Pay Per Click, or PPC, is an incredibly way for any Small Business Owner to increase traffic to their Website and grow their customer base. Sites n Stores has experienced that first hand, having grown from a two-person start-up, to one of Australia’s leading Web Development Companies based on a PPC Campaign.
In fact, recent research suggests that almost 65% of people click on Google Ads when they are looking to buy an item online – proving that paid ads are extremely effective in generate new leads.
For this reason, many Small Business Owners invest a lot of their time and money into their PPC Campaigns, which is what makes it all the more frustrating when they turn out to be slow, or else completely unsuccessful. This can leave a lot of people scratching their heads and wondering why, as it can be difficult to diagnose the problem when you’re not proficient with the technology.
So, if your PPC Campaign appears to be underperforming, then read on! We’ve put together this helpful list of reasons that will help determine where you might be going wrong with your PPC!
You have Ineffective Keywords
You have Ineffective Keywords
This is perhaps one of the first things to take into account when troubleshooting your PPC. Choosing the right Keywords is both a science and an art which requires a lot more time and consideration than people may initially think.
For this reason, a lot of Small Business Owners make the common mistake of simply selecting only the most popular Keywords for their industry and neglecting the others. While incorporating frequently searched Keywords into your Campaigns is a good idea, focusing solely on them will simply force you to pay a high price for each Keyword and see you cutting out a large part of your potential market.
As well as including more popular search terms, you also want to look at more “long tail” Keywords. While these are less commonly searched Keywords, they are more specified in nature. This means that whoever is searching is looking for a very particular product or service – one that you just happen to sell or supply.
By including more specific and less popular Keywords within your PPC Campaign, you’ll better appeal to your niche market and likely draw better quality leads to your Website, not just people Googling generic search terms.
You’re Forgetting to Use Negative Keywords
You’re Forgetting to Use Negative Keywords
For Small Business Owners who are unfamiliar with the intricate ins and outs of setting up a PPC Campaign, Negative Keywords can often be forgotten. In fact, research suggests that almost half of users don’t add a single Negative Keyword to their AdWords account, which significantly diminishes the effectiveness of the Campaign.
Adding Negative Keywords essentially prevents your ad from appearing in search engine results when you know your audience won’t be interested in what your Business is offering.
For example, if you own and run a beauty salon in Chicago, some effective Keywords may be “facials in Chicago”, or “beauty salon Chicago”. A Negative Keyword you might want to target could be “jobs”, which would ensure your Business would not appear if someone were to search “beauty jobs in Chicago”.
Negative Keywords tell Google what search queries are not relevant to your Business, so you don’t rack up ad impressions for searches that won’t lead to sales.
You Have a Poor Landing Page
You Have a Poor Landing Page
The landing page is the first page your visitors will land on after clicking your ad on Google. This means it has to be great! Fail to have an exciting and enticing landing page and your Website visitors are likely to click straight back to Google.
A good way to determine whether or not your landing page is effective is to put yourself in the searchers shoes. Ask yourself the following questions: does my landing page…
- Clearly explain what my Business is about?
- Answer any questions the viewer may have about my products and services?
- Is there an attention-grabbing headline?
- Have a beautiful, usable and simple layout design?
- Is there a primary Call to Action button? (Such as ‘Buy Your Now’, or ‘Click Here for More Information!’)
If visitors land on a page that is bland, boring or confusing, your PPC Campaign won’t stand a chance. The PPC has done its work to get the customer click, but it’s the landing page that needs to entice them to buy!
There’s an Incoherent Advertising Message
There’s an Incoherent Advertising Message
Another common mistake made with landing pages with regards to a PPC Campaign, is that they have an incoherent message to the ad that the searcher has clicked on.
A potential customer clicks your ad because they believe it could give them something of value. If they are then taken to a page that has nothing to do with the ad they just saw, they will disengage completely. This will inevitably lead to a completely ineffective Campaign.
Contrary to popular belief, your landing page DOES NOT have to be your Website’s Homepage. It’s much more effective to guide customers to a page created to fulfil a single purpose: to sell what was promised in your ad.
For example, if your ad is promising “stunning maxi-dresses for summer”, then it should click through to your product page displaying these dresses. If the customer clicks through and is taken to the homepage, which shows images of women in T-Shirts, they’ll be very confused. You want to make the sale as simple and easy as possible for your visitors. Don’t make them run around your entire site looking for what they wanted.
Not Optimized for Mobile Devices
Not Optimized for Mobile Devices
With Google announcing that mobile searches have now overtaken desktop searches, it’s more crucial than ever before for your Website to be mobile responsive. This will also have a huge effect on your PPC Campaign.
Within Google AdWords, you are able to identify what percentage of users are visiting your site via desktop, mobile and tablets. If your Website is not mobile responsive and doesn’t display correctly on mobile devices, this is likely to cause customers to leave your site very quickly and can even result in a low Keyword quality scores.
Having a landing page that is mobile friendly will give your visitors the best possible user experience, making them more likely to browse around your Website, enjoy the experience and make a purchase!
You Set It Up and Leave It Alone
You Set It Up and Leave It Alone
When it comes to PPC Campaigns, one of the biggest mistakes is thinking you can simply select your Keywords and ads, set a budget, and walk away. If this has been your Campaign strategy thus far, then I think we’ve found your problem.
In order to maintain an effective and accomplished PPC Campaign that sees you bringing in significant ROI, you need to be constantly monitoring, testing and adjusting in order to make the most of the money you’re spending. Constant experimentation is what makes PPC work so well.
Regularly examining your Keywords is just as important, too. Just like the ”Real world”, your online market is constantly shifting and changing. Trends come and go and, with this, the frequency of certain Keywords rise and fall. It’s important to adapt your AdWords to these changes, so you’re always being found by your target market.
You Don’t Know What You’re Doing
You Don’t Know What You’re Doing
As previously mentioned, PPC is both a science and an art form. While there’s nothing stopping you from attempting to establish and manage your own PPC Campaign for your Small Business, if you’re attempts aren’t working, then it might be time to bring in a pro.
Without the assistance of an experienced professional, you may end up overspending on your budget, filtering out Negative Keywords and earning yourself low-quality scores – none of which are desirable outcomes.
A professional PPC marketing expert, like those we have here at Sites n Stores will be able to analyse your quality scores, update Negative Keywords and regularly assess the effectiveness of your Keywords, as well as your budget and ad positioning. They will be able to plan a sound, strategic PPC Campaign based on best industry practices, the latest search engine protocol, and an extensive process of trial and error.
All of this will maximize the success of your PPC Campaign and could see your Business reaping the benefits.
So forget about ineffective PPC Campaigns, if you’re interested in increasing traffic to your site and growing your Small Business, let us create a fantastic PPC Campaign that’s carefully crafted to your Business needs. Get in touch with us today on 1300 796 530!
