The increasingly popular Google search engine introduced a
cost per click (CPC) program called AdWords that is just a
cut above the rest. This is not the usual "highest bidder
wins scenario". They differentiated their service by adding
a quality element. It means that those ads that receive a
higher click through rate get a slight reduction in price.
Some of my own ads produced a good reduction in cost so
persuasive writing does make a difference.
Google's CPC
program is complicated, even troublesome at times. However,
it does have an automated feature called AdWords Discounter,
that allows you to let them manage the bid price at a
competitive level. Some of the more general and well used
keyword phrases have a set minimum bid which makes some
phrases very unattractive. That's why you won't see ads on
Google for certain keyword phrases. It's just too expensive
given the type of sales transaction that results from clicks
on that phrase. The word free can sometimes be very
expensive on Google AdWords.
To make matters worse, there are popular, general phrases
that are less targeted. This means they develop less
qualified visitors and thus a poorer sales conversion rate.
Google's broad matching system means wide varieties of
buyers are competing for the same phrases, even though they
are selling completely different products or services.
This often results in bidding wars and demonstrates why
you need to use a systematic testing approach is necessary
for AdWords to perform well for you. If you don't have a
system for discovering the best quality keyword phrases for
you, you'll be spending a lot more money. On a large
campaign it is essential to quickly discover what makes
people click. Another reason is click fraud. There are
estimates that 20% of all click-throughs are fraudulent, so
expect 20% of your budget disappearing.
The AdWords Advantage
Google has the largest audience and their users spend
much more time at Google than searchers do at other search
engines comparatively. Google sets an example for choice,
and users take this seriously by looking for better value.
Google is available in many languages, giving you an
opportunity to advertise to French, German and Spanish
markets. It also has geo-targeting with up to 99% accuracy.
My campaigns have shown Google produced about 80% more
visits than the same expenditure on Overture.
Google has stated their click-through rates are 5 times
higher than the industry standard. They serve ads to
Earthlink, Ask Jeeves, Business.com, and AOL. Google's
AdSense network additionally offers exposure on millions of
web sites. If wide reach is what you need, you can choose to
show your ads on this network.
So, total market exposure through AdWords could be very
high. Your bids have to be among the top four in order to
get listed on AOL. Up to ten ads may be shown on Google with
ad placement at the top of the screen and downward along the
upper right of the page in pink or green text boxes.
The Google AdWords Bid System and Guidelines
AdWord's bid prices and click through costs are not
synonymous. That's because your bid could be on a variety of
phrases and because their discounting system attempts to
keep bid spreads from getting too large. Your specified
maximum bid of $3.99 per click may actually result an
average of only $2.65 per click instead.
Ads can contain 25 characters for the title, 70
characters for the ad text, and 35 characters for a display
URI. America Online shows the title and ad text all on one
line. You can view Google AdWords specific guidelines
here...
The AdWords Program Interface
After you've opened your AdWords account, you'll be
greeted with a screen where you'll name your campaigns and
be able to create an ad. You'll fill the various fields that
create the body of your ad on the left side. After this is
completed, you move onto the next screen where you choose
your keyword phrase to bid on. The keyword suggestion tool
is there if you need it.
Finally, you input your bid, push the calculate button to
see your average click costs. If your average position is
too low, you can up your bid. Try to get up to 3rd or 4th
position to ensure you get into the AOL listings. It's a
little complicated, but basically, your rank is determined
through this formula: CPC (your bid) x CTR% = Rank. Your bid
is set only one penny above your nearest competitor when set
at maximum.
