Google Adwords Success Stories

Google AdWords Successes How American Meadows moved its retail catalog business online.
Case study : American Meadows : www.americanmeadows.com
 

Business
Founded in 1981 as The Vermont Wildflower Farm, American Meadows has grown into one of the largest and most respected suppliers of flower seed in North America. American Meadows currently serves virtually all facets of the trade, including large-scale commercial customers, states and other municipalities, stores, garden centers, and individual home gardeners all over North America.

The wildflower seed business was the brainchild of advertising executive Ray Allen, who had worked in ad agencies in New York and established his own agency in Miami. When he and his partners sold their company to BBDO International in 1981, Allen and his wife moved to Vermont and turned their hobby into what eventually became American Meadows.

Located in Williston, Vt., the company's business model has evolved. Originally, seeds were available only to Wildflower Farm visitors. Later, the company built a national catalog business, once distributed to more than 1 million people. Today, all of American Meadows' products are only available through the retail store in Vermont, and worldwide on the Internet at www.americanmeadows.com.

"Google AdWords has been my number one search engine referrer since I first started using it, and Google stays well above all others." Ray Allen President and CEO

Approach
In moving American Meadows from a catalog to a web-based business, Allen knew he would have to constantly generate traffic to the online storefront. This advertising veteran has undertaken a variety of online marketing initiatives including search engine ad programs. As a result he has become a quick study in the new and more effective world of search-based advertising.

Allen continues to expand his company's advertising presence on Google™ and its partner sites. "With Google, I can target advertisements using very specific keywords and drive traffic to American Meadows," says Allen. "I can even reach customers looking for a particular wildflower species. This gives us a low-cost and high-return targeted advertising solution."

Besides listing obvious terms like "wildflowers" and "wildflower seeds," for example, he now also lists less obvious, and less costly, terms, to broaden American Meadows' reach and lower the cost per click.

"Since I've worked with Google, I've learned I should always list the terms I see our customers use to find us, like all 70 of the wildflower species we sell. It's amazing how many people actually input terms like 'rudbeckia hirta,' the botanical name for Black-Eyed Susan. Site search logs are a great resource for finding all of the exact terms customers use," he adds.

"Google AdWords has had a substantial impact on my business, providing a low-cost way to generate a large volume of leads, increase customer acquisition, and ultimately generate more revenue for American Meadows."

Results
American Meadows typically receives more than 1,000 unique visitors a day, with more than 20 percent of them coming through Google AdWords™. Since running its first Google AdWords campaign early in 2001, the company has increased leads through its site by more than 120 percent a month. When American Meadows began running Google AdWords advertisements on AOL in May 2002, traffic coming from AOL to the site quadrupled. According to Allen, "Google AdWords has consistently been my No. 1 search engine referrer since I first started using it, and Google stays well above all others."

As a former advertising executive, Allen knows the value of good customer service. "Google's client service is above and beyond the best in the business. Google always answers my requests quickly and clearly, enabling me to more effectively maximize my advertising programs," said Allen.

Another of Allen's favorite aspects of Google AdWords is his ability to easily manage, revise, and test the editorial copy of his advertisements. "I've been a copywriter all my life. In the retail business, rapid response and adjustment to sales trends is a crucial part of merchandising. With Google, I am able to change the text in all my ads in real time. This flexibility is perfect when we are having a sale or special event," says Allen. "Google AdWords has had a substantial impact on my business, providing a low-cost way to generate a large volume of leads, increase customer acquisition, and ultimately generate more revenue for American Meadows."

About Google AdWords
Google AdWords™ is a performance-based, self-service advertising program that enables advertisers to list sponsored links on top web properties, including Google, AOL, AskJeeves and others. The text-based, keyword-targeted system offers cost-per-click (CPC) pricing: advertisers pay only when users click on their ads. Advertising ranking is determined by a combination of ad performance (click-through rate) and the amount an advertiser agrees to pay per click. Google offers advertisers and partners a full range of editorial and client services designed to facilitate the relevance of ads and assist with campaign management.