5 mistakes to avoid when using...

Google Adwords remains one of the most powerful web marketing tools out there and PPC is at the forefront of many companies' digital marketing campaigns. However, with more advertisers than ever before using Adwords, it can be tough to to ensure your campaign is as successful as it should be, especially when you are competing against so many others for keywords. By avoiding the mistakes below, you should be on the right track for a successful PPC campaign.

1. Focussing too much on broadmatch

Broadmatch can be a great way to test and explore different keywords, but it should not be used on its own for an extended period of time. So how does it work? Let's say you are a sports retailer and one of your search terms is “cheap football boots”. If you use the match type 'broadmatch', Google will take it as “cheap” OR “football” OR “boots”, so your Ad will show for a wide range of search terms. In extreme cases it could show for "cheap cinema tickets" clearly that isn't what you want. If you do decide to use broadmatch to uncover new keywords make sure you have an extensive  list of negative keywords, which brings us onto the next point...

2. Not enough negatives

Adding plenty of negatives will save you money by ensuring only relevant traffic sees your ad. For example, if you're an IT services company you will probably have “IT support” listed as one of your phrases. However, you certainly don't want people who searched “free IT support” clicking your ad, as the end goal is to convert traffic into sales. People searching for “free” stuff certainly aren't potential sales! By including the word “free” in your negatives list you will eliminate those people from seeing your ad and you will save money on wasted clicks. It is a good idea to continually monitor the search terms people are using when clicking your ad, and ensure any irrelevant words are added to the negative phrases. Here at Red Wasp, our campaigns can be researched to have upwards of 500 negative words to ensure our clients' campaigns are streamlined and cost effective.

3. Poor landing page

As I covered in my last blog post, a decent landing page is crucial in the conversion process. If you don't have a page that is geared up for conversion and entices customers to click that call-to-action button, you will see detrimental results in your campaign. If you feel your landing page might be the weak link in your scent trail, use your analytics tools to see the bounce rate. For tips on how to improve your landing page, see my last post: 7 Superb Suggestions to Boost Conversion Rates on your Landing Page

4. Monitor, analyse, improve

Google Adwords has the ability to provide rich, detailed statistics on all your keywords, phrases, search terms to give real insight into the success of your campaign. It is a good idea to become familiar with its core functionalities and user interface. Keep on top of what phrases make you the most money, which phrases offer the highest conversion rates and weed out any unprofitable search terms. By analysing what works best for you, over time you can streamline and improve your campaign. Let results and analytics drive your decisions and find out what works for your campaign.

5. Ad position not high enough

The position of your ad can be more important than you might think. If you are outside the top 3 search results, you will see detrimental effects on your click through rate. Google will look at your click through rate to determine the relevance of your ad, so invest early on and make sure your advert is in the crucial top 3. Doing this will ensure the click through rate on your ad remains high and as such, Google will perceive your ad to be more relevant. As a result, over time the cost of staying in the top 3 will fall and you will save money in the long run. You could be paying the same amount to be in the top 3 as a competitor could be paying to be 8th or 9th, so its crucial you bite the bullet from the get-go to see long term cost effectiveness.

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