Search Mismatches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

    Get the Fundamentals Right First . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

    Bigger Is Better . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

    Content and Inlinks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

    Websites Are for Spiders and People . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

    Small Business Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

    Budget for Marketing the Website Itself . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Learn by Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

    B2C Example: Happy Puppy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

    B2B Example: TropiCo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Online Sales Engine Success Stories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

    Case Study: Moving into New Global Markets . . . . . . . . . . . .16

    Case Study: Manufacturing Company Improves Sales . . . .16

    Case Study: Large Childcare Provider Increases Web Conversions . .  . . . . . .17

    Case Study: Major Software Company Grows Sales . . . . . . .17

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

2 What an Online Sales Engine Can Do . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

What Is an Online Sales Engine? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

Why Adopt the Online Sales Engine? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

    The Online Sales Engine Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

    The Components Form a Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

Avoid “Dangerous Data” Nightmares . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

Case Study: Identifying Junk Leads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

The Customer-Driven Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

    1. Define Your Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

    2. Configure Tracking and Set Goals for Metrics . . . . . . . . . .28

    3. Conduct Research and Improve the User Experience . .30

    4. Sell Online . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32

    5. Manage Your Website . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34

    6. Increase Visibility with SEO and Paid Search . . . . . . . . . . .34

    7. Revisit the Metrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

    Close the Loop with Metrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

    Maintain Your Analytics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39

The ROI-Driven Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40

3 Building a Metrics-Driven Practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

The New Era of Website Metrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44

Which Metrics Matter Most? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44

    Influencing Leads and Revenue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44

    The Conversion Funnel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45

    Lead-Generation Businesses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46

    E-Commerce Businesses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47

    Choosing a Contact Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47

What to Measure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49

    SEO Key Performance Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50

    Paid Search KPIs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53

    Use Business Analysis to Define Your KPI Benchmarks and Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55

When to Measure Matters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56

Integrating Web KPIs into Business Decision Making . . . . . . . . .58

    Case Study: Landing Pages with Custom 800 Numbers . . .59

Web to Lead to CRM Analysis: Close That Loop! . . . . . . . . . . . . .60

    The Impact of Internet Marketing on Sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60

    Case Study: Reviewing Customer Conversion Data in Salesforce . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . .62

    Moving Data into Salesforce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63

KPI Reporting on Leads and Sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64

    Quantity Versus Quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64

Projections for Future Gain Based onPast Performance . . . . . .65

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67

4 Breaking Down Silos to Get the Metrics You Need. . . . . . . . . . . 69

Do More Than Gather Data: Build a Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70

Web Analytics: Types, Purpose, Popular Tools for Each . . . . . .70

    Logfile Versus Script-Based Analytics Tracking . . . . . . . . . . .71

    Click Analytics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .81

Call Tracking: Why It’s Essential and How to Select Granularity Needed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .82

    Measuring If the Phone Rings (Memory Doesn’t Count) .82

    Selecting the Granularity Needed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83

Lead Management: SFA/CRM Integration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84

    CRM Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84

    CRM Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85

    Next Steps for Follow-Up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .86

    Next Steps for Analysis: Quantifying “Assists” Through Lead Attribution . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . .88

A Case Study in Lead Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .91

5 The Audience Is Listening (What Will You Say?). . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Where Do You Start? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94

Start with the Tasks and Goals of Your Potential Audiences . . . .94

    Other Important Audiences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95

    Listen to and Watch Your Audience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .97

Develop Website Personas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .100

    Persona and Scenario Development Process . . . . . . . . . . . . .101

    Sample Personas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102

Adapt Your Website to Your Personas’ Needs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105

    Next Steps: Gather More Feedback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105

    Consider Their Path to Your Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105

Case Study: Persona-Driven Redesign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .107

Speak Your Audience’s Language: The Real SEO . . . . . . . . . . . . .109

    Do Your Keyword Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .109

    Evaluate Your Keyphrases in the Context of the Entire Word Market . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . . . . . . . .110

    Case Study: Word Market Focuses Tutor Time on the Right Descriptors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .113

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114

6 Putting It All Together and Selling Online . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Designing Your Website . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .118

    Incorporating Information Architecture Techniques . . . .118

    Experiment with an Unconventional User-Driven Architecture: McKinley.com . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . .119

    The Information Architecture Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120

    Investigate and Inform Your Information Architecture . .122

    Develop a Website Skeleton or Wireframe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122

    Test the Information Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126

Graphic Design Comes Later . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .127

    A Process Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .127

Information Architecture Case Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .128

    User Personas and Keyword Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .128

    High-Level Information Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .128

    Page Templates with Content Specified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .131

    How the Website Mission Can Affect Information Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . .133

Designing Your Landing Pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .133

    Landing Page Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .134

    The Design Cycle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .138

    Getting More Granular: When Do You Need a New Landing Page? . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . .138

    Long-Term Maintenance Is Critical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .139

Optimizing Your Landing Pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .140

    When to Optimize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .141

    Use Your User Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .142

    How to Measure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .143

    You Have Data. Now What? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .145

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .145

7 Making Websites That Work. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

Improving User Experience and Conversion Rates . . . . . . . . . .148

The Basics: What to Fix Before Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .149

    Follow Web Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .149

    On Key Pages: Form Optimization Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150

    Template-Level: Automated Attention Analysis . . . . . . . . . .151

    On Every Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .152

Beyond Best Practices: User Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .155

    Where Do Surveys Fit In? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .155

    Quantitative User Research: Form Analytics, and A/B Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .156

    Qualitative User Analysis: Observations, Usability Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .158

UX Checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .161

Website Planning and Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .162

    Plan for Graceful Failure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .162

    Website Maintenance Tasks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .165

    Planning a Website Refresh or Relaunch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .168

Case Study: Poor SEO Execution Hurts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .173

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .175

8 It’s All About Visibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

Who Sees What and How . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .178

    What Search Engine Spiders See . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .178

    What Search Engine Visitors See . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .179

Writing Web Content for Users and Spiders: On-Site Optimization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .181

    Page-Level SEO Best Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .181

    Page-Level SEO Guide: An Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .183

Case Study: Call It What It Is to Increase Findability . . . . . . . .185

Special Considerations: Blogging for SEO Benefit . . . . . . . . . . .185

    Blogging Best Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .186

Get Out of Your Own Way: Make Sure Your Content Is Findable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .187

    A Digression into the Guts of Web Code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .188

    Watch Your Web Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .190

    Take Advantage of Universal Search: Tag Your Media

    Files with Target Keywords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .190

    Have Fun with Widgets, but Avoid Putting Interesting and Relevant Content Inside Frames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .192

    Don’t Spread Yourself Too Thin: Consolidate Your Content Power on Your Main Domain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .194

    Crawler Control: Speak to Your Spiders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .194

Increase Your Findability via Link Building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .200

    How to Approach Website Owners for Links . . . . . . . . . . . . .201

Increase Your Findability: Claim and Maintain Your Local Business Listings . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . . . . . . . . .202

    Monitoring, Responding to, and Encouraging Reviews Online . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .203

Advanced Visibility Strategies: Going Social . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .204

Extending Your Reach with Paid Search Advertising . . . . . . . .205

    Search Engines as Paid Search Vendors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .206

    Effective Paid Search Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .206

    Define Your Market . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .208

    Qualify Your Market with Specific Ad Copy . . . . . . . . . . . . .209

    Convert Your Visitors into Customers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .211

    Revisit, Refine, and Refresh Your Campaigns . . . . . . . . . . . .211

Advanced Visibility Strategies: Display Advertising . . . . . . . . .212

    The Best Ways to Target Display Ads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .214

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .215

9 Running the Feedback Loop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

Revisiting the Project Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .218

    Your Goals Will Change as Your Process Matures . . . . . . .218

Analyzing Across the Online Sales Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .220

    Pulling Data from Various Silos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .221

    Common Data Analysis Pitfalls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .223

Proving ROI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .226

    What to Consider When Calculating ROI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .226

    When ROI Doesn’t Matter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .228

    How to Set Projections for Future Performance . . . . . . . . . .229

    How to Set Projections for Future Performance . . . . . . . . . .229

Boardroom-Ready Reporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .234

    Provide Context for the Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .234

    Boardroom Reporting Best Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .236

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .237

10 Special Considerations for International Organizations . . . 239

Going Global in the New World Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .240

    The Return of the Silo Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .240

    Triage for International Disorientation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .240

The Impact of Language, Culture, and Transparency . . . . . . . .241

    Working with Translators and Localization Experts . . . . .241

Case Study: Spidering to Keep All Localized Websites Up-to-Date . .  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .246

    Basic Mechanics for a Global Metrics-Driven Practice . .246

    Use a Single Website Analytics Program Globally . . . . . . .247

    Set Your Web Analytics to Track Across Top-Level Domains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .247

    Unify Your CRM or SFA Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .248

    Talk to Each Other! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .248

Basic Mechanics for Global Organic Search Visibility . . . . . . .250

    Focus on the Correct Search Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .250

    Tune Your Social Strategy to the Right Channel . . . . . . . . .252

    Mind Your Website Top-Level Domains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .252

Basic Mechanics for Global Paid Search Configuration . . . . .253

    Create Regional Campaigns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .253

    Set Geographic Targets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .254

    Use the Right Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .254

    Working with Time Zones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .256

Basic Mechanics for Global Usability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .258

    Before You Translate: Character Set Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .258

    Working with Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .258

    Working with Other Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .259

    A Note for E-Commerce Websites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .259

    Making It Usable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .260

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .262

Appendix: TropiCo’s State of the Web Report. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263

Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .264

Executive Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .264

    About Part I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .264

    About Part II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .265

    About Part III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .265

Part I. The Year in Review: The Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .265

    General Traffic Trends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .265

    Geographic Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .266

    Traffic Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .267

    Quarterly Leads Trends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .268

Part II. How It Happened . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .269

    Paid Search (Setup, Management, and Expansion) . . . . . .270

    Search Engine Optimization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .274

    Usability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .275

    Strategy, Analysis, and Reporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .276

    Local Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .278

    Referral Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .279

Part III. Looking Forward to 2012 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .280

    Localize the Online User Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .280

    Engagement: Move Online Strategy Toward

    Interactive Brand Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .281

    Maintain Momentum from FY 2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .281

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