Improve Your Click Through Rate (CTR)
If you are a pay per click (PPC) advertiser and have not tried to improve your click through rate (CTR), then you just have not been working with pay per click long enough. This request is only second to "What is a good click through rate?"
Why Should I Improve My Click Through Rate (CTR)?
Most pay per click advertisers have a natural desire to improve their CTR, but here are some official reasons.
- Letting users know exactly what they can do on your website will increase the effectiveness of your pay per click ads and also increase the likelihood of a conversion.Quality Score: Click through rate (CTR) is included in Google's quality score algorithm so you can improve your quality score by improving your CTR. Here are some benefits of improving your quality score.
- Pay less for better ad ranking.
- Lower minimum bids.
- Your pay per click ads remain active.
- Save Money: If your ads are also being used in a pay per impression model, you will save money by generating more clicks for the same amount of money.
Tip #1: Include your keywords in your ad copy
- Description: Write your pay per click ad with keywords in mind. Use keywords in the ad copy as often as possible, while still keeping it as grammatically correct as possible. Pay per click services will not allow gimmicky phrasing such as "Widgets, Widgets, Widgets!!! Buy your Widgets here." The pay per click ad must still contain quality content. Try to include your keywords in the title and description at least once in each. Do not forget to try to put your keyword in your web address as well.
- Reason: Keywords within your ad copy will appear in bold which will make them more likely to catch the eye of the user. Keywords also improve the relevance of the pay per click ad.
Tip #2: Use a call to action phrase
- Description: Give the user a "next step" or what to expect when they hit your landing page. Use a verb to give it action. Some examples are "Buy our widgets" or "Sign up for our free newsletter."
- Reason: There is a difference between a website about widgets and a website that sell widgets. Letting users know exactly what they can do on your website will increase the effectiveness of your pay per click ads and also increase the likelihood of a conversion.
Tip #3: Give users a reason to choose your ad over a competitor
- Description: Create your pay per click ad to show what different or special features your product/service has to offer. Is your widget the first widget to come with a satellite connection? Put that in your pay per click ad. Highlight what makes your product stand out. Also, make your pay per click ad informative. If you can include the price of your product/service, do so. If you are currently offering free shipping, try to incorporate it.
- Reason: Using your pay per click ad to make your product/service stand out is one of the easiest ways to attract users and this applies to all advertising mediums. These suggestions will make your pay per click ad stand out from the automated and poorly-written ads.
Tip #4: Create separate ads for singular and plural versions of your keywords
- Description: The first tip emphasizes placing your keywords in your pay per click ads so you can gain the visual impact of bolded terms. Writing ad copy for your singular and plural keywords will require some changes to your PPC ad. The additional characters to change a singular keyword to a plural keyword can make a difference in description length. You also want your pay per click ads to remain grammatically correct so know you have to make changes to your title and description.
- Reason: Bold keywords in your pay per click ads will make them more attractive to users. Do not forget to account for the singular and plural versions of your keywords.
Tip #5: Test different versions of ad copy
- Description: Create multiple pay per click ads for the same keywords. Google and other pay per click services will automatically calculate which ad performs better. After a period of testing, you can eliminate the ads that do not perform at the level you want or just keep the best one. This is commonly referred to as A/B split testing.
- Reason: Every industry and niche market is unique and split testing your pay per click ads is the only true way to see what ad copy is most effective for you.
Tip #6: Use negative keyword matching
- Description: When your pay per click ad is displayed to an audience you know it does not apply to, you have wasted an impression. You can use negative keyword matching to eliminate scenarios when your pay per click ad would be displayed. Negative keywords give you more control over when your PPC ad is triggered.
- Reason: If you know of conditions when your pay per click ad is displayed when it does not apply, then you should prevent it by using negative keyword matching. By getting rid of these wasted impressions you will improve your CTR.
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