If you’ve been struggling to get return on investment (ROI) from your Google AdWords campaigns, then you are not alone. Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising can be frustrating and requires knowledge and research to create a strong strategy that can generate quality leads for your business. Here are some reasons as to why your ads are not converting and how you can turn that around;
1. Ads not linked to any landing pages
This is one of the biggest mistakes you could be making. When you do not use a dedicated landing page, you end up sending traffic to pages with a low degree of relevance to the related ads and keywords.
Google checks the relevance and quality of the page the ads are linked to. The more relevant the landing page content, the better chance you will have at running successful ads.
Often, landing pages are not even pages that exist within the public sitemap of a website. This means you will not find them in the navigation menu. Instead, the pages are only available for people who click on the PPC ads they link to. This ensures any traffic coming to the pages is highly qualified.
2. Your ad copy is weak
Google AdWords ads are delivered in a text-only format and you have a limited number of characters in your headline and supporting copy. You will therefore need to be strategic when crafting your marketing messages to be as concise and persuasive as possible.
Great ad copy can dramatically increase click-through rates, which can in turn increase your ad position and conversion. Use keywords, value propositions and differentiating factors in your ad copy, but avoid sounding too salesy.
It’s important to also review your competitor’s ads to learn from their approach, and don’t be afraid to borrow from their strategy.
3. You are not geotargeting
This will waste a tremendous amount of money as you will be charged for clicks in geographic areas that are not relevant to your businesses.
Geotargeting helps the right audience to view your ad. This is a great way to maximize your budget and show ads to a more refined and interested audience.
4. Poor Website or Landing Page
So you are driving lots of traffic to your website or landing page, which is great but it is only half of the process. Your referring page must include key factors known to drive conversions.
These include, but are not limited to:
- Relevant to associated ads
- Clear and concise messaging
- CTA (Calls to action)
- Professional photos/video
- Easy navigation
- Clear value propositions
- Social proof and reviews
- A modern and responsive design
- Fast loading time
- Avoid typing errors
- Free from coding bugs and functional/technical issues
5. You are Not Reviewing Your Analytics
If you are not tracking your campaign analytics, then you are no different from a person walking blind folded. At a minimum, review your campaign metrics on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. Make sure your AdWords and Google Analytics accounts are linked.
Some of the key metrics to look out for when reviewing your AdWords analytics include;
Impressions, Clicks, Average CPC (Cost Per Click), Conversions, CTR by Ad Groups, CTR by Campaigns, Cost Per Conversion, Average CTR (Click Through Rate)
The secret to successful ads is testing, analyzing and optimizing. You also need to do your research and find out what works and what doesn’t. Successful ads are as a result of hard work backed by a strong ad strategy.
