Brand Aid covers the unique issues faced by search marketers responsible for campaigns featuring big or well-known brands. Columnists look at topics such as effective branding via search, trademark protection, “co-opitition” with affiliates, integrating search marketing with traditional brand marketing and more.

The Doctor Is In: Using An Unbranded Health Site

May 18, 2011 at 3:32pm ET by Heather Pidgeon

Recently, I had an amazing experience. I was invited to be a part of an all agency partner meeting. Throughout the day, we talked about various initiatives to ensure that the right partners collaborated on each to maximize the brand’s marketing dollars. However, we did something else that was far more valuable. We listened. The pharmaceutical brand had invited a patient to the meeting. Because this individual has the condition that the brand treats, they were able to provide us with tremendously valuable insights that we could incorporate into our efforts. This was an amazing experienc [...]

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How To Boost Brand Exposure On A Fixed Budget

Apr 6, 2011 at 8:20am ET by Andrew Wilson

It’s easy to increase brand presence in search... if you have the budget. But more often than not, search marketers feel trapped by their fixed budgets, and wonder how they can possibly increase branded reach without spending more money. However, it can be done. Online visibility is directly related to how many times your ads appear in the search results, which is directly related to your budget and bidding strategy. Usually, the more money you spend, the more often you appear. But there’s a way around this dynamic. One way to overcome this problem is through match types. Match types [...]

Related Topics: Beginner | Brand Aid | How To | How To: PPC

Why Affiliate Direct Linking Activity Has Doubled

Mar 30, 2011 at 9:34am ET by Lori Weiman

Direct linking, sometimes also referred to as ‘URL Hijacking’, occurs on paid search when affiliate marketers assume the identity in paid ads of the represented merchant. Direct linking occurs when the affiliate uses the merchant’s website as the display URL, with an affiliate link as the destination URL. The effect of this tactic is that the affiliate does not need to operate a website because it is directing traffic straight from the search page to the merchant’s website. This tactic, while economical, efficient, and easy for the affiliate, creates problems for merchants. Co [...]

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Why Brand Trumps ROI: 3 Tips To Build Your Brand Online

Mar 9, 2011 at 9:38am ET by Matias Wigozki

ROI. ROI. ROI. It’s the mantra for most direct response marketers. But to remain competitive, marketers must look beyond direct ROI, and invest in programs that will enrich their overall brand. Let’s take a look at why. Understanding The Shift There are more brands competing in search than ever, but the playing field is hardly level. In fact, it has shifted. Today it favors well-recognized brands that have built brand equity. Those who haven’t invested in their brand are being left behind. A recent study underscores this point. According to a recent Kenshoo report, “the number of [...]

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Top 5 Ways To Use Search For Branding

Mar 2, 2011 at 9:17am ET by Lori Weiman

Search is typically thought of exclusively as a direct response medium with the objectives of driving traffic and customer acquisition. Direct response channels are measured in terms of things like response rates, purchases, and consumer action. These metrics fit in neatly with search because it is measurable media that can be directly correlated to response rates, e.g. clicks and purchases. Conversely, branding is not the ‘usual’ way that the search channel is used. This is primarily because branding objectives differ greatly from direct response goals and therefore the same measures d [...]

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