Search marketers should take advantage of the fact that people now browse the internet while watching TV.

Marketers are no longer just competing with other marketers; they are competing with video games, social media, text messaging, and instant messaging apps such as Snapchat too.

However, according to Digital Strategist, Content Developer and Marketing Manager Erin Everhart, search marketers can use the trend of people using laptops, tablets and smartphones while watching TV to their advantage.

Complicated path

A report published by research company Nielsen last year showed that out of the more than 30,000 people polled over 50 per cent said they browse the internet while watching television, while 47 per cent said they use social media while watching TV.

Everhart believes this trend means search marketers are no longer competing for media placement, but for attention, which is a scary prospect for marketers.

Consumers now have to follow a much more complicated path when they want to buy something than they did four or five years ago, according to Everhart.

That is because, rather than simply searching for a product online and buying the most highly-rated model that suits their budget, they now read to blog posts, buying guides and reviews, and use forums, auction websites, listings websites, retail websites and brand websites before making a decision.

They also get distracted by the likes of text messages and social media during the process, with the latter then showing them adverts for the type of products they have been searching for.

Everhart says there is no such thing as a straightforward path to purchasing anymore as consumers are swayed by whichever medium they are using at any given time that manages to trigger the impulse to buy.

Keywords

Search engine results page (SERP) rankings and keywords can play a crucial role in ensuring TV advertising and digital marketing work together, rather than against each other, according to Everhart.

Consumers do not necessarily remember brands they see advertised on TV, and that is why brands need to make sure that they are appearing in both paid and organic search results for both branded and non-branded keywords.

And those keywords, adds Everhart, should not be limited to search marketing - they should be used in all marketing to create a consistent message, as that is what consumers will remember and search for.