The extensive research of PPC experts provides the insight that you need to stay on top of the competition. All PPC marketers share a common goal, and there are five simple ways to achieve it.
While some of these strategies may seem obvious to an expert of the craft, that doesn’t deny their unparalleled efficiency. Even world-famous masters of PPC strategies also advocate these tips.
Hence, a boost in performance is near guaranteed for those who have yet to try the following CTR hacks. So, without further ado, let’s jump right in.
- Make the Most out of Reviews
Think of yourself as a consumer. What would make you purchase a product? Sure, there are many answers to this question, but some of them are more effective than the rest. Take ad extensions for customer reviews as an example. This is a function that is, miraculously, not as widely used as it should be.
Of course, almost everything that sells on the internet has its own review section, but this is different. Ad extensions for reviews allow marketers to put short reviews right next to their ads. This may not seem like much but you’ll find that it is.
Hayley Coutinho, a PPC expert at Receptional Ltd., also reports that ads containing review extensions can boost sales by a whole 66%. What’s more, Google itself has a section about reviews included in its CTR eBook guide,” Creative That Clicks”.
A good review from a credible source can assign an entirely new number to your earnings. Ad extensions for reviews are also easy to implement. This is another common benefit for every PPC marketer.
- Use Your Competitor’s Keywords
How often do you Google a specific brand name only to run into their competitor at the second result? Apparently, not too often. And that can be a sign of a problem. When it comes to marketing – smart marketing – it’s necessary to involve all tools in the trade, and borrowing a successful brand’s name is one of them. Unlike bad SEO, Google doesn’t punish this strategy and it is legitimate to do.
The only thing to take note of is that you should not mislead customers with your ads. While you may assume that they’re looking to buy from your other brands, you need to find ways to outshine the competition. And to do so, your keyword choice needs to be concise and well-structured, and your copy needs to send a direct message to the customer.
Some key things you need to let your viewers know are:
- You are fully aware of the site they were likely going to visit.
- You probably have a better offer than that site.
- Your customers matter to you because you aim to increase the quality of their spending.
When customers browse online, they’re most likely to prefer the one that appears superior. So, show your professionalism in your ad copy – that will help boost customer trust in your brand and drive click-through rate and revenue for your business.
- Improve Landing Page Visibility
When potential customers are searching for your product, they usually don’t intend to continue looking at your site. As such, you should provide customers with instant access to the product they’re looking for right after the first click. Many PPC marketers disregard this.
And while it’s true that this rule, like the others, isn’t obligatory for success, they can still make a big difference. So, let’s say someone is searching for something in a hurry and they see your ad as well as your competitors. If you offer whatever the individual is searching for instantly, this will likely help to boost conversions and impart a positive brand image. In turn, this will help to increase your CTR over time as traffic comes in from returning customers.
Basically, this means that you need a different landing page for every keyword relating to a different service. It can be tedious to construct a site like that, but it’s definitely worth the effort.
- Stop Paying For Underperforming Ads
There comes a time when a PPC marketer needs to face the facts. Not every ad will succeed, no matter the amount of effort invested in it. In those cases, it’s best for one to pause the ad for a while and move on. This is a very important part of running a PPC business, as bad ads lead to bad standings with Google and also a less-than-stellar ROI.
That is because Google analyses and determines how “clicked” every ad is, and the expected average CTR is at 2%. If your poorly-performing ads don’t live up to that standard, that may negatively affect your standing with Google over time. In turn, Google could stop displaying all ads related to your brand if the poor performers aren’t removed.
- Increase the Wording
There’s only so much space that your ad will take up among the various search results. So why not make the most of it? Google reports that putting your keywords in the headlines will lead to an increase of 15% in CTR on average. Having keywords in display URLs also boosts the average CTR by 8%. Also, ads with keywords in both the headline and the first line of the ad copy will gain a positive CTR boost at least 68% of the time.
In other words, that means you should make use of your ad space completely. Whenever there’s room for text, you should work to insert a keyword or high-interest word in that area. Of course, this requires proper handling. Your ad should meet these requirements without affecting the desired audience. It takes some time to master ad writing, but this is a very useful guideline.
