How to link the right keywords to your items
Keyword targeting is a method of advertising on search engines. In this case, on bol’s search engine. By determining which searches or keywords are most relevant to your offer, you can then bid to place your items at the top of the search results. If your bid wins, the item will be displayed when the customer searches for the keyword.
To select keywords, you can use the automatically generated keywords within the sponsored products system. The keywords are then generated based on the product category the item is in. You can also choose to add these keywords manually. In addition, it is also possible to use long specific search terms, also called long-tail keywords.
If you want to know more about current search trends within bol, you can use the analysis in your seller dashboard. You will find which keywords perform well within bol, along with additional tips.
Relevance
When it comes to selecting keywords, the most important thing is relevance. If you add an irrelevant keyword, then the sponsored product will not be delivered.
Example:
You have added the keyword ‘dog’ for a garden hose. This keyword will not deliver because the keyword is not relevant to your item. This is due to the fact that customers who search for ‘dog’ are not looking for a garden hose.
You can also choose to set up an automatic campaign. Then the system itself searches for relevant keywords. This, however, always takes some time. The keywords are optimised after about 2 weeks.
Exact or word group
You can also differentiate between an exact or broad keyword:
- Exact: Words with quotations (e.g. “bicycle”) can only be delivered when exactly this keyword is searched for.
- Word group: Keywords without quotes (e.g. bicycle) can also be used in combination with other words (e.g. blue bicycle or children’s bicycle).
Exclusionary keywords
By using exclusion keywords, you can exclude specific keywords on which you don’t want to be found. Below are 2 examples for when to use them:
- When you want to advertise with a particular colour or size.
Example: You want to advertise with large TVs. Customers searching for small TVs are less relevant for you to show ads to. Exclude all keywords related to small TVs. - When the search term is too general.
Example: If you only sell phone cases for the Iphone, the keyword ‘Iphone’ may not be relevant. People are then looking for a phone and not a case. It is therefore wise to exclude this keyword.
Longtail keywords
You can also use longtail keywords. Longtail keywords are longer search terms that are more specific. They usually consist of 3 words or more. For example, if you sell make-up bags, a good longtail keyword could be ‘pink make-up bag with mirror’. This allows you to display your sponsored products for more relevant and specific searches, which often results in higher conversions.
Structuring keywords
Structuring keywords properly is useful. To do so you can create different campaigns for different keywords. If your campaign consists of a large selection of items, you will also have a large number of keywords. Therefore, it is important to keep an overview and structure items based on similar keywords.
Example:
You have a selection of shoes. For all shoes, the keyword ‘shoe‘ is relevant. For some shoes, the keyword ‘children’s shoes‘ is relevant, and within this category there are also different segments such as ‘trainers’ and ‘boots‘. If the keyword ‘children’s shoes‘ is placed in all campaigns for the different types of children’s shoes, it is easy to lose track of which ads are displayed for which keyword bids. To avoid this, it is possible to include more general similar keywords in individual campaigns (for example: ‘children’s shoes‘, ‘shoes for children‘). You put the best-selling items in this campaign, for example.
This will then look as follows:
Different keyword strategies
Automatic keyword strategy
You can have keyword selection done automatically. Bol will then search for relevant keywords based on your product information. If you are new to advertising or you are working with new items, then the automatic keyword strategy can be a perfect solution. Even if you have considerable experience with advertising, the automatic keyword strategy could still be useful, because you would be visible to all keywords that bol connects to your items. You can choose to pause keywords, for example if you find them less relevant or too general. We recommend starting campaigns with an automatic keyword strategy. You will quickly find out what your most important keywords are, where you have the most volume and where conversions come from.
Manual keyword strategy
You can also choose to manually set keywords in your campaign. You then determine the keywords yourself and also use the ‘auto complete’ in the search bar on bol. In this search bar, you type in the beginning of a word and are shown a number of suggestions. These are all related terms that customers search for.
Just keep in mind that if you set keywords manually, you might miss out on traffic coming in through other relevant keywords.
