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THE SEM ISWEET SIDE OF DIGITAL BRANDING @ColoradoCraig #SEMsi

The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

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HomeAdvisor rebranded in 2013 transferring over 1 million domains from ServiceMagic and in the process learning the importance of branding from day 1. Learn how to choose the right name for your new and/or small business that will get you brand awareness and help build your SEM/SEO.

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Page 1: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

THE SEMISWEET SIDE OF DIGITAL BRANDING

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

Page 2: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

WHO IS HOMEADVISOR?

Page 3: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

1999

2000 2004

2012

2013

1M+Reviews

10MUsers

2008

EVOLUTION OF THE BRAND

Page 4: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

“Service is appropriate for home maintenance and repair but Magic

is not. Magic suggests fraud or trickery.”

ServiceMagic isn’t a good name for a home repair and

maintenance company, even less so for a design and

remodel company.

“ServiceMagic is too general. I would

change it to something better.”

“I don’t understand what kind of service is

provided.”

“Sounds like a cleaning

company.”

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

STUCK IN MUDDY MIDDLE

Page 5: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

Distinctive & Unique

Descriptive & Unique

AVOID THE MUDDY MIDDLE

Page 6: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

A Web Retailer Buys the Perfect Domain. Then Comes a Letdown.

Golden’s ServiceMagic becomes HomeAdvisor in risky rebranding strategy

DEATH BY DOMAIN

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

Page 7: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

REBRAND

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

Page 8: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

SUCCESS!

Rebranding: How HomeAdvisor Quickly Recovered In Search Engine Ranking, Paid Search

How One Brand Switched A Million URLs & Lived To Tell About It: 5 Questions For HomeAdvisor.com

Page 9: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

HOMEADVISOR REBRAND PAID SEARCH PERFORMANCE

DEC2012

FEB2013

STARTED DOMAIN CUTOVER

FULL RECOVERY

24%MORE CLICKS

+15%CLICKTHROUGH

RATE (CTR)

+5%CONVERSIONS

DOMAIN CUTOVER SEM IMPACT

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

5 Month Recove

ry

SEP2012

COMPLETED DOMAIN CUTOVER

Page 10: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

History

Build Strong Domain & Account History First

1. Tier keywords by quality

2. Launch high quality score first

3. Delete low quality score

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

SEM BEST PRACTICES

Structure

Eliminate Waste Frequently

1. Poor performing keywords create account & domain drag

2. Create tight intent / content driven ad groups

Tracking

Track all elements of performance closely

1. Track the difference between maxCPC & avgCPC

2. Track impression share

3. Track keyword match type margin

Testing

Use SEM to validate brand preference

assumptions

1. Test CTR and conversion of various brand options

2. Track repeat use by brand

Page 11: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

SEO BEST PRACTICES

Page 12: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

DOMAIN RECOVERY: SEO

201420122013

1-2 months

6 months +1 year

-45% -5% +22%

8 Month Recovery

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

8 Month Recovery

Page 13: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

EXTERNAL FACTORS

Algo changes, competitors, usage

data, context, location, et al. can affect

rankings, risk and opportunity.

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

SEO BEST PRACTICES

CONTENT

How can we enhance our strongest content

and expand into weaker areas?

LINKS

How can we increase the number of unique quality

domains linking to us, internal site

architecture, et al.?

USER EXPERIENCE

How happy are users with your site vs.

competitors? Engagement, time on

site, customer satisfaction, task

completion.

Page 14: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

KEY TAKEAWAYS

A Good Brand Matters

Do Your Research Early – cheap surveys, ask friends, test in SEM

Avoid the Muddy Middle- choose either a distinctive or descriptive domain (but make sure it’s unique)

Page 15: The SEMisweet Side of Digital Branding (SXSW V2V)

@ColoradoCraig #SEMside

Q&A / RESOURCES

Google's recommendations for site migration: https://support.google.com/webmasters/topic/6029673?hl=en Crawler:Deep Crawl: http://deepcrawl.co.uk/ (paid) Rank checkers:Authority Labs: http://authoritylabs.com/ (paid)

Domain Selection Sites: http://www.bustaname.com/

Social Media Name Check: http://namechk.com/