Recent months have seen voice search hitting the headlines but the platform that’s actually a key driver of search is TV. Kevin O’Reilly, Chief Strategy Officer at TVSquaredexplores the best strategy for driving search marketing goals via TV.
With the rise of second screening, TV has increasingly become a provider of not just offline but online response, particularly search. Viewers are likely to search for items of interest online while watching TV. In fact, 90% of viewers use a second screen while watching TV and that activity increases slightly during an ad break. This provides the perfect opportunity for marketers to capture viewer interest and intent.
TVSquared will explore best strategy for marketers to power search and drive their marketing goals. The article will delve into how to optimise for own, complementary or conquesting strategies and share best practises.
It comes as no surprise that search is an integral part of consumers’ daily lives. And the use of digital assistants through smartphones and other connected devices has made voice search an increasingly popular alternative to text-based methods.
The universal nature of online search also makes it a highly effective way for brands to reach consumers, with paid search accounting for more than half of UK digital ad spend last year. But rather than treating paid search as a distinct, independent marketing channel, brands can maximise its effectiveness by understanding how it interacts with other channels. While voice activation is hitting the headlines, one of the main drivers of search is actually a more traditional channel: TV advertising.
Search and TV: A Connected Ecosystem
In today’s multi-screen world, second screening – the use of multiple devices at the same time – is increasingly common. In fact, 90% of viewers use second-screen devices (smartphones, tablets, laptops) while watching TV. This, in turn, has made TV a primary driver of search and created a perfect opportunity for advertisers to strengthen response.
TV ads cause viewers to search for brands they are interested in, and the majority of these searches happen in the minutes after spots air. Given the significantly higher click-through rates that happen for the top search position, being in that valuable spot in the minutes after an ad airs – when consumer intent-to-buy and engage is high – becomes increasingly crucial.
This provides the perfect opportunity for marketers to synchronise their TV and paid search campaigns, optimising search during those valuable minutes immediately following a TV slot where viewers are using their personal devices to discover more information. This moment is when consumer intent-to-buy and engagement is at its highest.
Sync TV and Search
Rather than spending inordinate amounts of money to maintain the top search position 24/7, brands are increasingly “syncing” TV with paid search to maximise conversions. This means co-ordinating search with TV campaigns to ensure a brand is in the top search position in those critical minutes after a TV ad runs. And brands are already using this technique to great effect.
Suzuki ran synchronised search for eight weeks during a national TV campaign. Each time a TV commercial aired, a paid search campaign was activated for five minutes immediately following the slot. The campaign resulted in a 30% uplift in conversions, which were defined as store-locator requests and brochure downloads.
The Atkins Diet discovered when it used synchronised search alongside a four-week national TV campaign that it could significantly increase engagement. The campaign boosted registrations, with TV-driven users increasing the time they spent on its site by close to 50%.
In these examples, search was used to capitalise on the brands’ own TV campaigns. But search can also be used to take advantage of other companies’ TV efforts. Paid search campaigns can be planned to coordinate with TV ads for products that complement a brand’s offering, or even run alongside competitors’ spots, capturing the valuable search traffic its TV ads generate.
Increasing Acquisition, Engagement and Activation
To make the most of synchronised TV and search campaigns, marketers must be able to effectively measure its impact against business goals. This means separating different types of paid search to allow meaningful comparison, with standard search campaigns paused during the few minutes after a TV spot airs, when synchronised campaigns are activated. It also means testing a variety of relevant keywords and measuring them individually to identify those driving the best results. As most TV-inspired searches take place in the minutes after spots air, it is crucial brands secure the top ranking for the right keywords to take advantage of the response.
Online search is an effective way for brands to reach connected consumers, but co-ordinating it with TV campaigns makes it even more powerful. Marketing in silos is no longer an option, communication between online and offline teams is needed to implement successful, complementary media strategies. In a world where second-screening is the norm, TV is a primary driver of search, and brands can make the most of this winning combination to optimise campaigns and maximise response.
By Kevin O’Reilly
Chief Strategy Officer