past present & future of personas in search
TRANSCRIPT
The Past Present & Future of Personas in Search
Michael KingSEO Manager / Publicis
Modem@ipullrank
Typically in Search we only categorize keywords into informational, navigational and transactional queries.
Search Marketers are Shortsighted
We are not just Search Marketers anymore we are full-fledged Digital Strategists.
Search Marketers Need to Grow Up
Keywords must be categorized by the need states of personas and messaging must reflect those need states to improve conversion.
People Search to Fulfill a Need
If you don’t already use personas in your Search efforts you are trying to strike an invisible moving target while your competitors are effortlessly hitting the bullseye.
You’re Too Late To Be Cutting Edge
In the next 13 minutes (and counting) I will get you up to speed on lowering cost of acquisition and take you into the future of increasing the life cycle and subsequent conversions.
Luckily You Just Met Me…
THE PAST PERSONA RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT USING SOCIAL MEDIA
Use the existing conversation in social media to identify need states and inform keyword research to ultimately define personas.
Using Social Media to Define Personas
Social Listening Tools
Scout Labs
For my shoestring budget hustlers
Social Mention
Alterian SM2
Scout Labs & Alterian SM2 are extensive and expensive social listening tools but you can grab a decent data set for free using Social Mention.
Identify Need StatesWeight Loss Weight Management
TWTU SkepticsThis diet is unrealistic and not healthy – too
extreme
The Dieter[Yogurt Brand] helps curb
my cravings so I can continue on my path toward
losing weightThe Maintainer
I’ve lost a lot of weight, I can’t afford to cave to
temptation when I’ve come this far
.
The TWTU SupporterThis diet is perfect for anyone
who needs that “umph” to lose those few pounds, quickly
The Event PlannerI need to lose 5-10 pounds in time for this event. I need a
plan that gets noticeable results
New MomI want a low-calorie way to get my calcium so I can get the nutrients we need while losing the rest of this baby
weight
The Calorie TrackerI’m so glad [Yogurt
Brand] is compatible with my points
system .
Steady AchieverI’ve lost a considerable
amount of weight except for these pesky few pounds. I need to reach my goal by
Thanksgiving.
Distill the conversation in social media down to the need states of the people talking.
Define Personas
Super TastersNewer to the product category but partial to authentic Greek yogurt because of the taste and texture; loyal to brands like Fage , Oikos and Chiobani; appreciates the authenticity of ingredients; uses Greek yogurt for cooking and baking; likes to enhance Greek yogurt with fruit and other toppings
Integrity ProtectorsConsumed Greek yogurt before it became popular – feels entitled to defend ‘real’ Greek yogurt against newer ‘inferior’ brands entering the product category; savvy about ingredients and passionate about the unique straining process; tends to be set in her ways in terms of maintaining a healthy diet; loyal to original brands like Fage and Oikos
Brand LoyalistsWants a more familiar way to enjoy Greek yogurt; overall, hates the taste of Greek yogurt; loyal to the [Yogurt brand ]and appreciates the variety of flavors that Yoplait offers in their Greek yogurt line; appreciates not having to enhance the flavor of Greek yogurt to make it more enjoyable
OptimistsLooks for ways of improving Greek yogurt but wishes she had a more accessible way to enjoy it; experiments with different brands like Yoplait and Dannon to find the best tasting option; sensitive to the higher price point of the original Greek Yogurt brands
The Steadfast Seeker
The Connoisseur
Use Social Listening to isolate key types within the conversation. Segment them into up to four groups or personas.
Identify Keyword OpportunitiesThe
Connoisseur
The Steadfast
Seeker
The Amate
ur
The Reluctant Partaker
loves Greek straining processminimal
ingredientsno
preservativesFageOikos
rich textureGreek-style
gross tastehigh pricetoo thickYoplaitDannon
better tasting options
health benefitsneed more
variety toppings
never/hardly tried likes blended
yogurtwants Greek
benefitstart taste
attracted to variety
no brand loyalty
high proteinchoke downsmoothiestoppingstoo tangy
weight trainingbody building
low fatphysical fitness
recipesno brand loyalty
Use the conversation to understand what words personas naturally associate with elements of your product or service and apply those to keyword research and messaging
Present optimized messaging that will resonate with your personas with the goal of maximizing conversion.
Create Targeted Messaging
This is the magic behind Facebook Ads
Test Everything
Test your messaging in Pay-Per-Click to get a sense of how well they will perform in Organic Search.
Case In Point: Air Travel Research Decision-
making Booking Pre-flight Travel Post-travelMotivation to travel
Need States
Examples of W
hat’s happening
Occasion:-Season/Holiday-NY’ eve -Valentine’s D-Honeymoon-Birthday gift-Anniversary-Stag do-Reunion-Accomplishment-Time off
Experience: -Broaden horizon-Hobby/skill-Well-being/R&R-Adventure-Landscape (sea, mountain, plant)-Weather (sun, snow, wind)
Get Ideas:From friends, family,colleagues, extended social media network, bloggers, TV personalities, movies, activity groups & forums
Search for:Occasion or experience sought on google, publications, forums, social media groups,etc
Search for:Activity and experience options at different destinations
Compare:Destination options based on timings, costs, and ease of getting there
Search for:-Cheapest flight options based on timings - Cheapest flight options based on destination (look for promos and time suggestions)
Compare:Time options vs. budget across key providers
Commit:To a scenario
Locate:Key trip info: -Luggage rules-Check in time-Terminal to go to-Currency exchange -Ways to and from airport-Travel tips
Book: -Car hire-Accommodation-Airport bus
Manage:Info updates, efficient and easy task completion
Connect:-With local info -With resources (guides, gurus)-Activity ideas
Record:-Experiences-Memories-New ideas, contacts, knowledge
Organize:-Memories/events -Evidence you’ve been there/ Memorabilia-New ideas
Package:Trip takeouts so as to extend the benefits gained from the trip
Share: To build on and showcase who you are
I want to collect new experience,
add to my personal story,
and create special memories
What is out there that would be fun and interesting to do alone and/or
with the people I care about?
Of the options available, what is
feasible given time & budget constraints?
Who’s going to help me fine tune
and make the plan possible?
What do I need to do to activate my trip so that it’s as easy as possible?
Who can I rely on to help me make the most of my
trip?
How do I crystallize my travels so that
they are easy to share, and
provide inspiration to me
and others evermore?
Inspiration Research Commitment Experience
1. 2. 3. 4 5. 6. 7.
We listened to the questions people ask when searching for air travel and why.
Semantic Grouping
Research Decision-making Booking Pre-flight Travel Post-travelMotivation
to travel
Occasion Activity Destination Offering Simplify Connect Remember
1. 2. 3. 4 5. 6. 7.
Flights
Logistics
City/Airport
Cheap Flights
Timing
Country/Region
Core Semantic Groups We identified the need state matched the client’s business goals and mapped them to semantic groups.
Keyword Mapping
We mapped core semantic groups to keywords informed by social listening and then optimized accordingly.
Performance
Bookings
Organic Traffic
Conversions improved in every need state in concert with improvement of traffic from Organic Search. It worked.
Case In Point: Consumer Electronics
Curious GeorgeThis group represents people considering buying a 3D TV
GamerGamers talk about their 3D gaming experience and the components and games they use.
Film PuristThis conversation revolves around use of 3D in film. They talk about 3D in a broad way, and occasionally touch on 3DTV specifically.
Tech GeekThis group talks about the technical details of their AV setup. They treat their TV’s like a racecar driver treats their car.
Curious George Gamers Film Purists Tech Geek
INFLUENCERSTARGET
We used personas inform messaging for the target audience and determine who to reach out to for link building campaigns
THE FUTURE KEYWORD ARBITRAGE: CAPITALIZING UPON OFFSET IN LONG TERM KEYWORD VALUE
THE PRESENTKEYWORD-LEVEL DEMOGRAPHICS
What if I told you….
…there is a free way to find out exactly who every person is that comes to your site for per keyword
By the way I’m Michael KingSEO Manager at Publicis Modem
recently left Razorfish
Studied Computer Science at Howard
University
Lives in BrooklynFrom Philadelphia
Born August 29th, 1981
Speaks American English & Pig Latin
Wouldn’t you want to have this info for every person that comes to your site?
FB:Admin
The Flux Capacitor
Search Referrers
Keyword-LevelDemographics
FB:Admin Code
@matclayton’s presentation: http://www.slideshare.net/matclayton/mozcon-seattle-2011-social-design
ProTip: Sessionize the original referrer when they first get to the site in case the user opts-in via Facebook later during their visit. Clear the session variable if they come from Search again.
JavaScript does not natively support Session Variables so check out SessVars.js by Thomas Frank - http://www.thomasfrank.se/sessionvars.html
More CodeFunction to grab the Search Referrer
Function to grab Facebook Data
All code can be found at: http://www.ipullrank.com/code/keyword-demographics
GA Custom Variables Code_gaq.push(['_setCustomVar', 1, // This custom var is set to slot #1. Required
// parameter. You can do 1 - 5 ‘Referrer', // Category for the user activity. Required parameter. ‘Keyword', // Value of the custom variable. Required parameter. 1 // Sets the scope to page-level. Optional parameter.
// 1 – Visitor-Level, 2- Session-Level, 3- Page-Level ]);
Google Analytics function for pushing to Custom Variables
Function for passing data to Custom Variables
Tada!
Birthday
Location
Gender Search Keyword
Facebook ID
It takes up to 72 hours for Custom Variables to Appear in Google Analytics so I don’t have a screenshot but this is the data from the JavaScript Console
Here is the data being pushed to Google Analytics
Keyword OwnershipOnce a statistically significant dataset is compiled it can be determined which demographic and/or persona is more likely to convert for a given keyword and develop messaging that focuses on that group.
Curious George
Gamer Film Purist Tech Geek
• 18-32• Male• Loves indie rock• Wishes he had a
beard
• 18-32• Male• Loves all music• Wishes he could
move out his mom’s basement
• 22-40• Male• Loves film
soundtracks• Wishes he could live
in the movie Avatar
• 22-40• Male• Loves Techno• Wishes you would
stop invading his online privacy
OWNER
• 5000 Searches Monthly
• Conversion Rate 5%
• 600 Searches Monthly
• Conversion Rate 2%
• 1000 Searches Monthly
• Conversion Rate 0.5%
• 100 Searches Monthly
• Conversion Rate 0.2%
Dynamic TargetingUsing the Facebook data user experiences can be tailored dynamically to reflect properties of the persona when they visit.
Curious George
• 18-32• Male• Loves indie rock• Wishes he had a
beard
What Normal Users See
What Curious George Sees
Conversion will Improve Dramatically
THE FUTURE KEYWORD ARBITRAGE: CAPITALIZING ON OFFSETS IN LONG TERM KEYWORD VALUE
Keyword Arbitrage
Tracking keyword demographics also allows the attribution of future purchases to the original keyword and will give way to keyword matrices.
Initial Keyword
Conversion Rate
Persona Keyword Revenue
Subsequent Keyword
Conversion Rate
Keyword Revenue
Sneakers 5% Curious George $50 Sneakers 40% $50
Sneakers 5% Curious George $50 Windbreakers 60% $100
Sneakers 5% Curious George $50 T-Shirts 20% $20
Windbreakers 3% Curious George $100 Sneakers 32% $50
Windbreakers 3% Curious George $100 Windbreakers 5% $100
Windbreakers 3% Curious George $100 T-shirts 80% $20
T-shirts 2% Curious George $20 Sneakers 50% $50
T-shirts 2% Curious George $20 Windbreakers 40% $100
T-shirts 2% Curious George $20 T-shirts 75% $20
Subsequent Conversion Prediction
These keyword matrices will allow the prediction of what the persona is likely to buy next so you know which people to aggressively pursue through retargeting and other channels such as email.
Curious George
60% of these users that buy sneakers from the keyword “sneakers” come back and purchase windbreakers
Annual Keyword ValueBased on how often an initial keyword leads to future conversions of subsequent keywords businesses will be able to measure the annual value of a keyword and react accordingly.
Keyword Earnings Ratio
Price per KeywordAnnual Earnings per initial click
Keyword Earnings Yield Price per
Keyword
Annual Earnings per initial click
Search ROI
Connecting Search to Conversion with Keyword-Level Demographics gives upticks in Search a directly quantifiable and forecast-able ROI.
The future is now. Search has finally grown up.
The Credits
Jason Pearson - @jasonpearTony Effik - @aeffikDupe Arolow - @dupe116Micah Schipior - @micahschipiorMat Clayton - @matclaytonDennis Goedegebuure - @TheNextCornerTom Critchlow - @TomCritchlowJoshua Giardino - @TecharityPete Sena - @petesena
Thank you to all the brilliant people who let me reference their awesome work and/or helped me make sense of my crazy ideas.
AppendixMat Clayton’s Social Design Presentation:http://www.slideshare.net/matclayton/mozcon-seattle-2011-social-design
John Doherty’s Notes on Mat Clayton’s Presentation:http://www.johnfdoherty.com/social-design-how-to-co-mingle-social-features-earn-traffic-mozcon/
Facebook Open Graph Protocol Reference:http://developers.facebook.com/docs/opengraph/
Google Analytics Custom Variables:http://code.google.com/apis/analytics/docs/tracking/gaTrackingCustomVariables.html
My Keyword-Level Demographics Post on SEOmoz (Up 9/14/11):http://www.seomoz.org/blog/keyword-level-demographics
My Code Repository:http://www.ipullrank.com/code/keyword-demographics
Justin Briggs’ post on using Personas in Link Buildinghttp://outspokenmedia.com/seo/content-based-outreach-for-link-building/