GOOGLE ADWORDS SUCCESS PROFILE
AdWords | Analytics | Sketchup pro
Model Behavior
LGM uses Google AdWords and Analytics to promote and sell its architectural visualization solutions.
Who they are LGM www.lgmmodel.com Minturn, Colorado 11 employees 3D printing and architectural modeling
What they needed To improve website experience To increase traffic to their website To increase sales leads but control marketing costs
What they did Implemented Google Analytics in 2006 Signed up for AdWords in 2007 Used negative keywords to hone in on target audience Combined Google SketchUp Pro with their own software to improve project workflow
What they accomplished Established company online: Increased web presence and grew leads nationally Targeted customers: Tweaked their AdWords account to decrease irrelevant leads and increase average time on site by 18% Launched a new product: Used AdWords to successfully launch RapidArch and find new business across the country Streamlined production: Employed SketchUp Pro as a collaborative, cost-effective addition to their 3D modeling tools
Engineer by trade but skier at heart, Charles Overy left his job at a large aerospace company in 1992 to found LGM, which provides threedimensional printing and modeling solutions for architects. “I knew I wanted to work for a small, technology-driven company. The problem was I wanted to do it in a ski town,” Charles Overy, founder of LGM, at the company’s headquarters in Minturn, CO. says Charles, grinning. “So I decided to build a company my own way.” Based in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains, LGM serves clients across the country and has grown to include 11 employees, who all join Charles in the lift lines for mandatory company ski days. From the ground up LGM acquired most of its early business through word of mouth. “The Internet was just taking off, and as we started to grow, we knew its extensive reach would help us find new customers and scale the business,” says Charles. In 2002, LGM launched LGMModel.com, making its modeling services available on the Internet. Over the next four years Charles made multiple changes to the website, but didn’t see any measurable impact on site traffic or the number of qualified leads. “We were pretty much shooting in the dark. We were using some basic reporting software on the website but it was complicated and left us with more questions than answers. That’s when we found Google Analytics.” Google Analytics™ is a free web analytics tool that provides site owners with comprehensive information on how visitors find and navigate their website. “We implemented Analytics in November of 2006,” Charles says. “Setup was simple. Within one day, we were able to view reports and analyze the data.” “For the first time, we had insight into what was and wasn’t working on the site,” he continues. “For instance, Analytics told us visitors were spending the most time on our portfolio page. As we continued to tweak the website, we knew to focus our efforts on keeping that page up-to-date and visually appealing.” Blueprint for success LGM noticed a majority of new business leads were coming from free search listings on Google.com. “We wanted to consistently appear at the top of the page in order to grab the attention of potential customers,” says Jon Grinney, director of marketing for LGM. “That’s where Google AdWords entered the picture.” In April of 2007, LGM launched its first Google AdWords™ campaign. “Unlike free search listings, AdWords lets you select which keywords trigger your ad, © 2007 Google Inc. All rights reserved. Google and the Google logo are trademarks of Google Inc. All other company and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.
GOOGLE ADWORDS SUCCESS PROFILE
About Google AdWords Google AdWords™ is a performancebased advertising program that enables businesses large and small to advertise on Google and its network of partner websites. Hundreds of thousands of businesses worldwide use AdWords for text, image, and video ads priced on a cost-per-click (CPC) and cost-per-impression (CPM) basis. Built on an auction-based system, AdWords is a highly quantifiable and costeffective way to reach potential customers.
explains Jon. “You can also help control how far up your ad appears by adjusting keyword bids.” The key benefit for LGM was the ability to target the right audience. “Our business is niche, so I focused on adding the most relevant keywords,” Jon explains. “Before AdWords, we fielded a lot of calls for services we don’t provide. Now, we use negative keywords to prevent our ad from showing on irrelevant search terms. Examples include cars and airplanes – terms associated with hobby model building, something we don’t do. This frees up our resources to focus on clientele who offer the best return.”
“Just like Analytics, AdWords easily integrates into our small business. We like using Google products because they help keep us competitive and our costs low.” Jon Grinney, director of marketing, LGM
For more information, visit http://www.adwords.google.com
About Google Analytics Google Analytics™ is a free, powerful web analytics tool. It precisely tracks visitors, referrals, search engine performance, email promotions, and even offline initiatives. Featuring visually enhanced reports, Analytics helps users focus their marketing resources, improve site navigation, and achieve a higher ROI. It measures the success of both AdWords and non-AdWords advertising campaigns, revealing which ads and keywords convert the best. For more information, visit http://www.google.com/analytics
About Google SketchUp Pro Google SketchUp Pro 6™ allows professionals to create, share, and present 3D models using a robust tool set and intelligent drawing system. It features import and export capabilities, bringing added functionality to professional workflow. With SketchUp Pro, you can create 3D models from photographs, match existing models to background photos, render with sketchy effects and fog, and mark your models with 3D text, logos, and watermarks. For more information, visit http://www.sketchup.com
“And for every account change we make, Analytics helps us assess business impact,” Jon adds. “For instance, we’ve seen an 18 percent increase in the average amount of time visitors spend on our site. This result is largely due to site adjustments we’ve made based on Analytics data, and the highly targeted traffic we receive through AdWords.” Build it and they will come When the LGM team started putting together a marketing strategy for RapidArch, their new online architectural model ordering system, they knew just where to turn. “The idea behind RapidArch was to streamline the modeling process by putting everything online,” Jon says. “Because the Internet is so integral to the product, and we’d had a positive experience with other Google products, AdWords was a natural fit.” “To get the word out beyond Colorado, we set the targeting features for our RapidArch campaign to show throughout the U.S. As a result, we started seeing leads come in from other states. Now more architects outside of Colorado know about LGM and the services we provide.” “Just like Analytics, AdWords easily integrates into our small business. We like using Google products because they help keep us competitive and our costs low,” Jon says. LGM also works with SketchUp Pro™, Google’s 3D modeling software, to develop RapidArch models. “Many of our project submissions are initially created using Google SketchUp Pro,” Jon explains. “Because architects find it easy to use and more affordable than most design software, we predict SketchUp will increase RapidArch requests and continue to facilitate workflow, just another example of how we’re working with Google for different aspects of our business.” Scaling up “We’re completing high-profile projects all over the country and RapidArch is really taking off,” Charles says. “We recently completed a project for Hyatt, developing a model for their new Residence Club in Northstar, California. As we grow, we’ll continue to use Google products for all our business needs, from production to marketing.” “The future is looking good,” Charles concludes. “Let’s just hope the same is true for the snow forecast.” © 2007 Google Inc. All rights reserved. Google and the Google logo are trademarks of Google Inc. All other company and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.
