Here’s 5 Smart Ways to Plan Your E-commerce Sales Promotion

Ready for your next sales promotion?

For some ecommerce teams, it’s a time-consuming task deciding which items to markdown and how to publicize a sales event. However, sales promotions play an integral role in attracting customers.

A survey found that up to 50% of consumers make a purchase only with a promotion. Shoppers desire a good deal before they invest in your products. Moreover, your business may want the additional revenue.

“Sales promotions can give you the edge you’re looking for when it comes to revenue. Successful companies know that sales promotions are among the most effective methods of increasing sales and building customer satisfaction,” writes Emily Weisberg, content marketing manager at ThriveHive.

Take a strategic approach when planning your sales promotions. Below are five smart ways to help your team.

1. Select Specific Incentives

Sales promotions take various shapes and forms. Cater your incentives to fit your consumers’ needs.

Start by using customer analytics. Historical purchasing habits can uncover what promotions performed well. Social media comments also provide first-hand details on whether customers possess interest.

Next, match your findings with a sales initiative. From mystery discounts to purchased-based donations to bundle sales, several options exist.

Monetate “found that 56% of businesses agree that flash-sale campaigns are better received than regular campaigns.” Limiting the timeframe creates urgency for the customer to act now.

(Image Source)

Thinking about free offers? PaySimple’s Vice President of Knowledge Lisa Hephner explains the power of free incentives:

“Everyone loves free. Whether it’s free gifts, free refills, or free service segments, free sells. One of the most powerful free offers is free shipping for online orders, as evidenced by multiple studies where respondents highlight it as the most important factor in making a purchase decision.”

Figure out the best promotions for your customers. Review your data before moving forward.

2. Cross-Sell With a Purpose

Every sales promotions doesn’t need to involve discounting your signature product. Instead, it can focus on secondary items.

Cross-selling is another opportunity to provide value to your customers. Buyers love convenience, and they want to save time shopping at one place. And it eliminates the hassle of sifting through multiple ecommerce sites.

Align your promotions with products that complement one another. Give consumers the chance to buy everything they need from your store.

“Savvy marketers use this concept to increase sales by informing consumers how one product complements another. Cross selling can take several forms. Understanding your customers’ motivations helps you choose which approach to take,” says Sara Huter, a contributor at BusinessBee.

For example, if your company sells cell phones, your team can offer a promotion on the accessories, like bluetooth earbuds, phone cases, or charging cables.

(Image Source)

Research found that “cross-selling was shown to be much more effective when presented on the checkout pages versus the product pages.” So, add images of promotional products in the sidebar menu.

Plus, cross-selling aids with bringing in more cash flow for your business. Amazon credits up to 35% of its revenue to cross-selling.

Think differently about ecommerce sales promotions. Don’t remove cross-selling from your list of possibilities.

3. Microtarget Your Customers

Microtargeting isn’t a new technique to your team. Nevertheless, you may be failing to put it into practice.

Segmenting your audience lets your business offer the right promotions to the right individuals. Customization speaks directly to consumers—signaling that you know exactly what they need.

Melissa Jenkins of Mel Jens Designs believes “running a successful promotion is all about finding that delicate balance between audience segmentation, great timing and setting the perfect price or placing the perfect offer.”

Examine your data to segment properly. Try geographical locations, buying habits, income levels, or even past purchasing behavior.

Dealers United Auto Group created mock ads targeted for car shoppers within 25 miles of the dealership that possess an interest in pets. Specificity is vital for effective micro targeting.

(Image Source)

A study reveals that 51% of marketers believe sharing data across their organizations is a major issue. Avoid data limitations that will hinder segmentation for your sales promotions.

Create an open dialogue across departments to gather all data about your customers. You’ll have more knowledge to build an accurate buyer persona.

Pinpoint who needs to know about your sales event. Microtargeting is a benefit to your company.

4. Hype Up Engagement

Draw attention to your sales promotions with social media and email campaigns. This extra engagement will get people interested in your sales incentives.

Facebook users spend an average of 50 minutes a day on its multiple platforms. Work with your team to promote sales on your social pages. Or even enlist the help of industry influencers to spread the word.

User-generated content (UGC) is also another way to lure shoppers toward your brand. Actual consumers enjoying your products authenticates your value to hesitate buyers.

“User-generated photos are a great way to generate social proof. Prospective customers see that your products are regularly being purchased people just like them, and feel more comfortable doing something that others are doing,” says Dan Wang, a content specialist at Shopify.

Big box retailer Target retweeted a post from loyal shoppers who made a funny video in one of its stores. Encourage customers to submit UGC of them unboxing your products.

when @Target is having a sale http://pic.twitter.com/RIUu6p3zLs

— spooky addie |-/ (@blurrytylerjosh) October 15, 2016

Also, keep your email subscribers in the loop about promotions. Craft engaging emails that explain the benefits, provide social proof, and use a distinct call-to-action.

“When it comes to creating a high-converting marketing offer email, the final piece of the puzzle is using a prominent call to action button. This is important because buttons make it clear to the reader what the next step is and encourage them to click-through,” states Aaron Beashel, director of demand generation at Campaign Monitor.

Shout your sales promotions from the rooftop. Get shoppers excited to participate.

5. Move Toward Customer Loyalty

Returning customers spend on average 67% more than first-time customers. Consider promotions as a pathway to retaining customers.

Give your customers an opportunity to discover your brand’s values and culture. Sign up shoppers for your weekly newsletter, or enroll them in your rewards program.

Customer loyalty centers around building worthwhile relationships. However, buyers may only be interested in your promotions.

“The use of sales promotions can be positively utilised in order to encourage brand loyalty and brand switching by companies. However, academic research suggests that consumers can become loyal to sales promotions rather than a brand,” states Zhorna Ali, a sales and marketing assistant at M3.

To avoid consumers from brand switching, companies must thoroughly personalize their sales promotions strategy. Focus on specific product categories to remain competitive within the market.

Rather than giving sales incentives to everyone, Bare Escentuals limits its promotions to its loyal fans called Beauty Insiders. In the example below, customers received three free items with any order.

(Image Source)

Create plans to engage customers beyond your sales promotions. Earn their loyalty.

Prep for Sales Promotions

Planning for your next sales event involves lots of time and decision-making. You want to boost your revenue and satisfy customers.

Choose buyer-specific incentives that will attract people. Cross-sell products that complement one another. And think beyond the promotion by focusing on customer loyalty initiatives.

Upgrade your sales promotion. Prepare for it today.

About the Author: Shayla Price lives at the intersection of digital marketing, technology and social responsibility. Connect with her on Twitter @shaylaprice.

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New Display Targeting, AdWords Message Extensions, and Other Top Stories from October

Whether you went out over the weekend or are preparing for a night of debauchery and questionable costumes tonight, All Hallows Eve is upon us once again.

 

Before we get to the inevitable anxiety about Thanksgiving – and the subsequent descent into the madness of the holidays – let’s take a look back at the top stories from the WordStream blog in October. From stealthy new additions to Display keyword targeting options to new AdWords extensions, there was a lot going on this month.

1. Google Silently Introduces New Display Keywords Targeting Settings

The biggest story of the WordStream blog in October was the news that Google had surreptitiously added new targeting features to Display campaign keywords. These new targeting options give Display advertisers greater control over where and how their ads are displayed. Essential reading for Display network advertisers.

2. 11 Battle-Tested Ways to Raise Your SEO Click-Through Rate [Infographic]

It’s getting increasingly difficult to get the mileage out of organic content that used to be possible, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take proactive measures to improve your organic click-through rates. In our second-most popular post of October, Larry outlines 11 battle-tested ways to raise your SEO CTR.

3. 6 Crazy Social Media Ad Ideas to Make You Look Like a Big Deal

Social media ads are more popular than ever before, but with more advertisers comes more pressure to get creative with your ads. Luckily for you, Larry is here to come to your rescue. In this post, Larry offers six crazy ideas to increase your profile on your social channels and make you look like social media royalty.

4. 3 Simple PPC Formulas Proven to Lower Your Costs

The simplest ideas are often the best, and although advanced techniques can help you stay ahead of the curve, sometimes you’ve got to get back to basics. In our fourth-most popular post of October, Mark outlines three simple PPC formulas that will help you lower your costs – and what advertiser doesn’t want to do that?

5. The Easy Guide to Maximizing Your AdWords ROI

Getting the most bang for your buck was obviously a theme in this month’s round-up. In this post, Allen explains everything you need to know about maximizing the ROI of your campaigns, no matter what your campaign objectives may be. There’s some great tips in here, so be sure to check it out.  

5. NEW AdWords Message Extensions Enable High-CTR Click-to-Message Ads [Data]

The introduction of new ad extensions is always a big deal, and the announcement of AdWords’ new Message Extensions was no exception. In our fifth-most popular post of the month, Mark goes into detail about exactly what you can do with these new extensions, and how they can impact the effectiveness of your campaigns.

6. Top 5 Mobile Tests to Try This Month

Mobile search volume is increasing all the time, making it vital to test new strategies and techniques for your mobile campaigns. In this post, guest author Talia Wolf of Banana Splash outlines five mobile tests you can implement right now and stay ahead of the competition in an increasingly challenging space.

7. 10 Reasons Your Site is Preventing Conversions Right Now

Even if you think your site is as optimized as it can be, but there are more hidden pitfalls that could be hurting your efforts than meets the eye. In this guest post, David Hoos of The Good reveals 10 ways your site could be harming your conversion rates – some of which you may not even have considered.

8. The Ultimate Guide to Tracking, Targeting, and Driving Conversions on Facebook

Facebook offers advertisers a wealth of conversion tracking options, but for the uninitiated, it can be a minefield out there. In this comprehensive guide, Brett McHale explains absolutely everything you need to know about using Facebook’s universal tracking pixel to track, target, and drive conversions on Facebook – essential reading for social advertisers.

9. 13 Great Mobile Marketing Tools You Need

As Mary points out in our penultimate post of this month’s round-up, it’s a mobile-first world – and everyone is pretty much sick of hearing about it. Despite “mobile fatigue,” it’s never been more important to leverage every tool at your disposal to succeed at mobile social advertising, and in this post, Mary checks out 13 tools you need to succeed.

10. The Art & Science of High-Converting Landing Page Images

Landing pages can be among the most effective tools at marketers’ disposal, but there is both an art and a science to optimizing landing page images – a highly important element of the best landing pages. In our final post of this month’s best-of, Brad Smith shows you exactly what you need to do to optimize your landing page images and increase your conversion rates.

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The 3-Step Guide to Hiring an Agency or Any 3rd Party Vendor

Is it Time to Hire an Agency?

Even the best of us DIYers all eventually run up against something that makes little sense for us to tackle on our own and we have to hire a professional to get the results we want. When I first bought my home, I got HGTV Magazine just to read the section where a handyman answers home improvement questions with either:  “Ask a Pro” or “Give it a Go.”  Basically it has a question like, “I have termite damage, should I try to fix it myself?” (uh, no) or, “I need to replace a doorknob (go for it!).”

Even though I am a proud DIY enthusiast, the homeowner stuff freaked me out.  I was talking to my then boss who owned some rental real estate and was a DIY home renovation hobbyist. He told me he felt the same way I did about home projects as he did about computers. We both looked at each other like we were aliens and at the same time said, “But if something on a [house -him] [computer -me] goes wrong you just fix it.” 

For a small business, it can be more complicated than just “I can’t do it so I’ll hire someone who can.” Sometimes it’s not the skillset of the new project that’s the issue, but the time it would take away from an internal team member to do it. For most of the hundreds of small businesses I have worked with, the Owner or General Manager is often the salesperson, the marketer, HR, payroll, webmaster and so on. In other words there is a lot of awesome DIY going on in small businesses and sometimes it works great and sometimes, well, it doesn’t, and experts have to be hired.

So the first part of learning how to hire a third party to handle a facet of your business is to answer the age old HGTV magazine question: Hire a Pro or Give it a Go? In lieu of Q&A here is a flowchart that I (obviously) DIYed.

This Flowchart Assumes the Following:

1. You cannot afford NOT to do this project based on the goals of your business. You have already decided that “The Thing” you need done, whether that’s someone to run your online marketing, build your website, or cater your next event is something you must do.
2. You can afford to hire a 3rd party to do “The Thing” for you.
3. You cannot justify hiring a full- or a part-time team member for “The Thing.”
4. You = the main decision maker for “The Thing”

Congrats to all of you give-it-a-goers! Stop reading, grab some coffee and go get on YouTube or Lynda.

For the rest of you, let’s talk about how you should go about hiring a business to help run your business. In my former position as Marketing Manager at Mobile Electronics Specialists of America (M.E.S.A.) a huge part of my job was hiring and managing third-party marketing vendors. Why? Because M.E.S.A. is a 150+ retailer buying and marketing group but the M.E.S.A. team was (and still is) quite small. So it was impossible to do it all. We often got stuck on the “Do you have time to do this” part of the flowchart, so we hired pros.

For half a decade I was on the client side of B2B discovery and sales calls 2-3 times per month on average. Sometimes they were event vendors, sometimes they were digital marketing agencies, sometimes they were digital sign vendors, and the list goes on. That means I’ve talked to SO MANY of these companies and through it all I’ve learned that it’s like hiring anyone: you ultimately don’t know how it will work out until you take the leap and hire them.

That doesn’t mean however, you can’t set yourself up for success. Use these 3 steps to make sure you partner with the best possible organization for your goals.

[Still not sure if you need an agency or not? Check out our free guide, 3 Signs That You Need an Agency]

 

STEP 1: Start With You, Not With Them

Before you begin researching possibilities for partners on this project, make sure you know what you want. You can be flexible later if need be but always start with you. When a B2B company’s sales pitch is 100% about them and they ask nothing about you and your business that is a big red flag (see Step 3). I mean would you have a second date with someone who only talked about themselves for 1.5 hours? Hopefully not.

Many B2B organizations have a wide range of offerings. For example, an agency might offer SEO, PPC, Call Tracking, Web Design, Sales Training, Business Listings, and Content Creation. If you were really only looking for PPC help they are still going to try to sell you the rest of those offerings. They might send you something scary that shows you how much you need them to take over that other part of your business that you were not even considering in your original plan.

I am not saying you shouldn’t consider those pitches, but don’t lose sight of your original goal and budget. If you are interested in other services that come up along the way, make it clear that you would like to accomplish the original goal first before moving on to a next phase. In the meantime, do your own research to confirm whether or not their additional products or services are actually of value to your company.

It is crucially important that you keep your eye on the ball and not be intimidated by excessive shiny jargon (another red flag) and scare tactics. Any car owner who doesn’t know much about cars knows this is easier said than done though, right? Why? Because if you lack the expertise to know exactly how to fix the car or whether or not it’s even broken, you need to find someone who does. Quite the pickle. (Are these baseball metaphors working for you?) That is why trusting your new partner is one of the most important factors in deciding who to work with. You should also remain mindful of what you do know: what you want out of this partnership.

Try This: compose a new email and address it to yourself. For the subject sum up what you need done. In the body describe exactly what you want to accomplish, how much you want to spend to accomplish it, and a sentence or two about the type of people you want to work with including what a trustworthy company looks like to you. It should take you 2-3 minutes tops. Click Send.

Note to Project Managers: Okay yes, a full statement of work would be ideal but let’s get real, are small business owners and GMs really going to do one? Well if they do that’s great! But the idea behind this “email to self” is to get to the heart of what ultimately really matters fast. If that’s all you have time to do, it should help you as a reference along the way.

Good job, now let’s move on.

STEP 2: Finding a Partner

Every love story has the “how we met” story. Looking for someone to run your Facebook ads or SEO strategy probably won’t be an actual love story (who knows though!?) but still you have to find one another somehow and you have to do it all (gasp) without Tinder!

Here are my top three strategies for finding the right partner in a marketing agency:

Ask Other Businesses

If you’re a local business, find a non-competing company (like in a different geographic area) in your industry that seems to be doing a good job with what you’re trying to do. You might need to do a little research to find them or you may already have good industry contacts you can start with. If you can’t find anyone in your industry to help, try other businesses in your area that have similar challenges as you and seem to be managing them how you would like to.

Don’t forget about your other vendors. Do you work with other businesses already? For example, at my current position we work with car dealerships, car/home audio and electronics vendors, and boat dealerships. Who do they work with? You may get multiple recommendations from this exercise, which would be great. Set up calls with them all.

Ask Your Team

You might have someone on board who worked with a great company for this service at a previous position or they might have other relevant contacts that can help in your search.

Google

I know you did this first and that’s fine. The downside to Google is that there are SO MANY B2B PRODUCT & SERVICE PROVIDERS. Go back to your email to self from Step 2 to help you narrow down your search. Is it important to you that they be in your area? Can you afford those top companies that pop up? Do you want someone who has experience in your vertical? I found the lovely people over at WebMason with a simple google search for franchise printing solutions and they’re one of my favorite vendor hires ever! So even though it can be daunting, throw some cold Google leads in the mix.

More tips on partner hunting:

• Don’t Hate the Player: Talk to 3-5 companies and make sure they know they aren’t the only ones you’re talking to.
• Raise Your Hand: Make a list of specific and direct questions you have and ask them all to each company. Note discrepancies, whether or not they answer directly, and whether they seem annoyed by your inquiries or welcome them.
• Keep Their Enemies Close: Ask them straight up who their #1 competitor is. If they tell you (many dance around this one for obvious reasons) ask why you shouldn’t go with them instead. Then talk to the competitor.
• In Free Stuff We Trust: I recently had a call with iFocus Marketing and their National Sales Manager, Whitney Barker, offered me some great objective user feedback about our site’s mobile user experience that I was able to address and fix in minutes. We haven’t signed anything with them yet but that first taste of their expertise and potential value was a huge step in the right direction for me. I’m really not saying this just because this is their blog but WordStream does this really well and it’s one of the reasons people trust them.
• We Want Prenup. Not really but you know what I mean. Should you part ways, you should leave with at least what you started with. Make sure you retain ownership level access of all digital properties and accounts that you own that they help manage. Get it in writing.

STEP 3: Watch for These 9 Red Flags

Now for the fun part. Use these red flags as a guide to help you in your vetting process. But note: They only work if you’re honest with yourself about them. I know it’s tempting to just go with the first company you talked to because you have zero time, but avoiding bad eggs will save you time and money in the long run.

Not that kind of red flag

Red flag #1: You know 2 or more (yikes) other businesses that you trust that have had a bad experience with them. My father in law is a mathematician and always likes to remind me that, “Two is a pattern.” But you don’t have to be a mathematician to know that this situation isn’t looking good. Don’t even waste your time with a call with this company. Dealbreaker, move on. 

Red flag #2: They will not allow you access to something you owned before the relationship. See the prenup tip in Step 2. I have dealt with this mess and it isn’t pretty. Dealbreaker, move on.

Red flag #3: They dodge questions about current or past clients and/or projects and will not provide any portfolio or examples of work. Or, their portfolio is bad. Dealbreaker, move on.

A detailed design portfolio

Red flag #4: They ask you few or no questions about your business, your goals, or your industry. Even if they have experience in your vertical. Workable: If everything else seems okay see if you can talk to someone higher up. You may just have an inexperienced salesperson. Make sure you will ultimately be working with someone who does care about your goals and wants to understand your business.

Red flag #5: Overusing repetitive scripted pitches. Some of you salespeople out there are mad at me about this one and I’m sorry (not sorry).  If they can’t think around every angle of your problem in relation to their own product, it’s possible they don’t completely understand their own offerings OR they don’t completely understand what you need. Workable: This happens all the time because salespeople are usually expert salespeople but may not have a deep technical understanding of what they sell. That’s why this one is workable. Ask to have a 2nd call that also includes a practical member of the team who will actually be working with you on the project. If you’re still not having a real conversation.

Red flag #6: They repeatedly refuse to answer or purposely dodge direct questions.

Dealbreaker, move on. This might be one of the most frustrating experiences as a client. I should have made this Red Flag #1 because it’s one of my biggest pet peeves. In my experience, people do this for 1 of 2 reasons: they don’t know the answer, or they know that you aren’t going to like their answer.  Answering questions honestly (even if it’s, “I don’t know but I’ll find out for you”) builds trust; but not answering questions or avoiding them destroys it. It’s pretty simple, people.

Red flag #7: They are very late to or miss scheduled meetings to sell you on their products or services. Dealbreaker, move on.

I had a pretty pricey web project I was getting multiple bids for and I had a call set up with a company to pitch me on the project and…. the guy just forgot about the call. A WEEK later, he emailed me and was very apologetic and begged me to reschedule, but I didn’t. Maybe I was being too harsh but I stand by the decision. I get that people make mistakes but if they don’t show up when it means making them money, they probably aren’t going to show up when they already have your money. They should value your time from the get go and want to earn your trust.

Red flag #8: You know something crucial about their area of expertise that they do not. Dealbreaker, move on.

A person in a social marketing agency once told me I needed to use hashtags on Facebook.  Which sounds all fine and dandy here in 2016 except for the fact that this was about 2 years before hashtagging was even possible on Facebook. He didn’t use social media himself, must have been confused about something he heard, and never bothered to confirm it. If you’re going to hire an expert, make sure they’re actually an expert. If you don’t, remember you often get what you pay for (or don’t pay for as it were.)

Red flag #9: You have a bad feeling about them/You don’t think they are being honest with you/They seem to purposely talk over your head/They over-jargon their sales pitches. Judgment Call.

My friend owns a business and he found a company through word of mouth to build his website and possibly handle his Google AdWords account. He asked me to talk to the rep there because my friend doesn’t speak online marketing-ese. I exchanged a few emails with the rep and he came off kind of rude and pushy but when I got him on the phone he was all smoothed out. When I called my friend to tell him that I thought they would be fine, he said he had a bad feeling about the guy and the company. He thought the guy was too pushy and he wasn’t sure he liked him. From there, my friend needed to make that call for himself but for me it’s a dealbreaker: it hurts my soul to work with people I truly don’t like. My boss once said he can work with people he likes, with people he doesn’t like, but he cannot work with someone he can’t trust. Seems pretty reasonable to me. You have to decide where you stand on that for yourself but don’t ignore it as a red flag.

Final Thoughts

Congratulations! You now have an expert you trust to run something that will help you obtain your business goals! But don’t just settle on autopilot. People, technology, businesses, and goals all can change without much notice.  Just because there were no red flags when you started working with an agency doesn’t mean that in a year or two there won’t be. Make sure that it continues to be the right investment for your business.

About the author

Erin Costello is the Director of Marketing for Freeman's Car Stereo in Charlotte, North Carolina. Previously she was the Marketing Manager for Mobile Electronics Specialists of America for 5 years: a 250+ brick and mortar storefront buying and marketing group of 12 volt (car audio electronics) retailers. She is also the co-founder of the non-profit literary publishing project, SpringGun Press, which publishes poetry, fiction, and digital art. Originally from Northern California, she graduated with a B.A. in English from University of California, Davis and earned a M.F.A. in Creative Writing from University of Colorado, Boulder. She works from home and lives in Denver, CO with her husband and daughter. Follow her on Twitter: @erinmcostello

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How to Get Around Google’s New Local Business Review Guidelines

On August 29th, 2016, Google significantly updated their requirements for adding review rich snippets to local business schema markup. The updated guidelines make it much more difficult for local businesses to use review rich snippets since all reviews must be […]

Post from: Search Engine People SEO Blog

How to Get Around Google’s New Local Business Review Guidelines

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Written by Garry Grant, SEO Inc

The post How to Get Around Google’s New Local Business Review Guidelines appeared first on Search Engine People Blog.

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Moz Keyword Explorer vs. Google Keyword Planner: The Definitive Comparison

Posted by BritneyMuller

Keyword research, the blueprint to any successful SEO strategy

If you’ve been doing keyword research for a while, you’ve probably fallen into a routine. And that routine has likely been recently disrupted... thanks, Google.

If you’re new to keyword research, getting comfortable with new keyword research tools will come more easily to you. Lucky pups. But us change-averse old dogs can still learn new tricks when we need to. Are you ready to see which tool is right for you? --Woof.

My hesitations about writing this article:

• I’m new to Moz and don’t want to be crucified for criticizing our own keyword research tool. This concern has only been met with acceptance and encouragement, so…*fingers crossed* they don’t change their minds. Love you guys!
• My methods of keyword research revolve around finding qualified traffic for increasing conversions, not just any large search volume numbers (to make traffic look good).
• I fear that this will come across as a Moz Keyword Explorer soft sell. It’s not. It’s a very honest comparison of Moz Keyword Explorer versus Google’s Keyword Planner. It's a post that I've been wanting to read for a while.

Here are some great guides if you need a Moz Keyword Explorer refresher, or a Google Keyword Planner refresher.

< << TL;DR Skip to the conclusion here >> >

Google Keyword Planner's recent change

Any habits we’ve held onto with Google Keyword Planner were disrupted early September when they decided to stop providing average monthly search volume data (unless you’re in that special group of higher-paying ad buyers who can still access the more precise search volume data). Instead, we now see huge swings of min-max search volume, which really starts to muddy the keyword research waters. Google recently came forward to explain that this change was done to deter scrapers from pulling their search volume data.

For a more comprehensive write-up on this change, read Google Keyword Unplanner by Russ Jones. He explains a little more about how this change affects various data sources and what Moz has been doing to mitigate the impact.

But, showing is better than telling. So let’s take a look for ourselves:

A 900,000 average monthly search volume swing is crazy! In fact, Google now only provides one of seven volume sizes: 0–10, 10–100, 100–1000, 1000–10000, 10000–100k, 100k–1MM and 1MM+.

Moz’s Keyword Explorer also gives ranges, but they’re not nearly as vast (or as arbitrary). The machine-learning model behind Keyword Explorer is designed to predict monthly fluctuations in search volume. It’s mathematically tied to the most accurate keyword data available, and you can see exactly how, and how accurate Moz gets in this Clickstream Data to the Rescue article.

Which is why I wanted to know:

What's most important to you when doing Keyword Research?
— Britney Muller (@BritneyMuller) September 1, 2016

What are quality keywords?

Quality keywords successfully target your demographic during their acquisition phase (education - purchase), have a specific searcher intent, low-medium organic competition, and medium-high search volume (this will vary based on what part of the acquisition funnel you're targeting).

However, it's important to keep in mind that some longer-tail queries (with little to no search volume) can be highly profitable as well.

---

Tier 1 keyword research setup

Google Keyword Planner:

This is my familiar ol, kooky friend that has been acting very strange lately (anyone else noticing all of the delays and glitches?). I’m a little worried.

Anywho, here’s how I begin keyword research within Keyword Planner:

1. Enter in your keyword under “Search for more keywords using a phrase, website or category.”
2. Make sure the region is set to United States (if wanting to research nationally).
3. Set keyword options to “broad.” --Settle down, we’ll go back and change this to “closely related” after our first swoop.
4. Sort keyword volume by highest to lowest and change the “show rows” to 100.
5. IMPORTANT: Always scroll top to bottom! Otherwise, new keywords will populate from the bottom that you'll miss.
6. Select keywords with unique intents as you scroll down the first 100 rows, click "next," and start again from the top until through all keyword results.

Moz Keyword Explorer:

My hip new friend that I’m not sure I can trust just yet. However, multiple trusted friends vouch for her integrity and... I really dig her style.

Here’s how I begin keyword research within Keyword Explorer:

1. Enter your keyword into the Keyword Explorer search bar.
2. Navigate to “Keyword Suggestions” on the left-hand menu.
3. Set “Display keyword suggestions that” to “include a mix of sources.”
4. Set “Group Keywords” to “no.”
5. Sort keyword list by highest search volume to lowest.
6. Scroll down and select keywords with unique searcher intent.

Either way, this will give you one giant list of 1,000 keywords, which can be tough to pace through (compared to the 100 keyword chunks in GKP). A progress bar of sorts would be nice.

The thing that’s taken the most getting used to is not seeing a competition/difficulty metric adjacent to the search volume. The whole goal of keyword research is to discover opportunity gaps that offer mid-to-high search volume with low competition. If you’re anything like me, you’ve ran hundreds if not thousands of strange SEO tests and are very aware of what you can achieve “competition”-wise (domain-dependent) and what you can’t. (Or when a higher-competition keyword should take the form of a longer SEO plan.)

*It’s important to note that the KWP “Competition” metric is an advertising metric.

Despite this metric occasionally leading to an SEO correlation, it’s often misleading and not an accurate representation of how competitive the organic results are.

The KWE “Difficulty” metric, on the other hand, is an organic search metric. It also leverages a smarter CTR curve model to show when weaker pages are ranking higher (in addition to other ranking signals).

That being said, having to wait to find out the competition metric of a keyword until after I add it to a list is frustrating. I can’t help but feel that I’m not selecting keywords as strategically as I could be. Hopefully, Moz will add a historical competition metric up front (adjacent to search volume) sometime in the near future to help us better select ripe keyword opportunities.

The relevancy metric doesn’t do much to help my research because I’m already relying on the keywords themselves to tell me whether or not they're relevant/have a unique user intent.

(I told you guys I would be honest!)

Label by keyword type:

Navigational: Searchers seeking a destination on the web.

Example: "University of Minnesota tuition"

Informational: Searchers researching, getting quick answers, often times using what, who, where, how, etc. modifiers.

Example: "what is a conker"

Commercial Investigation: Searchers investigating beyond an informational query. Comparing brands, searching for "best," researching potential clients, etc.

Example: "ppc experts in london"

Transactional: Searchers looking to purchase something, comparing rates, seeking prices for things, etc.

Example: "affordable yoda action figure"

Transactional and Commercial Investigation types tend to be most profitable (depending on business model). For example, a blog could do very well from Informational-type keywords.

If you want a more in-depth understanding of keyword types; read Rand's Segmenting Search Intent. <-- An oldie, but a goodie!!

Compare results & answer:

• Which tool provided better long-tail results?
• Which tool provided better top-of-funnel queries?
• What percentage of "keyword types" did each tool provide?
• What are the advantages and disadvantages of each tool?

For whatever reason, “student loans” painted an accurate picture (of what I’ve found to be true across other competitive keywords) for each prospective tools’ wheelhouse. So, “student loans” will serve as our point of reference throughout this comparative analysis.

---

Tier 1 keyword research overview:

	Moz Keyword Explorer	Google Keyword Planner
Term:	"student loans"	"student loans"
Region:	United States	United States
Spectrum:	Include a mix of sources	Broad
Group Keywords:	No	-
Total Results:	1000	700
#Keywords With Intents:	43	40

---

+ Moz Keyword Explorer results:

Keyword	Modifier	Type	Min Volume	Max Volume	Difficulty	Opportunity	Importance	Potential
student loan consolidation	consolidation	Commercial Investigation	11501	30300	60	83	3	79
student loan calculator	calculator	Informational	11501	30300	75	100	3	76
student loan	-	Informational	118001	300000	82	84	3	82
federal student loan	federal	Navigational	30301	70800	63	48	3	76
student loan refinance	refinance	Commercial Investigation	11501	30300	55	83	3	77
student loan repayment calculator	repayment calculator	Informational	11501	30300	67	100	3	74
student loan interest rates	interest rates	Commercial Investigation	6501	9300	53	54	3	69
student loan hero	hero	Navigational	1701	2900	49	19	3	53
student loan forgiveness	forgiveness	Commercial Investigation	70801	118000	62	86	3	86
student loans information	information	Informational	501	850	90	55	3	39
applying for student loans	applying for	Informational	4301	6500	72	55	3	60
fafsa student loans	fafsa	Navigational	2901	4300	98	56	3	28
bad credit student loan	bad credit	Commercial Investigation	1701	2900	44	83	3	70
student loan websites	websites	Commercial Investigation	851	1700	79	53	3	48
where to get student loan	where to get	Informational	501	850	76	55	3	47
citibank student loans pay	citibank pay	Navigational	201	500	29	94	3	64
how to get a school loan	how to get a	Informational	201	500	68	55	3	45
how to find my student loans	how to find my	Navigational	101	200	54	58	3	48
how to check student loans	how to check	Navigational	101	200	63	55	3	45
discover private student loan	discover private	Navigational	101	200	53	21	3	36
check my student loan balance	check my balance	Navigational	101	200	55	100	3	52
apply for student loan online	apply for online	Transactional	101	200	68	53	3	41
look up student loans	look up	Commercial Investigation	101	200	53	90	3	51
student loan now	now	Transactional	51	100	72	86	3	42
stafford student loans login	stafford login	Navigational	51	100	76	60	3	36
federal student loan lookup	federal lookup	Navigational	11	50	55	100	3	46
how to view my student loans	how to view my	Informational	11	50	57	64	3	39
how do i find out who has my student loan	how do i find out who has my	Informational	11	50	59	86	3	42
apply for additional student loans	apply for additional	Commercial Investigation	11	50	73	64	3	34
what student loans do i owe	what do i owe	Informational	11	50	50	41	3	34
student loan application status	application status	Navigational	0	10	72	100	3	33
what is federal student loans	what is federal	Informational	0	10	78	58	3	25
who services federal student loans	who services federal	Informational	0	10	68	100	3	22
apply for student loan by phone	apply for by phone	Transactional	0	10	86	86	3	11
national student loan locator phone number	national locator phone number	Informational	0	0	58	29	3	11
i owe student loans who do i call	i owe who do i call	Informational	0	0	50	94	3	26
where do i find my student loan interest	where do i find my interest	Informational	0	0	78	58	3	11
how to find my student loan account number	how to find my account number	Informational	0	0	55	100	3	25
how much federal student loans do i have	how much federal do i have	Navigational	0	0	80	46	3	8
where do i pay my government student loans	where do i pay my government	Navigational	0	0	77	55	3	11
student loans lookup	lookup	Navigational	0	0	55	100	3	26
student loans payment history	payment history	Navigational	0	0	66	46	3	14
how many school loans do i have	how many do i have	Navigational	0	0	68	90	3	21

Additional tool features:

The Importance metric: ...is powerful! However, I’ve left all my results at a neutral Importance (3) so you can see downloaded results without any customization (and to keep things fair, because I’m not prioritizing GKP keywords).

If you choose to use this metric, you set a priority level for each keyword (1=not important, 10=most important) that will then influence the keyword's Potential score. This allows you to more easily prioritize a keyword plan, which is very helpful.

Group keywords with low lexical similarity: While this can save you time, it can also lead to missing keyword opportunities. In my example below, if I select "student loans" (and not "Select 821 keywords in group"), I would miss all of the nested keywords.

Use this feature carefully:

---

+ Google Keyword Planner results:

Keyword	Modifier	Type	Avg. Monthly Searches (exact match only)	Competition	Suggested Bid
student loan forgiveness	forgiveness	Commercial Investigation	100K – 1M	0.58	3.38
student loan refinance	refinance	Commercial Investigation	10K – 100K	0.96	34.57
student loan consolidation	consolidation	Commercial Investigation	10K – 100K	0.98	22.52
private student loans	private	Commercial Investigation	10K – 100K	0.99	28.51
student loans without a cosigner	without a cosigner	Commercial Investigation	1K – 10K	0.98	23.85
parent student loans	parent	Commercial Investigation	1K – 10K	0.96	10.27
best private student loans	best private	Commercial Investigation	1K – 10K	0.93	21.33
bad credit student loans	bad credit	Commercial Investigation	1K – 10K	0.97	4.02
best student loans	best	Commercial Investigation	1K – 10K	0.93	18.61
compare student loans	compare	Commercial Investigation	100 – 1K	0.98	23.8
medical student loans	medical	Commercial Investigation	100 – 1K	0.91	10.16
student loans from banks	from banks	Commercial Investigation	100 – 1K	0.97	13.09
student loans for international students	for international students	Commercial Investigation	100 – 1K	0.88	14.01
no credit check student loans	no credit check	Commercial Investigation	100 – 1K	0.98	5.74
nursing student loans	nursing	Commercial Investigation	100 – 1K	0.94	15.53
alternative student loan options	alternative options	Commercial Investigation	10 – 100	1	30.32
best student loan consolidation program	best consolidation program	Commercial Investigation	10 – 100	0.91	36.91
student loan bankruptcy	bankruptcy	Commercial Investigation	1K – 10K	0.42	9.48
student loan deferment	deferment	Commercial Investigation	1K – 10K	0.35	10.31
student loans		Informational	100K – 1M	0.98	25.97
student loan calculator	calculator	Informational	10K – 100K	0.42	5.41
types of student loans	types of	Informational	1K – 10K	0.82	13.61
student loan options	options	Informational	1K – 10K	0.99	23.63
how to consolidate student loans	how to consolidate	Informational	1K – 10K	0.84	13.79
student loan default	default	Informational	1K – 10K	0.28	8.18
student loan help	help	Informational	1K – 10K	0.96	15.48
where to get student loans	where to get	Informational	100 – 1K	0.97	17.19
average student loan	average	Informational	100 – 1K	0.33	18.59
private education loans	private	Informational	100 – 1K	0.98	16.76
what is a student loan	what is	Informational	100 – 1K	0.6	8.75
how do you get a student loan	how do you get	Informational	100 – 1K	0.94	5.22
no credit student loans	no credit	Informational	100 – 1K	0.98	7.85
about student loans	about	Informational	10 – 100	0.92	14.9
information on student loans	information	Informational	10 – 100	0.94	14.08
iowa student loan	iowa	Navigational	10K – 100K	0.23	9.08
great lakes student loans	great lakes	Navigational	10K – 100K	0.18	7.05
fafsa student loans	fafsa	Navigational	1K – 10K	0.61	7.41
student loan interest rates	interest rates	Transactional	1K – 10K	0.7	10.11
low interest student loans	low interest	Transactional	100 – 1K	0.98	21.07
need student loan today	need today	Transactional	10 – 100	1	9.8
i need a student loan now	i need now	Transactional	10 – 100	0.99	13.7

---

Tier 1 conclusion:

Google Keyword Planner largely uncovered Commercial Investigation and Informational queries. GKP also better identified a broader set of top-of-funnel keyword opportunities: student loan help, parent student loans, types of student loans, etc.

Moz Keyword Explorer largely uncovered Informational and Navigational queries. MKE better identified longer-tail keyword opportunities: how to get a school loan, apply for student loan online, apply for student loan by phone, etc.

---

Tier 2 keyword research setup

"closely related search terms" vs. "only include keywords with all of the query terms"

Google Keyword Planner: Perform same setup, but select "Only show ideas closely related to my search terms."

Moz Keyword Explorer: Perform same setup, but select "only include keywords with all of the query terms."

Note: Your .csv download will still say “Broad” for Google Keyword Planner, even though you’ve selected “Closely related”... Told you she was acting funny.

---

Tier 2 keyword research overview:

	Moz Keyword Explorer	Google Keyword Planner
Term:	"student loans"	"student loans"
Region:	United States	United States
Spectrum:	Only include keywords with all of the query terms	Closely related
Group Keywords:	No	-
Total Results:	1000	700
#Keywords With Intents:	66	30

---

+ Moz Keyword Explorer results:

Keyword	Modifier	Type	Min Volume	Max Volume	Difficulty	Opportunity	Importance	Potential
student loan	-	Informational	118001	300000	82	84	3	82
student loan forgiveness	forgiveness	Commercial Investigation	70801	118000	62	86	3	86
student loan calculator	calculator	Commercial Investigation	11501	30300	75	100	3	76
citi student loan	citi	Navigational	11501	30300	34	94	3	86
student loan consolidation	consolidation	Commercial Investigation	11501	30300	60	83	3	79
private student loan	loan	Commercial Investigation	11501	30300	62	80	3	77
student loan refinance	refinance	Commercial Investigation	11501	30300	55	83	3	77
student loan repayment calculator	repayment calculator	Commercial Investigation	11501	30300	67	100	3	74
student loan interest rates	interest rates	Transactional	6501	9300	53	54	3	69
application for student loan	application for	Commercial Investigation	4301	6500	64	54	3	63
apply for student loan	apply for	Commercial Investigation	4301	6500	60	53	3	64
student loan forgiveness for teachers	forgiveness for teachers	Commercial Investigation	4301	6500	58	100	3	71
bad credit student loan	bad credit	Commercial Investigation	1701	2900	44	83	3	70
student loan hero	hero	Navigational	1701	2900	49	19	3	53
student loan servicing	servicing	Commercial Investigation	1701	2900	70	90	3	62
discovery student loan	discovery	Navigational	851	1700	47	28	3	51
fsa student loan	fsa	Navigational	851	1700	90	58	3	41
student loan providers	providers	Commercial Investigation	501	850	66	53	3	51
where to get student loan	where to get	Informational	501	850	76	55	3	47
check student loan balance	check balance	Navigational	201	500	54	46	3	49
department of education student loan servicing center	department of education servicing center	Navigational	201	500	78	58	3	42
student loan status	status	Navigational	201	500	61	86	3	54
us student loan debt	us debt	Informational	201	500	66	56	3	49
all student loan	all	Informational	101	200	58	56	3	45
discover private student loan	discover private	Navigational	101	200	53	21	3	36
how do i find my student loan	how do i find my interest	Informational	101	200	59	86	3	51
student loan management	management	Commercial Investigation	101	200	57	53	3	45
student loan resources	resources	Commercial Investigation	101	200	49	83	3	52
where is my student loan	where is	Informational	51	100	61	55	3	42
student loan corporation citibank	corporation citibank	Navigational	11	50	36	94	3	45
student loan enquiries	enquiries	Commercial Investigation	11	50	61	100	3	43
fafsa student loan consolidation	fafsa consolidation	Navigational	11	50	99	53	3	1
federal student loan options	federal options	Commercial Investigation	11	50	75	54	3	34
federal student loan terms	federal terms	Commercial Investigation	11	50	81	90	3	31
get a student loan today	get a today	Transactional	11	50	66	83	3	41
need student loan now	need now	Transactional	11	50	71	83	3	37
student loan overview	overview	Informational	11	50	79	94	3	35
student loan payment history	payment history	Navigational	11	50	55	100	3	46
student loan website down	website down	Informational	11	50	42	90	3	44
apply for student loan by phone	apply for by phone	Commercial Investigation	0	10	86	86	3	11
apply online for student loan	apply online for	Commercial Investigation	0	10	68	53	3	28
citibank student loan promotional code	citibank promotional code	Navigational	0	10	38	94	3	28
student loan corporation sallie mae	corporation sallie mae	Commercial Investigation	0	10	63	100	3	23
dsl student loan	dsl	Navigational	0	10	51	90	3	38
how do i take out a federal student loan	how do i take out a federal	Informational	0	10	80	55	3	22
how to pay student loan online	how to pay online	Informational	0	10	52	55	3	32
student loan management app	management app	Commercial Investigation	0	10	43	83	3	26
my student loan account number	my account number	Informational	0	10	65	64	3	18
student loan servicing center pennsylvania	servicing center pennsylvania	Navigational	0	10	52	88	3	38
where to pay my student loan	where to pay my	Informational	0	10	68	100	3	22
student loan counseling center	counseling center	Commercial Investigation	0	0	58	83	3	23
deadline for student loan application	deadline for application	Informational	0	0	68	60	3	16
educated borrower student loan	educated borrower	Commercial Investigation	0	0	54	83	3	24
get subsidized student loan	get subsidized	Commercial Investigation	0	0	64	90	3	22
how do i find my student loan account number	how do i find my account number	Informational	0	0	55	100	3	26
how much student loan can i have	how much can i have	Informational	0	0	71	55	3	14
how to check the status of a student loan from direct loans	how to check the status of a	Informational	0	0	86	90	3	11
how to find out who is my student loan lender	how to find out who is my lender	Informational	0	0	60	60	3	19
how to get your student loan money	how to get your money	Informational	0	0	39	56	3	22
student loan information eligibility	information eligibility	Commercial Investigation	0	0	85	86	3	11
is financial aid a student loan	is financial aid a	Informational	0	0	72	60	3	15
national student loan data system for parents	national data system for parents	Commercial Investigation	0	0	53	22	3	10
national student loan database contact number	national database contact number	Navigational	0	0	57	64	3	20
nslds student loan login	nslds login	Navigational	0	0	73	46	3	11
subsidized loan and unsubsidized student loan	subsidized and unsubsidized	Commercial Investigation	0	0	57	94	3	24
what is a national direct student loan	what is a national direct	Informational	0	0	66	64	3	17

---

+ Google Keyword Planner results:

Keyword	Modifier	Type	Avg. Monthly Searches (exact match only)	Competition	Suggested bid
student loan application	application	Commercial Investigation	1K – 10K	0.98	22.37
student loan bankruptcy	bankruptcy	Commercial Investigation	1K – 10K	0.42	9.48
how to get a student loan	how to get	Informational	1K – 10K	0.92	10.59
student loan help	help	Informational	1K – 10K	0.96	15.48
student loan deferment	deferment	Commercial Investigation	1K – 10K	0.35	10.31
alaska student loan	alsaska	Navigational	1K – 10K	0.54	2.21
south carolina student loan	south carolina	Navigational	1K – 10K	0.45	23.59
texas guaranteed student loan	texas guranteed	Navigational	1K – 10K	0.5	17.34
student loan interest rates	interest rates	Transactional	1K – 10K	0.7	10.11
student loan consolidation rates	consolidation rates	Transactional	1K – 10K	0.94	17.44
student loan refinance	refinance	Commercial Investigation	10K – 100K	0.96	34.57
student loan consolidation	consolidation	Commercial Investigation	10K – 100K	0.98	22.52
student loan calculator	calculator	Informational	10K – 100K	0.42	5.41
student loan gov	gov	Navigational	10K – 100K	0.28	16.42
iowa student loan	iowa	Navigational	10K – 100K	0.23	9.08
student loan forgiveness	forgiveness	Commercial Investigation	100K – 1M	0.58	3.38
what is a student loan	what is	Informational	100 – 1K	0.6	8.75
how can i get a student loan	how can I get	Informational	100 – 1K	0.97	7.71
how to get a private student loan	how to get a private	Informational	100 – 1K	0.96	14.82
student loan app	application	Navigational	100 – 1K	0.83	11.89
student loan cancellation	cancellation	Transactional	100 – 1K	0.41	4.5
student loan tax	tax	Transactional	100 – 1K	0.25	47.05
medical student loan consolidation	medical consolidation	Commercial Investigation	10 – 100	0.93	0
federal student loan options	federal options	Commercial Investigation	10 – 100	0.75	7.45
student loan consolidation faq	consolidation faq	Commercial Investigation	10 – 100	0.76	15.94
how to figure out student loan interest	how to figure out interest	Informational	10 – 100	0.38	10.52
how to apply for a student loan online	how to apply	Informational	10 – 100	1	20.61
how much is my student loan payment	how much is my	Informational	10 – 100	0.22	20.96
need a student loan now	need now	Transactional	10 – 100	0.99	12.02
need student loan today	need today	Transactional	10 – 100	1	9.8

---

Tier 2 conclusion:

Google Keyword Planner largely uncovered a pretty even percentage of all 4 keyword types (30% Informational, 20% Navigational, 30% Commercial Investigation, and 20% Transactional). GKP also continued to provide a broader set of top-of-funnel keyword opportunities: student loan bankruptcy, student loan gov, student loan help, how to get a student loan, etc.

Moz Keyword Explorer largely uncovered Commercial Investigation and Informational queries. MKE also continued to provide a broader set of long-tail keyword opportunities: student loan forgiveness for teachers, student loan providers, student loan status, how do i find my student loan, etc.

---

Where this is the end of the road for Google results, Moz has some other filters up its sleeve:

Let's explore the other available Moz keyword filters and examine the discovered keyword results (keywords with unique intent).

Exclude your query terms to get broader ideas: 25 keywords

Most results are longer-tail queries around college tuition, educational expenses, private school tuition, etc. This evenly resulted in Informational, Navigational, and Transactional keyword results:

Based on closely related topics: 35 keywords

One of the more evenly distributed (search volume) results in this example. Most keyword results are around other types of loans or grants: payday loan, pell grants, auto loan, private loans, etc.

Based on broadly related topics and synonyms: 74 keywords

Results are mostly three words or longer and revolve around more specific types of loans; great lakes student loans, wells fargo student loans, student loan chase, etc.

Related to keywords with similar results pages: 187 keywords

Results are mostly long-tail Commercial Investigation queries around loan payments, student loan consolidation, student loan forgiveness for teachers, student loan payment help, etc.

Are questions: 111 keywords

Last, but certainly not least. The crème de la crème of an FAQ page.

Results reveal long-tail student loan questions (mostly Informational), like: can you file bankruptcy on student loans, do student loans affect credit score, are student loans tax deductible, where can i get a student loan, etc.

---

TL;DR

Conclusion:

Google Keyword Planner has limited search volume data, but continues to provide a broader set of top-of-funnel keywords (high volume, low competition <-- ad metric). Despite the "closely related" filter resulting in a more even percentage of all 4 keyword types, it provided fairly similar results (35.4% duplicate) to "broad." Commercial and Informational keyword types were most commonly found.

Moz Keyword Explorer provides more accurate search volume data, while providing a broader set of long-tail keywords (mid-to-low volume, low competition). The many keyword filters provide a wide range of keyword results (17% duplicate in first two filters) and keyword types depending on which keyword filter you use. However, Informational, Commercial Investigation, and Navigational keyword types were most commonly found.

Pros:

Moz Keyword Explorer:	Google Keyword Planner:
The keyword search volume accuracy (IMO) is the most impressive part of this tool.	The ability to view monthly trends, mobile versus desktop searches, and geo-popular areas is wonderful.
Better UX.	Can add negative keywords/keywords to not include in results.
Keyword suggestion filters reveal far more keyword results.	Sorting by 100 keywords is a nice cadence.
The “are questions” filter is incredibly useful for things like FAQ pages and content marketing ideas.	Google Sheet download integration.
Saved keyword lists (that can be refreshed!? Say whaa!?)	Average keyword bid (for further competition insight).
Detailed SERP data for SERP feature opportunities.	Monthly keyword trend data (on hover).
Organic competition metric.	Ability to target specific hyper-local areas.
Ability to prioritize keywords which influences the Potential metric (for smarter keyword prioritization).

Cons:

Moz Keyword Explorer:	Google Keyword Planner:
The Min Volume | Max Volume | Difficulty | Opportunity | Importance | Potential can be overwhelming.	Search volume ranges are widely skewed and bucketed.
No Google Sheet download integration.	Individuals who start adding keywords from the bottom up of a list (scrolling up) will miss newly populated results.
No “select all” option.	Broad & Closely Related filters tend to provide very similar results.
The list of 1,000 keyword results can be daunting when doing lots of keyword research.	No SERP feature data.
Inability to target specific local regions.	Can’t save lists.
	Clunky, slow UX.

Which is right for you?

I’d consider where you want to target people in your sales funnel, and where you need to improve your current website traffic. If you have wide top-of-funnel traffic for your product/service and need to better provide long-tail transactions, check out Moz Keyword Explorer. If you need a brief overview of top-level searches, take a look at Google Keyword Planner results.

Which do I use?

I'm a little ashamed to say that I still use both. Checking Google Keyword Planner gives me the peace of mind that I’m not missing anything. But, Moz Keyword Explorer continues to impress me with its search volume accuracy and ease of list creation. As it gets better with top-of-funnel keywords (and hopefully integrates competition up front) I would love to transition completely over to Moz.

Other keyword research tips:

I’ve also been a big fan of ubersuggest.io to give your initial keyword list a boost. You can add your selected keywords directly to Google Keyword Planner or Moz Keyword Explorer for instant keyword data. This can help identify where you should take your keyword research in terms of intent, sub-topic intents, geographic, etc.

Answer the Public is also a great resource for FAQ pages. Just make sure to change the location if you are not based in the UK.

Would love your feedback!

• Please let me know if you can think of other ways to determine the quality of keywords from each tool.
• Any other pros/cons that you would add?
• What other tools have you been using for keyword research?

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How to Find the Conversion Drivers of Your Website with the Funnel Report

There may be a lot of unanswered questions you have about some the big-picture questions with your website. Perhaps you’re asking:

Do demo requests or signups lead to more paying customers?

Does that product video lead to more signups?

Does the self-service onboarding plan lead to more customers?

Does offering a buy one, get one sale increase purchases?

In cases like this, there are options that a visitor can take to reach conversion. But, it’s often difficult for marketers to know which one has a better effect on the funnel.

The Kissmetrics Funnel Report answers these questions. Here’s how.

Finding the Biggest Conversion Drivers on Your Site

The traditional SaaS Funnel looks something like this:

• Visited site
• Signed up for a trial
• Used product
• Upgraded to paying

But what if a visitor could sign up or schedule a demo before using the product? The only solution to knowing which one converts better would be to create two separate funnels and compare the results. That is, until now.

The Kissmetrics Funnel Report allows you to add and/or statements in a step. So our hypothetical funnel could look like this:

• Visited site
• Signed up for a trial or Scheduled demo
• Used product
• Upgraded to paying

Here’s how to set that funnel up, and how to view the results:

View the Funnel Results

I’m not going to bore you with the details of setting up a Funnel Report. We’ve covered it before here and here. As long as you have your events and properties set up, creating a Funnel Report is as easy as putting shoes on. Let’s get straight into the results.

We’ll first look at the people that signed up:

And scheduled a demo:

Notice a difference?

Looks like signups drive significantly more product usage and customers (54 compared to 0). If this was your data, you’d know you should remove demo requests from the website so 100% of users go straight to signing up.

What’s Holding Back Your Marketing Site?

How many elements are on your website, seemingly harmless but actually detracting people from signing up or converting? They’re there, but you don’t know how they’re affecting the rest of your funnel.

Using the Or statements (like we did) in the Funnel Report is a great way to find the best performing elements on your site. Best of all, you don’t need to run an A/B test. All this data is already in Kissmetrics, and as long as you’ve been tracking it, you can see the performance.

Happy optimizing!

About the Author: Zach Bulygo (Twitter) is the Blog Manager for Kissmetrics.

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