Thanasus - 5:53 pm on Nov 4, 2002 (gmt 0)

For tracking advertising I always use alternate URLs. That way, I'm not doing a redirect, the client doesn't have to remember a long URL. This allows me to quickly change marketing campaigns but track everything. Similary in concept to a doorway page for offline marketing but on a TLD level. It works pretty well.

I am involved in the real estate industry where margins are low but dollar amounts are high. Its also EXTREMELY competitive. Any decent keyword at overture will cost you over $1.00 easy with some over $2.00. My clients engage in a lot of old-world marketing including direct mail, magazine/newspaper, tv, radio, and traffic points (bus stops, billboards, etc).

Here is what I have learned over the 5 years I've been doing this. Offline advertising is incredibly deceitful in tracking. The consumer who gets branded by your billboard 20 times in the week might not go to your website for 3-4 months. At which ponit in time, they may not remember your URL but rather your catchy slogan or your company name. So it's real important to make sure that and branding text you have in your offline advertising have some SEO work done so if a consumer tried to find you, he/she will.

Therefore, offline metrics are a bit inaccurate. I can tell you though that even paying $2.00 CPC generates a higher ROI than ANY print / radio / tv advertising. Traditional advertising is there for the long haul, branding. For some industries, home buying for example, the value of branding is questionable. For others, such as the fast food industry, its invaluable.

My 2 cents.