Pay per click advertising is something that can really propel your website toward more traffic, better user engagement, and, ultimately, more profit. However, it is not something to be set up quickly on a whim. While setting up a PPC campaign is not difficult from a technological point of view, and can be done by anyone who is tech savvy enough to run a website in the first place, it is easy to waste money by advertising to the wrong audiences if you don’t know what you are doing. There are many companies who offer private label PPC services, and it is generally much better to go with one of these than to try and DIY your approach, however, if you really want to try and manage your own advertising, then here are some mistakes to avoid:
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Ignoring ‘Negative’ Search Terms
When you start out in PPC, it is easy to think that you just want as many people as possible who are looking for or interested in vaguely relevant stuff to see your ads. This means you won’t really think about who you do not want your ads shown to. However, impressions for people who are looking for something vastly different to what you offer are a waste, and will skew your conversion figures, making it hard to judge if your campaign is as effective as you’d like. By including negative terms – that is, terms that you do not want your ad to be displayed for – you can cut down on these wasted impressions. If, for example, your service is paid but is something people may try and find free alternatives for, then you can put ‘free’ as a negative search term in relation to your regular terms, and you won’t waste ads on people who aren’t prepared to actually buy.
Poor Ads
Your ads themselves need to inspire the people who see them to take action and visit your site, unless the only reason you are showing them is to get your brand name more widely recognized. An ad with no real call to action doesn’t inspire the user to click on it, no matter how pretty it is. Make sure your ads showcase your most appealing deals or content, and really drive people to come and see more on your site. If you don’t know anything about advertising design, then this is something to learn as much about as you can. In an age where people are bombarded with promotional messages and web content, you cannot afford to use poor ads.
Not Bidding on Your Own Brand Name
Many people assume there is no point bidding to advertise on their own brand name, because after all, anyone searching for that will find them anyway, right? Well, while that is true, other brands similar to yours may bid on your brand name to try and display themselves as an alternative and steal your potential customers. Always make sure you dominate when your own brand name is involved.
These are just three of the common mistakes people make when it comes to PPC. It really is usually best to work with an expert, but if you choose to go it alone, make sure you don’t fall into these traps!