Old school best practices for writing brand marketing copy have included the omission of terms that may reflect poorly on a company, including the term “cheap” to describe a product or service.
But is this practical in the world of SEO? In these seemingly dire economic times, search volume for phrases that include the term “cheap” has spiked. In an iMedia article published last May, Craig Macdonald at Covario cited comScore research (from December 2007) indicating the search phrase “cheap airfare” alone is worth about $8 million.
According to the Google AdWords Keyword Tool, the average monthly search volume for the phrase “cheap insurance” typically amounts to 673,000 queries. Last month, the number of queries for this term rocketed to 2.7 million. Likewise, the average monthly search volume for the phrase “cheap car” is traditionally about 1 million queries. Last month, the volume exceeded 3.3 million.
So, as you consider incorporating adjectives such as “affordable,” “budget,” “inexpensive,” “low-cost,” and “thrifty” into your SEO strategies, consider this: There is a growing number of brands weaving the keyword “cheap” into their on-page SEO elements. (Many are even incorporating this term into their marketing copy!)
Let’s take a look at some of the brands that are capitalizing on the word “cheap” in their SEO strategies. Could your organization benefit from giving this previously taboo word some renewed consideration?
“Cheap” hotels
Take a look at this Google search results page for “cheap hotels.”
The phrase “cheap hotels” is an extremely competitive keyword set, and Red Roof Inn is the only budget-conscious lodging brand that appears in a sea of aggregators. Kudos to Red Roof CEO Joe Wheeling and digital agency 360i for applying common sense. After just a few weeks of becoming the digital agency of record for Red Roof Inn, the title tag for the company’s home page went from this:
Red Roof Inn
to this:
RedRoof Inn | Cheap Hotels – Discount Hotels – Hotel Reservations – Hotel Rooms
Viewing the page source, we can see that Red Roof Inn is utilizing the term “cheap” in the title tag and description tag:
<title>Red Roof Inn | Cheap Hotels – Discount Hotels – Hotel Reservations – Hotel Rooms</title>
<meta name=”Description” content=”Red Roof Inn offers cheap, comfortable hotel rooms at discount rates. Book your Red Roof Inn reservations online or call 1-800-REDROOF” />
In short, by embracing the word “cheap,” Red Roof Inn has increased its chances of connecting with consumers who are searching for low-cost travel accommodations.
