Google to track the property buyers that got away

How many potential buyers visit your Web site every day? How many of them do you manage to collect e-mail addresses from? One percent or 2 percent, 5 percent if you're doing really well. What happens to the people that don't respond to you? Some of them will be time-wasters and end up not buying, but others will purchase from your competitors.

This problem is particularly acute in overseas property as the purchase process takes such a long time that when a buyer finally comes to make a decision the chances are they've forgotten about you even though they visited your Web site a few months earlier.

Finding the buyers that got away

You usually get more than one shot at the cherry. If you understand your target customers' online journey, you can make sure you are highly visible in the paid and natural search results for phrases they search for and you can advertise on property portals they regularly use. However, it's a hit-and-miss exercise, and hundreds if not thousands of buyers are slipping through your fingertips.

Google to the rescue

Google's new foray into behavioral targeting will enable advertisers to target users who have already visited their Web site using new technology that has been dubbed a parasite cookie.

Using the Google Adwords platform, you'll be able to follow your "lost users" around in attempt to influence them into coming back to your Web site to make an inquiry. When one of these users visits a site that takes Google advertising, they'll be shown your advert, presumably if your bid price meets a certain criteria. This is highly significant, as since its acquisition of DoubleClick, Google has the largest online distribution network on the planet. ...CONTINUED

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