Longer Search Terms

Last week was the Search Marketing Expo in Santa Clara, Ca.  I've been reviewing some of the topics they covered.  One interesting trend is that search terms continue to get longer.  According to Hitwise, the use of search terms containing 4 or 5 words grew over 13% since 2007.  While 1 and 2 word searches dropped 12.3% in the same time period.

As people get more experience with searching, it seems they've started to add the cross references that are important in getting the information they need.  Instead of searching "Legally Blonde", they're searching "Legally Blonde Durham Performing Arts Center".  Thus getting them to more pertinent info, more quickly.

It puts more emphasis on us to make sure each web page has as many searchable terms as possible.  This includes our headers and copy, as well as our metatags.  It's easy to let that slip on interior pages especially.  But it's vital to get these pages right, because that's normally where our richest content about upcoming events is housed.

Instead of settling for "Legally Blonde" in your description.  What about including "Legally Blonde The Musical", "Legally Blonde Tour", "Broadway Legally Blonde", "Legally Blonde Tickets", "Legally Blonde Soundtrack" and "Elle Woods".  And of course venue, location and dates.

Most of us aren't search experts first and foremost.  Luckily you don't have to come up with all the search term possibilities alone.  There are some easy tools to use.  For instance Google's Insights for Search will give you the top related searches when you enter an initial search term.  Taking these little steps can help you catch more of today's cross referenced searches.

North Carolina Arts Council

Over the last year, Jennings has had the good fortune to work with some great clients in the arts: the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, the new Durham Performing Arts Center and the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival.

Because the arts community has been so good to Jennings it seemed like the time to give something back.  I recently called Rebecca Moore, senior program director for marketing at the North Carolina Arts Council, to ask how we could help.   The result is a pro-bono consulting program for non-profit arts organizations in the state.

Starting in March, we'll offer members of the NCAC a chance to discuss their marketing efforts and have the chance for feedback from our specialists in areas like strategic planning, copywriting, design, PR and media.  I'm very excited about the project because it's a first for both Jennings and the NCAC.

An official announcement will go out in NCAC's March/April newsletter for arts managers, ArtMatters.  As the program develops I'll share with you some of the interesting things NCAC members are doing.

Coffee and Lunch

Folks at our agency know that I love to talk and I love to eat.   Tuesday I got two chances to do both.

I spent a good bit of time in the morning having coffee with Shane Hudson, the associate director of development at Playmakers Repertory Company here in Chapel Hill.  I first went to a performance at Playmakers in 1989 and it was great to talk about the theatre and hear about many of their new initiatives.   They've got an aggressive 10 show season underway and just opened a rotating set of Well and The Glass Menagerie.

Shane's an engaging guy and I really enjoyed the time.  He's got his own area arts blog called Theatre North Carolina.    And if he didn't have enough going on with his dayjob, he recently became the editor of the Raleigh edition of Broadwayworld.com.  Check out both if you get a moment.

Lunch time was fun as well.  Linda Charlton, the director of marketing at the Durham Performing Arts Center, and I had an excellent discussion and meal over at Rue Cler (highly recommend the L'escalope de Saumon).  

Jennings had the good fortune to work with DPAC on their launch campaign this past fall which I'll talk about in a future post.   My hat's off to Linda, Bob Klaus and their team.  They have had nothing but blockbuster success since they formally opened the doors in December.  

In a year when a lot of venues are struggling, DPAC has seen packed houses for most nights and just finished up a great run of RENT, which the local pubs loved.   Rent crackles with wit and wisdom 

Rent was the first show in their Suntrust Broadway Series.  They've got Oprah Winfrey's The Color Purple, Legally Blonde the Musical, and Fiddler still to come this spring. 

And soon DPAC will announce their 2009-2010 Broadway schedule.  It's headlined by Wicked and Linda says the rest of the shows are going to really blow the doors off.  So if you live within driving distance of the Triangle, look for that announcement coming in March.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to have to get to the gym to work off my meals.