Chapter 9 : Creating Effective Ad Groups part 4

Researching and Refining Keywords
Enough mechanics. The remainder of this chapter is mostly about strategic
issues. I discuss formulating keyword concepts using the Keyword Suggestion
Tool, the widespread reliance on keyword generators, finding keywords by
thinking like your customer, and the four keyword-matching options at your
disposal. You find out about tactical positioning of ads on search pages, planning
for distribution in Google’s extended networks, and trademark controversies.
I continue the discussion of Google’s insistence on relevance at all
costs. Let’s get started.
Hunting for the ideal keyword
Imagine the gold ring of search advertising: the mythical keyword that’s in
high demand by searchers but has no competition from other advertisers.
That sweet spot in Google where, even if only for a short time, you can reach
Figure 9-4:
Here’s a
friendly
interface for
creating
unique
keyword
values.
Chapter 9: Creating Effective Ad Groups 167
millions of hungry searchers for the absolute minimum cost per click. In that
Eden-like scenario, your ad would be the only paid link on the page, floating
majestically in alluring solitude, receiving hordes of dirt-cheap clickthroughs.
That’s the ideal. Reality usually differs considerably. Sharp, opportunistic
advertisers converge on important keywords, driving up the price of good
positioning into the realm of dollars per click. But, amazingly, ideal and nearideal
keyword discoveries do exist. I’ve launched dozens of Ad Groups with
keywords for which I bid the minimum of $.05 per click, and watched the ads
claim positions no lower than third on the page (and several times the top
spot), earning very robust clickthrough rates. Driving highly targeted clicks
at a cost of $50 per thousand is a true bargain.
Chapter 4 describes Wordtracker, which strives to evaluate keywords based on
their popularity as search terms and their prevalence on Web sites, to arrive at
a competitive profile of a keyword or phrase. Wordtracker is certainly a tool
you should know about. It’s also important to research on your own, especially
in Google, where your keywords must perform well to stay in play. (Actually,
the ads perform well or badly, but the keywords are disabled if the ads fail.)
When you identify a potential keyword, search for it in Google — that’s the
most direct way to survey the competitive landscape in the venue that really
counts. Click the Search button a few times to catch ads that are in slowed or
spread-out distribution patterns. Notice also how many search results Google
finds. These two pieces of information — the number of search results and
the number of ads on the page — give you a good idea of the demand (from
searchers and advertisers) for that keyword. When demand from searchers
(represented indirectly by the number of search results) seems to exceed
demand from advertisers (represented directly by the number of ads), you
know you have a potentially productive keyword.
Remember that an attractive keyword need not result in millions of page
results in Google; hundreds of thousands of links represents a healthy marketplace
in which to present your ads. With this perspective, look at Figures 9-5
and 9-6. The first screen is Google’s results page for the keyword phrase discount
cds. The second screen shows the results for budget cds. The first page
shows strong demand everywhere: roughly 2.5 million search results and an
AdWords column full of ads. The second page shows strong consumer demand
(753,000 results) and faltering advertiser demand.
Is there room in that AdWords column for a third ad? Most certainly, especially
because one of the displayed ads is owned by a local shop. Whether a
third ad would be successful depends on many factors. But for the moment,
it appears that the third spot could be purchased for a low CPC bid. This situation
is ripe for testing, and it took me about 30 seconds to find it. Search
Google with your prospective keywords and with productive variations!