Lance Neuhauser
SVP, Digital
PHD U.S.
1/28/10
How did your time in SEM [search engine marketing] prepare you for your current role?
[I learned how to deliver] data driven solutions. [I also learned the importance of] technology as a catalyst to efficiency and effectiveness.
[My time in SEM taught me how to use] digital as a platform for solutions as opposed to a solution in it of itself. Search is a behavior, not a media.
[I also learned the importance of] rooting all solutions in consumer behavior and business needs.
[Finally, my time in SEM taught me about coming up] ideas and speed-starting with a ‘yes’ mentality and an entrepreneurial spirit.
What’s the most important marketing lesson you’ve learned from Google?
They created a self-sustaining data/revenue ecosystem. And it’s built on a business model that is non-intrusive to consumers yet improves and provides more value to consumers with every use, and in turn simultaneously increases marketing value. It’s the holy grail. Thank you, quality score, for supplying us with free technology!
Lesson #14 is “You Can Learn a Lot from a Query.” Can you share your POV on using SEM for business-intelligent marketing? And please share a few examples of you’ve applied learnings from SEM to your client’s broader marketing programs.
[SEM is] consumer behavior exemplified. Since search is an addressable behavior and not a media, we can test, learn and adjust based on this behavior. We can capture preference and change experiences simply by listening to the spontaneous thought or query from a consumer.
[For] FedEx, [we created] additional superbowl content — “making of the ad.” Also, on many occasions, [we] adjusted television flights, used one gender over another in a creative execution, and altered radio and direct mail copy, simply based off of query data and search ad responses.
