We’ve heard it said many a time that SEO and PPC are better together, but what actions really matter and how should we prioritize our efforts? In this actionable, research-based session, Purna Virji will walk you through strategies and tactics you can apply today to drive revenue and customer satisfaction rates. The best part? These are all highly do-able – we’re not reinventing the wheel, we’re just taking what exists and applying it in more meaningful ways. We’ll even bust some PPC myths along the way!

1. Even Better Together:
New Ways for SEO and PPC
to Work Together
Purna Virji, Microsoft Advertising
@purnavirji
Microsoft Advertising. Intelligent connections.

2. @PurnaVirji

3. When SEO Met PPC
Keyword
Mining
Retail
Optimization
Audience
Insights
@PurnaVirji

4. 1. Keyword Mining
Don’t friend-zone Broad Match; there’s a
lot of love potential here.
@PurnaVirji

5. Broad match displays ads when searchers enter either:
- the individual words in a keyword (in any order)
- or themes related to the keyword.
@PurnaVirji

6. Think of it like bidding on a theme rather than a specific term
Broad match keyword Trigger search term
winter vacations
Winter vacation
Tropical winter vacations
Ski trips
Winter ski villa vacation
@PurnaVirji

7. Rethink your strategy: It’s not a volume play nor a way
to identify individual keywords.
@PurnaVirji

8. Rather it’s about staying ahead of the competition by
identifying trends early.
@PurnaVirji

9. @PurnaVirjiSource: Internal Microsoft Data, June 2018
We’ve already seen how language differs with
voice inputs
Talk
@PurnaVirji

10. @PurnaVirji
With natural language becoming more
common, we’re seeing even typed
queries getting longer.

11. On the Bing Network, about 31% of our queries have
five or more tokens.
@PurnaVirji

12. SEMRush data shows a slow but steady change
@PurnaVirji Source: SEMRush Data, North America from March 2017- March 2019

13. Every day, roughly 20% of queries coming to the Bing
Network are brand new.
@PurnaVirji

14. Google has reported similar numbers in the past,
stating 15% of all queries are never seen before.
@PurnaVirji Source: Search Engine Roundtable, https://www.seroundtable.com/google-15-percent-queries-25730.html

15. Spotting the rise of new trending queries can give a keyword
strategy a big boost, for both SEO and PPC.
@PurnaVirji

16. Exposing Themes, Trends and Strategies
@PurnaVirji
Upgrade vs. Update
Win10 vs. Windows
Competitor terms
Affordable +
Superlatives

17. How do I go broad?
Won’t it burn through my budget?
@PurnaVirji

18. Say hello to Broadience
@PurnaVirji

19. Broadience = Broad Match + Audience Targeting
@PurnaVirji
- The Purna Dictionary

20. The audience is the control lever.
@PurnaVirji

21. Helps maximize exposure to valuable audiences.
@PurnaVirji

22. @PurnaVirji
Audience-agnostic
Reduce (+) anchors in mod broad campaigns
In-market audiences
Bid + target
Retargeting audiences (or custom)
Bid + target
Incremental conversion opportunity
Manage risk via a phased approach

23. @PurnaVirji
Broadience Case
Study: FlipKey

24. Broadience Case Study: FlipKey
Pain points:
Brand awareness
Closing the deal
Campaign management
@PurnaVirji

25. Broadience Case Study: FlipKey
Opportunities:
High volumes to help boost brand awareness.
Can reengage customers multiple times during CDJ.
Help increase search term coverage.
@PurnaVirji

26. Broadience Case Study: FlipKey
Results:
50%
of total imp
36%
of total clicks
35%
total revenue
@PurnaVirji

27. SEOs can identify and prioritize keyword themes based
on actual performance data.
@PurnaVirji

28. Fall in love with broad match
I. Rethink the goal– discovery not conversion
II. Minimize risk + maximize reach with audiences
III. Monitor to identify themes
@PurnaVirji

29. 2. Retail Optimization
@PurnaVirji
How Shopping Campaigns help
strengthen the ties between PPC and
SEO

30. @PurnaVirji

31. Visual Search = Image Search
@PurnaVirji
Image Search: Query is text and
results are images.
Visual Search: Image is query input
and results are similar images,
products, entities etc.

32. @PurnaVirji
There are already more than 1 billion visual
searches per month on platforms like
Pinterest, Amazon, eBay and Google Lens. -
eMarketer
Source: eMarketer report “Ten Key Digital Trends for 2019” https://www.emarketer.com/content/ten-key-digital-trends-for-2019

33. Your product feed is a lot more powerful than you
might think.
@PurnaVirji

34. @PurnaVirji
voice-driven
channel

35. Wondering how many people would want to shop
via voice?
@PurnaVirji

36. @PurnaVirji Source: Microsoft’s 2019 Voice Report
62.3%!
“Have you ever attempted to make a purchase using either
a digital assistant or your smart home speaker?”

37. @PurnaVirji Source: Microsoft’s 2019 Voice Report
It’s not just for food

38. @PurnaVirji
related
products

39. @PurnaVirji

40. @PurnaVirji

41. @PurnaVirji
Cortana app

42. What can we do to optimize?
@PurnaVirji

43. @PurnaVirji

44. Let’s quickly review how the product auction works.
@PurnaVirji

45. @PurnaVirji

46. @PurnaVirji
Elements of a Product Ad
Store name
Price
Product title
Product image

47. @PurnaVirji
It’s all pulled from the product feed
Product 1
Product 2
Product 3
Product 4
Product 5
$
$
$
$
$
2. Bids are placed on products1. Advertisers upload product feed

48. @PurnaVirji
It’s all pulled from the product feed
3. Searches are matched to product data 4. Product ads are displayed to users
bouquet

49. Need to think like an SEO here.
@PurnaVirji

50. Which attributes help in determining product relevancy?
1
• Titles
2
• Descriptions
3
• GTINs (Global Trade Identification Numbers)
4
• Brand / Manufacturer Part Number
5
• Product Category (Taxonomy)
6
• Product Variant Attribute/Item Group ID (color, gender, size, material, pattern)
Matching & relevance
Matching & relevance
Matching
Matching
Matching
Matching
@PurnaVirji

51. Let’s talk titles
@PurnaVirji

52. Include the following:
Brand + Product Name + Product Type +
Size + Color (if applicable)
Titles Cheat Sheet:
@PurnaVirji

53. e.g.
Contoso (COI37117) 3/8in. Drive
Standard 6 Point Impact Socket 17mm #
37117
Titles Cheat Sheet:
@PurnaVirji

54. Normalize to most common verbiage,
e.g. used vs. pre-owned.
Tip: Check the search term report for
ideas.
Titles Cheat Sheet:
@PurnaVirji

55. Know your limits:
35 | 150
Titles Cheat Sheet:
@PurnaVirji

56. Let’s discuss descriptions
@PurnaVirji

57. Yay or Nay: How’s this description?
Ready to drink Protein Coconut water
Size: 330ML. Flavor: Plain.
@PurnaVirji

58. Important to note with product feed descriptions
Goal=relevancy, not incentive
@PurnaVirji

59. Ready to drink Protein Coconut water Size: 330ML. Flavor: Plain. Coconut
water drink with fruit juice concentrate, whey protein and sweeteners.
Coconut Water (48%)*, Whey Protein Concentrate (Milk), Water, Strawberry
puree (1.2%), Banana puree (0.7%), Color (Carrot Concentrate), Lemon
juice*, Natural Flavoring, Sweeteners (Sucralose, Acesulfame-K), Acidity
Regulators (Lactic Acid, Sodium Citrate), Stabilizer (Pectin). Size (330) Unit
(ML)
@PurnaVirji
A better description would be:

60. Descriptions cheat sheet
• You have 10K characters, use
them well
• Should be same description as on
landing page
• Most important data up front
@PurnaVirji

61. SEOs, this is like instant karma.
@PurnaVirji

62. Let your product feed bring SEO and PPC together
I. Make titles and descriptions work harder
II. Use the same feed across search and advertising
campaigns
III. Earn extra visibility through organic placements
@PurnaVirji

63. 3. Audience Insights
@PurnaVirji
How audience targeting helps SEO and
PPC with increasing relevancy and
personalization

64. @PurnaVirji
Age: 30-35Gender: Female
College Student
Avid Gamer
Parent
Audiophile
Visited Warby Parker
Cortana/Invoke Owner
Purchases on Mobile
@PurnaVirji

65. In-market audiences
@PurnaVirji

66. Curated lists of customers who have shown purchase intent
signals within a particular category.
@PurnaVirji

67. They’ve been a big hit with PPC advertisers
5%
CTR*
Ads shown to In-market Audiences saw up to a 5% greater
click-through rate (CTR) than the same ads shown to non-
audience targeted users.
17%
CVR*
Ads shown to In-market Audiences saw up to a 17%
greater conversion rate (CVR) than the same ads shown
to non-audience targeted users. Audiences
* Source: Microsoft internal data; U.S. pilot performance data using “bid only” targeting on Bing owned and operated traffic, April 2018.@PurnaVirji

68. Take it a step further by testing tangentially-related audience
groups.
@PurnaVirji

69. @PurnaVirji
§ /Apparel & Accessories/Formal Wear/Bridal
Wear
§ /Autos & Vehicles/Motor Vehicles/Motor
Vehicles by Type/Luxury Vehicles
@PurnaVirji
For example

70. Get further insights into how different segments perform +
identify new niches for content and outreach.
@PurnaVirji

71. LinkedIn Profile Targeting
@PurnaVirji

72. Target potential customers based on their LinkedIn profile
information such as company, industry, and job function.
@PurnaVirji

73. @PurnaVirji
For example

74. Note: These are different from LinkedIn Ads.
@PurnaVirji

75. Adjust bids as you would do with your regular demo
targeting options.
@PurnaVirji

76. @PurnaVirji

77. @PurnaVirji
Think of the advantages
with outreach and link
building.

78. @PurnaVirji
As well as with making
content marketing feel
more relevant and
personalized.

79. SEO learnings can come from
display and native advertising
too!
@PurnaVirji

80. H/T to Arnout Hellemans
(@hellemans) for this idea
@PurnaVirji

81. Start by creating a remarketing list
of converters and running super
simple, non-conversion focused
display ads.
@PurnaVirji

82. Could use:
- Brand logo, no CTAs
- Advertorial-style
- Generic brand + lifestyle
@PurnaVirji

83. Review the placements report for
learnings into the sites where your
audience hangs out.
@PurnaVirji

84. Now you can prioritize your content
outreach efforts and pitch the sites
your audiences frequent.
@PurnaVirji

85. P.S. Ensure good customer
experience by leveraging
frequency capping + running these
campaigns for limited windows.
@PurnaVirji

86. Better reach Mr. or Ms. Right via audience targeting
I. Tangentially-related in-market audience lists
II. Professional demos via LinkedIn targeting
III. Display to understand where to reach your audience
@PurnaVirji

87. Do-able, right?
@PurnaVirji

88. Let’s recap
Keyword Mining:
Identify keyword themes
and trends to focus and
prioritize your efforts.
Retail Optimization:
A few simple steps can
yield a lot more volume –
paid and organic.
Audience Insights:
Increase relevancy and
personalization for ads as
well as outreach efforts.
@PurnaVirji

89. It’s all about SEO + PPC coming together to
get their fairytale ending, i.e. maximizing
efficiency.
@PurnaVirji