The holidays (Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Thanksgiving and Christmas) actually change SEO. Holiday branding is different from branding at any other time of the year, and Laura Lee discusses why it is different and how you need to be marketing your company.

1. The shift in search behavior and
SERP results during the holidays

2. Ch-ch-changes
Black Friday vs. Cyber Monday 2013
— Amazon won online with new time-sensitive promos every
10 minutes.
— Online Cyber Monday sales topped online Black Friday sales
by 31% and increased from 2012 by 20%. Mobile sales
increased by 55%.
— 30% of consumers will begin their holiday shopping before
Halloween.
Black Friday now starts the week of
Thanksgiving. As early as MONDAY.

3. How would you search for…
— A good deal on a pair of winter boots.
— A hotel in Manhattan for Christmas
with the best view of Central Park.
— A new laptop for your son. He needs
something for college, but he loves
gaming too.
— A video game you know
comes out this year but you
can’t remember the name. You
remember something about
The Lord of the Rings.

4. How do people search during the
holidays?
— Long-tail “categories” – they know
what they want to buy, but they don’t
know where.
— 55 inch plasma tv under $1000
— ladies knee length red wool coat
— assassin’s creed unity collector’s
edition video game
Get it? Long tail? Ha.

5. — Categories, not brands
— Categories: tablets, movies, sweaters… anything non-branded
— Remember, long-tail searches mean they want to buy.
One-word searches mean they want to learn.

6. — Undecided and uncertain searches: these include
phrases like “popular” or “best” and have a high conversion
rate.
— Popular books for teen girls
— Best mouse for gaming
— Newest hobbit movie on blu ray

7. And nostalgia!
(It sells)

8. How do the SERPs change?
— Google changes what displays in the SERPs based on trends,
including holidays
— They want to answer searchers’ questions, spoken or unspoken:
— What type
— What brand
— Where to get it
— Google responds with:
— More/fewer ads
— In-depth articles, news, images, sponsored ads in the Knowledge
Graph area
AND…

9. Google tells them the answer

10. What to do?
— Start early
— Stay top-of-mind (Amazon)
— Optimize every image: holidays are very visual
— Create video, infographics, and in-depth articles
— Offer deals like free shipping or coupons, free nights or
breakfast, BOGO
— Encourage social sharing (Buzzfeed)
— Spruce up your mobile site
— Remember the post-holiday bargain shoppers
— Determine your users’ holiday needs—hotels, jobs, weight
loss, coffee—and meet those needs!

11. EnVeritas Group
864-241-0779
enveritasgroup.com
info@enveritasgroup.com