DATA4500

Marketing and Social Media Analytics

Lesson 9

Marketing and Social Media Strategy Optimisation

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Roadmap

DATA4500 Roadmap — you are here in Week 9

Outcomes

What you will be able to do after today

Four outcomes, four parts of the lesson. Each part is a lever BrewLab can pull to optimise its marketing.

	Learning outcome	Part of today's lesson
LO1	Investigate how search engine optimisation adds value to a company's marketing strategy	Part 1 — SEO
LO2	Apply A/B testing to compare digital marketing effectiveness	Part 2 — A/B testing
LO3	Evaluate the use of social media and GenAI as part of one's marketing strategy	Part 3 — Social & GenAI
LO4	Explore aspects of crisis mitigation	Part 4 — Crisis mitigation

Case

Today's case: BrewLab needs to optimise

The company

BrewLab is a Melbourne specialty coffee retailer. It has a website, an email list, and social accounts.

The problem

Website traffic is flat. Some emails go unopened. And last week one unhappy customer's post spread fast, pulling in negative reviews.

Each part of this lesson hands BrewLab one lever to fix a piece of this.

Four levers

SEO — help the right people find BrewLab on Google.
A/B testing — prove which page or email actually performs better, instead of guessing.
Social media & GenAI — grow reach and engagement without creating new risks.
Crisis mitigation — steady the brand when something goes wrong.

0.1

First, the map every lever acts on: the funnel Where each customer sits, and what we call them at that point

Decision process (ABCDE)	Funnel (AIDA)	We call them…
Awareness	Attention	consumer
Browsing	Interest	lead
Consideration	Desire	prospect
Decision	Action	customer
Evaluation	[Customer service]	advocate

Why this matters today

SEO works at the top (Attention). A/B testing can lift any step. Crisis mitigation protects the advocate stage that feeds the whole funnel.

Part 1 of 4

Search Engine Optimisation

LO1 — Investigate how SEO adds value to a company's marketing strategy. Goal: help the right people find BrewLab on Google before they find a competitor.

1.1

1.1 What is SEO, in plain terms?

Definition

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is the work of making your website as visible as possible on a search platform, using unpaid keywords and phrases tied to your content, so that more of the right people click through to your site.

The three ideas inside that sentence

Visible — appear high on the results page, not on page five.
Unpaid — this is earned ranking, not advertising you buy.
Right people — traffic that actually wants what you sell.

BrewLab lens

When someone in Melbourne types "specialty coffee beans delivered", BrewLab wants to be the first result they trust — without paying for every click.

1.2

1.2 Why SEO matters — where people search now

Most searching happens on a phone. If BrewLab's site is slow or awkward on mobile, good ranking is wasted.

Mobile phones have overtaken desktops for internet searching.
95.9% of users access the internet via mobile
61.4% via laptops and desktops

Source: DataReportal / GWI, Global Overview, April 2025.

1.3

1.3 Why SEO matters — which search engine to optimise for

One engine dominates. For BrewLab in Australia, "SEO" mostly means "rank well on Google".

Google's worldwide share of search is about 89.7%.
In Australia it is even higher, about 92.2%.
Optimise for Google first; other engines follow similar rules.

Source: Statcounter GlobalStats, March 2025.

1.4

1.4 Two halves of SEO: on-page and off-page

Owned media

The content on BrewLab's own website — plus the keywords and key phrases attached to it. This is what BrewLab fully controls.

On-page SEO — improving items on your own site: page titles, headers, image labels, the words on the page, and the underlying code.

Off-page SEO — improving external signals: links from other sites pointing to you, and your social media presence.

Both aim at one thing

A higher position in the search rankings.

1.5

1.5 Keyword research — the words your audience actually types

Keyword research means working out the words a target customer would type into Google, then focusing on the ones that are both relevant and widely used.

Relevant but rarely searched → few visitors.
Popular but irrelevant → visitors who bounce.
The sweet spot is relevant and popular.

Free tools such as Keyword Tool (keywordtool.io) suggest real phrases people search.

BrewLab keyword map

A customer might type any of these:

specialty coffee Melbourne best coffee beans online AU single origin espresso beans coffee subscription delivered how to brew pour over

The last one is a question — a bridge to content strategy on the next slide.

1.6

1.6 Content strategy — matching content to search intent

Ranking for a word is not enough. The page has to give searchers what they actually wanted.

Match search intent — ask "what does this searcher want to find?" and build the page around that answer.
Answer frequent questions — turn common questions into clear pages.

BrewLab example

Someone searching "how to brew pour over" wants a guide, not a product list. So BrewLab writes a short pour-over guide — which then earns the click and introduces its beans.

Intent → the page that satisfies it.

1.7

1.7 How search engines find you: Crawl → Index → Rank

Every search engine runs the same three steps. Knowing them tells BrewLab where to intervene.

Where BrewLab acts

Crawl: make pages easy to reach through links and clean structure. Index: use clear titles so pages are stored correctly. Rank: match keywords and intent so BrewLab is a "best match".

1.8

1.8 The SEO enhancement toolkit

Five common checks to push a page higher, and one free tool for each. BrewLab does not need all at once — start where the weakness is.

#	What you check	Why it helps	Example tool
1	Site architecture	How easily crawlers locate and categorise your content	Browseo
2	Keywords	Whether you have the phrases crawlers look for, tied to your content	Keyword Tool
3	Backlinks	Find sites linking to you and spot new referral opportunities	Ahrefs
4	SERP appearance	See how your listing looks in results and make it stand out	SERP Simulator
5	Page speed	Find bulky sections slowing the desktop and mobile versions	Pingdom

Bundled services (e.g. SEO Analyzer) cover all five together — useful once BrewLab knows what to look for.

1.Q

Knowledge check — SEO

Q1. BrewLab ranks near the top for "specialty coffee Melbourne", but its product pages take eight seconds to load on phones and most visitors leave. Which enhancement is the priority?

Good ranking already brings visitors, but a slow mobile page loses them after arrival. Page speed is the bottleneck here, and most searching is on mobile.

Q2. BrewLab writes a "how to brew pour over" guide that answers the question fully, then links to its beans. This is mainly an example of:

The searcher wanted to learn, and the page delivers that — content matched to intent. It is owned, on-page content, not a paid placement.

Activity 1

Activity 1 — Fundamental SEO concepts

Put BrewLab on the map

Imagine you run BrewLab's online store. Work in pairs.

Q1. What types of words do you think your target audience would type to find you? List five, and say why each one is worth targeting.

Q2. Name one specific thing you would do for on-page optimisation and one for off-page optimisation. Justify each choice.

Be ready to defend your five keywords to the class — why those, and not others?

Activity 2

Activity 2 — Reading the rankings

Why did that result win?

Open your browser and search for "specialty coffee Melbourne".

Q1. Look at the site ranked first. Argue for why you think it appeared at the top — point to specific things about the page or the brand.

Q2. Now pick a site from the bottom half of page one. What factors do you believe hold it back, and what would you change first?

Discuss in groups of two or three, then share your insights with the class.

Part 2 of 4

A/B Testing

LO2 — Apply A/B testing to compare digital marketing effectiveness. Goal: stop guessing which email or page works, and let visitors decide.

2.1

2.1 What is A/B testing?

Definition

A/B testing (also called split testing or bucket testing) compares two versions of a digital asset — a web page, email, or social post — to see which one prompts more action from viewers.

Version A is usually what you have now.
Version B changes something you think could do better.
The winner is the one that gets more of the action you care about.

BrewLab lens

Does the button "Shop now" or "Get 15% off" get more clicks? A/B testing answers it with evidence, not opinion.

2.2

2.2 How A/B testing works

Show the two versions at random to visitors or email subscribers — roughly half see A, half see B.
Measure a clear number, such as click-through rate or number of inquiries.
After enough responses, keep the version that wins.

The number you compare

$$\text{conversion rate}=\frac{\text{people who acted}}{\text{people who saw it}}$$

Random splitting matters: it keeps the two audiences comparable, so the version — not the audience — explains the difference.

Keep Version A — it converts more visitors.

2.3

2.3 Where you can use it, and how far it scales

Any stage of the funnel

A/B testing can lift any step — a headline that wins more Attention, or a checkout button that wins more Action. Test wherever people drop off.

BrewLab

Test the subject line to lift email opens; test the product photo to lift add-to-cart.

Simple vs A/B/n

A/B (simplest): two versions of one element.
A/B/n: more than two versions of a single element tested together — A, B, C, and so on.

More versions need more traffic to reach a trustworthy result.

2.4

2.4 Case study: how Netflix tests artwork

Netflix shows different thumbnail images for the same title and measures which draws more viewers. Here are two images for one film, scored by two viewer groups.

Viewer profile	Score, Image A	Score, Image B
Comedy fans	5.7	6.3
Romance fans	7.2	6.5

Image A: the couple, close together. Image B: the lead actor alone, smiling.

Read the result

Comedy fans preferred Image B. Romance fans preferred Image A. There is no single "best" image — the winner depends on the viewer.

The lesson for BrewLab

The best creative can differ by audience segment. Rather than one email for everyone, BrewLab can show espresso lovers one hero image and filter-coffee lovers another — the same idea Netflix uses at scale.

2.Q

Knowledge check — A/B testing

Q1. BrewLab sends Version A to its 8am subscribers and Version B to its 8pm subscribers, then declares B the winner. What is the flaw?

A/B testing needs a random split so the audiences are comparable. Splitting by send time introduces a second difference, so you cannot tell what caused the change.

Q2. The Netflix case shows that comedy fans and romance fans preferred different images. The strongest takeaway is:

Each segment favoured a different image, so there is no single winner for everyone. That is the case for tailoring creative to segments.

Activity 3

Activity 3 — Design BrewLab's "Version B" email

Here is BrewLab's current promotional email (Version A). You are asked to design a Version B to test what appeals most to recipients.

From: BrewLab · Subject: Our beans are back in stock test?

hero image test?

Fresh single-origin, roasted this week test?

Free delivery over $40.

Shop now test?

Activity 3 — A/B testing

Q1. Which elements of this email would you include in your A/B test? (subject line, hero image, headline, button text…)

Q2. For each element you pick, what exactly would you change in Version B, and why do you expect it to perform better?

Change one element at a time — explain to the class how that keeps the result readable.

Part 3 of 4

Social Media & GenAI in your strategy

LO3 — Evaluate the use of social media and GenAI as part of one's marketing strategy. Goal: grow BrewLab's reach and engagement without creating new risks.

3.1

3.1 Why social media belongs in the strategy

Social media is another channel to reach customers — and, done well, it sends them back to your website.

It gives BrewLab a channel to:

Promote brand awareness — more people learn BrewLab exists.
Build reputation — show quality and personality over time.
Engage with customers — and drive that traffic to the website, feeding sales.

Engagement channelled back to the site.

3.2

3.2 A social media strategy in five moves

A repeatable loop: set goals, create, get discovered, respond, then measure and improve.

BrewLab in practice

Aim: 20% more site visits from Instagram this quarter (a KPI). Post brewing tips using #MelbourneCoffee, reply to every comment, then check which posts sent the most traffic — and make more of those.

3.3

3.3 GenAI in marketing — the upside and the data risk

Where it helps

Draft captions, product descriptions, and email variants fast.
Generate first-draft images and campaign ideas to react to.
Summarise customer comments to find common themes.

BrewLab use

Generate ten caption options for a new roast, then A/B test the two strongest.

Where the risk is

Your data: pasting confidential sales figures or customer lists into a public tool can expose them.
Competitor benefit: prompts and data you share may inform models others also use.
Accuracy: outputs can be wrong or off-brand, so a human must review before publishing.

Rule of thumb

Use GenAI to draft and speed up — not as the final word, and not with data you would not email to a stranger.

3.Q

Knowledge check — social media & GenAI

Q1. In BrewLab's five-move social strategy, "20% more site visits from Instagram this quarter" is an example of which move?

It is a specific, measurable target — a KPI. It sets what success looks like before any content is made.

Q2. A BrewLab staffer pastes the full customer email list into a public GenAI tool to "write a nicer newsletter". The main concern is:

Sharing private data with a public tool risks exposing it. The task itself is fine — the risk is feeding confidential data into a system you do not control.

Activity 4

Activity 4 — Analytics & measurement

How else would you measure BrewLab's performance?

A/B testing is one analytics method for improving a web page. It is not the only one.

Task. Research other methods or measurements that help BrewLab track potential-customer activity and compare its site to similar ones. Choose two, and argue which you would adopt first and why.

Prepare to name your two methods and defend your first pick to the class.

Activity 6

Activity 6 — GenAI and marketing

Advise a new business on GenAI

Watch the short video your lecturer shares on how GenAI is shaping marketing, then take a position on each question.

Q1. What tips would you give a new business about using AI in marketing? Give three, ranked by importance.

Q2. What are the risks to your corporation's data when using GenAI?

Q3. Following from Q2 — could your competitors end up benefiting from the prompts and data you put into GenAI? Argue your view.

Part 4 of 4

Crisis Mitigation on Social Media

LO4 — Explore aspects of crisis mitigation. Goal: when a bad review spreads, protect BrewLab's reputation and turn the situation around.

4.1

4.1 The scenario BrewLab now faces

What happened

An incident with one order was aired on social media. It sparked a wave of negative comments and reviews about the BrewLab brand.

The question for the room: how would you turn the situation around?

Silence tends to make it worse. A calm, structured response can rebuild trust. The next slide gives a five-step approach.

One incident, many reactions.

4.2

4.2 Five steps to steady the brand

BrewLab in action

Monitor mentions daily; find that one delivery batch was late; reply publicly with a genuine apology; point to BrewLab's track record; then offer the customer a direct fix by phone or email.

The aim

Move the conversation from a public pile-on to a private, solvable problem — while everyone watching sees a brand that responds well.

Activity 5

Activity 5 — Social media and marketing

Rescue a real brand fail

Read about well-known brand fails on social media (your lecturer will share the article link). Examples include a divisive "unity" campaign, a tone-deaf tweet, and a brand blaming its own customers.

Task. Choose one example. Using the five-step approach, explain exactly how you would resolve the backlash — what you would say, in what order, and what you would take offline.

Be ready to defend your response. What would you deliberately not do, and why?

Recap

Recap — four levers BrewLab can now pull

	Lever	What it does for BrewLab
LO1	SEO	Helps the right people find BrewLab on Google, through keywords, intent-matched content, and crawl/index/rank basics.
LO2	A/B testing	Proves which page or email works by splitting traffic and measuring conversion — no guessing.
LO3	Social & GenAI	Grows reach through a five-move strategy; uses GenAI to draft faster while protecting company data.
LO4	Crisis mitigation	Steadies the brand in five steps and moves problems from public to private.

One thread

Optimisation is a loop: try a change, measure it, keep what works. Every lever above runs on that same habit.

End of Lesson 9

You optimised BrewLab across search, testing, social, and crisis response.

Next week — Week 10

Advanced analytics techniques: customer lifetime value and churn. We move from attracting customers to keeping the valuable ones.

Press T to review any section.

DATA4500 Roadmap — you are here in Week 9

What you will be able to do after today

Today's case: BrewLab needs to optimise

Four levers

First, the map every lever acts on: the funnel Where each customer sits, and what we call them at that point

Search Engine Optimisation

1.1 What is SEO, in plain terms?

The three ideas inside that sentence

1.2 Why SEO matters — where people search now

1.3 Why SEO matters — which search engine to optimise for

1.4 Two halves of SEO: on-page and off-page

1.5 Keyword research — the words your audience actually types

1.6 Content strategy — matching content to search intent

1.7 How search engines find you: Crawl → Index → Rank

1.8 The SEO enhancement toolkit

Knowledge check — SEO

Put BrewLab on the map

Why did that result win?

A/B Testing

2.1 What is A/B testing?

2.2 How A/B testing works

2.3 Where you can use it, and how far it scales

Any stage of the funnel

Simple vs A/B/n

2.4 Case study: how Netflix tests artwork

Knowledge check — A/B testing

Activity 3 — Design BrewLab's "Version B" email

Social Media & GenAI in your strategy

3.1 Why social media belongs in the strategy

3.2 A social media strategy in five moves

3.3 GenAI in marketing — the upside and the data risk

Where it helps

Where the risk is

Knowledge check — social media & GenAI

How else would you measure BrewLab's performance?

Advise a new business on GenAI

Crisis Mitigation on Social Media

4.1 The scenario BrewLab now faces

4.2 Five steps to steady the brand

Rescue a real brand fail

Recap — four levers BrewLab can now pull

End of Lesson 9

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