Has your in-house sales team been looking to make the most out of a pay-per-click (PPC) advertising strategy? Are you less than happy with the success of a recent advertising campaign? The fact of the matter is that the world of e-commerce can be slightly confusing and not all approaches will produce the desired effects. Still, there is no doubt that pay-per-click advertising can offer amazing results if you learn to adopt the correct approaches.
So, what do the experts have to say? Are there any sure-fire techniques to employ within your sales department and what variables need to be appreciated from the very beginning? Whether you are a seasoned online marketing veteran or you have recently taken a venture into this fast-paced community, the information found below should not be overlooked. Let us, therefore, answer some of the most frequently asked questions to clear up any confusion.
What is a "Demand Curve"?
It only stands to reason that a sales team will need to appreciate its target audience to create a PPC campaign. This is why interpreting the metrics found within tools such as Google Analytics and Bing Ads is important. These details will help you to understand the behaviour of your buyers (known as a "demand curve").
It is even more useful at predicting trends (such as the busiest times of the year and when it may be better to offer discounts due to a drop in demand). Appreciating the impacts of such details will allow you to make proactive sales and marketing decisions.
When is the Best Time to Display Advertisements?
Is there any time of the day or the week when your ads will resonate with the greatest number of viewers? This is a loaded question, as it depends upon the audience of a specific business.
In the beginning, most experts recommend implementing a 24/7 strategy, as you will be provided with the so-called "broad strokes". It is then possible to examine the analytics mentioned in the last section to fully understand what type of schedule should be adopted.
Why are Long-Tail Keywords Important?
There are two primary intentions of any keyword:
- To attract the most amount of attention (sometimes known as high inbound volume).
- To avoid the competition as much as possible.
Unfortunately, many PPC campaigns will fail due to extremely general keywords. An example will help to cement this point.
Let's imagine that your company produces high-quality shirts for professionals. Words such as "shirt", "long-sleeved" and "button-down" are extremely generic. As they are associated with millions of SERP (search engine results page) queries, it will be difficult to increase your page rank (where your listing appears once a search is carried out).
Long-tail keywords can make all the difference. They are much more specific and therefore, they are more capable of targeting a niche audience. Examples include "men's extra-large silk polo shirt" and "black button-down cotton shirt". As such discrete queries tend to be associated with individuals who already know what they are looking for, the chances are much higher than a conversion (purchase) will take place.
Let us also remember that professional sales personnel can utilise these very same phrases during a pitch or when outlining the most important characteristics of a product or service.
What's the Deal with "Negative" Keywords?
Negative keywords are those which are not directly related to your brand or industry. These can sometimes appear alongside targeted keywords. Returning to the examples mentioned above, negative keywords may include phrases such as "office", "modern" and even "white collar". Use analytical data to determine if any such words are present.
To put it simply, try to remove any keywords that do not entice viewers to take some form of action or that are not relevant to your products.
Why Should You Use Ad Extensions?
Ad extensions are a useful facet of any CRM (customer relationship management) strategy. Advertisement extensions are simply elements that provide more details about your company. Here are some examples:
- A phone number or email address
- Your operating hours
- Links to different landing pages within the website itself.
However, it is important to note that including such an extension does not automatically guarantee that it will display within a search engine results page such as Google or Bing. Its visibility will depend on what type of value is offered to the end-user. Extensions are also more likely to show up in tandem with pages that already enjoy a relatively high rank.
Sales professionals can likewise use these extensions to provide prospects with additional information before making a final decision.
How Can You Target Mobile Users?
The critical role of a mobile-responsive PPC strategy cannot be overstated today. Google places a great deal of significance on mobile-friendly ads, and for good reason. Many more users are now employing portable devices such as smartphones and tablets to perform basic searches, so it only stands to reason that your sales staff should cater to this growing demographic.
Mobile-friendly content is simply material that will display correctly when viewed on a portable device. All elements (such as hyperlinks, images and text) should be fully functional to enhance the end-user experience. If you plan on specifically targeting a mobile audience, it could even be wise to create a mobile-only strategy. This is once again why it is important to become familiar with your niche market.
Should You Use A/B Testing?
What is A/B testing? A/B testing is a means by which you can determine how your pay-per-click advertisements are performing within a real-time scenario. This normally involves examining specific variables within a campaign (such as keywords, links and quality content). It is much easier to highlight what strategies are working as well as those which might require further attention. Additionally, A/B testing can be a useful approach when starting an entirely new campaign or if you happen to be expanding into an entirely different marketplace.
Perhaps the main lesson that we can derive from the suggestions outlined above is that any e-commerce marketing campaign is fluid. In other words, you will need to adopt a proactive approach to make the right decisions at the right times. Sales teams that are familiar with the most effective PPC strategies are destined to enjoy greater success while simultaneously cementing customer loyalty.
