When it comes to pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, driving positive ROI is every marketer's goal. If you're seeing diminishing returns from your PPC campaign strategy, a number of factors could be causing this negative outcome. Take some time to revisit those campaigns and see if you're making one of these common mistakes.
You're Not Using Long-Tail Keywords
Businesses like Target, Wal-Mart and Best Buy might see big returns from ad campaigns focused on broad, popular keywords like "iPhone" or "laptop," but this type of approach typically isn't useful for small or midsize businesses. Research compiled by eConsultancy found that around 70 percent of search traffic comes from long-tail keywords that are at least four words in length. If you haven't already, it may be time to examine your local market and determine what sort of specific, long-tail keywords people use when searching for your business.
Your Ad Copy Isn't Compelling
Many marketers understandably put a lot of effort into boosting their impression numbers by getting ads in front of customers. That's OK — as long as the actual ad text doesn't get neglected in the process.
You only have a few seconds to convince customers to click. If your ad copy is flat, boring or simply informs without enticing the customer to learn more, you could be putting all of your effort in the wrong place. Audience optimization is always important, but if the click rates aren't as high as you initially hoped, you may want to take a hard look at your ad copy and see if you can bring some more life to it.
You're Not Using New Technology
Programmatic advertising for PPC campaigns is fairly ubiquitous, but today, there's even more technology available for marketers to optimize their PPC campaign strategy. Search Engine Land reported that Google is investing in machine learning for AdWords, which could eventually help marketers identify exactly what keywords and copy will further optimize ad content.
There are a lot of moving parts to a PPC campaign strategy. If you don't see the results you want immediately, avoid the temptation to throw in the towel and start from scratch. These common mistakes are easy to fix, and a few changes might yield better results.
