PPC Advertising: Getting the Right Data
Data tracking is critical to a successful PPC advertising campaign. But just tracking the data might not be enough – building an effective PPC campaign means tracking the right data. By tracking conversion, time-on-page, and sales data; a good advertiser can ensure that you’re getting the proper return on investment – otherwise it is too easy to let a PPC campaign spiral out of control.
While there is a whole host of data tracking options – there are two main points that need to followed more closely than others: search terms that are ending in clicks and clicks that end in sales.
Keywords and Search Terms
Understanding keywords and search terms is vital to understanding how a successful PPC campaign is structured. There are two ways to going about setting up a keyword/search term structure – the first is easier but the second provides more control and detailed data tracking:
- Basic Keywords Structure: This involves picking a few targeted keywords and launching a campaign. This strategy will draw from a wide range of search terms that are semantically related to your targeted keyword. If you’re going this route, the important data to track is which search terms are leading to conversions and sales. This allows you to better target keywords in the future. The downside is that you’ll be wasting some resources on search terms that are not a good fit for what you’re selling. The basic structure is generally the method of do-it-yourselfers.
- Single Keyword Ad Group (SKAG): This is a better (but more time-consuming) way to set up a PPC campaign. By setting your advertising to only show on exact keyword matches you can track exactly which ads are leading to sales and which are not. There will be a lot of data to mine through, but the results can be powerful – isolating a single variable at a time. The SKAG is the go-to method for professional PPC firms as it provides the best results and ROI.
Conversion and Sales
Everyone wants to track clicks and conversions. They make for exciting numbers and are often touted as proof of a healthy ROI, however they should take a backseat to the most important measurement of them all – sales. Getting clicks is a great goal, as it builds brand awareness, builds email lists, and often leads to sales. But all the clicks in the world won’t help your business if the sale is never closed.
Tracking how many sales an ad produces should be the holy grail of PPC data tracking. A highly specialized, granular advertisement probably won’t generate the clicks of a broad keyword ad – but the specialized one will result in higher sales even at a lower click through rate. And when you’re paying by the click – that’s just what you want.
PPC Done Right
Setting up a basic PPC advertising campaign is relatively simple. But building one that is trackable and sustainable is much more difficult. Understanding the best way to structure keyword matching and tracking clicks, conversion, and sales with an eye toward maximizing your return on investment really can be full time job. If you’ve been considering running a digital advertising campaign, contact us today so we can sit down with you and go over the ins and outs of running a ad that will truly grow your business!
