Kingston Technology found 7,000 qualified
new leads, and twice the ROI, with AdWords.
| Technology manufacturer Kingston Technology is the world's largest independent maker
of memory products for everything from servers and workstations to digital cameras and
handhelds. Based in Fountain Valley, Calif., this billion-dollar company also provides
contract manufacturing for most of the largest semiconductor OEMs (original equipment
manufacturers) and carries more than 2,400 products for some 9,000 systems. Approach When she first investigated Google keyword advertising in the fall of 2002, Kingston marketing manager Jenni Kuo admits to being skeptical. "We don't want to compete with our resellers, so we didn't think selling directly online would work for us," noting that Kingston had previously undertaken combined print and banner advertising, "but the results were not good." Kuo okayed a six-month trial with Google AdWords™ for Kingston's business-to-business products. Since the company offers so many SKUs, Kuo likes "the really smart format, which means we can set up our campaigns by product line." And given the volume of search traffic Kingston gets from Google, advertising seemed to be a natural extension. "Google reaches so many people looking for so many different things," says Kuo, "and that's really important to us." Results In less than five months, Kingston opted to drop all print advertising and invest more in AdWords. "We've easily seen a 10 or 15% increase in traffic coming through Google ads," she says. "And we've branched out into more sophisticated campaigns, such as offering rebates and other special discounts, through a variety of ads we run. We have come around from skeptic to believer, because we're getting 20% of our promotions traffic directly from Google, and the cost-per-click on Google is the lowest one we pay." Kuo cites other metrics that have sold Kingston on AdWords. "We've seen a steady 10% conversion rate over the summer for our digital media products," she says. "We have definitely doubled our ROI, and see at least a four% clickthrough rate – with some campaigns yielding as high as nine%." In one month alone, Kuo notes, "With Google providing two-thirds of the traffic, we got 7,000 qualified leads, and 11% conversion using AdWords. We know this because of Google's reporting tools and our referral tracking system. Google is our top referrer." Kuo says she appreciates the fact that her team can "run every campaign on Google, which we don't do with other [advertising partners]." She believes the AdWords system is more flexible, enabling quick revisions to keywords and ad copy, noting, "Our sales team feels empowered to make the changes they need." She describes the Google Network of search and content sites as "compelling," adding, "we didn't even look at anyone else for expanding our ad reach, because Google does it so well." After less than a year of using AdWords, says Kuo, she's sure of one thing: "If we ever had to limit our advertising, Google would be the last to go." About Google AdWords Google AdWords is currently used by thousands of businesses worldwide to gain new customers in a cost-effective way. AdWords uses keywords to precisely target ad delivery to web users seeking information about a particular product or service. The program is based on cost-per-click (CPC) pricing, so advertisers only pay when an ad is clicked on. Advertisers can take advantage of an extremely broad distribution network, and choose the level of support and spending appropriate for their business. For more information on launching your own campaign or getting expert help, visit http://adwords.google.com. Would you like to share your Google AdWords success story with us? We'd love to hear from you! Return to Tech Commerce overview |
 |