How To Pick A SEM Agency: Part 1 Search Engine Marketing

When picking a agency to manage your SEM (search engine marketing) you need to take into account more than just if they know Google Adwords. Today there are a multitude of factors that you need to consider to get a complete experience when it comes to your online marketing. We’ll be publishing all of the components that go into your strategy in the order listed below. The first of five part series will focus on SEM itself, but I want to stress that the other four components are very important as you look at a comprehensive strategy for Online Marketing.

• Search Engine Marketing
• Web Analytics
• A/B and MVT Testing
• Landing Page Optimization
• Online Marketing

Search Engine Marketing
Today Google owns roughly 70% market share, Yahoo 20%, Microsoft 5% and Ask 5%. These numbers constantly change, but your agency should know that a comprehensive strategy encompasses more than just Google. Different search engines produce different conversion rates across different verticals. Your product could work better in Yahoo than Google, so ensure that your agency tests them out to see which performs better.
You also want to see what services are included in your contract. Services vary greatly by agency or consultant. Some are bundled as packages, others claim to do ‘everything’. What you need to ensure is that everything is spelled out ahead of time so that nothing is left to chance. Some basic services include:

• Keyword Research
• Account Setup
• Geotargeting
• Dayparting
• Negative Keywords
• Ad Creation
• Content Network Research
• Conversion Tracking Implementation
• Account Management
• Reporting

Other services may be more complex, depending on if your agency or consultant needs include integrating with existing APIs, database or inventory management, web analytics tracking, etc. This will need to be discussed with the agency or consultant as to the extent of this involvement.
Paying for an agency or consultant to manage your SEM is still not yet standardized across the industry. Some work on a fixed monthly cost, others on an hourly or retainer basis. The most popular method though is working off a percentage of ad spend. The percentage varies from 8% to 25% depending upon the agency or consultant and the task involved. If your goal is to simply drive the cheapest traffic possible then it obviously requires substantially less time than if you had a product that has a finite quantity and constantly needs to be adjusted. Adding in performance based incentives, setup fees, or working for a mandatory minimum amount of ad spend is another way that some agencies and consultants operate.
Contract length is another topic that deserves some attention. A highly skilled agency or consultant has substantial front loaded time dedicated to properly setting up a segmented account, implementing web analytics, conversion tracking, keyword research, etc. To be fair I would recommend a six month contract. The first 90 days are filled with experimentation. As a client do you want to try bidding on competitor keywords (as long as they are not trademarked)? Do your organic keywords convert better or worse as paid keywords? These are all questions that time needs to resolve. Days 91 – 180 are when you truly get a firm understanding of what your ‘money’ keywords are, and has started to optimize your account.
Certification is something that I have been asked about quite frequently. Do you need to hire someone who is an Google Adwords Certified Professional or a Platinum Yahoo Search Marketing Ambassador? The answer in my opinion is that these certificates are similar to what the IT industry has with certificates. Nice to put in a PowerPoint presentation, but not incredibly indicative of ability or skill. I have these certificates and would say that anyone who reads the Adwords Documentation for eight hours could pass this test. Do you really want to ensure your campaign to someone with eight hours of on paper experience? I once had someone who worked for me fail the test the first try, but who I considered my best SEM analyst.
Now that you have some of the basics use the following checklist if you’re looking for an agency to simply handle SEM. Future posts will outline a more comprehensive strategy which I highly recommend. The basic checklist should look like:

• Setup a meeting with several vendors
• Come prepared to explain your product, target cost per acquisition, etc.
• Request an RFP complete with costs, services, and forecasting
• Negotiate terms, reporting, consultation, etc.
• Account should be able to start within one to two weeks of contract signing off
• After 30 days meetings should be setup to assess progress
• Continue to actively monitor your progress on a weekly basis

I’ve tried to cover most of the basics, but for the sake of sanity I haven’t went so deep as to be highly confusing for a novice who is just starting out. For further explanation please feel free to comment or contact us.