With the back-to-school season in full swing, we are reminded of seasonal trends influence over Pay Per Click campaigns. During the Back-to-School season in particular, we are likely to see traffic increases in the office supply, online education, and the children’s apparel and accessory industries. We examined online search trends during the back-to-school season from 2002 to the present and discovered some interesting results.
The two main areas that the Searchfeed.com Network has seen significant traffic increases in during this period are online education and children’s apparel/accessories verticals.

Specifically, the online education vertical has experienced the strongest increase and interest with advertisers either starting new campaigns or ramping up existing campaigns for online education programs. Leveraging off that fall ‘Back-to-School’ feeling, online education sites heavily promote distance learning programs and online adult continuing education programs, with an annual starting mark at beginning of August. This trend is validated by findings in a recent study.

According to a ClickZ report, State of Continuing Education Marketing: How Does Your University Size Up?, “Revenues for continuing education rose 67 percent at responding institutions since the previous survey in 2004. The growth in distance learning is driven by the growth of interactive marketing.”

While the study does not note a specific time of year for increases, we can still note online advertising is a major force that fuels its growth. During the back to school period, we also see heavy increases in traffic relating to online shopping for children’s clothes, including fall jackets and accessories such as backpacks and lunch boxes.

With all seasons, back-to-school being no exception, there are few campaign tips that advertisers should heed.

First, take advantage of the generated interest and increase the marketability of your website by adding seasonal keywords. For example, if you an online retailer selling luggage, include a keyword and listing phrase that stands out to potential customers with a promotion, a qualifier and call to action. For example, with the keyword “children’s backpacks,” create a listing like - “Buy now and get a 10% discount until September 30, 2006 on school backpacks for boys and girls.”

Second, be cognizant of the bidding landscape. It is important for advertisers to note that bid amounts tend to increase with specific verticals affected by the season. For example, now we are seeing an increase on keywords such as “online education programs” and “advanced degrees online.”

Our research confirms that typically 70 percent of all clicks take place in the first three-to-five positions. Consequently, if you want to be competitive – it is prudent to increase bid amounts on seasonal keywords to gain or sustain visibility in top positions.

Third, advertise online throughout the year. While the busy season is over, it is still important to maintain an online presence. The key is to monitor your campaign, especially the bidding landscape. Bidding gaps create opportunities. Oftentimes, advertisers set bids higher because of a busy season, but do not realize they can lower them and still be in the same position as demand decreases after the season is over. For example, if the leading position is $1.19 per click and the second position is $0.79, a significant bid gap has been created, as there is a notable difference between the first and sequential positions.

Therefore, it is not only important to monitor bids relating to seasonal trends, but competitors’ bids as well. Tracking a campaign and having a full understanding of what works and what doesn’t can help to ensure a competitive advantage. There are also free tools available from many PPC advertising firms, including Searchfeed.com, that automate the bidding process and help avoid overspending and bid gaps.

In the end, it is about aligning the online world with the offline world by reflecting seasonal trends, such as the Back-to-School period, within Pay Per Click campaigns.