{"id":7200,"date":"2018-10-19T20:06:11","date_gmt":"2018-10-19T14:36:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.karooya.com\/blog\/?p=7200"},"modified":"2018-10-19T20:07:34","modified_gmt":"2018-10-19T14:37:34","slug":"ppcchat-upcoming-holiday-season-ecommerce-and-lead-gen-ppc-accounts-16-oct-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.karooya.com\/blog\/ppcchat-upcoming-holiday-season-ecommerce-and-lead-gen-ppc-accounts-16-oct-2018\/","title":{"rendered":"PPCChat | Upcoming Holiday Season, eCommerce and Lead Gen PPC accounts | 16 Oct, 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"

This week’s PPCChat session was hosted by Kirk Williams<\/a>. PPC experts shared how they plan for the holiday season, determining the budget planning, when to start gearing up for holiday season and more.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n\"PPCChat\"<\/a>\n

Q1: What is something you are doing differently this year than any other year to prepare for the holidays?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

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branding! This is the first holiday where I’ve been able to do tv, radio and billboards along with my digital campaigns. I’m doing lots of direct-action, but boosted by LOTS of media!\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@JuliaVyse<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

we are using more bid automation than previous years in Google\/Bing Ads, so we are working into our planning purposeful times to adjust targets several days before\/after key dates to ensure the system has time to adjust to significant changes.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@PPCKirk<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

More involved with shopping campaigns.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@elevatedmrktng<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

This obviously depends on product type\/industry but compiling lists of those that were first time purchasers last holiday season or people that have only purchased once and used a promo code\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@markpgus<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

In regards to our main PPC client, we’ll be targeting some of the upcoming holidays, as they’ll be open for business for Thanksgiving and Christmas (since they’re restaurants). This includes dedicated campaigns or targeted ad groups with keywords and copy to boot.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@marccxmedia<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

This is actually the first year I’ve been given the opportunity to prep strategically for the holidays, so I”m learning from my colleagues! Previously I was in automotive where holidays are dictated by OEMs\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@amaliaefowler<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

This year we\u2019re heavying up in video for early prospecting efforts\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@JonKagan<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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Q2: When do you expect to begin ramping up budget and bids for the holiday season? (or have you already?)<\/strong><\/h4>\n

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working with a client that has more limited resources this year so we\u2019re focusing on a key point in time where they have a competitive advantage and hedging our bets there.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@MattMasonPPC<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Because lead-gen always slows down during the holidays, we likely won’t be ramping up per se. But my plan is to shift strategies around the week of Thanksgiving\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@ferkungamaboobo<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

it depends on the account (obviously), but more often than not we start ramping up late October\/early November with the assumption that the core spend window is between Black Friday and the final shipping day before Christmas.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@PPCKirk<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

I wonder how many people have ensured their websites this year can handle the additional traffic ( servers and hosting) on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. I heard of people last year that had sites crash! Even Amazon had this on prime day.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@elevatedmrktng<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

We’ll likely ramp up budgets\/bids for the holiday priorities come late October\/early November, as Thanksgiving is a little over a month away.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@marccxmedia<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Currently for some clients we’re building email lists with holiday anticipation (events related), but the real drive starts after November 11th – we like to wait until after Rememberance Day\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@amaliaefowler<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

So for some accounts, we\u2019ve strategically invested more in competitor and non-branded terms in search to hit them with specific campaigns. Lead gen ads now so \u201cthey\u2019re the first to know about Black Friday deals\u201d could kill too. I think when people get as granular as target particular days from last year it might be misguided. So many external factors contributed to that. If competition moves their offers forward or backward things change\u2026 let alone new players\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@markpgus<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

usually 11\/1 with it peaking cyber Monday.\u00a0case by case, but we try and look at historical IS lost due to budget and then compensate it for annual and then seasonal growth. And when that ends up not being enough, we swear a lot.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@JonKagan<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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Q3: How do you determine additional budget for the holiday season for planning purposes (specific number examples encouraged!)? Do you have a specific process beyond \u201cIt depends\u201d?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

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it definitely depends, but I am able to tie up a generalized higher cpcs, more competitors in the auction and the ever-helpful, how much do you need to spend by year end?\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@JuliaVyse<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

We’re looking at last years numbers and adapting based on what our client is comfortable spending. So, they spent $1000 extra and want to do that again, where did they see the highest ROI? We’re investing more into that channel and supplementing with branding.\u00a0I actually have an incredibly cool opportunity with my currency exchange client to run a travel focused “why put another stop between you and mexico” kind of campaign -> they have pesos on hand and we’re advertising that. So not holiday focused, but fun. \u2013\u00a0@amaliaefowler<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Luckily we have historical data for our eCommerce clients to make a budget from\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@elevatedmrktng<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

I like to use the change in last year\u2019s budget before\/after holidays to estimate recommended % holiday growth. Then we translate that to this year\u2019s current spend and increase an additional 10-15% for comp rises (obviously this depends on client approval).\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@PPCKirk<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

I usually look at impression share, figure out what I\u2019m missing out on, then calculate what I could get at incremental points. I.e, if I only have 50% impression share, what could we feasibly get if we added XX to get to 60%.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@MattMasonPPC<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Reference historical data but get people on board for rules! Scale budgets with CPA < x or ROAS > x\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@markpgus<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

We discuss budgeting\/reallocation with the client, as we’ve had mostly set budgets (with a little wiggle room, depending on certain campaigns) since starting earlier this year.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@marccxmedia<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

is the best time to rake in the branding\/awareness, use those engagement\/visitor lists for BF & xmas! Especially w\/ ecomm.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0\u00a0@timmhalloran<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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Q4: LEAD GEN FOLKS! How do you typically prepare for the holidays? Is this a low-point in the year seasonally, business as usual, or do you see a bump as well?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

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Depends! Some of my clients see dips so we prepare by lowering budget and hunkering down for the season knowing people are bombarded. OR, like my example before, we find a way to cut through the noise from a branding perspective.\u00a0Another thing I like to do with some of my lead gen clients is run a “thank you” holiday related campaign combining emails and branding \u2013\u00a0@amaliaefowler<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

If offers are similar year to year, look at days of highest conversion rates and profitability, and place your bets on extra budget there. It might not necessarily be BF or CM.\u00a0You need to plan for higher Q4 cpc’s and lower efficiency, but not a great time to go dark. People are still working and making biz decisions for next calendar year. \u2013\u00a0@LisaSanner<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

When I was in legal lead-gen, we’d see search volume and conversion rates drop. It’d give us a great boost in January though with unused spend and a large set of folks looking for their legal needs again.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@ferkungamaboobo<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

We definitely have some clients who we just keep the lights on, like landscapers for example.\u2013\u00a0@elevatedmrktng<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Depends case by case but I would love to see Lead Gen do a B2B Black Friday with a focus on next year\u2019s budget\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@markpgus<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Most of our lead gen accounts remain stable, or decrease during Q4 bc lead quality can become reduced at end of year. On the other hand, watch for last minute 2019 budget shoppers who need 11th hour changes, and your accounts might still close some great new clients.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@PPCKirk<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

for my accounting lead-gen clients, now is a great time to hit busy execs who are shopping, planning year end and need tools and assistance. if your lead gen plan involves calculator tools or ease of use rather than forms, get on it now!\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@JuliaVyse<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

As our main client is in the restaurant business, our campaigns are a mix of lead gen (for corporate\/private events) and reservations\/calls. That said, Q4 is pretty big for said client when it comes to private events, so we’re looking to get those campaigns launched. \u2013\u00a0@marccxmedia<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

good tip I learned from @SusanEDub<\/a> is too be monitoring audiences. What happens in Q4 is likely an anomaly one way or the other. So if you don\u2019t stay on top of your audiences, your Q1 could be in for a rude awakening.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@MattMasonPPC<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

For professional services, a key part of prep is seeing what client’s availability is going to be. Don’t pay to make the phone ring if the office is closed \/ skeleton crew and not going to respond in a timely manner.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@JasonStinnett<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Q4 is our relaxation time, because Jan 1 is when peoples resolutions still exist, and folks are motivated.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@JonKagan<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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Q5: What percentage of your PPC budget is going to search, and what percentage to social in Q4 2018? Is this a change from 2017?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

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70 social 30 search across the board. My guys are broadcast-minded and have been treating FB and YouTube like tv. no kidding. here’s an age, here’s a country, spray and pray.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@JuliaVyse<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

We are a Paid Search only agency so\u2026 that\u2019s where our budget goes I\u2019m genuinely curious to hear this from blended agencies\/in-house brands. My assumption is more brands are shifting to Social.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@PPCKirk<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

As we’re Paid Search … ditto on our budget going to search over social. \u2013\u00a0@marccxmedia<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

So with my one e-comm client that I’m in charge of at the moment, we’re moving 100% to paid social. Last year, it was 80% paid, and 20% social. We actually stopped doing paid search for them in September\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@amaliaefowler<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

This is going to depend on the clients results to date in each channel but one thing is for sure we are multichannel all the way #<\/s>search<\/b><\/a> #<\/s>display<\/b><\/a> #<\/s>youtube<\/b><\/a> #<\/s>facebook<\/b><\/a> etc etc\u00a0\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@elevatedmrktng<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t have specific numbers but the strategy is simple. Build audiences in search and retarget the crap out of them in social.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@markpgus<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

About 20% going to social. Mostly because we lead with search and try to avoid spreading budget too thin.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@seanhecking<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Follow up to the last tweet, we are really trying to create funnels across marketing channels\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@elevatedmrktng<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

if there was ever an It depends answer, it\u2019s this one. Totally depends on client. I try not to think of it as search vs social anymore, but channel vs channel. Publisher vs publisher. Although, with that said I\u2019m doing prog and direct publisher buys as well.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@MattMasonPPC<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

it\u2019s about 75\/25 On the SEM side\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@JonKagan<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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Q6: Do you have a dedicated Amazon holiday plan for this year? Roll call for agencies actively managing Amazon ads for clients (or in-house brands). Any interesting tidbits to share?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

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I’m trying Amazon for the first time ..hi @BryantGarvin<\/a> !!! with a toy client. it’s a full on test, we have no idea if it will resonate, but I’m pretty pumped.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@JuliaVyse<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Yes. We do a ton of AMS, both search and display.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@MattMasonPPC<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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Q7: Do you believe this year will be different in some way for holiday consumer behavior? If yes, how so and\/or why?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

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I think that consumers value efficiency, so if you don’t have an easy to follow path for them from beginning to end of their journey (cross-device too), you’re going to lose out\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@amaliaefowler<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

I think we are going to see the biggest year *ever* for mobile conversions. Like, not just in the way everyone has always said the year of mobile, but I think an astonishing number of people will convert on mobile devices for holiday sales in 2018.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@PPCKirk<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Yes 100% — Instagram is where it’s at right now. Spending on that channel is going to be at an all time high based on what we’ve seen this year and not just w\/ millennials. Stories & messenger ads are going to be a big hit too.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0\u00a0@timmhalloran<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

I think it will start earlier yet it happen more mobile with more compulsive buyers. Which means Amazon will dominate.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0\u00a0@jdprater<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

I think that \u201cBlack Friday\u201d is turning into a multi-week thing. Not ground breaking\u2026 but people are more and more willing to buy early\/wait because it no longer is true that lowest prices are on Black Friday\/Cyber Monday. However, I think Amazon will be\u00a0day of\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@markpgus<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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Q8: If you could give 1 piece of advice for holiday prep for a noob PPCer, what would it be?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

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My biggest piece of advice, is talk to clients early and pencil in a date in Aug\/Sep to discuss strategies, ad creative, etc. Make sure there is a plan for approach, and step-down. Planning is important.\u00a0\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@PPCKirk<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Start learning Amazon ads it’s going to be necessary for eCommerce.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@elevatedmrktng<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Planning solves 95% of your problems. Communication solves 4% of your problems. The other 1% isn’t worth letting your turkey get cold for.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@ferkungamaboobo<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Set up and frequent clear communication cadence with client, team and partners. Things will go unexpectedly. It’s how you adapt and adjust that can make all the difference.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@LisaSanner<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Coordinate with the client on a holiday strategy (if it’s promoting certain products, using certain keywords\/copy, etc.) and ramp up budget\/bid strategies as the holidays get closer.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@marccxmedia<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

1. If BF is the first day you’ve ever sent an email or served an ad, don’t expect too much. 2. Plan it and schedule it a week or two before the rush, so you’re not killing yourself on Thanksgiving. 3. Build a war room, get some coffee, & dont come out BF\u00a0\u2013\u00a0\u00a0@timmhalloran<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t sweat it. Do your best. Practice self care. Almost everything in your life is more important than that set of bid changes you\u2019re stressing about.\u00a0@kkwrites<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

for any industry newbie, I remind them that Q4 will the lowest point of their career mentally and emotionally. Survive it, because it\u2019ll get mildly better in January.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0@JonKagan<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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PPCChat Participants:<\/strong><\/p>\n