Measuring ROI
Measuring e-Marketing ROI? What else you need to know”
In several recent studies of brand web sites we determined that 50-65% of visitors were driven to the site through a paid e-marketing campaign (e.g. paid search results link, banner ads, etc.). Through the use of WebIQ?? click-stream data and the help of brand site URL identifiers we also determined which specific campaign (Yahoo, MSN, etc.) acquired the new site visitor.
While it’s clear that volume is a necessary measuring stick in determining a site campaign’s effectiveness, the demographic of the newly acquired visitor and their resulting site experience is also important to consider. For example, the results from a recent brand site study allowed us to segment site visit demographics and performance metrics based on which paid site campaign visitors reached the site through. What we learned was that the make-up of visitors was very different depending on which site campaign acquired them.
For example, visitors who arrived via a paid search results link were younger (47% age 25-34), less knowledgeable about the product, and most interested in learning general information about the product (34%). While visitors who arrived via a banner ad on a targeted website were older (75% age 45-54), more knowledgeable, and most interested in evaluating their specific needs for such a product (54%). Self-reported visit success also varied between the different site campaign visitors. Visit success was higher (60%) for those who visited via a paid search results link seeking general information than those who arrived via a banner ad (37%) seeking specific information relative to their needs.
The site visit success tied with the visit intent uncovered that not only was the site doing poorly in providing information on evaluating specific product needs, but that visitors acquired through the banner ad were the least likely to return to the site and thus reduced the ROI on that site campaign. This specific site campaign information allowed the site owner to make more intelligent decisions on which campaigns to use and how to effectively handle the visitor’s site experience once they arrived. Specifically in this case they were encouraged to change the content of the site at the banner ad landing page so that they could better meet the needs of those visitors.
The lesson here:
Developing a better understanding of the differences in the demographics, visit intent, and success of your various campaign driven visitors can help you raise the ROI of your e-marketing initiatives.
Scott Gunter
WebIQ Project Manager