Zodi Outdoor Gear’s Zodi.com, which sells portable hot-shower units and other specialized equipment for campers, is turning to search engine marketing to build its base of customers at partner retailers, Ryan Crittenden, operations manager, tells InternetRetailer.com.

Zodi, which started a decade ago as a cataloger, does about 25% of its business in direct-to-consumer sales, the rest in sales through other retailers that sell camping equipment. To promote growth in all channels, it’s replacing its traditional print advertising campaigns with search-engine marketing. “We’ve seen tremendous growth through Internet search,” Crittenden says, adding that Zodi works with search engine marketing firm MoreVisibility.

Search-engine marketing is a serving a dual role in building a base of retail partners as well as direct customers, he adds. Not only does it help retailers as well as consumers find Zodi as a source for camping equipment, but it introduces potential retail partners to Zodi.com as an information resource and selling tool. Retail partners, including web merchants and stores, learn to use Zodi.com to obtain detailed product information to help explain how portable water heaters work in a camping environment, and they can also download product images for their own online promotional efforts, Crittenden says.

Later this year, Zodi will launch a redesigned web site intended to better integrate with search engine marketing campaigns, he adds. Depending on the keywords used in search, visitors will be automatically directed to better organized information designed to foster sales, Crittenden says.

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