If you have an online business, pay-per-click is undoubtedly vital in your digital marketing efforts.
For generating loads of new leads and increasing sales exponentially, PPC marketing is tough to beat. Google Ads has seven million advertisers on board. That gives an idea of its popularity.
Online advertising through Google is highly affordable and visible. PPC ads grab most eyeballs at least cost.
That is hardly a surprise since Google Display Network encompasses over two million sites reaching 90% of online consumers.
But economical or not, it makes sense to carry out an audit to find what results the effort is yielding. Otherwise, your marketing campaign can quickly become stale and fail to evoke interest.
What Is Pay-Per-Click Marketing?
A few words should suffice. It is a type of search engine marketing that requires you to pay only when a user clicks the displayed advertisement.
There is no cost for placing the advertisement. The advertisement can be placed through search or display (banner ads or video).
Google Ads is popular because you can calibrate it perfectly. Bing also follows a similar business model.
How Does Pay-Per-Click Marketing Work?
The process is surprisingly simple and a crucial component of search engine marketing services.
You select a keyword (based on research) and bid. The keyword is one the users would use for searching. If your bid is highest, it is accepted. The bidding mechanism is fully automated, and your campaign can go live in less than an hour.
The most tempting part of this type of advertising is you can select your audience based on – region, language, time, and of course, keywords. You can use PPC click tools to keep control of costs.
10 Best Practices To Optimize Your PPC Campaign
How do you know if your digital marketing spend is providing you good returns?
A PPC audit is a measure of how effective a campaign strategy has been over several weeks. An audit is handy if you want to review the digital marketing process.
We share ten steps you must follow to get the most out of your PPC audit.
- Track your conversions
The failure to track conversions is one of the biggest mistakes of a PPC campaign an audit can uncover. What are the red flags you have to watch out for?
If the clicks and conversions are almost the same, there is a bug in the system (or you have discovered a sales funnel that would make you a millionaire).
If your conversion rates are exceptional but actual sales figures are low, the system might be tracking visits to the product page and not completed purchases.
Ensure that you add tracking codes to new product pages before they go live.
- Review campaign targeting
The main upside of a PPC campaign is that you can target an exact demographic. But legacy settings of an older campaign may still be in place.
What must you check?
Are you bidding for search or display? Each is a different display network and has custom settings. The optimization process that you follow depends on which GDN (Google Display Network) you are employing.
Review the geographical area where the ad is visible. Are you sure you provide service in each of these areas? Otherwise, all the leads you generate would go to waste.
Did you bid for a mobile search? If so, find the difference between search from desktop and mobile environment. Ideally, both should contribute to sales.
- Keyword count
How many keywords are you aiming for? It is best to start with about 20 as a base and then expand or reduce depending on the situation.
If you have bid on too many, the marketing effort becomes diluted. Paying for a keyword that doesn’t accurately fit the description of your ad copy would increase expenditure and bounce rate.
Too few, and you risk not getting enough views.
Keywords require constant monitoring and updating.
- Date range
Does it sound too elementary? Be assured it is not.
The outcome of an audit is tied to the period under consideration. Too small, and you risk not having enough data. Too large, and it erases seasonal variations.
If your campaign is brand new, then a month is not enough time. Most campaigns yield the best results after a quarter or two.
Besides, there is also a seasonal shift in every marketing campaign. For everything from wedding cakes to travel insurance, the time of year is a significant factor in sales.
- Analyze your ad copy
Is the ad copy what you think it is? Does it pack a punch with a compelling message and incisive Call to Action?
Over time your perception of what is an ideal ad copy might change. Also, you could have come across something better or had an innovative idea.
The ad copy must not only be fresh but also have CTA that is relevant to your business.
The content of your ad is a powerful determinant in driving sales. It must be unambiguous, concise, and aimed at promoting your strengths.
- IP exclusions
When running a PPC campaign, your own clicks can fudge up the data.
The simplest way to avoid this is to exclude the IP address of your network and any other that accesses the account regularly.
You can set a range of IP exclusions from Settings –> Additional Settings –> IP exclusions in the Google Ads interface.
Test that the system is running correctly by clicking on the advertisement a few times. If these clicks don’t show up that the setup is working fine.
- Quality score
Quality score is of paramount importance. The score, along with your bid, determines the ad’s placement.
The quality score is affected by three factors:
- Expected CTR
- The relevance of the ad
- Landing page experience
Auditing the quality score is a lengthy process. You have to analyze current and historical CTR, landing page experience, and ad relevance.
- Bid review
Keep track of your bids over time. Constant vigilance is necessary to find how much you are spending for new leads and sales.
If your sales from Google Ads amount to $55 and you have spent $20 on placement, it is not worthwhile.
It is critical to figure out which bids provide the highest return at the least cost.
- Ad scheduling
You need to identify the best time of the day and week for your ad to run.
The default settings on Google Ads are all day. However, this is hardly suitable for a café that offers specials in the evenings and weekends.
Ideally, you should bid higher between 5-9 PM on weekdays and 12-8 PM on weekends.
At other times you should lower your bid amount and save on cost.
- Location targeting
Your PPC campaign has to aim perfectly at the correct location. This would get rid of useless clicks and lower your advertising spend.
If you own a small boutique, it makes little sense to advertise outside your city. It is possible to target not only by country and city but also a certain radius around your business.
You could also exclude locations from Google Ads Settings. If your online business does not deliver to few cities, it is possible to hide the ad from appearing to users there.
Follow up…
If you have completed an in-depth PPC audit, you might have found quite deep-rooted problems.
There is no need to panic. A top-notch search engine marketing agency such as Uplers employs experts who can fix your campaign swiftly.
If you are working alone, create a priority-based list. Tend to the items that deserve attention one by one. It is best to attend to those that impact the bottom line first.
As far as possible, avoid disrupting your performance history. Adopting the correct strategic approach is essential and would make your PPC audit a success.