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Effective Pay-Per-Click Ads |
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Back to keywords, "It's all about keywords," the focus for your PPC ad is relevant keywords. The keywords you choose will probably be chosen the cost to use them. If you can target some 5-cent and 10-cent keywords, you can get more exposure for your budget. In contrast, if you target only high-priced keywords, you will usually be competing against deep-pocket competitors that have a huge presence and your exposure will be limited.
Select 10 or more keywords and ads for those keywords. Our goal is to target a specific demographic with our keyword selection. However, make sure that the keywords are not so obscure that you lose site of your demographic and get click-throughs. If you target using the keyword "web design" your competition will be very high. If you use the keyword, web design Reno, you have a much higher chance of getting productive click-throughs.
Determine which keywords you want to target, it's ok to look at what the competition is doing. Simply go to Google (http://adwords.google.com) or Yahoo (http://searchmarketing.yahoo.com) and enter the keyword or keyword phrase into the search block. When the results are displayed, pay attention to the ads that show up on the right-hand side of the page under Sponsored Links. Get a feel for the ad content, especially those that appear on the first page and in the top positions.
If you intentionally click on a competitor's ads with the idea of costing them advertising dollars, both Google and Yahoo would construe it as click fraud. Don't do what you wouldn't want done to you.
Now that you have looked at the competitions ads, start to think about your own ad. We will use Google AdWords for our example. You only have five lines for each ad. Plan your Google ad with the following in mind:
- Headline: The first line allows a maximum of 25 characters. This line includes your keywords stated in a way that attracts the reader to read further. Using words such as free, easy, learn, how to and teach yourself are effective attractors. If your products are not free or you do not have a free offering, you can use attractors like cheap, discount, low cost or limited offer. The first line is use3d to spark attention and make visitors want to look at your ad further.
- Description lines: You have two description lines containing 35 characters each. Consider using more keywords that support your heading or attract the visitor to your site. A good way to attract visitors is to offer something specific. Perhaps it is a free report, a free download, or some other example of what you have to offer as an authority. Look back at your competitors' ads and get some ideas on the content for your ad. You don't want to copy their ad, but you may find it useful to borrow from it.
- Display URL: This is the computer URL link that you display to the viewer. If you have a domain name that is easily understood as a name or a phrase that directly relates to your product, use it and keep it simple. For example, do not use http://www.computergoddess.com/ but rather enter www.ComputerGoddess.com. It will be easier for your viewer to make the connection to your site, and this is a good step toward branding your name.
- Destination URL: This is the URL link that leads to your landing page, where you want the viewer to end up on your website. You may not necessarily want your viewer to land on your home page but rather on a sales page in direct response to your PPC offer.
- Split-testing: In order to find out which ads work well and which don't, create several ads for the same keyword or keyword phrase. Google and Yahoo offer a means of determining the number of click-throughs for each ad. The ads that get the highest click-throughs are the ads you want to keep.
Identify targeted keywords, use them, offer enticement using attractor phrases and test your ads for the best producers.
Your homework this week is to study PPC ads of your competitors and devise several ads using targeted keywords. It is easy to set up ad campaigns and both Google and Yahoo Search Marketing do a good job of leading you through the process. Determine how much you are willing to spend each day on your ad campaign; and check back frequently to see how well your ad is pulling traffic.
Copyright ©2008 TAO Consultants, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Chesa Keane of TAO Consultants, home of the Computer Goddess®, has been involved with the internet for 10 years through internet consulting, web development and search engine optimization. Go to www.computergoddess.com for a free Search Engine Optimization Checklist to make sure that you or your internet SEO specialist are not missing critical steps toward getting your website listed prominently with the search engines.
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