Experienced PPC campaign managers know that no two companies should ever use the exact same keyword, even if they sell similar products. Some PPC companies make the mistake of habitually choosing high-tracking keywords for all their clients. Of course, everyone wants to have a popular search term do the heavy lifting for their inorganic link traffic, but the truth is that the most obvious or popular keyword often won’t provide the biggest boost to a site’s traffic or the best conversion rates.
Smart keyword selection is always based on a number of factors, each of which is determined on a client-to-client basis. The most effective pay per click campaigns are always those that get off on the right foot and focus on keywords that consistently perform until the very end of a campaign’s run. While a campaign manager can exhaust himself trying to uncover the secrets of optimal PPC performance, specified keyword terms are quite effective when used properly.
Using Time-Sensitive Keywords Smartly
We’ve all been there before: a client wants to take advantage of an upcoming event and use it as a keyword to boost their business. In many cases, the company in question doesn’t really have much to offer the audience that would be searching for particular holidays or major sports events, but it still wants to take hold of that traffic. Those PPC companies that recklessly latch onto trending event keywords (ie. “Superbowl” or “Easter”) often end up seeing a significant drop-off well before the holiday even arrives. As a result, they end up paying way too much for a term that simply isn’t worth the effort.
If you decide to go with time-sensitive keywords, make sure they’re applicable to the client. It makes far more sense that a greeting card retailer would have the keyword “Easter” as part of its search term than an electronics store. The natural semantic connection of particular industries to certain holidays gives well-designed, time-sensitive PPC ads far better legs than ones with irrelevant or frivolous keyword selections.
A Long Tail Keyword Can Get Superior Conversion Rates
There’s been a lot of buzz in the PPC community regarding the effectiveness of long tail keywords as of late. Long tail keywords, or search terms that comprise as many as four or more phrases, are becoming increasingly popular for a number of reasons. As few campaign managers want to deal with a bidding war for popular keywords, many PPC managers have been turning to more specified terms as they tend to be lighter on PPC budgets while simultaneously bringing in a more engaging traffic flow.
While a client will see significantly less website hits when using long tail keywords, those people that interact with the driving PPC advertisement will be far more likely to actually provide solid conversion rates. Should someone already be searching for “fast response plumping services Santa Monica,” then odds are he or she would be more inclined to actually contact a business than someone looking for “plumping Santa Monica.”
