Posts Tagged Google advertising
How to Start Your Adwords Campaign
Posted by Pedro in PPC Advertising on March 10, 2010
Google Adwords continues to be one of the leading pay-per-click systems on the Internet, and is a valuable way for you to buy traffic for your website or blog. Having an understanding of Google Adwords’ system is but one part of the equation of Pay Per Click Advertising. Majoritty of succes in PPC advertising is centered around the strategies employed to produce a successful campaign.
There are basic principles that everyone must follow to use Google Adwords efficiently regardless of one’s product and market. Here are some important tips for creating a Google Adwords campaign that gets results:Follow these procedures to help you set up an effective AdWords campaign.
1. Use the wizard to set up your AdWords account. A beginner will find it easy to set-up a google adwords account using the wizard. The wizard will show you the basics of all your account management tools.
2. Create a compelling ad. Each component of your ad must follow a particular formula for it to be effective. Use your keyword or keyphrase in your ads’ headlines. Include a benefit in your second line and state a special promo or feature in the third line. Lastly, do not forget to place your landing page’s URL in the fourth line. This proven formula is taught by best-selling Adwords strategy books; such as Perry Marshall’s “The Ultimate Guide to Google Adwords” and Peter Kent’s “Pay per Click Search Engine Marketing for Dummies”.
3. Use the right keywords. The Google Keyword Selection tool gives users the power to create lists of keywords and keyphrases that are relevant to your niche. This is a very powerful research tool that is highly recommended by adwords experts.
4. Master keyword matching. You can use the keyword tool within the Google Adwords campaign module to conduct broad matches, phrase matches and exact matches for a given set of keywords. This allows you to get additional relevant keywords for your campaigns. You can also eliminate certain words with the negative match; this ensures that your ads will not show up on search results for users who type in that phrase. Keyword matching allows you to refine your campaign so that it is much more targeted.
5. Establish a budget. One of the biggest benefits of using Google Adwords is the ability to set up your own budget. You can enter in the total amount you want to spend each day and Google will deduct this balance from your account. Start with a low budget first to minimize risk. As you begin to generate traffic, you’ll be able to calculate exactly how much it costs to get the type of traffic you want, and even identify which keywords actually lead to a sale or conversion.
Google Adwords: Getting More Out of Your Ads
Posted by Pedro in PPC Advertising on January 11, 2010
The title of top PPC network on the internet still belongs to Google Adwords, and they are expected to remain on top for years. What’s great about Adwords is that anyone can setup an account and run a campaign in a few hours. Any ad words campaign needs compelling ads in order to be successful. There is a limitation on the number of text characters when advertising on adwords so make sure you select the right combination of words and statements to get your audience’s attention and generate click-throughs.
Learning what to write in each line, and making sure you are using the right URL extensions are just some of the critical elements of a successful Google Adwords ad. Read on if you are a new Google adwords user and use these guidelines in writing your first ad.
1. Include your keyword in the Title. Perry Marshall and Bryan Todd, authors of “The Ultimate Guide to Google AdWords” state that internet users are more likely to click on an ad if the ad’s title or headline contains the keyword or keyphrase they were searching on. This means it is to your advantage to include the keyword or keyphrase in that very first line; weave these words into the headline to create an attention-grabbing headline that has the potential to generate more clicks.
2. Second line must describe a benefit. Most readers will respond to an ad that clearly lists a key benefit near the beginning. Make sure you are listing your benefit on the second line, not your offer or a feature. Think about ‘giving them what they want’ before highlighting a feature or a special offer.
3. Use the third line for your feature or offer. Your features and offers must support your benefit statement. The idea here is to state your feature or offer in such a way as to back your benefit claim. Keep it short and simple, and make sure this line does not overpower the second line.
4. Place your landing page URL in the last line. Many companies make the mistake of inserting only their website URL on the last line, but you have the freedom to enter in any destination you want in this area. You can setup a different landing page for each ad you run to encourage more clicks and even track your performance.
5. Test results with a similarly written ad. If you want more clicks from each campaign, consider running two very similar ads with slightly different wording. Make small changes in your ads and see which version will perform better.
Setting up your Google Adwords campaign for the first time can seem like a daunting task, but it doesn’t take long to understand all of the elements of Google Adwords and creating compelling and persuasive ads. Follow these guidelines and start running ads now.
How to Get Started With PPC Campaigns
Posted by Pedro in PPC Advertising on November 29, 2009
More and more businesses are using pay per click advertising to promote their business online. Pay per click advertising with Google Adwords can bring lots of traffic to your website, aside from organic search results.
Even though you are paying for this placement, you may be able to attract higher quality traffic and generate more interest in your website, product or service. Below are some guidelines for starting on pay per click campaign.
Step 1: Set your budget. Programs such as Google Adwords allow you to set a daily budget, or limit, so you can better manage your marketing campaign. This option is great for tracking your campaigns and allows you to spend at a level you’re comfortable with. Set your budget fairly low when you first begin to see what type of interest you are generating, and then start paring it down. On the contrary, you can put up several ads all at once in different markets, if you can afford it. You then retain the ones that produce results and drop the ones that do not work.
Step 2: Identify your willingness to take on risks. Boris Mordkovich, in his book “Pay Per Click Search Engine Marketing Handbook” states that PPC campaigns are less risky than traditional tri-media campaigns. However, he adds that search engines provide different ROIs. Popular search engines have a higher level of competition and may cost more; you need to define the level of competition and cost that you can afford.
Step 3: Select your keywords and key phrases. Most PPC programs offer free tools and resources to help you narrow down the keywords that are most appropriate for your niche. Keywords are the backbone of every pay per click campaigns. Selecting the wrong keywords can be disastrous to your campaign so you need to spend some time to make sure that you get the right keywords. Setup some split tests to see which keywords bring you the most results.
Step 4: Reviews your reports. Most PPC platforms provide a convenient reporting tool that gives you the ability to adjust your campaign based on the data you gathered so far. Reports will usually include the number of clicks for each keywords, the time of day your ad was clicked, and the location of those who clicked your ads.
Step 5: Optimize your ads. When you have finished reviewing the reports, you can then stop advertising on low performing keywords and only run ads on keywords that brought in the most results. You can then concentrate on creating and editing ads to further increase your traffic and click through rates.
Getting started with Google Ad words and other pay per click advertising methods is a relatively easy process, and much of your success will be a result of trial and error. Go through these five basic steps so you can make the most of your PPC advertising campaign.
Common Mistakes When Creating a Google Adwords Campaign
Posted by Pedro in PPC Advertising on November 1, 2009
Establishing a Google Adwords campaign that works is tough. Tougher still if you are entering a new niche or just starting to operate in an unfamiliar market. You can always spend a lot of time on market research and spying on your competitor but you will only advance once you create an ad and concentrate on optimizing it. Then again, just placing an ad out there won’t instantly lead to success. The truth is a lot of people discover how quickly they can lose all their time, effort and money invested in Adwords by committing simple mistakes.
The book “The Definitive Guide to Google Adwords” is a must read for anyone who wants to break in into adwords.The author of the book, Perry Marshall, provides clear and concise information regarding Google advertising and direct marketing for both beginners and intermediate users who are looking to gain more from their campaigns.
When you want to establish a profitable Google Adwords campaign – one that generates lots of traffic, conversion and sales from your target market – make sure you’re not making any of these five common mistakes:
1. Coming up with keyword-less ads. A lot of beginning Adwords users make the mistake of only using the keyword in the headline, and then nowhere else within the ad. Include at least 1 or 2 keywords in your ad copy for a more compelling ad.
2. Utilizing your homepage as the landing page. Don’t send the traffic from your ads to your homepage. In most cases, a homepage serves to guide visitors to the different contents of a site. Those who click on ads do so for a specific content and they will immediately leave if they don’t instantly get the information they want. Give them what they’ve came for by directing them to a landing page listing your value proposition for them.
3. Focusing on ‘broad’ keywords. New users only use the ‘broad match’ function in building a list of keywords in Adwords Keyword Selector Tool. This function is only useful for you to gain a feel of your niche or market. Phrase match and exact matches will yield a more targeted list of keywords.
4. Using poorly-performing keywords. Knowing the exact keywords your customers use online will take some time and effort. Monitor your AdWords campaign regularly to check if your keywords are performing as expected. If your keywords are performing sub-par, then spend some effort to search for other keywords. To avoid this, utilize the ‘synonyms’ function in the Google Ad Words Keyword Tool. This function will list related keywords from your original keywords giving you vital details on how to best conduct your campaign.
5. Stating your offer solely on the body of your ad. Surfers will not read your ads if your headline is un-interesting. The headline of your ad serves as the hook to reel in visitors. A good headline will compel your audience to read the rest of your ads. State the most important benefit you’re giving in your headline to compel viewers to read the body of your ad and click through it.
Learn How to Get Results in Building High-Impact Google Adwords Ads
Posted by Pedro in PPC Advertising on October 27, 2009
Creating Google Adwords campaigns that generate results are often difficult, particularly when operating in a niche that is extremely competitive, and when utilizing keywords that are also being used by your competitors. The difference between your copy and theirs will come down to semantics that is, unique ways you present the information and attract attention from your target audience. You can do this by writing and testing a variety of ads, but the good news is, a lot of the work has already been done for you!The intricacies in writing effective ads that generate hundreds to thousands of clicks are already known to many affiliate marketers.
According to Perry Marshall, writer of the book The Definitive Guide to Google Adwords, what propels your ads’ viewers and customers to eventually convert into prospects is the way that they relate with the message contained in your ad.You can absolutely increase your click-through rate and lead to your homepage highly interested prospects when you apply similar tone, language, and conversational style as your customers.
Below are 5 important techniques to remember when you start writing ads for your Google Ad words campaign
1. Assume the undoable or impossible. People continue to be attracted to simply out-of-this-world claims; even if they don’t believe it, the idea piques their interest and they are likely to click on your ad. Evoke their curiosity by presenting out-of-this-world claims, and see how those clicks multiply!
2. Give a secret. People enjoy being ‘in the know’ because it helps them think they have the upper hand about a particular product or service. Share your ‘secret’ or a special story in your ad to capture this highly-interested group of people. Keep this strategy in mind and reap benefits as you bring into the market a new product or service.
3. Use the power of ellipses. A good way to solicit more clicks is to add three dots (also known as ellipses) at the body copy of your AdWords ad. The reader naturally thinks there is more information sitting right behind that click, and is predisposed to clicking the ad to find out more. Ellipses are useful in cases where your ad answers a question or recommends a solution to a problem since they create a certain level of curiosity from viewers, and makes their response rate higher.
4. Use all-caps in each of your leading words. In formulating an ad that creates strong impact to viewers, you need to capitalize your keywords, except placeholders like ‘in’, ‘the’, ‘and’. This lends your ad to easy reading, not to mention the attention it gets when placed with similar ads in your market. Using capital letters also renders professional look on your ad and elicits trust from the audience or viewer.
5. Use powerful take-action words in your headline. One of the most poweful words in the advertising world today is ‘free’ because anyone who clicks on the ad gets an incentive. Also, there are other words that create the same effect and makes an impact to readers as far as increasing click rates is concerned, and these terms are ‘Discover’, ‘Get’, and ‘Learn’.
Pitfalls to Avoid When Writing Effective Google Adwords Ads
Posted by Pedro in Internet Marketing on October 17, 2009
Creating an effective Google Adwords campaign can be challenging for both the beginner and the expert, especially if you are just entering a new niche or approaching your target market for the first time. While you can spend hours monitoring the market and seeing what your competitors are doing, the real lessons are learned when you create an ad and then focus on optimizing it for performance. Remember though that this strategy is not hundred-percent fool proof and may bring costly mistakes.
Perry Marshall offers several effective tips, strategies and advice about creating an Adwords campaign that gets results in his book The Definitive Guide to Google Adwords, but many people still make some mistakes when they are conducting keyword research and making attempts to optimize their campaigns.
If your goal is to set up an effective Google Adwords campaign in order to get high-quality traffic, the following pitfalls to avoid should be kept in mind:
1. Presenting an ad copy without keywords. Putting the keyword in the headline and nowhere in the ad is not a good practice and many Adwords campaign managers unknowingly do this. The keywords used and their relevance are some of the factors that affect the outcome of your ad campaign, so make sure that your ad contains at least one or two keywords or keyphrases.
2. Directing your visitors to your homepage. You will be getting more interest from the viewers and can even have higher conversion rates if the URL you use in your ad proceeds directly to a landing page with the incentive or promo, and not just your homepage.
3. Depending entirely on the ‘broad match’ feature of the Google Adwords Keyword Selector Tool. A general idea of applicable keywords in your niche can be supplied by the ‘broad match’ feature, still, you have other possible alternatives. In the same way, you can use the tool’s ‘phrase match’ and ‘exact match’ functions for your ads and website copy to get quality and intended list of keywords.
4. Use of underperforming keywords. Assuming that people will be searching for your products or services using keywords you used online may not hold water all the time; hence, you must interpret what your target market’s needs are, though it may take some time to do so. In drilling down search results and getting the most out of your campaign, you need to produce a list of similar and other relevant keywords with the Google Adwords Keyword Selector Tool’s ‘synonyms’ feature.
5. Showing your offer only in the body copy. Make sure you emphasize the ‘ultimate benefit’ right away in the headline of your copy. Form a mental image of your viewer checking your headlines, do you honestly think that the entire content of your copy has what it takes for the reader to go through it? Even though Google Adwords ads are only comprised of 3-4 lines, most people scan even these small pieces of copy and will only react when they resonate with something truly amazing or unique your chance to grab their attention lies right in the headline.
Travel Agents Can Benefit From Pay Per Click
Posted by Pedro in PPC Advertising on April 24, 2009
With the global recession showing no apparent signs of slowing down soon travel agents are being forced to make their advertising work harder. Traditional high street travel agents are dissapearing as the publics holiday budgets are slashed and as increasingly Google et al increasingly is where holiday makers are researching and buying their holidays and flights. Given this the more savvy travel agents are paying more attention to their website and their online marketing efforts in an attempt to win new business.
Pay per click is fantastic for holiday and accommodation providers as the search engines are by far and away where most holiday/hotel bookings originate from.
Also as often the keywords are very niche.g. ‘holiday villa rental in nerja’ the conversion (lead/enquiry) rate can be very high and therefore cost per conversion low. Typical overseas holiday providers can expect usually expect to see a conversion rate of 3%-10% and cost per conversions of £4-£12. Pay per click enables advertisers to target specific locations and types of holidays based on their changing requirements. For example i October advertisers could spend 50% of budget on targeting, for example, Costa Brava villa holidays and 50% on Javea villa holidays and in June 30% Southern Spain 30% diving 40% Northern Spain. Similarly pay per click advertisers could promote last minute deals if they hadsurplus inventory or packages they may be looking to sell quickly. An additional benefit is that a pay per click campaign allows the advertiser the flexibility to turn up or down depending on demand.
Other key pay per click benefits to the holiday/travel industry include:
- Can target specific countries or regions
- Vast exposure on all biggest search engines plus content sites
- Detailed reporting tools such as Google Analytics help with measuring performance
- Helps build database for other marketing efforts (mailshots etc)
The most important Google pay per click advertising consideration to work on is the most influential variable affecting conversion (enquiry/sale) i.e. the web site. Experience shows that online bookings are much less likely than sales via web based enquiries generated by a simple enquiry form and/or a holiday quote form or even a phone call or email. The site should therefore be tweaked to make it more enticing and likely for the enquiries to happen. Also if a strong call to action can be made applicable e.g. “fill in your details for free Spain holiday guide” (this can be an automated PDF or similar to keep costs down) it is a great way of capturing more potential buyers.