MKT 315 Final Project Guidelines and Rubric
Overview
Have you ever wondered why
MKT 315 Final Project Guidelines and Rubric
Overview
Have you ever wondered why websites appear on the first page of a Google search? How does your search engine provide results based on your location? How much do companies pay to appear first on the ads section in a search engine? In this course, you will explore these and other questions in depth. You will learn to differentiate between search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM) techniques and how to use these strategies to improve traffic to websites in a competitive environment. You will work with different tools used by specialists in the field and will learn about methods for measuring the impact of organic and paid marketing strategies. Also, you will discuss the ethical and legal approaches to search engine strategies and how complying with them will positively support your brand.
You will showcase your knowledge by creating a search engine plan, which will give you the opportunity to practice important skills that will be required in your future career such as developing marketing plans that align with larger marketing strategies and presenting your thoughts in an effective, brief, and persuasive manner. The project is divided into four milestones, which will be submitted at various points throughout the course to scaffold learning and ensure quality final submissions. These milestones will be submitted in Modules Two, Three, Four, and Five. The final product will be submitted in Module Seven.
In this assignment, you will demonstrate your mastery of the following course outcomes:
Recommend methods for using digital analytics tools to measure the impact of organic and paid marketing strategies on lead generation
Propose an effective blend of search engine strategies for supporting traffic to websites while ensuring alignment to goals and budgets allocated to a marketing campaign
Explain search engine optimization and search engine marketing distinctive features for clearly communicating expectations to clients
Employ legal and ethical principles in search engine strategies for promoting positive brand awareness
Assess internal organizational and external environmental factors for their impact on the development of paid and organic marketing strategies
Prompt
You are hired! For your final project, you will take the role of a consultant who has been hired to help a brand with their digital presence. Specifically, the company is interested in search engine optimization (SEO) of their website and in learning more about search engine marketing (SEM) and would like for you to make recommendations about a Google AdWords campaign as well as techniques to improve organic traffic to their website.
The company has set aside a budget of $5,000 per month for a Google AdWords campaign and would really like to understand your rationale behind the keywords that you recommend. You will need to recommend how the company uses this budget and why. Also, the company is willing to spend $5,000 on improving their website through SEO techniques that you recommend. The company is unschooled in both SEO and SEM, and therefore you will need to clearly define the pros and cons of each and set clear expectations. If this project goes well and you are able to show results, the company will continue to work with you on a retainer to have you consult on SEO/SEM initiatives.
You will create a search engine plan for the company and culminate with a one-page recommendation in which you will summarize and explain your strategies to the client.
Specifically, you must address the critical elements listed below. Most of the critical elements align with a particular course outcome (shown in brackets).
Company Analysis: In this section, you will analyze different internal and external factors and explain why your company would benefit from an SEO and SEM campaign.
Company Selection: Provide a brief descriiption of the company you selected in the Module One Final Project Discussion. What keyword did you select from the list provided? What is this company about?
Internal Factors: Create SMART goals for your specific company that build on the needs and budget presented above. What are the long-term goals for your specific company?
External Factors: Analyze a competitor’s website to gather ideas regarding keywords and organic traffic. In your answer, consider the following:
What local results appeared on the first page?
What ads did you find on the first page?
Why do you believe the first site from your search is the top site for organic traffic?
Will the search term be too competitive and therefore out of budget for the project?
Justification: Based on your findings from the internal and external factors analyses, explain why your company would benefit from an SEO/SEM campaign. Make sure you justify your answer with research and specific examples from the previous sections.
SEO Strategy: In this section, you will conduct an SEO audit of your website and then recommend three SEO techniques for your company.
Keywords: Using the Google Trends tool, select five keywords to target that align with your website’s theme. Present your keywords in a bulleted list and provide a screenshot of the results from Google Trends. Keep in mind that you will make your SEO recommendations around these keywords.
Audit: After conducting a website SEO audit using this checklist, present your findings, highlighting your website’s strengths and weaknesses. Present your answer in the form of a two-paragraph summary.
SEO Techniques: Recommend three SEO techniques to improve organic traffic to your website. Make sure you support your answer with findings from research and specific examples from previous sections.
SEM Strategy: In this section, you will propose an effective SEM strategy.
Keywords: Based on the keywords you selected in the previous section, you will use Keyword Planner and Google AdWords to select final keywords that would be plausible based on the assigned budget and the website’s theme. Keep in mind that you can select the number of words you consider necessary. Present your keywords in a bulleted list.
Reasoning: Explain the logic behind your keyword selections, supporting your answer with findings from research and examples.
Tools: Provide screenshots of the results you obtained from Google AdWords and from the Keyword Planner spreadsheet.
Implementation: In this section, you will create an action plan to measure the effectiveness of your SEO and SEM strategies and will discuss the legal and ethical principles to consider when implementing the campaign.
Google Analytics: Based on the goals you defined and the proposed strategies, you will explain how you plan to measure your campaign. Make sure you address the following:
Recommend three Google Analytics reports explaining what each report intends to measure.
Explain the reasons why you believe those three reports should be used to measure the effectiveness of your strategies. Support your answer with research.
Describe how you will use the data you collect to make decisions regarding optimization of your SEO/SEM campaign.
Industry Standards and Regulations: Based on the decisions you have made, discuss the ethical and legal principles that will have to be considered when implementing each of the strategies. Make sure you address the following:
Identify the ethical and professional standards that apply to your SEO/SEM campaign.
Identify current regulations that must be considered when implementing your plan. Are there any state or federal regulations that should be considered?
Explain how you will address the ethical and legal considerations for promoting positive brand awareness and ensuring compliance with industry standards and regulations.
Report: In this section, you will filter through the entire process to submit a focused 1-page recommendation for your chosen company. In this report, you will explain to your client the SEO and SEM strategies you selected and how they are going to be implemented.
Milestones
Milestone One: Draft of Company Analysis
In Module Two, you will submit a draft of the company analysis section of your search engine plan. In this section, you will analyze different internal and external factors and explain why your company would benefit from an SEO and SEM campaign. This milestone will be graded with the Milestone One Rubric.
Milestone Two: Draft of SEO Strategy
In Module Three, you will submit a draft of the SEO Strategy section of your search engine plan. In this section, you will conduct an SEO audit of your website and then recommend three SEO techniques for your company. This milestone will be graded with the Milestone Two Rubric.
Milestone Three: Draft of SEM Strategy
In Module Four, you will submit a draft of the SEM Strategy section of your search engine plan. In this section, you will propose an effective SEM strategy. This milestone will be graded with the Milestone Three Rubric.
Milestone Four: Draft of Google Analytics
In Module Five, you will submit a draft of Google Analytics (Part a) of the Implementation section of your search engine plan. In this section, you will create an action plan to measure the effectiveness of your techniques. This milestone will be graded with the Milestone Four Rubric.
Final Submission: Search Engine Plan
In Module Seven, you will submit your final project. It should be a complete, polished artifact containing all of the critical elements of the final product. It should reflect the incorporation of feedback gained throughout the course. This submission will be graded with the Final Project Rubric.
What to Submit
Your search engine plan must be 9 pages in length (in addition to a cover page and references) and must be written in APA format. Use double spacing, 12-point Times New Roman font, and one-inch margins.