View Report
- Microsoft adCenter research reveals 62% of SMBs not investing in search marketing due to time, cost and complexity;
- Yet 76% of SMBs investing in search marketing campaigns see an increase in sales;
- Microsoft adCenter launches Search Marketing Guidelines for SMBs
8th November 2007: Microsoft adCenter today launches its Search Marketing Guidelines for SMBs to provide quick, simple and cost effective advice on how to set up and reap the benefits of search marketing. Research across the UK’s SMB community reveals SMBs are collectively wasting an estimated £3 billion [1] of investment on websites that are virtually invisible to consumers searching online.
Although some 2.79 million small businesses have an online presence, a staggering 62% are not investing in search marketing campaigns to help potential customers find them online; the equivalent of owning a shop hidden down a side street and not advertising its whereabouts.
The research commissioned by Microsoft adCenter [2] which questioned 400 UK SMBs, reveals 44% of SMBs not doing search marketing think it is too time consuming; 56% think it is too expensive; and 33% too complicated. However, 76% of SMBs promoting their website on search engines see an immediate increase in sales.
The results demonstrate the misconceptions in the market about search marketing. Some 78% of SMBs not conducting search marketing are aware of the web-based tools available to them yet 92% of those businesses have not even attempted to set up a campaign.
However, SMBs know they should be doing more to promote their business online particularly as 96% use search engines themselves to find a product or service. This is reflected by over half of SMBs (56%) claiming they would be willing to set up search marketing campaigns themselves, and 34% planning to use search marketing “in the future”.
Nigel Leggatt, Microsoft adCenter Marketing Manager said: “UK SMBs are missing a trick by not investing in search marketing campaigns. The misconceptions that exist in the industry, search marketing is holding back potential SMB revenue. This is surprising, considering the majority of people questioned use search engines and yet they are not investing in search marketing to grow their own business. In today’s world, just having a website is not enough – you have to drive traffic to your site to ensure you are front of mind with your potential customers. Search marketing is one of the most cost effective ways to achieve this.”
Peter Scargill, IT Chairman for the Federation of Small Businesses said: “A well-known website can allow a small business to compete on an equal footing with larger competitors. But that only works if the site can be found by potential customers. Having an online presence is something that more and more small businesses are using to drive growth in the future but they will be wasting their money if they don’t make people aware of it.”
In order to dispel the myths surrounding search marketing, Microsoft adCenter has issued advice to SMBs on the reality of setting up a search marketing campaign and how to get started. Three of the key misconceptions the research highlights include:
Myth 1: Over a third (34%) of respondents think it would take a day or more to set up a campaign. In reality, the time taken from opening an account to it going live can take as little as 15 minutes.
Myth 2: Some 56% cite cost as a top reason why SMBs will not invest, with a quarter of all SMBs thinking the best keywords are already taken. Actually, SMBs can invest as little as 10-20 pence per click or a monthly budget of around £5.
Myth 3: Many are put off by the idea that it sounds too complicated – with the overwhelming majority (89%) thinking it was more difficult than online banking. However, SMBs can easily manage accounts from their desk and are likely to see immediate results from just a few simple keywords.
To advise SMBs on how to get started with search marketing, the Microsoft adCenter report provides key guidelines to ensure the process is quick, simple and cost effective:
- Keep your ad copy short and descriptive, while avoiding empty promises. Every word counts!
- Investigate what your competition is doing online (try a few searches)
- Choose the right keywords - the Microsoft adCenter Keyword Generator (which finds similar keywords to the one you enter) and the Keyword Research Tool (which reveals the typical profile of the people searching on your keyword) will help
- Make your keywords relevant – speak the same language as your customers. They will type in brand names when looking for products, like ‘Hoover’ when they mean 'vacuum' or ‘Kleenex’ when they mean 'tissue'. They could misspell words, use abbreviations or try unexpected variations on the actual names of what you’re selling. Try to cover them all off!
- Keep your keywords updated - raise your bidding on some keywords with a low position and delete poorly performing keywords or ads
- Estimate the cost of recruiting a new customer (or the cost of losing an existing one) then set aside a fixed keyword budget and timeframe to assess results
- Think about the seasonality of your business or the time of day/week when potential customers will be looking for your business
- Think about the best time of day, day of the week and location to advertise in
- Know your target audience – choose to up-weight your bids for certain genders, ages and places. For example, spending more on searches conducted by men over 25 during, say, lunch breaks in Birmingham.
- Add local keywords to the phrases you bid on – for example 'florist Newcastle'
Case Study: Attraction World Ltd
An example of an SMB reaping the benefits of search marketing is Attraction World Ltd, based in Birmingham it has been investing in search marketing campaigns since early 2006. As official booking agent for tourist attractions, shows, sightseeing tours and experiences across the world, Attraction World’s search marketing enables it to build campaigns to focus on keywords which give it the best ROI.
Peter Barnsley, IT Manager, Attraction World commented: “Pay-per-click marketing is an integral part of our original business plan. Businesses of any size cannot afford to ignore PPC. It has a snowball effect: every time we put money into it we make a profit. Since investing in Microsoft adCenter we have seen an initial boost in our traffic and also in our conversion rates.”
Regional Breakdowns
In the regional rankings, SMBs from the North are the least likely to conduct any form of search marketing with 75% still not investing, despite 78% of SMBs having an online presence. Scotland and the South East in comparison fare better with less than half (44%) of not investing in search marketing.
However, SMBs in the Midlands see the highest returns, with 85% saying that they saw an immediate increase in sales. Despite this the Midlands is seventh out of eight in the search marketing regional rankings with 68% not investing in search marketing, even though 69% have an online presence.
Regional Breakdown chart
|
Ranking
|
Regions
|
% of businesses with online presence
|
% of businesses with an online presence not investing in search marketing
|
Search Marketing increased sales enquiries
|
|
1
|
Scotland
|
78%
|
44%
|
70%
|
|
2
|
South East
|
68%
|
44%
|
73%
|
|
3
|
London
|
69%
|
57%
|
77%
|
|
4
|
Wales
|
70%
|
64%
|
80%
|
|
5
|
South West
|
73%
|
67%
|
70%
|
|
6
|
East
|
73%
|
68%
|
71%
|
|
7
|
Midlands
|
69%
|
68%
|
85%
|
|
8
|
North
|
73%
|
75%
|
77%
|
-ends-
Notes to editors
Research Methodology
Research was conducted by Vanson Bourne, an independent research consultancy in August 2007. Microsoft commissioned the quantitative research of 400 UK SMBs via online questionnaires.
The calculation for the amount of money wasted on websites by SMBs is based on statistics from the Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform data (August 2007) which states there are an estimated 4.5 million business enterprises in the UK.
Microsoft Research shows that 62% of SMBs in the UK have an online presence which totals 2.79million businesses nationally. The average cost of a website is £1,750 according to Ego Creative Ltd.
[1] Based on statistics from Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform data (August 2007): “There are an estimated 4.5 million business enterprises in the UK”. Microsoft Research shows that 62% of SMBs have an online presence which totals 2.79million businesses nationally. Of these businesses 62% don’t use search marketing which equals 1,729 million businesses. The average cost of a website is £1,750 according to Ego Creative Ltd. Which means that the average amount of money wasted nationally is £3 billion.
2 Research conducted by independent research consultancy Vanson Bourne in August 2007. Microsoft commissioned quantitative research of 400 UK SMBs and research was conducted via an online questionnaire.
Microsoft adCenter for SMBs
Microsoft adCenter, helps advertisers reach the 5.6 million Brits using Live Search, and allows advertisers to easily manage search advertising campaigns.
It is ideal for small businesses looking to maximise ROI and reach potential customers that are looking for their service or product, offering outstanding targeting and research tools and currently the only search advertising platform in the UK to offer its advertisers the ability to target their customers by time of day.
About Microsoft Advertising
Microsoft Advertising is a robust set of global advertising products and services designed to effectively connect advertisers with their target audiences across multiple digital touch points. Advertisers can actively engage with their consumers through a suite of high-impact advertising products and platforms, reaching a global audience of more than 465 million unique users per month across the MSN network, as well as millions more through Windows Live, Xbox®, the Microsoft Office system and Live Search. Advertisers can feel confident they will achieve measurable results through groundbreaking research, advertising innovation, strategic planning and excellence in execution. More information about Microsoft Digital Advertising Solutions is available at
http://advertising.microsoft.com.
MSN UK (
http://uk.msn.com) attracts more than 21 million unique users in the UK per month. MSN is a world leader in delivering compelling programmed content experiences to consumers and online advertising opportunities to businesses worldwide.
For more information about Microsoft or to request interviews please contact:
Emma Ap-Thomas 0207 025 6533
For more information about the Federation of Small Businesses please contact:
