Invest in Contextual Search Advertising for its distinct merits over PPC.
If you are contemplating using contextual advertising through Google, Microsoft, or any other venue, there are plenty of things up for consideration.
The term “contextual advertising” is used to describe the advertisements that appear dynamically on web pages or other media, such as mobile phones. These advertisements are chosen and served by automated (or partially automated) management systems based on the content displayed by the end user. For instance, the advertisement management system notices you are viewing a page about marketing, and it learns this by analyzing the words or other elements on that web page. The system then renders an advertisement related to marketing, justifying the contextual part of the term.
Many analysts are of the opinion that contextual advertisements results in fewer conversions than pay-per-click (PPC) search engine advertisements. The problem is mostly related to timing; there’s absolutely no means to evaluate how the advertisements arrival evokes the customer’s eagerness to purchase.
Customers who end up on your web page via a PPC search engine advertisement are more likely to make a purchase, since they are actively seeking businesses that sell the goods or services they want, and drill down with keywords that are more specific.
Advertisers eying immediate return on investment (ROI) should not consider contextual advertising for their campaigns, given its timing issues. On the other hand, if smaller conversions don’t hurt, invest in contextual search advertising for its distinct merits over PPC.
One of the biggest advantages rendered by contextual search advertising is that keywords cost less than those used in PPC search. If you intend to run an advertisement campaign based on content, contextual search advertising is more cost effective than PPC search engine advertising. You’ll end up with fewer conversions alright, but still be able to garner a decent ROI. Besides, you cannot rule out the value of product and website exposure in any format online, particularly in content-rich pages.
Customers who read such content online typically have a high degree of interest in the topic, as a result of which are more likely to notice your advertisement. Few of them may even bookmark your web page as a place to explore when they inch closer towards the end of sales cycle -- gearing up for purchase.
Here are some tips and techniques as you explore the use of content advertisements in your PPC campaigns.
- Don’t commit before testing: Run competitive tests between your PPC search and your contextual search advertisements. This must be done prior to committing to one or the other exclusively.
- Understand the purpose of advertisements: Contextual advertisements have a different role to play than PPC search advertisements. While the former is designed to infuse interest in the product, the latter focuses on conversions.
- Different design for each type of advertising: Since the purpose differs for each type of advertising campaign, try designing different landing pages and advertisement descriptions based on your final goal.
- Test the advertisements on various search engines: Create competing contextual advertisements on multiple search engines to ascertain which one works better for you.
- Time your testing carefully: Do not conduct testing of different advertisement campaigns during the holiday shopping seasons or holidays. You might end up with skewed results.
- Track your advertisements: Tracking helps to ensure what works and what doesn’t for both PPC search and content. If you know which keywords convert or result in impressions, it’ll save you some extra dough from being wasted.
Contextual advertising can introduce you to millions of prospects and ensure a decent ROI, but it necessitates proper approach in order to be successful.
