The Importance of a holistic approach to Online Marketing.

A successful AdWords campaign is comprised of several all important variants. Contrary to popular opinion the AdWords campaign is not the be all and end all, rather, it is the website itself that does the all important work. To use a simple analogy, the AdWords campaign is effectively a sprucer standing out the front of a store, telling all the wonders of the store within. No matter how good the sprucer, if traffic is driven into a store that’s poorly set up and staffed, with high priced stock stacked randomly on shelves- the customers are going to leave in very short order.

Here are some very simple factors that should be taken into account for any website that is aimed at either selling a product or service, or getting subscribers.

Firstly- Be Relevant & Focused! There’s nothing to lose by focusing a page on a single product or service, and much to gain. It reiterates to someone who is coming in via paid advertising that here is what they were looking for, and doesn’t offer distractions. It’s all well and good to describe a product and its benefits, its uses and how happy it has made everyone who has it… but the second you start trying to sell them something else at the same time- the users attention is divided, uncertainty is introduced and your chance of converting plummets.

Secondly- Be Reassuring! Many people are still coming to terms with buying and booking online, so here are a few things that should be reflected on every page. 1) A contact number is a must (preferably not mobile, a land line or 1800 number is ideal as this gives the perception of an established business with real people on the other end, ready to assist). 2) Easily recognizable forms of payment such as PayPal, visa, MasterCard etc. Having these logos clearly showing at the top of the page is psychologically reassuring to say the least and 3) Testimonials! Real people, giving reviews, expressing their confidence in the site, company or product is a huge factor in reassuring a user who may be dubious. To add to the above, if you have any awards or certifications, these are only going to help your cause, so why not add them near the header bar?

Thirdly- Know your audience. Your audience wants a deal, they are clearly looking around (hence they found you on Google!) So why not offer the right product at the right price? Think of who the products marketed at, and write your site text accordingly. Most importantly of all, what device is your audience likely to be using, and is your website equipped to deal with that traffic? A perfect example would be as a locksmith, your average user will be someone who only has their mobile at hand as they are currently locked out of their house… also take into account that more and more traffic these days is mobile, so regardless of what you sell or provide service wise, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

There is a last factor that should be prioritised that many ignore all together, and this is the source code of the site (the only thing that Google’s bots are looking at when reviewing quality scores for an AdWords campaigns keywords). It is important to include a keyword list, or meta tags on the back end of the site so that Google can see what the page is about, and the keywords that are being used in your AdWords campaign should be clearly reflected therein. This will boost quality scores, and as such ensure that it will be cheaper for you (the advertiser) to display your ads in a good position, meaning more impressions, more clicks, and more potential customers coming through to your site for your advertising dollar!

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