1. The shift in search behavior and
SERP results during the holidays

2. Ch-ch-changes
Black Friday vs. Cyber Monday 2013
— Amazon won online with new time-sensitive promos every
10 minutes.
— Online Cyber Monday sales topped online Black Friday sales
by 31% and increased from 2012 by 20%. Mobile sales
increased by 55%.
— 30% of consumers will begin their holiday shopping before
Halloween.
Black Friday now starts the week of
Thanksgiving.As early as MONDAY.

3. How would you search for…
— A good deal on a pair of winter boots.
— A hotel in Manhattan for Christmas
with the best view of Central Park.
— A new laptop for your son. He needs
something for college, but he loves
gaming too.
— A video game you know
comes out this year but you
can’t remember the name.You
remember something about
The Lord of the Rings.

4. How do people search during the
holidays?
— Long-tail “categories” – they know
what they want to buy, but they don’t
know where.
— 55 inch plasma tv under $1000
— ladies knee length red wool coat
— assassin’s creed unity collector’s
edition video game
Get it? Long tail? Ha.

5. — Categories, not brands
— Categories: tablets, movies, sweaters… anything non-
branded
— Remember, long-tail searches mean they want to buy.
One-word searches mean they want to learn.

6. — Undecided and uncertain searches: these include
phrases like “popular” or “best” and have a high conversion
rate.
— Popular books for teen girls
— Best mouse for gaming
— Newest hobbit movie on blu ray

7. And nostalgia!
(It sells)

8. How do the SERPs change?
— Google changes what displays in the SERPs based on trends,
including holidays
— They want to answer searchers’ questions, spoken or unspoken:
— What type
— What brand
— Where to get it
— Google responds with:
— More/fewer ads
— In-depth articles, news, images, sponsored ads in the Knowledge
Graph area
AND…

9. Google tells them the answer

10. What to do?
— Start early
— Stay top-of-mind (Amazon)
— Optimize every image: holidays are very visual
— Create video, infographics, and in-depth articles
— Offer deals like free shipping or coupons, free nights or
breakfast, BOGO
— Encourage social sharing (Buzzfeed)
— Spruce up your mobile site
— Remember the post-holiday bargain shoppers
— Determine your users’ holiday needs—hotels, jobs, weight
loss, coffee—and meet those needs!

11. EnVeritas Group
864-241-0779
enveritasgroup.com
info@enveritasgroup.com