Adding Efficiency to Your Search

Engine Marketing (SEM) Campaigns:

Tips and tactics on reporting, using Excel,
and selecting an automated tool

A Search Marketing Now E-Book

 Adding Efficiency to Your Search Engine
Marketing (SEM) Campaigns:
Tips and tactics on reporting, using Excel,and selecting an automated tool

Introduction
Good search engine marketing (SEM) takes time, lots of time. There are constant updates; reams of data

G reports to read, analyze and act upon; and clients or marketing directors always asking why their keyword
performance isn’t better.

SEM is one of the most technologically driven disciplines in the digital marketing landscape. Ideally, search
marketers want to keep all search marketing data in one place where it can be easily analyzed and formatted into
meaningful reports that benefit the entire organization. For some search marketers, that data resides in an Excel
spreadsheet. At some point, however, it becomes necessary to add efficiency using automated tools to manage all
of your search marketing data.

This E-Book looks at how to become more efficient at SEM -- whether you're using Excel or an automated campaign
management tool. We'll start with fundamental best practices in reporting, then look at some tips and tricks in Excel,
and finally examine when -- and how -- to select an automated PPC management tool.

Our thanks go to the following Search Engine Land columnists, who provided valuable insight for this e-book: Josh
Dreller, Vice President of Media Technology, Fuor Digital; Bonnie Jo Davis, owner, Your Marketing Assistant (a
division of Davis Virtual Assistance); Andrea Harris, SEM manager, Carfax Vehicle History; Brad Geddes, founder,
bgTheory; Mona Elessaily, director of marketing strategy, Page Zero Media; and George Michie, co-founder and
principal, Rimm-Kaufman Group. And thanks to Karen Burka, who compiled this report. I

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 Adding Efficiency to Your Search Engine
Marketing (SEM) Campaigns:
Tips and tactics on reporting, using Excel,and selecting an automated tool

Best Practices in SEM be things you cannot plan for, but having a solid plan is a
must.
Reporting The next step is to manage expectations within the
organization. Whether this is a new or long-running
campaign, you are going to make changes that will affect
EM success depends largely on the ability to quickly its performance. Be sure to let your superiors know what

S and efficiently gather and analyze data, then turn

that data into actionable strategies that improve
account performance. But as technology has made data
you’re doing every step of the way. Strive for consistent
but progressive quality, and set up the campaign
structure to give you enough levers to control your
gathering easier, it has also created data overload for success.
online marketers, as well as a plethora of data that have
become meaningless without insightful analysis.
2. Organize Staff for Success
Data in and of itself is not useful. Interpreting what data An honest assessment of skill sets will allow you to more
means so that you can make better business decisions is clearly define responsibilities around planning, campaign
what creates value. Great reporting does the following: management, data compilation, report assembly and
more. Even if you are operating shorthanded, a few
• Creates measurability. Digital marketing is trackable and adjustments to roles and team engagement models will
accountable. encourage collaboration and help
you better manage workload and
• Tracks performance. Metrics and
measurability show context and
SEM reporting is also time- flow. Exhausted analysis shows; it’s
growth. consuming; daily, weekly, easier to keep your analysis and
reporting fresh by enabling
• Analyzes data. Data analysis is a
point of connection with teams, monthly and quarterly creative thinking.
peers, and managers
• Builds relationships. Skilled reports demand continuity Regardless of role, motivate each
staffer involved in the SEM
reporting opens the door to
longer-term planning and
and scalability in order to campaign to think strategically and
think big, particularly those who
increases your value (and
potentially budget) within the
build out results and grow are scoping the opportunity, setting
organization. bottom lines. the campaign framework, leading
the analysis and drafting the
SEM reporting is also time- reports.
consuming; daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly reports
demand continuity and scalability in order to build out It is also a good idea to meaningfully engage with vertical
results and grow bottom lines. With leaner staffing and experts at the search engines and third-party tool
greater expectations for marketing ROI, you need to providers. They typically can provide additional layers of
maximize the efficiency of your reports. Here are seven value and marketplace context to boost the caliber of
best practices to improve your reporting skills. your reporting.

1. Start With a Strategy 3. Interpret and Analyze Data

Perhaps the most critical factor in SEM reporting success
is to have a plan that clearly sets out campaign
requirements for strategy, format, frequency, tracking,
metrics, accountability and the communication chain of
command. The goal is to better align your staff with
campaign objectives and derive more granular,
quantifiable metrics.
As part of the process, create a timetable for each major
action and associated task that is needed. It’s important to
think everything through before you start since some
tasks will influence others and you don’t want to create
inefficiencies or redundancy. There are always going to
Too many SEM professionals mistake Excel keyword
dumps for data, data for analysis and rote analysis for
brilliant insight. The fact is that attributing straight traffic
volume numbers by site is only interesting if that
comparative is a metric.
Analysis is critical for reporting performance, identifying
trouble spots and finding your next great opportunity. In
fact, we’d expect SEM professionals to spend 20 percent
or more of their time reporting and analyzing data. If
you’re spending less than 20 percent of your time
reporting and analyzing search data, you are probably
missing key information about your campaigns.

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 Adding Efficiency to Your Search Engine
Marketing (SEM) Campaigns:
Tips and tactics on reporting, using Excel,and selecting an automated tool

Data analysis doesn’t have to be complicated and
unintelligible, either. Use plain English to analyze data
and explain the results to your CMO and other
executives. One of the most meaningful areas of analysis
is website, keyword and creative relative performance – it
allows managers to understand these combinations as
they relate to consumer demand. Your narrative on these
points can guide merchandising decisions and more.
If you measure search traffic or conversions every day,
sometimes the data simply doesn’t change enough to be
significant. However, a daily report makes sense if the
numbers that you’re reporting are very large. Daily
analysis can also help you understand search traffic
patterns by day of the week. For example, do you know
what changes to expect in search traffic over holidays?
Daily analysis over the holidays can give you this insight.

4. Dive Deep into Data
By adding one enhancement to your reports each time,
you’ll have deeper data to use in your analysis. Look at
budget distribution; compare KPIs for every search
engine in which you’re advertising; contrast content vs.
search vs. site placement; examine the co-variation of two things
metrics; analyze performance by time of day and day of
the week; and create summary tables for various time
periods. For long-running campaigns, going granular
means pulling up historical data such as:
• The age of the campaign.
• Average daily, weekly and monthly spending levels.
• Top, high-volume keywords.
• Top ad groups.
• CPCs.
• Past use of conversion tracking, Google Analytics,
cost per conversion settings or position rules.
5. Increase Report Frequency
Increasing the frequency of your reports has numerous
benefits. Namely, it increases your visibility,
accountability and creates opportunities to speak with
senior executives.
For paid search campaigns, report key metrics at least
weekly for each search engine in which you advertise.
PPC metrics can change quickly as a result of changes in
the search engine networks, your competitors’ ad
strategies and a host of other factors. When there’s a
sudden change in PPC cost and/or ROI, it needs to be
addressed quickly. This makes regular PPC reporting
perhaps some of the most critical.
It's also helpful to track total affiliate traffic and/or
conversions every day. It will help you pinpoint
unexpected problems with affiliate reporting or marketing
strategy shifts by your top affiliates. It could take less than
ten minutes per day to pull the data and confirm that
are on track. On top of that, a more in-depth
weekly or monthly report enables you to analyze trends
by affiliate category.
When it comes to organic search, unless trends change
dramatically from week-to-week, then monthly reporting
is sufficient.
6. Customize, Customize, Customize
Nothing is more obvious than a canned set of metrics and
reports that are transferred and used from one campaign
to the next. While some metrics may be used
interchangeably, each campaign merits its own reporting
that include a variety of tables and graphs that are
carefully analyzed. To provide this, you must first focus
on data that changes or stands out, not on data that
remains the same week after week or month after month.
In addition, this approach cannot and should not be
automated.
7. Customize, Customize, Customize
Nothing is more obvious – and annoying – to a client than
a canned set of metrics and reports that are transferred
and used in every account. This type of reporting
approach casts a negative light on your firm’s analytical
abilities and immediately arouses suspicion for clients.
Every account merits unique metrics and reporting that
include a variety of tables and graphs that are carefully
analyzed. To provide this, you must first focus on data

Data analysis doesn’t have to be complicated and unintelligible, either. Use

plain English to analyze data and initiate a conversation with your clients.

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 Adding Efficiency to Your Search Engine
Marketing (SEM) Campaigns:
Tips and tactics on reporting, using Excel,and selecting an automated tool

that changes or stands out, not on data that remains the
same week after week or month after month. In addition,
this approach cannot and should not be automated. It is
time consuming, but will make the difference when your
contract is set to expire.
7. Automate When Possible
On the flip side, automated tools can save a tremendous
amount of time and build efficiency into many aspects of
an SEM campaign. The les time you spend manually
pulling out data and aggregating key reports, the time
you can spend on analysis. There are numerous
automated search management tools now available that
enable on-the-fly campaign changes, as well as create
SEM data repositories that store all your information in
one place. A careful RFP process will show you what
tools are available to meet your particular SEM needs.
(See “What to Look for in an Automated Tool” later in
this report for more information.) I
Building Excel Efficiency
shortcuts that will save you time:
• Next Sheet: CTRL + Page Down
• Previous Sheet: CTRL + Page Up
• Go to: CTRL + G
• Delete Column or Row: CTRL + K
• Insert Today’s Date: CTRL + Semi Colon
• Insert a New Worksheet: SHIFT + F11
• Extend Selection to the Next Blank Cell: Shift + CTRL
+ Arrow (any direction). To select all the cells of a table
go the top left cell and use this shortcut right and then
down.
• Quick AutoSum: In the cell below a group values use
ALT + EQUAL Sign
• Edit Data in a Cell: F2
2. Select Only Visible Cells
Have you ever filtered a table and then tried to copy and
paste it only to find out that it has copied the hidden cells
as well? By default, Excel copies hidden or filtered cells in
addition to visible cells. To be more efficient, select just
the visible cells before you click COPY.

Here's how: Select the cells then go to the HOME ribbon,

For manual report processes, the first step toward

T creating great reports is to increase your knowledge

and mastery of Microsoft Excel. Most SEM
professionals use Excel every day, yet few search
marketers receive any formal training in using this
software. Knowledge of Excel usually grows out of need.
You may be in the middle of a task and think, “There has
to be a better way to do this.” Chances are, there is – you
just don’t know it yet.
FIND and SELECT, choose GO TO SPECIAL then click
VISIBLE CELLS ONLY. Then copy and paste as you would
normally. A second way to have a “Select Visible” button
in Excel is to click the Microsoft logo and choose EXCEL
OPTIONS down at the bottom right of the dialogue box.
Then choose CUSTOMIZE, ALL COMMANDS (top drop
down) and “Select Visible Cells.” (see screenshot below.)
You’ll choose ADD to the right side. Click OK and you will
see the “black flag with white cross” on it symbol. This

Whether it is learning to use keyboard shortcuts, ribbon

icons or the right click menu, there are probably two or Figure 1
three ways to perform any Excel task. But it is the right
combination that can turn an average Excel user into a
power user who can maximize its potential and minimize
how much time it takes. Here are six ways to improve
your knowledge of and efficiency with Excel:

1. Keyboard Shortcuts
When using Excel, keep one hand on the keyboard’s left
side and one hand on the mouse. Using your pinky on
CTRL, your other fingers can reach about 75% of the most
important keyboard shortcuts you will use all of the time.
From flipping through worksheets to inserting columns or
even spell checking, the seconds gained from using can
add up to hours over the course of the year.

For example, CTRL + Z is Undo, CTRL + X is Cut, CTRL + B

is Bold, CTRL + A is Select All. Here are several more

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 Adding Efficiency to Your Search Engine
Marketing (SEM) Campaigns:
Tips and tactics on reporting, using Excel,and selecting an automated tool

way whenever you select cells and then click that button, Figure 3
you’ll only copy the visible cells.

3. Macros
Macros are extremely versatile and can be used for any
repetitive task that requires multiple actions to perform.
You don’t have to know any programming to build basic
macros; you literally press record, do one of your tasks as
normal and then assign that task to a keyboard shortcut.
To use macros, first access the DEVELOPER ribbon in 4. Protecting Worksheets and Workbooks.
Excel. To display it, click the Microsoft Office button andHave you ever received back your workbook from
then click EXCEL OPTIONS. In the POPULAR category, someone only to find they accidentally changed things
under Top Options for working with Excel, select the and saved over your original? To prevent a user from
SHOW DEVELOPER tab in the Ribbon check box, and accidentally or deliberately changing, moving or deleting
then click OK. important data from a worksheet or workbook, you can
protect certain elements with or without a password.
From the DEVELOPER ribbon in the Code group, click Here’s how: First, choose which cells you want locked; to
Record Macro. In the MACRO name box, enter a name for select every cell on a sheet, click CTRL + A. Once you’ve
the macro. Follow the directions for shortcuts and saving; chosen the cells you want protected, right click and
when you are ready, click OK to start recording. Perform choose FORMAT CELLS. Click the PROTECTION TAB on
the actions that you want to record and click the square the dialogue menu that pops up and check the LOCKED
STOP button on the mini-floating toolbar (see screenshot option. By default, the locked option is checked (see
Figure 2). Fugure 3).

Note that macros can only be used on “macro-enabled
workbooks.” Save your files in that format by clicking
SAVE and choose the option from the drop down menu
under the file name. Macros can also be run from a
keyboard shortcut or the DEVELOPER ribbon, MACRO
option. You can set any shape or image to run a macro
when clicked. Just right click the shape/image and choose
ASSIGN MACRO. Lastly, some email systems won’t
accept macro-enabled workbooks since they’re
incorrectly identified in virus scans. It happens
infrequently, but be aware that it might when you try to
email macro-enabled workbooks.
Figure 2
Next, go to the REVIEW ribbon and click PROTECT
SHEET. You have many options here but choosing
SELECT LOCKED CELLS will ensure future users won’t be
able to change your important data. You will have to
enter a password to continue (see screenshot). Now you
won’t be able to select any of the cells you chose to lock.
To unlock, click UNPROTECT SHEET and input your
password.
5. Custom Lists
Every Excel user has to type in the same list over and
over at some point. Whether it’s the days of the week, a
core group of keywords or the names of your colleagues,
this is a common spreadsheet task. You can create your
own list of values, which you can access quickly at any
time. The following day-of-the-week and month-of-the-
year lists are built in to Excel:

• Sun., Mon., Tues., Wed., Thu., Fri., Sat.

• Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday,
Friday, Saturday
• Jan., Feb., Mar., Apr., May, June, Jul., Aug., Sep., Oct.,

To prevent a user from accidentally or deliberately changing, moving

or deleting important data from a worksheet or workbook, you can protect
certain elements with or without a password.
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 Adding Efficiency to Your Search Engine
Marketing (SEM) Campaigns:
Tips and tactics on reporting, using Excel,and selecting an automated tool

Figure 4 might be published to Excel Services.

6. Named Ranges
By naming a cell or group of cells, you can easily use
them anywhere in the workbook interchangeably with the
actual cell reference(s). For example, you’re working with
your February SEM budget and you’ll be referring to that
cell often in the document in many tables. You can name
that value FebBudg and make formulas such as
“=FebBudg/28 to get the daily amount. Or if you get
word that your budget might be going up by 25%, you
can simply use “=FebBudg+(FebBudg*.25)” to see what it
would be.

It might seem like a hassle in these simple examples, but

once you start naming ranges, you’ll see how efficient
you can be. Imagine: “=YearBudget-
(FebBudg+MarchBudg)” versus having figure out what
cells those values are in. In this case, the formula makes
more sense.

Excel also autosuggests the range as you begin typing

Nov., Dec. the named range. In the example above, simply typing
• January, February, March, April, May, June, July, “Fe” would bring up “FebBudg” in a drop down menu.
August, September, October, November, December To create named ranges, look for the Name Box on the
Formula bar, right above columns A and B. Select your
To access these built-in lists, type one of the list’s values cell(s) and type in the name (see Figure 5). I
in and then drag the HANDLE (found when you hover
over the bottom right corner of any cell) in any direction.
You can go up, down, left or right. The list will auto fill in What to Look For in an
order – so if you start with a value in the middle of the list
(for example, June), the next value auto filled will be the Automated Reporting Tool
one after it in the custom list (for example, July).
ome campaigns can be run using just Excel, but
To create custom lists, first create the list and select it.
Then, Click the Microsoft Office Button , click EXCEL
OPTIONS, click the POPULAR category, and then under
Top Options for working with Excel, click EDIT CUSTOM
S there comes a time when it is more efficient to
automate using an outside reporting tool. When
you manage hundreds, thousands or millions of
keywords across multiple engines, you need campaign
LISTS. management tools that can handle that volume of data.

In the Custom Lists dialog box, verify that the cell Figure 5
reference of the list of items that you selected is displayed
in the Import List From Cells box, and then click IMPORT.
The items in the list that you selected are added to the
Custom Lists box. Click OK twice. Now you can access
your custom list anytime by typing in any value of the list
and dragging the handle.

Once you create a custom list, it is added to your

computer’s registry, so it is available for use in other
workbooks. If you use a custom list when sorting data, it
is also saved with the workbook, so that it can be used on
other computers, including servers where your workbook

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 Adding Efficiency to Your Search Engine
Marketing (SEM) Campaigns:
Tips and tactics on reporting, using Excel,and selecting an automated tool

At some point, you will need to invest in an automated new groups. The same is true for keywords that appear in
solution so that you can devote more time to analysis and many places in your campaign; you can put them into a
effective campaign management. virtual group and track them.

Here are 10 capabilities that every automated PPC tool
should have to make your job easier:
• Remote access that lets you manage your campaigns
from anywhere in the world, at any time.
• A simple and intuitive interface that does not require an
engineering degree.
• The ability to manage the most popular PPC advertising
vehicles: Google AdWords and Yahoo! Search
Marketing.
• A wizard or step-by-step instructions on setting up an
account and campaigns, determining a budget,
selecting keywords and writing ads.
• The option of monitoring multiple campaigns with
multiple goals at the same time.
• The ability to set goals and use several different bidding
strategies automatically.
• The flexibility to fine-tune campaign keywords, ads,
goals and budget at any time.
• The option to set up e-mail alerts for performance
changes defined by your own criteria.
• A history or summary screen that provides an overall
picture of campaigns without running reports.
• A robust reporting function that generates reports
using many different variables chosen by the user.
Additionally, there are automated tools on the market
from vendors such as Adobe that provide more
advanced functionality for work flow, tracking and
optimization, as well as management and reporting.
Here are 10 more features that can improve your SEM
optimization, performance and time management, as
well.
1. Platform integration. Integrating your search tool with
other tools, such as your ad server and email tool, creates
greater efficiencies when it comes to cross-channel
reporting and being able to use the same tracking
pixels/scripts. Most importantly, an integrated system is
critical for conversion attribution modeling, which
increasingly requires search engine marketers to track all
of your digital media in one place to see how users are
engaging your advertising before conversion.
2. Virtual groups. Several SEM tools now allow you to
segment elements of your account into virtual groups. If
you add in new promotional creative to several ad
groups, you can aggregate them all into a virtual group
and follow their performance without moving them into
3. Landing page rotation. An increasing number of SEM
tools let you include multiple destination URLs for each
keyword to find the best combination that increases
conversions.
4. Analytics integration. To gain seamless analysis into
how your SEM traffic is performing on site, look for an
SEM tool that integrates with your web analytics tool.
This can prove valuable in understanding what keywords
drive high engagement (i.e., more page views, more time
on site, more repeat visits) versus just tracking
conversion. Integrating analytics with your SEM will also
show you how your paid and organic search traffic is
either working together or against each other.
5. Instant campaigns. “Shadow campaigns” let you
segment your campaigns to new geo-targets or day-
parting targets automatically, without having to
download a bulksheet, copy and paste, manipulate and
Additionally, there are automated
tools on the market from vendors
such as Omniture that provide more
advanced functionality for work flow,
tracking and optimization, as well as
management and reporting.
then re-upload. For example, if you want to split a
national campaign out to seven top states, you simply
choose those states via geo-targeting and the SEM tool
technology automatically creates seven shadow
campaigns in the engines instantly.
6. Sync Buttons. Most SEM tools require you to perform
all engine actions on their platform. If you don’t, the tool
won’t know you’ve made any changes and you’ll have
incomplete data. Having a Sync Button allows you to go
into the engines, make bid changes or add keywords,
then go back to your PPC tool and click “Sync.” This
offers great workflow efficiency as sometimes users are
more comfortable in the engine platforms.
7. Intra-day bidding. Most PPC management tools wait
each morning to pull down the previous day’s engine

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 Adding Efficiency to Your Search Engine
Marketing (SEM) Campaigns:
Tips and tactics on reporting, using Excel,and selecting an automated tool
data. However, more are providing the ability to pull
impressions, clicks, click costs and average position
directly from engines every two to four hours, allowing
you to make changes and optimizations throughout the
day.
8. Giving credit to “assisting” keywords. Auto-bidding
tools are becoming more accurate because they are
utilizing technology that follows not only the converting
keywords, but the other keywords that ultimately end up
converting users, even if they weren’t the last keyword
clicked. The result is that the tools don’t end up
completely bidding down the top-of-the-funnel general
terms that actually have value, even if they don’t show up
as converting keywords.
9. Competitive ads. More SEM tools can help you
understand what other advertisers are bidding on your
keywords, as well as show you what ads they are
running. This feature allows you to see what is working
for your competitors or can help you craft ads that stand
out on the page by not doing what everyone else is
doing.
10. Not all conversions are equal. Margin-based bidding
allows you to set different weighted values on each
conversion metric to bid more efficiently. For example,
conversions resulting from white paper downloads or
newsletter sign-ups are probably not as valuable as actual
sales. You want your bidding methodology to take that
into account.
Choose the Tool That’s
Right for You
on’t be overwhelmed by the number of automated
D tool choices and capabilities. Take it one step at a
time, with the first step being to make a choice that
is right for your organization’s SEM needs. The main
points that usually influence final decisions are the price,
technology, track record, interface, bells and whistles, and
support. For organizations short on resources, an SEM
tool that offers a full-service approach may be most
important. Online retailers may decide that the most
important factor in choosing a PPC automated tool is bid
optimization that can handle millions of keywords toward
a CPA goal.
Have an internal dialog to establish the most important
criteria in choosing an automated tool for your SEM
team. Everyone who is going to be using the tool should
have some say in the final decision. Once you’ve gotten
to the vendor short list, have each one take your team
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through their demos and urge your team to address
every question or concern they have.
Customer support is always one of the most critical
factors in making a decision. Will you get an experienced
account manager or is the tool more of a self-service
solution? Can you reach an actual technical support
person on the phone 24/7 or just during business hours?
Or is it an email ticket system where you may have to wait
hours for an answer? Also find out what level of initial
training is provided. What is available to you after the set-
up phase? Training videos or a robust knowledge base?
You should also remember that no one tool will address
100% of your needs. If you find an automated tool that fits
most of your needs, consider yourself lucky. The goal of
your review is to find the best tool that is available for
your organization. Don’t just choose the first vendor in
the door. Do your due diligence. Even if the first demo
seems like it’s the right fit, you owe it to yourself and your
team to make sure you look at least one or two others to
see what’s out there.
When it comes to pricing, find out exactly what the deal is
-- including hidden soft costs such as set-up fees or
overages. Be aware of your minimum spends, i.e. some
tools need to have monthly/quarterly/yearly minimums in
place to make sure they have enough support bandwidth
in place to handle the volume of business. What happens
if your spend levels drop? Will you have to pay them
thousands of dollars at the end of the quarter? Minimums
are a good business practice but you should know what
you’re getting into. Just in case, make sure you have an
“out clause,” that is fair to both parties but gives you the
opportunity to break the contract with 30-days notice.
Lastly, utilize word-of-mouth recommendations from
other SEM professionals – they are going to be your best
source of data. Try to find an SEM pro that you respect
and get their opinion. Find out what tools they use and
why. You may uncover some excellent information to
help you make your decision. I
 Adding Efficiency to Your Search Engine
Marketing (SEM) Campaigns:
Tips and tactics on reporting, using Excel,and selecting an automated tool

Summary
With time at a premium, creating efficiencies in your SEM reporting can enable you to focus more on big-picture
campaign strategy and less on time-consuming rote tasks. Two ways to do that are to improve your knowledge and
use of Excel as well as your ability to choose automated tools that fit your business model and client needs. The best
practices and suggestions presented in this e-book can help you, if you take the time to follow them and incorporate
them into your daily work. I

About the Adobe Online Marketing Suite

The Adobe® Online Marketing Suite, powered by Omniture®, offers an integrated and open platform for online
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