Posted in Internet Marketing Strategy	September 14, 2005

Executive Summary

• Consumers are increasingly using local search as a yellow pages substitute
• Following these consumers' search habits online can dramatically increase your targeted PPC advertising inventory
• Bonus: Consumers who go local have higher PPC advertising conversion rates

Having a heart attack is a life-changing event. Recovery rates are good for those who make the right changes to their diet and exercise program, and who learn to manage the stress of day-to-day living. The changes are information driven and require education, motivation and commitment. One health publisher we know provides a number of successful information products that are just what the doctor ordered.

Opportunity: Targeted PPC advertising is the backbone of this publisher's Internet marketing program, generating more than 30 percent of her total revenue. While she was having good success with around 80 targeted, PPC-advertising keyword phrases, she was always on the lookout for ways to increase her PPC advertising keyword universe. One of her most productive PPC advertising keyword phrases is "cardiologist." Her PPC advertising testing and research had clearly proven that someone searching for this term would also buy information products related to reversing heart disease and heart attack prevention.

Although she was doing a broad match, which gave her PPC advertising exposure on two- and three-word terms containing the word cardiologist, she was not buying those two- and three-word phrases. Hence, she often did not show up when someone searched for "Los Angeles cardiologist." Her research further revealed that about 80 percent of all searches for the term "cardiologist" where actually two-or three-word searches that also included the name of a city.

Results: Her overall PPC advertising click volume increased by 427 percent for all the terms for which cardiologist was the root.

Bonus: Conversion rates for the expanded keyword "cardiologist" cluster increased by 57 percent driving sales for the cluster up by 685 percent.

Lesson: A targeted PPC advertising program reaches beyond the obvious keyword phrases. The search phrases and their volume can be easily discovered using the Overture Keyword Selector Tool or Wordtracker.

Other Resources

• Overture Keyword Selector Tool
• Wordtracker

Note: As always, the details of the case have been modified to protect the identity of the publisher and the program.