Knowledge is the Foundation To Success  

Last time, we discussed Google AdWords conversion tracking and how it functions. This time, we will take a look at conversion tracking for Yahoo! Search Marketing. For a more detailed explanation of conversion tracking, please refer to our earlier blog posts.

Yahoo uses conversion tracking cookies in a similar fashion to Google. When a potential customer clicks your Yahoo! Search Marketing ad, a cookie is stored on the user’s computer. If that customer does indeed make a purchase on your site, then the keyword that was used in their search is credited with a conversion. However, there is a fundamental difference in how Yahoo tracks that conversion as compared to Google. Yahoo will attribute that conversion to have occurred on the actual day that the sale occurred, even if the initial click occurred days, or even weeks, in the past. This is markedly different from Google because Google will track the conversion back to the day of the initial click.

You may actually see a conversion tracked in Yahoo on a keyword for a particular day, even though that keyword shows no clicks even being received that day. That is because the initial click actually occurred in the days prior to the actual sale being made.

Keep this important factor in mind when making Yahoo bid management decisions, especially on newer keywords, and especially if you know you have a longer sales cycle for your products. You could be reducing bids on keywords that look like they are not producing sales, when in fact they might in the near future.

So you are using conversion tracking in your PPC advertising, but are you analyzing it correctly? Are you aware of the difference between how Google tracks conversions as compared to how Yahoo tracks conversions? Are you aware that each of the big three (Google, Yahoo and MSN) use conversion cookies that expire after 30 days?

Let’s start with a Google example. On May 1, a customer searches for your product on Google and clicks your Google AdWords ad. Google puts a conversion tracking cookie on the customer’s computer that will expire after 30 days. Now, let’s say the customer makes the purchase on May 1, the same day they clicked your AdWords ad, the conversion is then tracked in your Google account to have occurred on May 1. However, if that same customer does not make their purchase until May 8, the conversion is still tracked back to May 1, back to the date they actually clicked your AdWords ad. The Google conversion is tracked to the day the customer clicked your ad, not to the actual day of purchase. These can be the same date, but quite often they are not.

Ultimately, your final May Google conversion data will not be truly complete until July 1st. The click a customer made on your Google Ad at the end of May will still register a conversion in your Google account back in May, even if the customer makes a purchase at the end of June. The conversion transaction is directly tied to the date of the click.

Be aware of your average sales cycle when looking at conversion data. Some of our JumpFly clients have zero lead time where customers come to the site and make immediate purchases, whereas other clients may have a two week lead time before a purchase is actually made from a click. This can make a dramatic difference in how you manage your accounts and adjust bids based on conversion data.

MSN works the same way as AdWords, so analyze your MSN AdCenter conversion data accordingly.

Next time, we’ll take a look at how Yahoo tracks conversions.

Are you using conversion tracking in your PPC advertising campaigns? Here are a few simple questions to determine whether you should be or not. Do you have an e-commerce site? Are you selling products directly online? Do you have a “Contact Us” page? Do you have an inquiry form? Do you offer a demo or a download? If you answered “yes” to any of those questions, then you should immediately implement conversion tracking in your PPC advertising.

Conversion tracking allows PPC advertisers to monitor the success of their PPC campaigns down to the individual keyword level. Google, Yahoo and MSN all provide the needed conversion tracking codes free of charge. They are very small snippets of code that can be implemented on your website in literally a matter of minutes. You only need to copy the codes as provided by the search engines, then paste them into the html of the website page where you can track an action that took place. For example, if you sell items directly online, you can place the conversion tracking code on your “thanks for your order” confirmation page. This will allow you track actual sales that were directly generated by your pay per click campaigns. You can also track leads by placing the conversion tracking codes on a “thanks for contacting us” page that a potential customer reaches after filling out an inquiry form.

At JumpFly, we are huge advocates of using conversion tracking. It’s powerful. It’s effective. And it’s available as a free component of your PPC advertising campaigns from the big three search engines. Implement it. Use it. Love it.