From a young age, students are taught that attending college will increase their chances of following a path to professional success. They are repeatedly told that by obtaining a degree, they will be eligible to grab hold of an entry-level salary, post-graduation, up to 40 percent higher than what they would be offered with only a high school degree. Because of this, the common practice for high school graduates is to continue on to higher education.
However, the real question is: How much does higher education actually prepare an individual for the “real world?”
As a recent college graduate working as an apprentice in the Search Engine Marketing (SEM) department of Potratz, I can honestly say that college has not prepared me for the work that I encounter on a daily basis. While my degree in Marketing Communications has certainly helped me understand the marketing and advertising fields as a whole, SEM is such a new form of marketing that changes so rapidly. There is no way that a higher education school could build a course that is consistently teaching students up-to-date information.
It is because of this issue that I believe the SEM apprenticeship offered at Potratz is such a great opportunity. This six-week paid program goes in-depth to teach apprentices everything they will need to know about the SEM field. The daily teaching sessions mixed with nightly homework assignments ensure that apprentices are getting ample opportunity to learn all necessary information, preparing them for the Google AdWords Fundamentals and Search certification exams. In addition, apprentices are paired with Potratz SEM employees in order to get hands on experience working with Google AdWords and help them better understand how to work the program.
Along with preparing for the Google AdWords exams, apprentices are taught the inner workings at Potratz. They are given the chance to work with all departments within the company, teaching them how these departments work together to form the successful automotive advertising agency that Potratz is. At the end of the six weeks, if they choose, apprentices have the chance to apply for any open position within the company.
With the combination of certification classes and learning to work within the company, this apprenticeship is great not only for someone interested in becoming Google AdWords certified, but also for anyone looking for a full-time employment opportunity.
Note to readers: spoiler alert in regards to Game of Thrones!
They say that when you play the Game of Thrones either you win or you die.
Thank goodness for us the same is not true for Search Engine Marketing with Google AdWords. In the world of advertising, many forms of media that an advertiser may use to get their message to the masses is just as cutthroat as the Rains of Castamere, and we all know how we felt after that mess was over. Lucky for you, this viciously violent scene won’t have to enter your mind once when we start thinking about how proper SEM management can benefit you and your brand. With search engine marketing an account manager is able to keep tabs on their account and control exactly where the budget is being spent, all while tracking how this spending is having an effect on your return on investment. So think of yourself more as the mind controlling younger brother Bram Stark and less like the over zealous, mis-stepping and very dead Robb Stark.
Despite the level of control that AdWords gives you over your campaign, you are still facing armies of other advertisers that are hoping to claim the Iron Throne or in this case, the top three positions in any Google search. Imagine you and your fellow Search Engine Marketing team are standing tall against these foes with bow and arrows in hand. You can each launch dozens and dozens of these arrows aimed in the right direction, but from a distance it’s hard to tell which ones will actually make it to their target. Again, luckily this is Adwords we are talking about and not a fictional world where all of your favorite characters die. This is because our arrows are keywords and we can see exactly when they hit their mark.
By using keyword targeting in our search campaigns, we can identify which phrases and keywords will most accurately match what a user is searching for. Over time, we are able to identify which keywords are reaching the most users and driving traffic to the pages that they are looking for and we want them to find. When we identify keywords that are not at successful we can just as easily edit them or remove them without impacting the businesses bottom line. So sharpen your arrows, aim true and keep firing. All your favorite characters might already be dead by the end of season 3, but your Google Adwords campaign will win the Iron Throne every time with consistent keyword management.
Daily processes and industry standards are constantly changing and growing, therefore continuous training is an important aspect of any company. Keeping up-to-date on the latest trends and opportunities provides employees the chance to always be learning, and allows the company to stay a step ahead of competition.
Digital Marketing is an arena in which this fact is always true. The utilization of the Internet in marketing has grown in volumes since it was first introduced and it does not appear to be slowing down anytime soon. There is something new to be discovered every day, the possibilities for digital marketing are never ending, and the opportunities available to us as a company to improve are endless. In order for a company like Potratz to stay in tune with the latest digital marketing developments training is a constant necessity.
The department heads at Potratz have made it a top priority to ensure that every team member is highly trained not only on how to do their own job, but to know how that job fits into the bigger picture of a client’s marketing strategy. Whether it is in the field of SEM, Social Media, Video Motion Graphics, Graphic Design or Account Management, at Potratz information is offered as a training session and is open to the entire company. Every Thursday at noon the Potratz staff gathers in the conference room for a Leadership-led meeting focusing on team improvement. Recently, during our weekly Leadership meeting, each employee was asked to list five aspects of their daily job requirements and state whether they felt a coinciding training session would be beneficial to both them and other team members.
Based on the feedback received from team members, the next month at Potratz has been filled with daily training sessions on the topics requested. The training sessions will cover all scopes of work within the company ranging from “Industry Terms and Concepts” to “Proofing Graphics and Video”. No matter what department an employee works in, they have each been encouraged to attend any and all sessions that they would find interesting or helpful for their own personal scope of work.
The more we can each learn about our own jobs, the jobs of our colleagues and the industry within which we work, the more efficient and effective Potratz will become.
In a continuing effort to bring on the best new talent, Potratz has hired on dealer research and business intelligence expert Dennis Galbraith, founder of Dennis Galbraith Enterprises, Revenueguru.com, former vice president of Cars.com and former executive director of Automotive Internet Practice at J.D. Power and Associates. In his prior position at Drivingsales.com, he served as a leading resource for dealers and auto groups offering research-driven blogs and information. As new chief marketing officer for Potratz, Dennis carries more than 21 years of experience in operations, marketing, and market research along with him.
During his tenure at J.D. Power and Associates, Dennis ran the automotive Internet division of J.D. Power and Associates from 2003 to 2006. At Cars.com, he was responsible for over $300,000,000 in advertising products. His proven track record of successful business start-ups and leadership roles has made him one of the go-to dealer research and marketing experts in the automotive industry.
To add to his accolades, Dennis is an accomplished writer and the author of two successful books entitled Sales Integration and Online Vehicle Merchandising. He is also an award-winning speaker who has been featured as a keynote speaker in many of the largest dealer events nationwide including, Driving Sales Executive Summit, J.D. Power Internet Roundtable, Digital Strategies Marketing Conference and has been featured at dozens of other dealer events.
Dennis’ ability to share his wisdom is what separates him from others in the industry; he has a knack for delivering insightful and invaluable lessons. Having facilitated marketing trainings at Revenueguru.com and taught marketing courses at both the graduate and undergraduate level, he is no stranger to teaching and is sure to be an influential addition to the Potratz team.
Potratz employees have taken kindly to his friendly demeanor and founders Paul and Christy Potratz embraced Dennis as a valuable asset to the team and “a person who will help edge Potratz ahead of the competition in the automotive digital marketing industry.”
The 15th Digital Dealer Conference & Exposition announced that, Paul Potratz, founder and COO of Potratz, headquartered in Schenectady, NY, will be speaking when the conference meets October 15-17 at The Mirage in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Paul’s topic, “5 Things You Can Do This Week to Increase Leads and Sales” is slated for October 16, 2013, at 9:30-10:20am, and will take attendees step by step through website edits in order to showcase a conversion increase of 0.378% to 9.89%.
Paul is very excited to be a part of The 15th Digital Dealer Conference & Exposition and looks forward to helping dealers with their online advertising strategy. Paul stresses the need to embrace change and keep on top of the latest digital trends in order to increase both leads and sales.
For more information on the 15th Digital Dealer Conference & Exposition, click here. For additional information on Potratz, or to receive announcements of future speaking engagements, click here.
Heat mapping is an analytic tool that allows you to see where visitors are clicking on your website. Using this tool enables you to visualize different types of data, including which images, buttons and links people are clicking on. If one of your goals is to consistently improve the consumers’ website experience by analyzing their behavior on your site, heat mapping is a must. Knowing where they’re going, what they’re clicking on, what is NOT getting any clicks and making changes based on this information will lead to more conversions.
There are a few different types of heat maps such as click heat maps, scroll heat maps and mouse movement heat maps. Click heat maps shows the exact locations where visitors’ cursors clicked on a webpage, such as which images and links are most clicked on. Scroll heat maps show you what percentage of visitors are reaching the different portions of your web page, which helps you decide where and what to move to increase more profitable traffic. Mouse movement heat maps shows where visitors are looking on your site by tracking where the visitors’ cursors hover.
With being able to visually see what is working and not working on your site enables you to make changes that will lead to more conversions and profit for your business. If you’re on the advertising and marketing side and evaluating clients’ websites, these tools are extremely handy and beneficial. One example is that you can take screen shots and show your client exactly where visitors are going and what they’re doing on the site. With this colorful visual data, yourself or a client, can make informed decisions on what changes to make and why to make them.
There are a number of different heat mapping programs out there. Before choosing which program to use, make goals of what you wish to accomplish and choose the program that has the features that suit your needs. Here is a list of just a few of the heat mapping programs available: Attention Wizard, ClickDensity, ClickTale, Crazy Egg and Seevolution. Once you have chosen which heat mapping tool works best with your desired goals, implement and use with the rest of your analytic tools and use this information to make the best possible decisions for greater improvement of your website for your consumer and in the end your business.
As I stroll in at 9am I can’t help to feel a bit guilty, because my colleagues have been hard at work for the past half hour. As an intern my hours are slightly less than the regular crowd; not only do I enjoy the extra snooze time but this also means that I do not have to get coffee for the staff every morning. Most days I sit behind my iMac; I am a PC guy so that took a little getting used to. I work on various tasks such as posting in AdWords and checking conversion code links to ensure they are installed correctly.
Every once in a while I get to do something really amazing. One day I was lead carpenter of the masterful construction of six desks and two chairs. Might I add, these are in fact the best six desks and two chairs in the building! When there is no need for my expertise in the carpentry field, I am hard at work learning the daily tasks in the SEM department. One of the most important projects we do is our weekly deep dives – I know what you’re thinking and no we don’t have a pool. A deep dive is done once a week for each account and it’s our way of looking at every aspect of the account to make sure everything is running properly. It’s our time to make sure we’re fixing anything that isn’t performing or that is underperforming and see what is performing well. Completing this task requires me to shadow one of the two stars of the SEM department, Renee and Sarah.
My hero, The Great Dan Allen, VP of Creative Services, will also summon me to do some work in Basecamp, because according to him “no one wants to shadow someone all day.” After an epic adventure in Basecamp in which I help organize the projects for all departments, I usually go to a company training where I am able to meet up with my fellow interns and apprentices. A current employee usually teaches these trainings, and we learn not only about the goofs of past and current employees, but a great deal on how not to make those same goofs. At Potratz, they are always learning how to offer the best possible services to their clients, by analyzing past performance and discovering how they can be better.
One of my new projects is making sure all the websites have perfect conversions for their websites. For all our clients reading this, if you get a form filled out and the customer’s name is TEST, please ignore as that is me. When I have finished testing conversions, I continue to help the stars of the SEM department by assisting in posting ads. Given that this is still new to me, I have questions and will send out an SOS to the one and only Justin, the ‘web page god.’AdWords is not a new concept to him, so he can save my ship from sinking immediately. After I have finished my posting it’s about that time to head home and go to work on my two online classes.
Well, there you have it, a day in the life of a Potratz intern.
In all seriousness, I have learned a great deal about the future of marketing and how to utilize technology to the best of its ability. I am happy to have had the opportunity to work with the Potratz team, as they are all incredibly hard workers and phenomenal teachers. The amount I have learned in my past month of interning has been substantial, and will be an enormous help to my future endeavors. Thank you to the Potratz staff. And, by the way, I promise I am not writing this portion because the staff is required to read every blog.
On October 3rd, 2013, Paul Potratz, founder and COO of Potratz, will be joining Grant Cardone and Mel Robbins in the 10X Your Business Seminar in Orlando, FL. The event is set to gather some of the best in social media, marketing and PR, offering inside knowledge on industry-proven strategies for growing a business.
Grant Cardone has a history of pumping new life into businesses suffering from some of the side effects of economic downturn. His show, “Turnaround King” was responsible for saving companies on the verge of extinction. Syndicated Radio Host, Mel Robbins has made a name for herself as a media and technology expert. Together, the two promise to put together an event that will be guaranteed to increase business and sales for all attendees.
The 10X Your Business Seminar will feature experts from many different business backgrounds. The list includes PR expert for Axia Public Relations and Emmy Award Winner, Jason Mudd, Jack Jackintelle, President and CEO of multi-billion dollar company, Rick Case Automotive Group and best-selling author as well as personal financial expert, Christopher Music.
For more information on 10X Your Business Seminar, click here or to receive information about Paul’s speaking engagements, click here.
The CPO Forum announced that, Paul Potratz, founder and COO of Potratz, headquartered in Schenectady, NY, will be speaking as part of the 2013 Used Car Week Conference when it meets November 11-12 in San Diego, California.
Paul’s topic, “13 Creative Ways To Increase CPO Sales, That No One Told You About…Till Now!” is slated for November 11, 2013, at 2:00 PM. It will teach attendees the best selling message to generate leads and sales, where to spend ad dollars and how to measure the results and reallocate efforts to increase the sales.
Paul is very excited to be a part of the CPO Forum’s 2013 Used Car Week Conference and looks forward to helping dealers learn how to sell more cars. If you have ever thought, “What else could I do to sell just 8 more vehicles that would not cost a lot of money?” then this is the workshop is for you!
For more information on the CPO Forum 2013 Used Car Week Conference, click here. For additional information on Potratz or to receive announcements of future speaking engagements, click here.
From a young age, students are taught that attending college will increase their chances of following a path to professional success. They are repeatedly told that by obtaining a degree, they will be eligible to grab hold of an entry-level salary, post-graduation, up to 40 percent higher than what they would be offered with only a high school degree. Because of this, the common practice for high school graduates is to continue on to higher education.
However, the real question is: How much does higher education actually prepare an individual for the “real world?”
As a recent college graduate working as an apprentice in the Search Engine Marketing (SEM) department of Potratz, I can honestly say that college has not prepared me for the work that I encounter on a daily basis. While my degree in Marketing Communications has certainly helped me understand the marketing and advertising fields as a whole, SEM is such a new form of marketing that changes so rapidly. There is no way that a higher education school could build a course that is consistently teaching students up-to-date information.
It is because of this issue that I believe the SEM apprenticeship offered at Potratz is such a great opportunity. This six-week paid program goes in-depth to teach apprentices everything they will need to know about the SEM field. The daily teaching sessions mixed with nightly homework assignments ensure that apprentices are getting ample opportunity to learn all necessary information, preparing them for the Google AdWords Fundamentals and Search certification exams. In addition, apprentices are paired with Potratz SEM employees in order to get hands on experience working with Google AdWords and help them better understand how to work the program.
Along with preparing for the Google AdWords exams, apprentices are taught the inner workings at Potratz. They are given the chance to work with all departments within the company, teaching them how these departments work together to form the successful automotive advertising agency that Potratz is. At the end of the six weeks, if they choose, apprentices have the chance to apply for any open position within the company.
With the combination of certification classes and learning to work within the company, this apprenticeship is great not only for someone interested in becoming Google AdWords certified, but also for anyone looking for a full-time employment opportunity.
