Four SEM strategies for the European Football Championship

SEARCH ENGINE MARKETING It won't be long now before campaigns from official European Championship sponsors and other advertisers in retail, on television and on the internet are vying for consumers' attention. The aim is clear: to transfer the enthusiasm for football to your own brand and thereby increase sales. IntelliAd shows four strategies for achieving this in search engine marketing.There is a lot of potential to benefit from EM in search engine marketing (SEA). This is because SEA is often the first point of contact with new users and at the same time the last before the final purchase decision. This is why it is standard practice for advertisers to use special keywords and launch campaigns for their EM promotions. Here are four tactics from Intelliad to prove themselves on the marketing playing field: 1. Monitor campaigns, adapt bidding strategiesThe surfing behavior of Germans will change significantly, especially during the European Championships. Among other things, it is to be expected that less shopping will take place online during the matches and that more users will surf on their smartphones than usual due to the public viewing before the games. Therefore, those responsible should closely monitor the effects of the European Championships on purchasing behavior, especially in the affected customer segments, and react accordingly: For example, via a so-called Mobile Bid Modifier adjust the bidding level for smartphones and react to the shifted peaks in traffic. This is done with the Intraday Bidding - The day is divided into several time slots and the bidding level is set according to the actual buying interest, as well as the weather, which will also play a major role during the European Championships. After all, it will have an impact on how many people go to outdoor public viewings or prefer to watch at home if the weather is bad (and perhaps buy a new smart TV at short notice). About the so-called Weather triggering This allows you to react flexibly to how the weather situation develops and whether bids for certain products (such as televisions or barbecues) need to be lowered or raised as a result.2. Actively follow events and take up in their own campaigns Every European Championship writes its own stories and creates new heroes. Resourceful marketers can profit directly from this by following developments on the pitch and recognizing the emerging needs of consumers. The simplest example: if your country reaches the final, many football fans will want to travel to Paris at short notice. Travel providers should therefore prepare appropriate campaigns and ramp them up at the right time. But trends and internet memes about players and teams also offer sales opportunities - e.g. for printers who can offer suitable T-shirt motifs at short notice. But be careful: campaigns should not be expanded with generic keywords with high traffic without careful consideration. Otherwise, a lot of money will be paid for clicks that are not backed by any concrete buying interest. Travel providers prefer to focus on "cheap to Paris", "hotel Paris" and related keywords.3. Only play if you have a realistic chance A European Football Championship is highly competitive - also and especially as an environment for advertising. Not every company can keep up with the large budgets of some competitors. What's more, not every campaign relating to the European Championship is automatically a success. On the contrary: many measures taken by advertisers during the European Championships are rather inefficient, as many consumers quickly become oversaturated by the constant barrage of advertising surrounding the football highlight. There is often no relevant connection between the European Championships and a product. Too many advertising measures are also aimed at users with no specific intention to buy. So if you can't offer any meaningful specials and can't create any added value for users in the context of the European Championship, it's better to stay out of it. Being there is not everything.4. Konterns and competitor campaigns for themselves The impulse effect of TV commercials is undisputed, but not affordable for every company - especially in the European Championship environment. However, marketers can counter this in a targeted manner and use competitors' TV advertising to increase sales: Via the so-called TV Triggering all TV spots are tracked in real time. If previously defined competitors place TV ads, the advertising pressure for SEA ads and display placements can be increased immediately in order to direct users with a specific interest in buying to your own website. For example, if a competitor generates buying interest for Ultra HD televisions via a TV ad, you can immediately increase the bids for the corresponding product offerings online for a short period of time. This can improve visibility and capture traffic from the competition - or even extend your own TV campaigns to the web by synchronizing TV and online channels.What all these tactics have in common: They need a quick turnaround game. Marketing is not only created on the tactics board in the booth, but also reacts quickly to the moves of the competition. In addition, you have to learn to understand your (potential) customers and their specific needs. Then, and only then, can you optimally align your campaigns and product portfolio and be present on the right channel at the right time with the optimal offer. The basis for this is a tracking infrastructure that covers the reality of the marketing approach as comprehensively as possible and across all channels - and offers the opportunity to draw the right conclusions. This not only keeps you well informed in your day-to-day work, but also allows you to take advantage of major events such as the European Football Championships or the Summer Olympics in Rio.