by Microsoft Digital Advertising Solutions

Demographic targeting in search is the process of only showing adverts to specific audiences using demographic information such as age, gender, location and socioeconomic class. This can be done through some search engines that have collected this information or the marketer by carefully choosing keywords and ad copy.

Send the right messages to the right audience

One of the fundamental objectives of every marketer is to send the right message to the right audience. Search engine marketers communicate their ad messages to individuals who have that requested information on specific topics without having very much insight into the audience make-up. Relevancy is king and so savvy online marketers concentrate on maximising the relevancy between keywords, ads and landing pages to help satisfy users’ search demands.

Essentially, there are two ways to target ads to the correct audience: by customising the user’s search experience using standard PPC methods and by using demographic targeting technology. When developing any highly-targeted campaign, it is essential to consider the keyword set that will appeal to the desired audience. 18-25 year olds invariably use a different mix of keywords to find their holidays online in comparison to silver surfers who may use different language and query string formation (the combination of words used in a search). By understanding the search behaviour of different groups, you can demographically target by selecting keywords that will be relevant to the desired audience.

Tailor your ad copy

Having fought for a share of voice in a keyword auction, it is important to make the most of those precious seconds of the audience’s time. Understanding the click inducers for a given audience helps to write compelling ad copy that will resonate. Older people may be more persuaded by creative that offers tour holidays in secure locations where price is not the primary concern. Backpackers may look for ads promoting cheap accommodation that is off the beaten track. Like offline advertising, the language used in online creative ad copy should appeal to its reader. Make it snappy or make it formal; you decide on the right tone.

Demographic targeting

Influencing the position of ads for specific demographic groups within traditional keyword auctions is currently only possible with one search engine. Search engine marketers can influence ad positions by specifying higher bids for keywords that will be searched on by their target audience. If the search engine understands the demographic breakdown of their user base in real time, the ranking algorithm uses this intelligence to push the most relevant ads up in the results pages. For example, knowing that a searcher is male, belongs to the 18-25 year old category and lives in Manchester is not only informative but actionable. PPC advertisers who deliberately target their ads will typically experience higher levels of engagement, better conversion rates and greater ROI.

Understanding online and offline audiences

Through online and offline research most advertisers understand which demographic classifications are engaged with their brand and their products or services. But sometimes online and offline audiences differ in their make-up. When this is identified, a whole new marketing strategy may need to be adopted for online campaigns. To further complicate matters, an audience may differ by demographic from search engine to search engine. Fortunately, lots of research can be conducted on media owners’ data to find out which groups search on which keywords the most often. Nearly all good analytics packages offer this information.

Return on investment is key

Demographic targeting of ads brings even more value to a world of advertising that is obsessed with return on investment. It must be a priority for every marketer to prevent wasted ad spend from the outset of any campaign. To reflect changes in trends over time, it is necessary to optimise any targeting strategy you employ on an ongoing basis, from updating keywords and ad copy to adjusting your ad position strategy.

Case study

Why should marketers spend time thinking about how to focus on pushing their message to the right prospects? A recent case study in the UK showed that when a travel advertiser used demographic targeting and up-weighed their bids by 30% for searchers living in the London and Kent areas, aged between 25 and 45 years, they experienced a click through rate that was five times higher than other search engines. They also saw a click-to-sale ratio that was 35% higher than other search engines where this type of targeting is not possible. In this example, the travel advertiser understood where their likely customers live and used geographic and demographic targeting to make their ads even more compelling.