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Ad Position Best Practices for PPC

The Value of Improving Ad Position The following best practices for ad position , or ad rank, help maximize the efficiency of search campaigns. The more relevant the ad, the greater the probability of achieving a high position or rank. Greater relevance mitigates higher competitive bids. Higher position increases the opportunity to convert searchers into customers. Based on the chart below, Advertiser C, having a highly relevant ad, spends three times less to reach the number one position; as compared...(read more)

AdCenter Optimization Quick Reference Guide

I'd like to share the checklist I use daily for quick optimization tips for my adCenter clients. Here are some common scenarios and possible steps to address them. Low CTR? Test multiple ads Repeat ads that have higher CTR Remove poor performers Static ads: Capitalize the first letter in keywords and ad copy Insert {Keyword} or {param2} in ad title, description or display URL Unfocused orders: More detailed orders More keyword coherence Tightly targeted ad copy Try demographic targeting Increase...(read more)

Keyword Research Tips From Tor Crockatt

 

I’ve just spent the day at the International Search Summit at the British Library in the heart of London.

Delegates from all over the world were attending to get a better understanding of how to market globally using search engine marketing. Marketing in multiple languages can be fraught with pitfalls if you’re not careful, so most were there to pick up a few tips.

I may be biased, but my favourite presentation was from our own Tor Crockatt. Tor is our Editorial Operations Manager here in Europe and is a whizz when it comes to ad copy, linguistics and how to think about which keywords are the best to select when building a campaign.

During her session she made some very helpful points:

• You have to make the keyword relevant to connect your audience with your products in the most effective way and this challenge multiplies when you expand into multiple languages.
• Think of keywords as questions being asked by a user. You’re engaging the user by drawing them in to your site. Be honest – do you have the answer to their question? Remember the quality of their experience can affect your brand positively.....and negatively!
• Think about what you are actually selling and don’t expand your keywords so much that they don’t relate to your content. For instance if you sell bath tubs, don’t be tempted to bid on keywords for shower equipment just because they do the same thing.

 

Follow these keyword research steps:

Think of your keywords as a pot of coins. It’s not how many coins you have in the pot that’s important; it’s their value to your campaign; this value is dictated the type and volume of users they connect you to:

Do your keywords bring you….

• The right volume of Customers?
• Customers looking for your products?
• Customers ready to buy?
• Customers your competitors haven’t tapped?
• The opportunity to present your Unique Selling points directly against competitors?

 

Analysis around user intent on generic keywords is key to understanding the users’ request. Some keywords have multiple options as to precisely what the user is asking:

When translating and localizing campaigns, keyword analysis becomes more complex and user intent will vary per market. Using qualified local search marketers is the best option, but if you are using translation tools start simple! Translate basic concepts or nouns first and then use keyword research tools to expand and find variations. If translating nouns, try using the plural as you are most likely to get the meaning which corresponds most closely to the search user’s usage.

Another structure that may be useful is trying to spot elements of meaning in the keywords that you are using, for example your keyword phrases may include: quality elements (compare, best), price adjectives, product adjectives, product names/types, manufacturer/brand names, words that indicates intended use (for him, back to school), intended action (buy, book) or a location/place name. If you can see the typical structure of meaning in your keywords, it becomes easier to think up more variations. This may also give you a framework with which to localise.

If you bear these concepts in mind when setting out on your pay-per-click journey you’ll create a much better experience for the user, put your ad in front of customers actually looking for your products and services more often, which will enhance  your brand. You’ll also save money because eradicating those wasted impressions and clicks will result in higher click-through rates for your keyword/ad combinations and better ROI.

Constructing an Effective Call to Action for Your Ad Copy

Any successful campaign will have an effective call to action. There are many important factors to improve your results, including how you market and communicate your call to action, but when it comes down to the call to action itself, there are 6 key tips that can transform any run of the mill ad into a converting dynamo.

1) Separate the click from the call: Search ads offer very limited space to marketers to create their message. However, they have to use this space at its maximum and figure out how to persuade users to click the ad. For this purpose there is the call to action, the phrase that provides the user information on what his or her actions should be. This information should be included in just few words. Marketers think that “click here” is short and contains all the instruction. However, it is not informative enough to motivate people. Therefore instead if using “click here” you may use phrases such as “Buy now!”, “Learn more”, etc. Such calls for actions are considerably more informative. Be realistic and think about what actions your ads should inspire the users to take.

2) Express the call to action clearly: After you know exactly the action your message should inspire, you have to think about how users will benefit from that undertaken action. The advantage you offer to your potential customers should be expressed as an action. Marketers whose main purpose is to sell something should create such a call to action that will encourage people visit the landing page, for example: “New Summer Arrivals 100 Styles to Refresh your Wardrobe”. If the main goal is to inform site visitors, then perhaps something like, “Tips on how to increase height naturally”. Such calls to action are both motivating and informational.

3) Turn to your website for content: Your website is the best resource for a great call to action. Users click on an ad with an expectation to find what the ad copy offers, but they often land on something different. Such ads are less successful and often less converting. Use the information on the landing page in your ad copy. Not only will this connect the user with your site and improve the chances of conversion, it will also decrease your chances of running into relevance issues with the editorial review process.

4) Create urgency among searchers: Terms such as, “Limited time” or “Sale ends soon” are helpful in creating urgency among users and offer more motivation to click. Other strong calls to action are “Buy”, “Find”, “Research”, “Compare and Save”, “Order Now”, “Shop Now” and “Get Results”.

5) Emphasize good deals: Every marketer offers some unique selling point. Emphasizing that in the ad copy can prove to be very effective. Examples of attention-grabbing copy include:

• “Free Shipping”
• “Fast shipping”
• “Free Delivery”
• “Up to XX% off”
• “Low prices – Always”
• “Stay 2 Nights, Get 1 Night Free”
• “100% Satisfaction Guaranteed or your Money Back”
• “Try Risk Free”
• “24 Hour Shipping”
• “Prices as low as $XX”
• “Just Reduced”.

“Free” and “New” are particularly strong words to use.

6) Use {param2} for ad titles: Use proper case for the keywords in {param2} which will be dynamically inserted in your ad title when queried. Advertisers implementing this tend to see a significant lift in CTR. For more information on {param2}, please see the related adCenter Help topic.

The main idea with writing great ad copy is to make it easy for your customers to understand not only where to click, but also why to do it and what benefits are waiting them if they do.

Ad Copy Testing: Systematically Improving CTR

What has your ad copy done for you lately? Improving creative is often an overlooked optimization strategy in PPC campaigns. Paying attention to keyword bids and average position often takes the place of focusing on the creative side of things. The reasons are simple enough: It’s much easier to adjust bid prices and tweak ad group settings than it is to come up with relevant, click-eating ad copy. This sometimes results in paid search listings that look like they were written by a monkey on a typewriter. 

Paid search is a unique form of advertising because it allows you to run controlled tests to determine the effectiveness of different styles of ad copy. Rather than going through specific ad copy recommendations, I thought it’d be helpful to share my thoughts on ad copy testing. For an overview on basic "ad copy writing" tips, check this Microsoft adCenter best practice document.

The key to ad copy testing is to devise several creative variations and set them up in a way such that you can compare their performance side by side. Always remember to be deliberate about exactly what you want to test. For starters, you might want to test the effectiveness of the ad copy "theme". Create one ad that relies heavily on brand terms, one ad that includes an offer like "free shipping" or "discounted prices", and one ad that utilizes a call-to-action like "Browse our online catalog." By comparing these different strategies across the same set of keywords, you can start learning which ad "theme" draws a searcher to click on your ads.

You can also run tests that focus on more specific differences in ad creative. Create two identical sets of ad copy, but have one with a general display URL and one with a specific display URL  (http://www.fourthcoffee.com vs. http://www.fourthcoffee.com/decaf). Testing small details like display URL modifications may seem trivial, but you’d be surprised how CTR may differ between the two ads. Now that we’ve learned a little about different tests, let’s focus on how to setup ad copy tests in your adCenter search marketing campaigns. By following the steps below, you can set your campaigns up for success.

1. Start a new ad group from scratch, so that existing performance history does not impact ad delivery
2. Create several ads, each with a distinctive feel
3. Upload a proven keyword list. You want enough traffic volume so that one ad begins to differentiate itself as the highest performer
4. Microsoft adCenter currently optimizes ad copy rotation, so it will automatically show the highest performing ad more frequently
5. Repeat across more ad groups. Remember, it’s rare that a single piece of ad copy is going to be the highest performer across all ad groups. 

Ad copy testing takes discipline and patience. But if you take the time to setup your tests, you can systematically differentiate the effectiveness of your ad copy and continuously improve your account performance. So go out and Test, Test, Test!