Now many would argue that it’s not display v. search but rather the synergies achieved when both mediums work together. Search marketing currently comprises more than one-half of all interactive dollars, and will remain the biggest format through 2014. Most ad networks don’t love that stat and for obvious reason. Their response has been that they receive little to no conversion credit and thus a diminishing media budget.
The issue with display ad ROI measurement is the inability to assign a quantifiable value, which some believe results in a disproportionate value being assigned to search, otherwise know as the last ad model.
“The current “last ad” model attributes 100% of the credit for a conversion to the last ad seen or clicked. This is the current standard the industry has relied on to justify their digital media spend. The problem with this approach is that it ignores the contributions of any previous ads that led the customer down the road to that conversion.”
Source: Atlas Institute
Of course, the Atlas Institute (Microsoft) has been pushing their Engagement Mapping approach or the ability to measure cross-channel impact, but details into their technology are still blurry. Regardless of the technical ability to measure (another post altogether), there has been little credit given the role of search throughout the entire conversion funnel or search’s ability to generate demand.
While clearly there is somewhat of a “halo effect” between display and search whereas users that have been exposed to display ads are more likely to click on a paid advertisement – note case study by iCrossing. However, many mediums (that can’t all be measured) can be attributed with creating greater upstream demand; mediums such as TV ads, radio, billboards and yes, display ads. However, no credit is given to search as vehicle to drive awareness and demand in the last ad model.
A common argument is that the majority of sponsored search clicks are simply navigational; assuming that sponsored search is not bringing in new prospects but simply delivering people to a URL they are seeking. I would argue that savvy search marketer understand the importance of branded traffic but focus the majority of SEM efforts on non-branded traffic and new segments to target – essentially on “research” type queries higher in the conversion funnel. As such, search is not only the “last step” in a purchase funnel, but one integral throughout.
An example given by Atlas is one that looks at users searching for basketball shoes. A user compiles their research for basketball shoes, decides to buy Nike, and returns to a search engine and searches “Nike basketball shoes”. They state that 100% of the credit is given to the “nike baseketball shoes” and search had little to do with the research but was simply navigational.
I would argue that a “basketball shoes” search query is a research query whereas a user is comparing brands, prices and reviews and users find this type of data more often than not, online and specifically via search engines. Now display ads can clearly support the brand but are not the main vehicle for research or driving demand. Additionally, there are numerous retailers selling Nike basketball shoes, thus a users’ intent is possibly to find where to buy and not necessarily navigate to Nike.com.
The point is that search is credited for capturing users towards the end of the sales cycle but is also ideal for conducting research and generating awareness, something display ads try to claim the majority of credit for. Other mediums certainly have an impact on demand and search and should be a part of the online marketing mix. However, mediums need to be evaluated based on the industry and data at hand; data that needs to be accurate and opaque.
