When you carry out a basic search on Google you may have noticed that the top two results on the left hand side are in a beige box that has a headline of “Sponsored Links”. In the right hand column there are also up to eight sponsored links. These sponsored links are pay per click adverts. If you click on these adverts then the business providing the advert pays for the cost of the click.
The ranking or order of the adverts is determined by a bidding system. The two top left adverts are ranked one and two and then the adverts that appear on the right are three, four and so on. Ideally you want to be in the top 10, so your advert will be shown on the first page of search results.
Business need to follow these 7 steps for pay per click success:
1.) Key words
Time needs to be spent in researching the actual key words and phrases that potential clients type into a Google, Yahoo or MSN search. If you don’t have a keyword associated with an advert then your advert CANNOT appear.
2.) Advert Development
Successful adverts have the keywords repeated in the title of the advert and on the landing page of the website. Searchers want to see a good match between an advert and what they typed in the search box. Multiple adverts for each key service areas of your business are better than one generic advert. For example if you are a solicitor then you need an advert for each key service area such as wills, probate, divorce etc.
3.) Landing Pages
Many pay per click beginners direct potential clients to the homepage of their website. This is usually a mistake; your visitors need to get to the part of your website that relates to their search. If a searcher is looking for an employment lawyer then they should be taken straight to the employment page.
4.) Call To Action
Once a potential client is on your page you need to give them a call to action such as “request a call back”, “buy now” button or “ask a question“. You will reduce your chances of success if your landing page only says in small print “for further details call us on”. Make your site interactive!
5.) Campaign Implementation
The next stage involves setting up an account with the appropriate service provider (Google, Yahoo and MSN); going through the bidding process for the key phrases / words you have identified and then initiating the campaign. Part of this will involve setting a budget – initially you may decide on a small amount – you can change this at any time.
6.) Campaign Monitoring
One of the major benefits of this form of marketing is that everything can be measured – number of times your ad gets shown, number of clicks to your website, new clients or sales resulting from enquiry etc. Thorough tracking will enable you to maximise the return on your investment.
7.) Management
If you find the prospect of setting up and managing a pay per click campaign too daunting then we offer professional assistance. DBS are “Google Adwords Professionals”.
I wish your business the best of luck in 2008!
