A client was in recently to discuss a radio advertising campaign she wanted to cancel after just two weeks.
She brought her SEO guy with her, which helped spur an interesting conversation:
Client: ”The radio advertising didn’t work.”
Me: “Why do you think that was the case?”
Client: “Because it couldn’t be measured.”
Me to SEO guy: “Did you see a lift in your direct traffic and branded search?”
SEO Guy: “Sure. But it didn’t convert.”
Me: “Got it. So radio’s impact was, in fact, measurable. Maybe there are some improvements we could suggest to the home page. Or maybe we should consider a landing page designed specifically to convert the radio leads.”
Client: “Listen, I just think this was too expensive for what I got.”
Me: “I understand. Just one more question, then. Do you want to be one of the most recalled brand names in your businesses category?”
Client: “Of course! Just like my top competitors (she effortlessly ticks off three), all of whom do radio advertising because I hear them all the time.”
Spotting the path I was heading down, the SEO guy turned to the Client:
”Yeah, like a told you, you can keep spending all your marketing budget on PPC to try to convert the consumers who are already intending to buy, which is a tactical, short term play. But you should consider allocating budget to local mass media like radio to grow your recall, which can actually reduce your reliance on PPC and drive more market share for you over the long term.”
I liked that SEO guy. A broad marketing world view. Doing the work it takes to measure the impact that offline campaigns have on site and search activity (versus other digital marketers I’ve come across who seemingly live in silos and hoard all the attribution – and budgets – for themselves).
In this digital marketing age of hyper-measurement, the value of building Recall has seemingly gotten lost.
But it’s no less important today than it’s always been. After all, investing in Recall makes brands and businesses more memorable, favorable and, when it comes to the web, findable.
Hey, I get it. It’s great to appear near the top of a SERP.
But isn’t it even better to be a well-known name on that page that’s more likely to get clicked from a less expensive or organic position?
And isn’t it best when a potential customer bypasses your SERP competitors and types your name in to a web address or search engine field after being influenced by your local mass media advertising?
I think that’s a point worth recalling next time you’re reviewing your PPC budget.