The Big Bad List of Expensive PPC Mistakes

I’ve made it clear earlier how PPC is one of the most perfect advertising methods in existence. But if you don’t know what you’re doing, it can cause more harm than help. When done incorrectly, PPC can run up a huge bill with nothing to show for it.

That’s why I’m putting together this big list of all-too-common mistakes: so you, my savvy reader, know what to avoid.

The Big Bad List of Expensive PPC Mistakes

Mistake: Throwing together a huge list of generic keywords

Avoid just putting together a big keyword list of terms that are not related to your business. The traffic generated from those is unlikely to lead to sales. Instead, seek to dominate the market for a few, highly specific terms. (How to perform effective keyword research)

Mistake: Only using broad match keywords

Exact matching keywords improves your targeting ability, and usually, performance.

Mistake: Not bidding for your hotel name

Usually it’s cheap, and is a good defensive marketing move.

Mistake:  Spending on unqualified clicks

Use negative keyword matching to exclude searches from people unlikely to buy.

Mistake: Not highlighting the unique selling point of your hotel in ad copy

Failing to identify what makes you unique from your competitors will make it less likely for your potential guests to understand the difference.

Mistake: Not including keywords in your ad copy

Putting keywords in your ad copy increases relevance and typically leads to more clicks.

Mistake: Not building landing pages for each campaign

Building landing pages is an under-used part of PPC marketing, but very important. Here’s ten tips to improve your landing pages.

Mistake: No relevance on the landing page

There must be a clear link between PPC ad copy and the first page people see on your website. Don’t confuse them.

Mistake: Running only one ad campaign

Don’t launch just one campaign – multiple campaigns allow you to specify different geographic or content distribution options.

Mistake: Using just one ad group

Campaigns are made up of ad groups – and there should be more than one. Using multiple ad groups lets you write ad copy that is more targeted…and likely to earn clicks. Using multiple ad groups is also important for reporting purposes.

Mistake: Not keeping an eye on distribution coverage

Use a service such as AdGooRoo to make sure your ads are being shown every time someone searches for your target keywords. Otherwise, you’re losing out on ad impressions and additional exposure.

Mistake: Not lowering bids for the content network

The content network often generates lower quality traffic, and it’s important to adjust your bidding strategy accordingly.

Mistake: Failing to track performance data

Search engines – Google in particular – provide such a wealth of information to their advertisers, that you’re missing out if you’re not taking advantage of it.

Mistake: Not testing regularly

You must perform ongoing optimization on your campaign to maximize performance. This should include regular split testing of ad copy, and constant keyword adjustments.

Mistake: Overpaying for the top ad spot

Research shows ad positions #3-7 typically has best ROI.

Mistake: Not using geo-targeting

Even if your product and services performs well worldwide, you should still use a geo-targeting strategy for best results.

Mistake: Not monitoring fraudulent clicks

Search engines are cracking down on click fraud – but it still exists. If you suspect it, cross-check your PPC reports with website analytics data.

Mistake: Not employing content network reports

Content network campaigns can be lucrative if managed well, so make sure you run reporting that gives you insight here.

Mistake: Trying to bid your way out of poor quality score

Quality score is a feature Google uses to gague the relevance of an advertiser’s campaign. If your quality score is low, fix it by improving relevance – not just paying more.

Mistake: Not using the Search Query Performance Report

To enhance CTR and ROI, companies should review the Search Query Performance Report weekly to find out what keywords inappropriately lead to your ad so you can include these in the negative keyword list.

Mistake: Not reporting policy violation to Google

Don’t let your competitors cheat and put you at an unfair disadvantage!

Mistake: Focusing on CTR instead of Conversion Rate

Unless your strategically focusing elsewhere, make sales a priority. In your testing, optimize for the highest sales conversion rate…not just high ad clickthroughs. (Extreme example: using the word ‘free’ may attract lots of clicks, but not from people looking to buy)