• Tiz the Season to Optimize for the Holidays is a great post listing seven ways you can increase traffic and conversions just by focusing on Holiday themes. A few examples are to call out gift card sales and gifts under $25 in your ad text. It also says to decorate your landing pages for a holiday theme. Check keyword research tools for past search terms; these can go back as far as a year so you can see which search terms generated a lot of traffic last year.
  • Simon Heseltine from Search Engine Guide talks about ways to optimize your account outside of the holidays by thinking of local or even international events that could correlate with your campaigns. For example, a running shoe store could target running forums, marathons, and triathlons. He says to look through local trade and specialty magazines for events that could relate to your keywords, in addition to annual events that may be coming up again in the next few months.
  • Kevin at the Search Marketing Standard recently researched how shipping promotions affect online sales. After reading forum comments from customers, he realized that some customers actually preferred flat-rate shipping costs over free shipping with conditions. Additionally, the speed of delivery is becoming more important. The best solution would be a “Fast and Free shipping” value proposition.
  • Google continues to dominate as its search share increases slightly in July & Aug, as Yahoo’s dips slightly, and MSN holds steady. Personally, I haven’t noticed any decrease in my Yahoo traffic nor an increase within Google. What about you?
  • Need some quick help with your AdWords account? Chat with an AdWords specialist and get the answers you’re looking for. I haven’t used this feature but I think this could be helpful when you need a quick question answer, or for when you’re writing a blog post!
  • The post-click debate continues between landing pages or conversion paths. This informative video discusses the benefits of each method and how you can determine which is right for your campaign.