The Challenge

With the surge in demand for online shopping, particularly during periods of lockdown and heightened consumer awareness, Countdown faced significant challenges. The brand needed to address evolving customer behavior as shoppers became more knowledgeable and discerning about their online purchases. This created a pressing need to refine their SEM strategy to meet increased revenue targets.

Countdown’s internal goal was to match its stretch revenue targets through an effective SEM approach. The brand had to capture shifting consumer behavior patterns and align its SEM contributions to its margin goals while keeping pace with growing competition in the digital space. The challenge was compounded by a rapidly changing market landscape, which meant that traditional strategies were no longer sufficient to deliver the desired results.

To meet these stretch goals, the key focus was on understanding customers’ shopping behaviors—both in-store and online—and optimizing their SEM campaigns accordingly. The brand needed to innovate beyond standard digital marketing techniques to find new ways to engage customers and capture value in a highly dynamic environment.

The Solution

To address these challenges, Countdown and its digital partners developed a Certainty Model to better predict customer shopping behavior and optimize SEM strategies. This model allowed Countdown to anticipate whether customers would prefer to shop in-store or online, and adjust their marketing efforts to meet these preferences effectively.

The Certainty Model worked by analyzing both Countdown’s internal sales data and Google footfall data to gain insights into consumer behaviors. By cross-referencing online revenue data and physical foot traffic, Countdown was able to build a comprehensive view of consumer trends and tailor its marketing strategies accordingly. This innovative model allowed the team to predict which customers were most likely to convert, whether in-store or online, and adjust their bids to maximize engagement and conversions.

Moreover, Countdown utilized this model to create a dynamic bidding strategy that targeted customers with high intent in real-time. The team identified key products that were in high demand during lockdown and throughout Q4 2020. By matching this information with in-store inventory data, they could serve hyper-relevant ads that informed customers about the availability of specific products at nearby stores. This approach ensured that customers received accurate and up-to-date information about stock levels, thereby improving their shopping experience and increasing the likelihood of conversion.

The implementation of the Certainty Model gave Countdown the ability to serve personalized and location-specific ads that were aligned with customers’ shopping preferences. Whether customers were looking for items online or searching for nearby store locations, the SEM strategy provided them with relevant, targeted information based on their specific needs and circumstances.

The Results

Countdown’s Certainty Engine Marketing approach proved to be a game-changer. Despite increased competition and internal challenges, the implementation of the Certainty Model resulted in notable improvements across key metrics, including revenue, Return on Ad Spend (ROAS), and traffic to the website. The results demonstrated the effectiveness of leveraging real-time data and predictive analytics to meet the evolving demands of the digital marketplace.

One of the most significant outcomes of the strategy was the increase in in-store revenue share driven by search engine marketing. By delivering highly targeted and relevant ads, Countdown was able to outperform its search budget by 10x, delivering a significant return on investment. This underscored the power of the Certainty Model in driving value through SEM, even in a highly competitive environment.

Additionally, the integration of Google footfall data and online sales insights enabled Countdown to better understand consumer preferences and adjust their SEM campaigns in real-time. This allowed the brand to not only meet its ambitious revenue targets but also deliver a seamless and personalized shopping experience to its customers.

The ability to match stock levels with search intent ensured that customers could trust the information they were receiving, improving their overall shopping experience and fostering greater loyalty to the Countdown brand. By providing customers with accurate product availability information, the campaign minimized friction and made shopping easier, whether online or in-store.