Contextual Marketing

Imagine you Google the word Orlando and a banner ad for American Express pops up saying “Earn Points for a Free Trip to Disneyworld”. Below that is a second banner ad that states “Visit Universal; Studios, SeaWorld, and Busch Gardens for as little as $99”. These are just two examples of Contextual Marketing on the internet. Contextual marketing can be defined as marketing your product in context to the interests of the customers.

The concept of Contextual marketing is not new. It has been used in traditional advertising for many years, but is truly being perfected through the internet. NASCAR advertisements on radio and television have some great examples of contextual advertising. NASCAR race broadcasts are a great place to advertise NASCAR tickets, raceway hotel accommodations and even special NASCAR airline tickets. Yet the internet, especially Google, has taken contextual marketing to its next chapter.

Google’s Contextual marketing tool Ad Words allow users to reach up to 75% of the world’s unique internet users. Companies wanting to advertise to people using Google search engines select key words that are relevant to their business. For example, Continental Airlines may want their “Direct Flights to Orlando from 52 Cities” banner ad displayed on Google’s site when someone does a search for “Disneyworld”. Contextual advertising in this manner is highly targeted with very little marketing waste. Continental may also want the same ad placed on the site for Orlando’s SeaWorld which Google may have permission to place.

Contextual Marketing costs are normally based on (CPC) cost per click basis. The more people that click on your banner ad, the more your business will be charged. The cost of a click varies greatly from as little as $.10 to as much as $2.00 per click. Companies use AdWords to bid to establish the position and placement of their ad on the website. Therefore both Continental and U.S. Airways may bid for top placement on SeaWorld’s web site through AdWords. This unique way of establishing costs allows advertisers a unique way to track advertising results while providing the necessary metrics needed to insure a good ROI.