Quick and easy to set up, pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns let you promote your company on search-engine results pages, tapping in to customers who use keywords associated with your product or service. Here are some tips on getting your PPC campaign right.
PPC gives you total control of spend, where and when your ads are displayed, and which searches trigger your ads. PPC campaigns don’t have a minimum spend requirement – you only pay when a user clicks on your ad.
Managed correctly, a PPC campaign can increase traffic and sales almost over night. Before you get started, here are some essential PPC nuggets of advice:
1. Be clear about your objectives. Ask yourself exactly what it is you are trying to achieve. Are you trying to increase your sales, attract more traffic or increase the time users spend on your website The answer to these questions will influence the content and direction of your campaign.
2. Set up a tracking solution. It is impossible to know if your keywords are successful without one. The simplest solution is to install Google Conversion Tracking onto your website and Google will do the job for you. Another free and easy alternative is Google Analytics, which will help you to understand conversions as well as users’ behaviour on your website.
3. Think carefully about your keywords. Put yourself in your customers’ shoes and choose your keywords on this basis. The keywords you choose have to be relevant to your service/product. And don’t forget about your competitors. Google runs an auction for the click you buy, so popular (obvious) keywords will be more expensive than obscure keywords.
4. Link directly to your commerce pages. Don’t simply send all traffic to your homepage. In most cases, consumers searching for specific products or services are already engaged in the purchasing journey. Making sure this journey is as simple and quick as possible will boost your chances of securing a sale – the longer someone has to navigate around a site, the more frustrated they will become and the more likely they are to leave without buying
5. Geographically target your ads so you’re not charged for clicks by consumers who can’t to buy from you (particularly relevant if you’re a national rather than an international business).
6. Monitor for success and failure. As with anything new, it’s important to keep a close eye on what is, and what is not, working. The sooner you notice changes which can increase the effectiveness of your PPC campaign, the less money you will waste and the more sales you’ll secure. If some keywords are high converters, you can expand the keywords around that group. If some are not, simply remove them so you are not charged for any associated clicks.
Martin McNulty is general manager at Forward3D
