You might as well admit that you’re addicted to video [to the tune of Robert Palmer’s Addicted to Love] and so is everyone else. I started this post to dive into many platforms within this single post. However, after getting through YouTube, I thought maybe I should chunk this up into bite-size pieces. As such, here is the first installment of Video Marketing in 2015. Stay tuned each week as we explore a new platform.

Why Video Marketing in 2025

First, a little background on why video marketing is so important this year. Because it’s hot! Duh! Need proof? What if I told you that 59% of U.S. internet users are viewing video from their desktop or laptop, a slight decrease from 62% in 2013? Not surprisingly, there’s been an increase in viewership on tablet and mobile devices, as well as smart TVs. Tablets account for 27%, smartphones for 23% and smart TVs for 13% (HUB Research, 2014).

To put those percentages into perspective, according to comScore, almost 196 million Americans watched online videos from their desktops in December between home and work. YouTube.com ranked at the top with almost 164 million unique viewers…..in just one month! (Keep reading to learn how you can capitalize on this.)

What else do you need to know? Perhaps that video ads watched on each device can vary. Not surprisingly, mobile phones are used for watching shorter video content, whereas tablets and desktops both show similar habits for longer-form content (Ooyala, 2014).

This last bit becomes important for knowing where to place your video ads. According to FreeWheel, users were more likely to watch video ads on smartphones and desktops 70-71% of the time while watching video content that was less than 20 minutes in length. However, that number drops to 43% when viewing shorter content on tablets.

While I’ve not outlined everything that you need to know about video, let this serve as your starting point for an online video marketing strategy. As a marketer, what are you doing to reach these viewers, sharers and consumers of video content? If you said nothing, you are wrong.

Best Platforms for Video Advertising

Outlined in this and subsequent posts are a few of the top platforms for video advertising and marketing this year to help you get rolling. But remember, not every platform is perfect for every brand. Consider your audience and follow them. This is not exactly a build it and they will come era anymore.

YouTube

A Google property. Need we say more? But we will…..

Quick Stats

• 1 billion unique visit each month
• 6 billion hours of video are watched each month
• 100 hours of video are uploaded every minute
• More than a million advertisers use Google ad platforms, the majority of which are small businesses

YouTube advertising is fairly simple to start, especially if you already have a Google AdWords account. Go to the Campaigns tab, click New Campaign and choose Online Video. Once inside this section, you’ll be able to link AdWords to YouTube.

YouTube Targeting:

Advertisers have many of the same options as Google AdWords Display offers. You can segment by age, gender, topics, user interests, specific placements and retargeting lists, as well. One great benefit is that retargeting lists will automatically be created on users who view your videos. You can easily segment them based on the different content they’ve watched. As with most AdWords campaigns, you can also target by geography and keywords. Overlaying targeting can create a refined audience. Just be careful you don’t get too refined or you’ll limit your exposure.

YouTube Video Formats:

Here we’ll delve into the two different kinds of TrueView video ads, as well as video ads created from the Ad Gallery. With TrueView, videos are pulled from your YouTube account so there’s no need to create new content. Advertisers only pay when a user clicks on the video or continues watching when the video loads while they’re browsing content on YouTube.com. TrueView video campaigns run on a CPV – Cost per View – basis where you bid for each time the video is viewed or continues playing when it first loads.

In-Stream:

• Ads are shown on YouTube Watch pages or the GDN before short- or long-form videos
• Can be skipped after 5 seconds
• Advertisers are only charged when the viewer watches 30 seconds or more of the video or at the end of the video if less than 30 sec. This means advertisers can have free views if the user leaves before hitting the end of the 30 sec. mark. This also means your best content / CTA should be upfront so you’re capturing their attention quickly.

In-Display:

• Ads are shown next to YouTube videos, as part of a search result or on pages of the GDN
• Advertisers are charged when the user clicks the ad to play the video

Ad Gallery:

The Ad Gallery can be very beneficial if you don’t have a graphic designer or are limited on resources for creating ads. This option can be found within the Ads tab of your account.

• Ads are shown on the GDN and have the same targeting options as a regular Display campaign.
• Bidding can be on CPC, CPM or CPV basis

YouTube Ad Spend In 2025:

There is no minimum spend and you can set your budget at whatever you want. Nice, huh! This makes it appealing even to businesses that need to want to capitalize on video advertising but have a restrictive budget.

YouTube Reporting In 2025:

When you link your AdWords and YouTube account, you’ll get a deeper level of reporting. This is my favorite part. Beyond costs and clicks, you can see:

• the percentage of users who viewed 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% of the video
• Impression Share and Conversion data
• Earned Action data, such as earned views, subscribers, playlist additions, likes and shares

Going another step further, Google will automatically change the columns to suit your goals. Click Columns and you’ll get a drop down to select your columns or choose your goals, such as Views, Audience, Branding and Conversions. Advertisers can also segment data by format, network, device, click type, time and conversions. There’s so much data! It’s great for making changes on the fly and working toward reaching your goals.

Lastly, these video ad views DO count toward your overall video views, thereby increasing the number of views on your YouTube channel.

While this may all seem daunting, please understand that you don’t have to take film classes and become a video guru to make video advertising successful for you. Most smartphones now have cameras that are better quality than the old-fashioned camcorders that sat perched on your shoulder. No, these need to be good quality, but what’s more important is that they need to be consistent with your brand and speak the truth. Users will know a bogus message when they see it. Stay truthful to your message, your brand and your audience. With any luck- and some great optimization –perhaps your commercial will be the next viral video!

Go out. Get started. And, if you’re already doing this, share your experiences below.

Stay tuned. Next week I’ll be covering Facebook video advertising.

The post Addicted: Video Marketing in 2025 appeared first on Direct Online Marketing.

• How and Why to Use Video in Your Digital Ads
• Where Can I Use Video in My Digital Ads?
• Pre-Production: Laying the Groundwork
• Capture Attention in the First Seconds
• Keep It Concise and Powerful
• The Irresistible Call-To-Action (CTA)
• Optimization and Testing
• The DOM Difference With Ads That Get Results

It might have started in 2015, but in a lot of ways, the pivot to video that started in the halcyon days of Vine and Snapchat is still happening, albeit in slightly different ways. Instead of extolling the virtues of video for news sharing and social engagement, we’re going to look at it from a slightly different angle: using video for digital ads.

How and Why to Use Video in Your Digital Ads

Video is an indispensable tool in the digital marketer’s arsenal, and for good reason. Let’s explore some of the compelling ways video supercharges your advertising efforts along with how those tactics can be implemented:

• Increased Engagement: Video content is simply more captivating than static text or images. It naturally commands attention and encourages interaction, fostering stronger connections with your audience.
• Boosting Brand Recall: The combination of visuals, sound, and potential for storytelling make video highly memorable. A well-crafted video ad will linger in viewers’ minds long after they’ve scrolled past a text-based advertisement.
• Improved Conversions: Engaging videos can effectively guide viewers through the marketing funnel, from awareness to purchase. By demonstrating your product in action, addressing common concerns, or showcasing customer testimonials, videos make a strong case for taking the desired action.
• Enhanced SEO: Search engines favor websites with video content. Embedding relevant videos on your site can boost your search rankings, increasing visibility and driving more organic traffic.

Where Can I Use Video in My Digital Ads?

The variety of platforms and placements offers fantastic flexibility for your video ad campaigns. Let’s break down some of the most prevalent options:

• Social Media Platforms: Nearly all major social networks embrace video. Take advantage of these channels:
  • Instagram: Integrate video ads into Stories, Reels, or the main feed.
  • Facebook: Target your ideal audience with in-feed video ads or captivating Stories.
  • TikTok Embrace the platform’s unique style for quick, snappy, trend-driven content.
  • LinkedIn: Reach a professional audience with informative or thought leadership videos.
  • Pinterest: Create eye-catching video Pins that subtly promote your products or services.
• YouTube: Leverage the power of the world’s second-largest search engine with options like:
  • Pre-roll, mid-roll, or post-roll ads: Short ads interspersed within longer YouTube content.
  • Discovery ads: Promote your video in YouTube search results and on related video pages.
• Display Networks: Reach potential customers on a wide range of websites with banner ads that prominently feature your video content.
• Over-the-Top (OTT) Platforms: Consider integrating your video ads within popular streaming services like Hulu, Roku, or connected TV platforms.

Important note: The best platforms for your video ads will depend heavily on your target audience and campaign goals. Experiment and monitor results to determine where your videos perform best. At DOM, we are always A/B testing. You probably should be, too. 

Pre-Production: Laying the Groundwork

Before launching your dazzling ad campaign, it’s time to dig into the less glamorous – but essential – work of pre-production. Here are three aspects you absolutely cannot overlook:

• Target Audience: Who are you trying to reach with your video ad? Generic content gets lost in the shuffle. Get specific about your ideal viewer’s demographics, interests, and the problems they need solved. The better you understand your audience, the more likely you can create a video that truly connects.
• Message: What’s the one thing you want viewers to take away from your ad? Resist the urge to cram in too much information. Stay focused on a single, compelling message, whether it’s demonstrating a product’s benefits, solving a common problem, or simply establishing brand recognition.
• Platform: Where will your video ad live? Tailor the style and length to the platform. Snappy, visually focused Reels perform well on Instagram, whereas YouTube might give you space for a slightly longer, more informative ad.

Capture Attention in the First Seconds

In the lightning-fast world of digital attention spans, those initial seconds of your video ad are make-or-break.  Let’s explore how to hook viewers and keep them engaged right from the start.

Start with a bang! 

Whether it’s a stunning visual, a dynamic sequence, or an eye-opening close-up, your opening image needs to grab interest immediately.  Simultaneously, address a problem or desire of your target audience. Highlight a frustration they experience or illustrate how your product can simplify their lives. 

Doing any of these things shows potential customers that you understand their struggles and are here to offer a solution.

Don’t forget to pique their curiosity with an irresistible hook. Ask a provocative question, share an intriguing statistic, or reveal a surprising fact related to your product or service. Leave your viewers wanting to know more and eager to watch the rest of your ad.

Keep It Concise and Powerful

The temptation to say everything about your product or service in a single ad is real, but resist it! Viewers have limited patience, so make every second count.  Emphasize one clear, easily digestible message. 

Whether it’s introducing a core feature, highlighting a customer benefit, or establishing brand recognition,  focus helps avoid dilution and maintains a stronger impact.

A streamlined video doesn’t need to sacrifice storytelling. A short narrative featuring a relatable character overcoming a challenge with your product or service can make your video deeply memorable. Consider incorporating user-generated content, such as videos of customer testimonials, to make a persuasive case. 

Your overall video strategy should leave the viewer informed and, above all, inspired to act.

The Irresistible Call-To-Action (CTA)

A captivating video ad with no next steps is a missed opportunity. Your call to action should be simple, direct, and compelling, telling the viewer exactly what you want them to do. Think “Visit our website,” “Download the free guide,” or “Schedule a consultation.” 

Avoid vague or wordy CTAs that detract from the message.

To optimize your success,  connect your CTA directly to the problem or desire you highlighted at the start of the video. This shows them a clear path to resolving their frustration or achieving their goal.  

Finally, create a sense of urgency without sounding pushy. Phrases like “Limited time offer,” “Exclusive access,” or “Act now” can motivate viewers to take action.

Optimization and Testing

Creating a stellar video ad is a brilliant start, but the work doesn’t end at launch. Use these elements to ensure you hit the mark with your next ads.

Think of your video’s thumbnail like a book cover— it needs to instantly pique someone’s interest. Design custom thumbnails, using eye-catching images and short, punchy text to encourage clicks. Consider experimenting with different thumbnails to identify what resonates best with viewers.

A/B testing is your secret weapon! Run small variations of your ad, changing elements like the title, thumbnail, or CTA. This data-driven approach empowers you to fine-tune your video ads for maximum engagement and conversions.  

Be sure to pay attention to your video analytics — metrics like watch time, completion rate, and click-through rates offer invaluable insights into audience behavior. Identify where viewers drop off, test adjustments, and iterate on those successes.

The DOM Difference With Ads That Get Results

In the whirlwind of digital marketing, short, well-crafted videos are undeniably powerful tools for cutting through the noise and delivering results. Focus on your audience, hook them with captivating visuals, deliver a concise message, guide them with a strong CTA, and use data to drive constant improvement.

Video can sometimes feel intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. Embrace it as a way to connect authentically with your audience, enhance brand awareness, and boost those all-important conversions. 

Let Direct Online Marketing become your video ad partner. Our skilled team is ready to strategize and execute exceptional video ad campaigns that support your unique marketing goals. Contact us today to get started!

Key Takeaways

• Video is a marketing powerhouse: Embrace video as a highly engaging, memorable, and conversion-driving format.
• Know your audience: Target your video content to your specific audience’s demographics, interests, and pain points.
• Focus on a single message: Craft a clear, compelling message that won’t overwhelm or confuse viewers.
• Grab attention immediately: Capture viewer interest within the first few seconds using powerful visuals, relatable problems, and intriguing hooks.
• Optimize with a strong CTA: Provide a simple, direct call to action that aligns with your desired outcome.
• Test and refine: Track video analytics, A/B test different elements, and use data to constantly improve your video ads.
• Partner with experienced professionals: Consider working with a skilled team like Direct Online Marketing for the strategic video ad campaigns that get results.

The post Short, Snappy, Successful Video Content That Wins appeared first on Direct Online Marketing.

When it comes to video hosting sites:

Should I Use YouTube Or Vimeo?

• YouTube is tops for sheer reach
• Vimeo provides a better venue for gated content
• Do both if you can

If the decision was that easy, you wouldn’t need to research it, would you?

Below, we will use the long story approach to tell the short story about which platform you should choose for video hosting.

• Why Should You Choose YouTube
• Why Should You Choose Vimeo
• How Video Hosting Can Impact Your SEO Strategy

Trust us when we say there is more to this decision than what our introduction suggests.

First Things First… Why You Need Video Hosting

Suppose you are a dog trainer (named something perhaps like Mesar Cillan) and are looking to grow your business with video.

You’ve already got a website. You’ve already created engaging videos that show your training prowess. Now how do you get these videos onto your site and in front of dog owners interested in obedience classes for their fur babies?

Video Hosting On YouTube Or Vimeo Is Often A Necessity

Putting videos directly on your site is one option. However, unless there’s some exceptional horsepower under your site’s hood, you probably want to host your videos elsewhere and embed links to them on your site.

Videos are generally large files. They require a great deal of storage space and bandwidth to function properly, a luxury few site owners have on their own. That’s why most videos on the web are hosted at sites specializing in video hosting. You create a channel on the video-hosting site and then embed links to the hosted videos on your business site.

YouTube Isn’t the Only Fish in the Sea

YouTube and Vimeo may be the first video hosting platforms that come to mind. They aren’t the only players in this space, though. There is a pack of video hosting sites out there: Brightcove, Dailymotion, JW Player, SproutVideo, Vidyard, Vzaar, Wistia…

Even Facebook can function as a hosting site!

YouTube Is the Best-Known Video Hosting Fish, Though

Why is YouTube the first name in video hosting in most people’s minds? Well, it’s free and Popular. (It’s popularity really does warrant that capital P.)

The two main benefits for using YouTube as your video hosting platform are:

• Free: in that users don’t pay anything to have their videos uploaded to the video-sharing network.
• Popular: in that YouTube is often colloquially and statistically the web’s No. 2 search engine. (Google being No. 1 of course.)

Video Hosting On Vimeo Allows For Greater Control

So why look anywhere else for video hosting? Why, for instance, go with Vimeo, which isn’t nearly as free nor as popular?

For greater control, that’s why.

Vimeo provides tools to keep content gated and privacy protected that YouTube doesn’t.

Another advantage of opting to shell out a few dollars for video hosting on Vimeo is that your video won’t be surrounded by ads. By comparison, this will always be the case on YouTube. The premium service and ad-less presentation of your content might make paid hosting sites like Vimeo the best venue for your videos.

Now, regardless of whether you are looking to put your content on the web as quickly as possible for free, or whether you want a more exclusive, curated platform for your videos— hosting on YouTube and Vimeo both have SEO benefits to your digital marketing strategy.

SEO For Video: YouTube Vs Vimeo

Landing pages on YouTube and Vimeo are indexed just like any other webpage. That means they present SEO opportunities.

Video titles, video descriptions, tag selections — all of these fields are available on all major video hosting sites in one guise or another.

And optimizing these fields for SEO can help the individual landing pages for each one of your videos rank in the search engine results pages (SERPs) and

1. Increase the number of referring domains linking to your domain
2. Increase the visibility of your video content in Google SERPs
3. Increase the number of people clicking through to your website from third-party publishers

How We Used YouTube Video Hosting To Become The Cream Of The Crop

For example, check out what happens when you Google “digital marketing for exporters.” The fancy footwork of DOM’s SEO team placed one of Justin’s blog posts in the top organic result ranking position. In addition to that, a video of Justin’s hosted on our YouTube channel is the 3rd video displayed in a YouTube video carousel, placed two spots below our top SERP ranking position.

Depending on your preference for buzzwords, you might call this universal search optimization. You might also call it “Barnacle SEO.” Around our offices, we prefer the latter to the former.

Barnacle SEO And Your Video Content

The idea behind Barnacle SEO for as a content publication strategy for your video is pretty straightforward – leverage the top rankings of other sites for increased exposure and views.

As Google strives to become more of a provider of knowledge and information in the organic search results – and less of a provider of sales pages – the degree of difficulty for ranking transactional webpages is only going to increase.

Today, in addition to competing with other service providers around the globe for your top keywords, you also have to compete against online content publishers.

Want to get a behind the scenes look at how we pulled off this barnacle SEO strategy using a blog post and a video hosted on YouTube?

YouTube SEO Strategy

• First, we performed on-page SEO best practices on the video Justin uploaded to the DOM YouTube channel back in 2013.
• Second, we embedded the video into the blog post that we updated earlier in 2019 (screenshot below).

• Finally, we also placed a call to action link inside the YouTube video description to read more about the topic at the blog post.

In most cases, this same series of video SEO steps can be recreated on YouTube alternative video hosting sites like Vimeo.

When you present your videos like this on multiple platforms, you’re going to start building more and more barnacles between your video and your website.

Reposting your video content on other video sharing domains that rank in the top 100 of Google for your targeted keyword phrases is not a required SEO strategy, but for the amount of time and money you invested in creating your video, it only makes sense to create as many opportunities as possible for people to view it, whether you’re launching it yourself or using SEO services to push it up in popularity.

Free Video Hosting Alternatives To YouTube And Vimeo

The list below is far from comprehensive, but here are five of our favorite free video hosting alternatives to YouTube and Vimeo to post your video content to as part of a barnacle SEO strategy:

Sites That Are Like YouTube

• Dailymotion
• Flickr
• Photobucket
• The Internet Archive
• The Open Video Project

The value of links from these domains to help boost your search rankings is debatable. However, the referral traffic opportunity from all of them is great, and the frequency with which content on these sites gets indexed and ranked in Google results is high.

Expand Your Reach For Better Video SEO

Plus, presenting your video on multiple platforms is a great way to build more and more connections—barnacles—between the video, your site content, and your brand in the process.

THINK HOSTING VIDEOS ON MULTIPLE SITES
CAN’T HELP YOUR BUSINESS?
SEE HOW WE GREW THIS eTAILER’S
YOUTUBE TRAFFIC 6,800%.

So YouTube Or Vimeo… Where Are You Going To Share Your Content?

To acknowledge the pachyderm in the place (ahem) Google loves ranking content it can trust. Google owns YouTube. And Google trusts itself.

YouTube & Vimeo SEO Tips

Therefore . . . well, you get it. Google is more likely to crawl and index YouTube content more quickly and thoroughly than other sites. If no cost and maximum visibility are the goals you have for your videos – YouTube is the hands-down best choice for your video hosting needs.

If you are aiming to keep your content gated, you prefer an ad-free experience, or you want to avoid Google-owned properties – you’re better off hosting on Vimeo. Other paid video hosting platforms like Wistia have their own merits and give you the same control over how your videos appear.

If you want to maximize the benefits of your video creation to your SEO campaigns – we strongly recommend using both YouTube and Vimeo for video hosting. Also, you should repost your videos on as many hosting platforms as possible to populate the search results with your content and increase the chances of viewers engaging with your brand.

If you can devote time to optimize the SEO opportunities provided to you by each platform you host the video on, you can start to grow your own healthy community of barnacle SEO properties.

More Info On YouTube SEO & Vimeo

Want more insights on how your existing social media accounts can support your SEO strategy? Check out these posts analyzing how social media and SEO work together to grow your business online with confidence.

• Does Social Media Influence SEO? Decoding Matt Cutts’ 2014 Response
• How Important Are Social Media Profiles to SEO Anyway?
• Top 3 Social Media Lessons From Yum! Brands

To get more information on this topic, contact us today for a free consultation or learn more about our status as a Google Partner Agency before you reach out.

The post Video Hosting: YouTube or Vimeo? appeared first on Direct Online Marketing.

Rather than calculating investment compared to returns, this formula focuses on your ad campaign’s efficiency and effectiveness.

You want to measure impressions and brand awareness, so this process isn’t as clear-cut as straight-up sales and numbers. In this case, ROI is not the most effective formula for getting a solid gauge of your digital advertising success.

What Is Return On Ad Spend (ROAS)? Why Is It Important?

ROAS is a metric that measures the success of digital advertising campaigns, which then helps guide your evaluation of advertising methods; media that is working, messages that are resonating, where to improve—and how it all adds to your bottom line.

When you understand your ROAS, you can better plan for future budgeting and refine your strategy to incorporate more of what is proven to work.

To learn more about a bidding strategy in Google Ads using Target ROAS, click here.

How Is ROAS Calculated?

Not all of us are math enthusiasts, so if math isn’t your thing you will be relieved to know that the formula for calculating ROAS is surprisingly simple: Just divide the revenue gained from your ad campaign by the dollar amount spent on that specific advertising.

How To Calculate ROAS – A Simple Guide

The following examples on how to calculate ROAS assume that you are able to manage your current advertising campaigns or that you have a digital marketing agency that will work with you and help you optimize and be transparent with data, like Direct Online Marketing.

Here’s An Example Calculation For Return On Ad Spend:

In February, Bon Voyage Travel spends $5,000 on a digital ad campaign.

• The campaign results in revenue of $15,000.
• $15,000 revenue divided by $5,000 ad spend = $3
• ROAS = $3 or a ratio of 3:1

For every dollar that Bon Voyage Travel spends on the ad campaign, the return is $3 in revenue.

What Are Some Ways You Can Improve Your ROAS?

If you’re looking to improve your ROAS metric, here are a few tips to keep in mind.

1. Make sure that you’re accurately tracking all of your sales data. This includes both online and offline sales.
2. Segment your data by campaign, product, or other relevant criteria. This will help you to identify areas where you need to improve your ROAS.
3. Set realistic goals for your campaigns.
4. Test different strategies and tactics to see what works best for your business.
5. Don’t be afraid to adjust your goals as needed.

By following these tips, you can improve your ROAS metric and reach your desired level of profitability.

Don’t Forget There Are Some Hidden Costs You Can Apply To ROAS!

Getting the most accurate ROAS means ensuring your calculations are comprehensive. All of the associated costs of your ad campaign should be included, otherwise you’ll get an inaccurate result that could make your ROAS seem better than it is.

Common hidden costs that impact calculating ROAS include:

• Staff salaries
• Ad development
• Third-party vendor charges
• Affiliate commissions

There isn’t a definitive right answer when it comes to what your ideal ROAS should be. The benchmark tends to be around a 4:1 ratio, but ultimately, this depends entirely on your circumstances, your goals, and your business. Achieving your ideal ROAS takes into account your ad campaign goals and strategy, a set budget, and a focus on a targeted strategy of select advertising mediums rather than an attempt to use them all at once.

Ready for an advertising campaign that gives you the best bang for your buck? We can help with that. Our team of geniuses, strategists, and digital advertising experts are on standby, ready to create impactful advertising campaigns that sell your audiences on who you are, so you can sell your products and services.

The post What Is ROAS? How is It Calculated? appeared first on Direct Online Marketing.

Simply put: it’s not easy to be in charge of kickstarting growth for treatment facilities and rehabilitation centers.

Scammers and third-party lead generators have increased the difficulty for organizations to rank their websites to be found by the 23-million-plus Americans in need of treatment. 

But the biggest Google change challenging SEO efforts for treatment facilities and rehabs isn’t the scammers…

Instead, it’s the government. 

Learn how the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has been impacting your ability to rank at the top of the search results. Then, get a glimpse into 12 of our top ideas to rise above SAMHSA in the search engines so you can get your growth plans off the ground.  

SAMHSA’s Impact on Digital Marketing for Addiction and Mental Health

Back in February 2018, Google rolled out a significant change to how it presents search results in the United States when users look for services and information related to substance abuse and mental health.

That change? The placement of the National Helpline page provided by SAMHSA as one of the top three search results for high volume keywords like:

• “anxiety symptoms” — 77,500 monthly searches*
• “drug addiction” — 22,200 monthly searches*
• “signs of alcoholism” — 18,100 monthly searches*

The rise in the ranking presence of this page was exponential. According to data from SEMrush, its presence in the top 10 of Google results increased by over 1,100% in just the first month.

But that was just the beginning. Today, many of those same searches continue to show the SAMHSA National Helpline, and the number continues to grow.

For instance, as of August 2020, you can now find it listed on the first page of Google for over 89,000 terms. As a result, traffic estimates to the site have also grown by enormous leaps and bounds.

If you are responsible for confidently growing admission applications at a substance abuse or mental health facility, this change has forced you to rethink a few of your tactics. The good news is that rehab facilities like yours can respond and succeed despite this.

Get started with the extensive list we’ve created for you below.

Below, you will find 12 alternative marketing tactics – three using PPC strategies, and 9 using SEO strategies – that you can leverage quickly to compensate for SAMHSA’s ownership over the most clicked-through keyword positions in the search engines.

Our 12 Top Addiction Treatment Marketing Tactics

PPC And Digital Advertising Tactics

1. Go ‘Legit’ to Run Search Ads
2. Advertise On The ‘No. 2 Search Engine’
3. Strategically Stay Top Of Mind On The ‘GDN’

SEO And Content Marketing Tactics

1. Get Listed in SAMHSA’s Locator
2. Create Content For Every SERP Feature
3. Market The Map With Local SEO
4. Explore New Markets With Hyperlocal Pages
5. Review Your Past (Optimize It For The Future)
6. Capitalize On Question-Based Searches
7. Expand Upon Your Program Features
8. Blog For Your Decision-Making Audience
9. Barnacle To Top Content Publishers

1. Go ‘Legit’ and Get Approved to Run Ads In Search Engines

For a long time, Google and Bing accepted search engine advertising from rehab and mental health facilities in the same way they accepted ads from other medical service and healthcare providers. But, as the opioid crisis in the United States continued to escalate, the rules for addiction treatment centers started to change. 

Why? Because scammers started taking advantage of those in need.

To help separate the scammers from the legitimate treatment facilities, Google partnered with LegitScript to setup an independent, third-party verification system. Since then, any in-person treatment facility, crisis hotline, or support group has been required to be LegitScript certified to advertise in Google. You can learn more about the LegitScript certification process from our friends at FHE Health, a healthcare institution that delivers quality, medically integrated personalized treatment for those suffering from behavioral health disorders located in Deerfield Beach, FL.

Why LegitScript Certification For Search Ads Became A Need

In case you missed it, here’s a timeline of how the bans and reinstatements of rehab facility advertising in search engines progressed:

• September 2017: Google began restricting ads from showing for searches related to addiction treatment after it noticed that some facilities running ads did not provide a high enough quality of care to help patients recover.
• January 2018: Google followed suit in the UK as well and eventually Google extended the ban globally.
• April 2018: Google announced its partnership with LegitScript. By July, LegitScript planned to verify about 30 facilities and Google would once again reopen advertising to in-person facilities, crisis hotlines, and support groups.
• February 2019: Bing announced it would also require LegitScript certification for all addiction treatment advertisers and would no longer accept third-party lead generators. 

To be fair, there’s no doubt that running PPC campaigns in substance abuse and mental health niches is a costly marketing strategy. In addition to your monthly PPC marketing budget and associated agency fees, LegitScript requires an application fee per facility and an annual fee for verification.

With that said, search engine advertising is likely to be an ROI-positive endeavor if managed correctly. It’s also the only 100% viable option for getting a top page position for a keyword currently occupied by SAMHSA.

Plus, LegitScript certification keeps a lot of the less ethical facilities and scammers from competing for clicks and driving the costs per click higher.

Similar to becoming a listed facility in the Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator from SAMHSA (more on that below), getting your facility listed will take some time, but the process is pretty simple.

If you are a representative of a facility interested in starting a LegitScript application, you can click here to submit one.

2. Advertise On YouTube, The Internet’s ‘No. 2 Search Engine’ 

If you clicked here, you were expecting this to be all about advertising on Bing, weren’t you? Or maybe one of the search engines that’s popular in international markets, like Baidu or Yandex?

Well, it’s not. Instead, you need to take a moment and think about leveraging the search opportunities provided by advertising on YouTube. A site that generates more searches on its platform than Bing, Yahoo!, AOL, and Ask.com… COMBINED.

Added bonus: it’s also widely considered to be the no. 2 social network, making it a great place to boost your social media marketing.

While it’s not a traditional “search engine” in the way you might normally think about them, there are nearly 3 BILLION searches per month done on the site, according to data compiled by Mushroom Networks. 

That breaks down to over 1,100 searches per second. 

Although it was acquired by Google back in 2006, LegitScript certification is not required at this time to advertise on YouTube. Therefore, it can be a more attractive advertising solution for smaller facilities with cost barriers to traditional search marketing on Google and Bing.

4 YouTube Advertising Tips To Maximize The Performance Of Your Videos

While LegitScript certification isn’t required, you’re still going to need to have a commercial or video ad ready to go for a YouTube promotion. Once you have your creative completed, here are a few ideas on how to get the best performance from a YouTube campaign.

• Use the appropriate format. Here’s a quick list of which type of YouTube ad is best for your campaign, based on your goals.
  • Brand recognition: 6-second bumpers.
  • Clicks: 15-20 second pre-roll ads (bonus: they can’t be skipped).
  • Conversions: 15-20 second pre-roll ads
  • Re-purposing a TV commercial: 30-second In-Stream ads.
• Utilize closed captioning. Provide the best user experience for your viewers with accurate, verbatim transcriptions.
• Target smartly. Find your audience using the options for gender, parental status, interests, or target specific channels they are likely to watch.
• Deploy an end card. You’ve made some great content, now reinforce your brand and inspire the viewer to take their next action by directing your viewers to their next destination – a landing page, your website, or your YouTube channel page.

There are definitely some benefits YouTube can bring to your marketing efforts with a dedicated advertising budget.

In addition, leveraging YouTube can also bring benefits to your traffic and visibility through SEO and referral traffic. Interested in learning how it can help you in these areas? Check out one of these helpful links.

• How We Grew YouTube Traffic 6,800% For This Retailer
• Video Hosting: YouTube or Vimeo?
• 6 YouTube Tips To Improve Your Results

3. Strategically Stay Top Of Mind On Google’s Display Network

According to Google, its far-reaching Display Network reaches 90% of Internet users around the world. 

Websites. Blogs. News sites. Even Google-owned properties like Gmail and YouTube.

All of them have an advertising opportunity available to your facility through the Google Display Network.

Depending on the business goals you have for your campaign, Google can also manage the campaign for you on autopilot. Just set your budget, upload your ads, and off you go!

But just because it sounds easy, however, doesn’t mean it’s that simple. Sure, automated bidding is handy, but it’s only as useful as the strategy you put behind it. Similar to YouTube advertising and LegitScript approved PPC advertising, you’re going to want to pay a lot of attention to your targeting if you want a display campaign that will lead to conversions. 

Oh, and you’re going to want to keep your ads fresh. You ever get tired of seeing the same ads from leading brands over and over? If you answered yes, then you can assume your audiences will too. Don’t bore them to death with your creative.

With the Google Display Network, you can proceed with confidence. Just be aware that patience and persistence are going to be key in this channel if you want it to pay off. 

THIS TREATMENT CENTER
IMPROVED THEIR ADMITS BY 300%
USING DIGITAL ADS. LEARN HOW.

4. Getting Listed in SAMHSA’s Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator

One of my favorite online marketing strategies comes from the adage, “…if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.” From some of our research into how Google presents this SERP listing for SAMHSA, the link for the National Helpline will often include a site link to SAMHSA’s Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator right underneath its meta description.

The fact is that Google favors displaying links from SAMHSA over other possible search results prominently, so getting your original content or sales-driven pages to rank above SAMHSA will be extremely difficult — almost near impossible.

However, SAMHSA has an online treatment finder, and rehab facilities can request to be added to that list of treatment providers.

How To Get Listed In The SAMHSA Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator

Getting listed in the SAMHSA services locator is a great SEO tactic for your campaign. For starters, you’re gaining a backlink from a .gov domain — one of the highest-value links you can obtain.

Need a reason beyond that? The site generates an estimated 60,000+ visits per month in the United States from Google searches alone. The high volume and highly specific type of people visiting the site and then being referred to your facility create a great source of well-qualified traffic for your site.

If you represent a newer facility, or your facility is not currently listed in SAMHSA’s locator, getting listed will take some time. Overall, though, the process is pretty simple. Here’s how it works according to the FAQ on the locator’s website:

1. You request the addition of your facility by completing the I-BHS Facility Application Form.
2. The BHSIS Project Office verifies that your facility is eligible by contacting your local representatives or SAMHSA/CBHSQ. As an alternative, you can also contact your state mental health or substance abuse agency to help with verification.
3. You receive a survey in the mail from I-BHS, complete it, and return.
4. About a month passes, and pending final approval, your facility should be good to go. Just know that they typically add new facilities on a monthly basis.

To maintain your listing, you are required to respond annually to either:

• the National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS), or
• the National Mental Health Services Survey (N-MHSS)

These surveys go out every March, and your facility will be required to provide updated information each year after your facility was added to the list.

5. Create Content For Every SERP Feature

If you have spent time doing searches on Google and Bing for answers to almost any question, or for information on any general topic, then you have probably been served with a featured snippet result in the past.

What’s a featured snippet? According to Google, it’s that special box at the top of the search result before the standard listings. Featured snippets include:

• a quoted block of text from a webpage in paragraph, list, or table format
• a link to the webpage the text was originally quoted from

The content is also frequently read aloud by the Google Assistant if you do a voice search. 

While that is the general description of a featured snippet straight from Google, they are just one of many top-position-snatching Google features. Google search engine results page features (SERP features) can take many different forms and shapes. In fact, according to SEMrush, there are over 20 different SERP features to keep in mind if you are using SEO as a growth strategy for your facility. 

While some of the features SEMrush monitors will not have a direct impact on an addiction treatment or mental health campaign, many of them will.

12 Actionable Ideas You Can Use To Put SERP Features To Work

6 Ideas That Are Completely Within Your Control

• Local Pack: verify your GoogleMyBusiness listing and get citations on as many of the major local directories as possible (more on this in tip no. 6) 
• Site Links: add links to your top resources and services pages in the footer of your website.
• Top Stories: Have your blog added to Google News. 
• Knowledge Panel: if your facility has a Wikipedia page, or if one of your executives is a published author, one of these may be available for you to claim. 
• Reviews: deploy schema markup in your site header files with star ratings and review counts from sources like the National Rehabs Directory, the fix, ChooseHelp, or Rehab.com.
• Twitter: publish your most valuable blog content and resources in your Twitter feed using keyword-rich hashtags at the end of each tweet. 

6 Ideas You Can Influence (But Google Controls)

• Featured Snippets: if you have a page that ranks in the top 5 of a search term with a featured snippet at the top, create a subheading that includes the keyword, then publish content that matches the featured snippet type, using the keyword phrase 2-3 times in your text. 
• People Also Ask and FAQ: answer the questions Google showcases in the People Also Ask box in an FAQ section on a top traffic page. 
• Image Pack and Image: optimize the file size and dimensions of your image files and utilize up to 100 characters of your alt tag for keyword-rich descriptions. 
• Featured Videos, Video Carousel, and Video: embed your YouTube videos on pages of your site that also rank well for terms with video carousels. 
• Instant Answer: provide calculations and short, simple to answer questions on your top-performing webpages. 
• Jobs: deploy schema markup in your site header files for the pages featuring any of your open job listings. Note that this only applies if you are hosting your job openings on your site. Platforms like Glassdoor and Indeed already do this for you.

6. Leverage Local SEO To Rank Where SAMHSA Can’t Be Featured

While SAMHSA will continue to dominate organic search results, they technically only have one physical location in Rockville, Maryland. As far as Google is concerned, SAMHSA can’t be featured in local SEO search results because they are not considered to be a provider of local treatment services. SAMHSA will always be your biggest competitor for traffic in the search engines, but one area Google is leaving open for you to own continues to be local SEO.

On desktop searches, a map listing with three facilities is included with nearly every top searched keyword phrase related to substance abuse and mental health services.

On mobile devices, the map takes over all of the SERP real estate above the fold. At a bare minimum, if you have not taken over ownership of your Google My Business listing, or verified your business with the following top local directories, opportunity is leaving you behind:

• Apple Maps
• Bing Local
• SAMHSA
• Yelp

If you already have your business confirmed on all five of the platforms listed above, you are off to a great start with maximizing your online presence in your local area. But you’ll want to take it further with local SEO as there are still as many as 22 other local directories we deem to have a “high” or “very high” citation value.

Because of the presence of the SAMHSA listing at the top of the search results, the fact that you want to reach your target audience on a local or national level will not matter – you’re going to want to leverage every ounce of opportunity local SEO has to offer. Don’t get left behind — local SEO needs to be a critical part of your drug rehab SEO strategy.

7. Go Hyperlocal

There are a lot of well-established websites in the substance abuse and mental health niche that have leveraged hyperlocal keyword searches very effectively over the years for their own addiction treatment marketing.

In fact, many of the most highly trafficked sites in this niche leverage creating a directory of treatment facilities and drug rehab centers as one of their main marketing tools to drive referrals to advertisers. Sites like SoberNation and Rehabs.com have done this for years and become so successful with this as a marketing strategy that they can now get you to pay them for traffic.

Because of how well sites like this perform in the SERPs, these types of directories can be a good source of both relevant referral traffic as well as qualified admissions leads. It can be tough to justify paying to be listed in a directory, but that doesn’t mean you should ignore these opportunities entirely.

Think of it this way — if you can justify paying to be part of your local chamber of commerce, you could probably justify paying to be listed in a directory that can help grow your admissions. Outside of becoming listed in rehab focused directories, you can also apply a hyperlocal approach to your website. If you know zip codes, names of popular suburban areas, or names of specific cities and towns within a dedicated drive radius of your facility, then you can leverage localized content to rank for some highly targeted long-tail keyword searches.

Want to go into more depth on hyperlocal digital marketing? Here’s a few blog posts worth your click. 

• What is Hyperlocal SEO and Why Should I Be Doing it Right Now?
• How You Can Use Hyperlocal Ad Campaigns

8. Revise Your Past (Then Optimize It For Your Future) In Addiction Treatment Marketing

Historical optimization is the practice of updating old content on your site and improving its SEO value for the present and future. Over the past few years, this tactic has become an incredibly valuable SEO play for facilities with a large archive of content.

To briefly summarize this tactic, find a blog post or article on your site that was published at least six months ago. Prioritize pages on your site that either:

1. Generate a lot of traffic, or
2. Convert into admission inquiries

Then refresh the content, improve the on-page SEO, add an author bio, and re-publish it with a more recent “updated” date.

Search engines reward webpages they can rely on being “there” when the crawl the internet. This tactic presents your facility with the opportunity to avoid writing about the same topics over and over again. Instead, it helps your website establish cornerstone pieces of content that will reliably provide your site with traffic from search engines. 

As an added bonus, historical optimization can help you establish your administrators and clinicians as thought leaders in the addiction and behavioral health industry.

Historical optimization in your addiction treatment marketing is a great way to get long term value out of content you published long ago.

9. Take Advantage of Question-Based Queries In Your Addiction Treatment Marketing

According to research compiled by Jumpshot and analyzed by Moz in March 2017, roughly 8% of Google searches are phrased as questions. With voice search only continuing to rise in popularity, the percentage of question-based searches are sure to grow accordingly.

Do you have an FAQ page on your facility’s website?

When you publish blog content, are you writing titles and subheadings in your posts in the form of a question? Take the time to answer both common and uncommon questions. Try to compile questions you may often get from admission prospects and their families about your treatment approaches, facilities, or warning signs that a loved one needs to know. There are two major benefits to taking this approach with your addiction treatment marketing strategy:

1. You will be building trust and helping inform people who need help but are not ready to call.
2. Your site will benefit from a larger number of entry points from keyword searches, lessening the impact that SAMHSA’s top positioning will take away from search traffic to your facility.

What questions are your admissions team, or your clinical staffers, uniquely qualified to answer? Give them a laptop and have them start writing!

10. Don’t Forget About Your Program Features In Your Addiction Treatment Marketing

Of the over 89,000+ keyword phrases where Google displays the SAMHSA National Helpline link in the top three results, above you will see just a small sample of the monetary worth of some of the terms, sorted by top monthly search volume estimates.* That’s a very small sampling of the data SEMrush has on rankings for the National Helpline page, but with a pretty quick glance, you will notice some trends across the keywords that Google is using to trigger this result.

• Different forms of addiction
• Someone researching reactions to substance abuse (withdrawal, side effects, etc.)
• Someone is looking to find/get help (AA, NA, rehab, etc.)

Now, in contrast to that, you may have noticed that keywords related to general program features were not in the above example. These days, no substance abuse or mental health facility is the same. Dig in to communicate what makes the approach of your recovery centers unique from other facilities.

3 Questions You Should Think About Answering In Your Content Marketing Plan For Your Rehabilitation Center

• Does your program take a mindfulness approach to relapse prevention?
• Do you leverage the outdoors as a therapy method?
• Does your staff have multiple advanced certifications or education credentials?

Whatever makes your facility stand out from the rest of the facilities out there, now is the time to capitalize on it. Make sure your site has dedicated pages related to those treatment programs and features and support those dedicated pages with press releases or blog post content. Optimize the dedicated pages for maximum search visibility by applying on-page SEO best practices and leverage link building strategies from the supporting content to heighten the importance of the dedicated pages to search engines.

With this addiction treatment marketing tactic, every page on your website can be an entry point to put you in touch with those in need of help.

11. Addiction Treatment Marketing Should Cater Content to Your Audience

In response to these developments in Google search results, a lot of digital marketing agencies are going to suggest you try to leverage content marketing strategies only with the intention of generating interest from top-tier publishers. The idea here is that getting coverage in front of a national audience should generate backlinks and a lot of impressions. The concept can also be referred to as viral marketing — because “going viral” is super easy, right?

To us, this feels like an expensive fool’s errand; unless, of course, the idea of a campaign with a large expense and little to no attributable ROI sounds like something your facility wants to try out.

Addiction treatment marketing shouldn’t be about more awareness of your facility. Instead, it should be about connecting with people who love and care for those who need your help.

5 Content Ideas To Help Establish A Better Connection With Those Who Need Your Help

Going with a “10X content” approach that will have an impact on the attention your brand receives and little else, the more sensible approach is to cater your content directly to your audience. Here are several alternatives to making “viral” content that could be better suited to get your facility highly-relevant traffic:

• Answering questions for the family members of potential admits
• Recapping research conducted in the industry that validates your approach to healing
• Sharing video testimonials from alumni who have dramatically improved their lives after release
• Providing helpful guides on niche topics related to attending a treatment facility, such as a legal term glossary
• Reviewing national and international news topics and explaining how they are directly impacting addiction and mental health treatment

For all types of people, it’s tough dealing with substance abuse and mental health. If you seek to be a resource for people by providing useful information at the right time, they will reach out when they need you the most. Don’t rely on occasional brand mentions in big publications with the hopes that people will remember you when the time is right.

12. Barnacle Your Brand To Top Ranking Content Publishers

Barnacle SEO is not a new strategy, but it can be a highly successful approach when situations like this occur. The term was coined by Will Scott of Search Influence about a decade ago and there was a must-watch Whiteboard Friday about it several years ago, too.

The idea behind Barnacle SEO for rehab centers as an addiction treatment marketing tactic is pretty straightforward – leverage the top rankings of other sites for your gain. Ever since April 2018, ranking for the top keywords in the substance abuse and mental health space became exponentially harder due to the update of SAMHSA’s National Helpline. Now, in addition to competing with other facilities and online publishers for top keyword rankings, getting them is almost impossible because of the injection of SAMHSA.

What can you do? Create content specifically on other sites that rank for your targeted keywords. Five of our favorite target domains to leverage for this strategy include:

• Medium
• Pinterest
• Quora
• Wikipedia
• YouTube

The value of links from these domains to help boost your search rankings is debatable. However, the referral traffic opportunity from all of them is great, and the frequency with which content on these sites ranks on the first page of Google results is high. While getting a Wikipedia page about your facility may be difficult, creating a profile and submitting content to all of these platforms should become a high priority online marketing strategy this year.

Closing Thoughts On Addiction Treatment Marketing Strategies

Many people are turning to Google to find answers to their troubles. With locations in Wheeling, WV, and Pittsburgh, PA, the team at DOM is well aware of the US’s opioid crisis. We are also sensitive to the fact that there is no “one size fits all” fix.

We think it’s a good thing that Google is trying to get people help when they need it from a neutral source. This is also not unfamiliar territory for Google. Back in November 2016, they made a similar change to the top of results for searches related to suicide.

But this change over the last two years does force substance abuse and mental health treatment facilities to shift. They can still use search engine marketing strategies to create opportunities for themselves. 

They just need to get more creative in order to provide care to the nearly 23 million Americans in need.

The top 12 ways we suggest facilities shift their addiction treatment marketing strategies are:

1. Become a LegitScript certified advertiser so your facility can run Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising
2. Extend the reach of your commercials and video content with YouTube advertising
3. Strategically tap into the near-limitless advertising opportunities in the Google Display Network 
4. Get listed in the SAMHSA Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator
5. Find keywords you already rank well for and structure your content for Featured Snippets
6. Maximize visibility in local SEO by completing and verifying any available citations
7. Create content on your site dedicated to hyperlocal communities that are in need of your services
8. Keep top-performing pages up to date by adding more text and updating visual content every three to six months 
9. Invest time in creating a comprehensive FAQ or writing blog posts to answer common questions
10. Optimize pages on your site for rankings around the unique features of your programs
11. Create content tailored to the families and individuals struggling with these issues
12. “Barnacle” content published by your facility to top publishing platforms for better exposure

Want to check out more of our actionable ideas from our Pittsburgh marketing firm to grow confidently online in the medical and health industry? Check out some of these blog posts below.

• Google Medic: How to SEO Proof Your Site in the Trust Authority Era
• How Do People Find Answers To Health Related Questions?
• How To Optimize Your Hospital for Local Search
• Healthcare Marketing Research & Survey Results

To get more information on this topic, contact us today for a free consultation or learn more about our status as a Google Premier Partner before you reach out.

The post 12 Marketing Plans For Your Rehab Center To Kickstart Its Growth (Updated March 2022) appeared first on Direct Online Marketing.

But is ZPD just a bunch of hype? Jargon? A buzzword?

To be honest, when we first heard the term being thrown around late last year, we had those same thoughts, too.

We also couldn’t help but think back to a certain IBM commercial created by Ogilvy in 2007. Press play below for a cringe-worthy walk down memory lane.

Whether you just stepped out of an innovation meeting that killed you, or you came across this term in a MarketingProfs article and feel like you need to be brought up to speed on it – don’t worry. Zero-party data is not some meaningless buzzword or an empty topic that should cause you to reference your past at all!

Instead, it’s a look at the future of customer data collection that can be used for your marketing.

So What Is Zero-Party Data?

Zero-party data is the new kid on the data collection block. The tricky thing about zero-party data is that it’s a lot like first-party data (more on that in the next section). In fact, there are people out there who don’t even think it needs its own category.

The term was coined by Forrester Research, and is officially defined as “data that a customer intentionally and proactively shares with a brand, which can include preference center data, purchase intentions, personal context, and how the individual wants the brand to recognize her.”

So zero-party data is basically data that’s being willingly given to you by your customers.

An example is when a customer provides communication preferences, i.e. “Please email me special offers.” Other examples may include when users:

• Choose their interests while creating a profile on a shopping site (following authors or brands on Amazon)
• Give “thumbs up” ratings to shows and movies on streaming platforms (+1 Murder She Wrote on Peacock) with the intent of being presented other relevant suggestions

Much like first-party data, or maybe more accurately as a component of first-party data, zero-party data’s value will be heavily tied to your ability to centralize and organize it.

So what’s the significance here? Why are we talking about zero-party data so much?

Well, it just so happens that your zero and first-party data methods are about to become more significant than ever, due to the gradual decline of availability of third party data.

Before we get into all of that, let’s back up a little though and take a look at the more traditional collection methodologies – first and third-party data.

What is First-Party Data?

First-party data is essentially data that you collect yourself through your interactions with your customers. It could be demographics information, purchase history, the way they interact with your website, email engagements, support calls, customer feedback programs, etc.

It’s collected through customer purchases, support programs, and marketing programs, those sorts of things.

In terms of value and quality, first-party data is spectacular. That’s because you’re getting it straight from the customers. There aren’t any middle parties interpreting anything for you or muddying up the process. All of your first-party data is, by nature, accurate and relevant to your business.

Even better, first-party data is relatively easy to collect. As long as you make sure you’re using a central data platform to manage your data across all your sources and you follow any privacy laws in your country, your customer-related systems will naturally be collecting it and you’ll have access to it for data-driven decision making.

What is Third-Party Data?

Third-party data is acquired from data aggregators. Data aggregators take large datasets from multiple sources and compile them into a single dataset that can then be purchased for use in marketing.

For the most part, third-party data is purchased through a DSP (demand side platform) or a DMP (data management platform), but there are also a lot of third-party data marketplaces out there. Some of the more popular marketplaces are Google, Nielsen, and OnAudience.

The biggest concern with third-party data is that you simply don’t know where it came from, so you can’t be certain of its accuracy or reliability. You have all this aggregated data, but there’s no way to be sure how much it’s worth.

Also, you can’t be 100% certain that it was collected in a proper manner that followed privacy regulations. That means you have to put in some time to research your third-party data provider to make sure they’re legit.

So right off the bat it might seem like first-party data is superior to third-party, so why doesn’t everybody just use first-party data?

Well, it’s simple. First-party data gives you insights into customers who have already interacted with your brand. Third-party data gives you insights, albeit less reliable insights, into everybody else on a much larger scale. Thus, third-party data is what you can use to get more customers to interact with your brand.

All of that said, it may be a smarter move for your advertising campaigns to try to leverage your existing first party data to create campaigns to target third party potential clients and customers. Around here we commonly call those “lookalike audiences” although the different advertising platforms may call them something unique.

If you are currently leveraging third party data for your digital advertising and want to explore a better way to position your products and services to earn new customers, check out our retargeting services.

Google’s “Cookiepocalypse”

In 2020, Google announced that they plan to phase out third-party cookies in their browser, Chrome. Firefox and Safari have already taken measures to start blocking third-party tracking for the sake of privacy, but Chrome is the most used desktop browser on the planet.

What that means is that tracking user behavior is going to become a lot more difficult. Third-party data is going to possibly be less reliable and harder to come by. Maybe.

Recently, Google announced that they’re pushing their plan back to 2023, but it remains inevitable.

First and zero-party data are going to become even more valuable, and necessary, for delivering business results and making smart marketing decisions.

With Your Data, It’s Time To Stop Talking And Start Doing

Here at DOM, we believe in marketing that’s led by data. If you don’t have the data to back up your strategy, then you’re really just making a guess and hoping it will work.

Our expert data analysts aren’t the types of people that are just sitting behind a screen facilitating out of the box, value added solutions. They actually know how to find the message in your data and make it work for your business goals.

But no matter what type of data you have collected over the years – zero party, first party, or third party – your Google Analytics needs to be set up and optimized to work in tandem with your advertising campaigns.

We aren’t interested in creating some disruptive “web 3.0” solution just for the sake of doing it. Are you looking to turn your user data into a tool to produce better targeted marketing that gets results?

Great, check out our Google Analytics services or contact us to get answers to your questions about all of these data types and how they will work to solve your advertising challenges.

The post Zero-Party Data vs. First And Third-Party Data (Win Buzzword Bingo, Guaranteed!) appeared first on Direct Online Marketing.

Amazon’s advertising wing is soaring. But it’s hardly without complications (I’ll get to that).

Amazon realizes how new ad types can take them to a new level. They are now testing new mobile video ads. The question is, will mobile ads be for the better or, the worse?

Its shareholder report amassed $10 billion in revenue in an “other” category. The “other” category, for all intents and purposes, is advertising revenue. Amazon doesn’t provide shareholders or the public with specific advertising financials. But it’s safe to assume that the “other” category suffices this interest.

That said, these robust figures mean investor expectations are skyrocketing. But new mobile ads have both investors and Amazon execs salivating (and shivering). They salivate for increased profit. They shiver while understanding the inherent risk of more ads.

So what’s the issue?

The Amazon Mobile Ad Quandary?

It’s simple. Amazon’s advertising deployment model may be reaching its apex. Ah, those pesky consumers. They can turn on a whim if you aren’t careful.

Amazon is a website no different than any other website. All sites must consider user experience. Display ads are often one of the top threats to creating a positive website user experience.

Consumers enjoy display ads that target them. Consumers appreciate good deals on things they want and need. Website owners realize that more ads can equate to more profit.

But websites that saturate pages with too many ads risk frustrating visitors. Consumers appreciate ads until they don’t. Sites earn more money for more ads until they don’t.

Ad blocker solutions rank among the top browser extensions for this reason.

For Amazon, balancing the shoppers’ user experience with increasing ads is stressful stuff. The company desires increasing profits. The shareholders yearn for quarterly reports that blow out expectations.

But shareholders and Amazon executives can’t allow shoppers to become jaded and bitter. Once display ads reach critical mass, that’s what happens. Because if the shopping experience becomes compromised, the revenue ship begins to sink.

Websites must challenge limits because that’s how you cap the advertising ceiling. If you don’t know the ceiling, you risk losing money. You might display too many ads, or too few. The risk runs both ways.

Amazon Realizes The Advertising Quandary

On Amazon’s advertising homepage, you’ll find mundane disclosure text.

“Ad solutions to help you find, attract, and engage millions of Amazon customers at every stage of their journey”

Amazon understands Google, Microsoft, and Apple leverage advertising. And they do it in more aggressive, profitable ways.

In 2023, Pivotal Research predicts that Amazon advertising revenue will hit $38 billion.

With almost 50% of product searches happening on Amazon, this is excellent news for digital marketers. Amazon keyword research is becoming the digital marketing trend du jour. No one’s ignoring Amazon’s scale potential. Everyone wants to join the party.

Amazon reached $10 billion in advertising revenue with a simple flick of the switch. And it’s at the forefront of $38 billion in revenue if it can capitalize on the momentum. It has a galvanized base of digital advertisers ready to divert ad funds towards them.

But advertising revenue trendlines fail to consider website real estate. And website real estate is a finite source.

Amazon Mobile Ads Are Big Stuff (For All Of Us)

Bloomberg reported Amazon’s venture into mobile video ads last Thursday.

The new video ad displays only for iOS users. As an unapologetic member of the Apple iPhone herd, I’m able to experience the new ads.

I searched for “headphones” in my Amazon app. Below is a screencap of MPOW’s Bluetooth headphone advertisement. You will notice that the MPOW’s video ad flanks industry class leader Bose’s sponsored product placement.

Let’s start with the obvious concern.

Are these new Amazon video ads intrusive?

That’s literally the billion dollar question.

We know the video ads will generate increased ad revenue if consumers don’t reject them.

From a single user’s perspective, I’ve experienced the new ads a few times over the weekend. They never feel intrusive when I encounter them. They don’t auto-play sound, or contort my shopping layout, or distract my search.

For Amazon, its investors, and its advertisers, this is excellent news. Amazon mobile ads may well accomplish all necessary goals. They don’t seem to distract or intrude; they should create revenue.

Will Mid-Sized Businesses Get a Cut Of The Amazon Mobile Ad Pie?

Amazon plans to launch these video ad opportunities in AMS (Amazon Marketing Services). The move may confuse some advertisers expecting them to show up in Demand Side. Amazon will bill marketers on a cost-per-view model. Amazon utilizes cost-per-click setups for all other ad buys, so it’s worth noting.

The new ads only appeal to big brands with big advertising budgets. The Bloomberg report says Amazon requires a two-month ad spend commitment of roughly $17k per month. That squashes the hopes of smaller businesses wanting a piece of Amazon’s mobile video ad pie (for now). But it isn’t clear if spend commitments will be permanently instituted, or just used for the testing phase.

Amazon spend commitments help them get meaningful insights. The company doesn’t want to manage thousands of new mobile video advertisers to start. They need to understand their limitations, value, and shortcomings. They need to structure appropriate pricing. The spend limits turn down the volume on other functions, such as affiliate services.

Conclusion

Amazon mobile ads help the company position itself beyond other tech giants. The advertising expansion means more revenue for marketers and investors. Amazon advertising is thriving, but new ad deployment risk the critical shopping experience.

The new mobile ads do not appear to distract from the shopping experience. This means Amazon’s ad revenue is likely to explode. As it stands, only big brands can afford to run video ads, but that may change when the testing phase ends.

Interested in discovering how your business can get more out of the Amazon platform? Learn more about our Amazon marketing services before reaching to us.

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Social Media Advertising Infographic

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