Is Your Brand Foiled by Google Search?

With its place in the lexicon as a verb and noun, Google is considered by many brand marketers to be the de facto standard for Internet search.

It stands to reason that a consumer who searches for a brand by name will expect to find it high up in Google's search results. But what happens when a consumer searches for a generic term, such as "life insurance"? Will the top life insurance brands show up in prime positions on the results page?

Not always, according to a recent study by Covario, an interactive marketing analytics firm. The study finds that even top brand names are "hiding" on Google. Covario looked at three key indicators -- content usage, link strategy and technical construction -- and saw dramatically different results for different brand names, reports Ad Age.

Take the search term "home repair," for example. Where would you expect Home Depot to rank on the first page of Google search results?

Try the second page, where it's the #16 result for that particular query.

Similarly, Tiffany scores a high ranking (#5) when searching for the generic "jewelry" but falls to 29th place when searching for the more specific query of "wedding rings."

1-800-Flowers did indeed capture the number one spot for the search term "flowers," but the brand slid to 25th spot in a search for "gifts." That may concern a company that recently launched 1800baskets.com to promote gift baskets instead of flowers.

While the problem is obvious, the solution is less so. It isn't always about the name of the brand, but rather how well the brand uses online marketing and, more specifically, search engine optimization and search engine marketing: the art of paid search and buying keywords.

The bottom line, according to Covario, "depends on how well [the brands] are optimized for Google."

A brand may get lower than expected results, he notes, because "too many companies are vying to optimize the same keyword, a competitor's linking strategy is more robust, or the brands simply aren't buying keyword ads."

More proof that the brands who really know how to compete in a search-driven marketplace come out on top.