2015 Search Marketing Predictions from David Szetela

The year is ending, we know this by the Christmas gear filling up stores and the constant throbbing in our necks and backs which proves how hard we’re working towards our year end goals.

The light at the end of the tunnel is the year ahead and all the possibilities it brings.

Last year we compiled digital marketing predicitions from some of the biggest names in the industry, pooling 14 expert predictions for the year 2014. This year is round two, and we’ve brought together 15 experts to share their thoughts on the road ahead in 2015.

The full eBook is below, but as a bit of a spoiler we have released several expert predictions. 

Here is what David Szetela, top 25 most influential PPC expert and Acquisio user, had to say about Digital Marketing and PPC in 2015:

“In 2014, many advertisers saw huge increases in impressions and clicks from smartphones. This trend will continue through 2015. Mobile clicks will often represent the majority of clicks available to advertisers.

How can you take advantage of this rapidly-developing trend?

• Examine your data – both AdWords and BingAds allow you to segment performance data by device. Do mobile clicks already represent a significant proportion of overall traffic? How do mobile CPCs and CPAs compare to desktop/tablet?
• If your site is not mobile-optimized or created using responsive design, make this a top priority. Even B2B advertisers need to prepare for the fact that many people use smartphones for business-related searches.
• Design and test conversion processes to work smoothly and quickly on smartphones. Reduce the number of required fields. Offer to let the visitor complete the process by making a phone call.
• If your conversion process absolutely requires multiple fields and even pages, consider just asking for the visitor’s email address, and then email them instructions for completing the conversion on a desktop computer.
• Design and test mobile-specific ads. They needn’t be very different than the corresponding desktop ads, but little changes can help increase performance. Test a “Call Now!” call to action, or use a mobile signifier in the display URL like “mobile.foofighters.com”
• Use mobile bid-boosters to fine-tune mobile CPCs and CPAs. In 2014 mobile CPCs have been, on average, lower than desktop CPCs – so for our clients, we’ve been pegging mobile bid prices at 150%, 200% – and even 300% of desktop prices.
• For many advertisers, a phone call is a more valuable conversion event than a submitted form. This is especially true for B2B lead generation conversions, but can also be true for B2B or B2C retailers when the sale can be complicated. Such advertisers should consider running mobile ads whose “click action” is a phone call. These “click to call” ads are available on both AdWords and BingAds.

Follow these tips and you’ll take full advantage of the fast-growing number of mobile device users who can become your customers over the coming year. And watch the search engines for mobile-specific features they’re already beta-testing!”

Be sure to check out last year’s eBook and see how accurate the predictions were, just for fun, and make sure to download the full ebook here!