The idea behind Search Marketing is to throw yourself in front of a hungry crowd while holding out a plate of hot, blueberry muffins -- preferrably pre-buttered.
You need to put your message in front of prospects at the exact moment when they're looking to fulfill a desire or meet a need. They're not looking for your product, of course, they're looking for something they want.
The goal is to show them you have it. And with Google Adwords, the trick is doing that using 95 characters or less! (Yes, CHARACTERS, not words...)
THE NOT-SO-SECRET FORMULA FOR CRAFTING YOUR AD
Each ad is designed around a keyword or phrase. Think of it as the hunger. It's the specific term that people are using to search for a way to meet their need.
For your ad to work, it has to do several things:
-- Let them know you are exactly what they're searching for (Get their ATTENTION)
-- Offer something that meets their need or at least sounds like it might (Build their INTEREST)
-- Promise them the benefits of action (Kindle their DESIRE)
-- Show them how to take you up on your offer (Make it easy to take ACTION)
You're right. It's the old AIDA formula. All you have to do is squeeze it into a few brief lines of copy.
HOW THE FORMULA WORKS IN ONE EXAMPLE AD
One of my clients has a new market we're targeting. His first product is an ebook titled, "Safeguarding Your Family's Health, Wealth and Happiness." It's directed at parents who are facing all the perils of modern life and need guidance on how to keep their loved ones safe.
The whole site is being set up to sell the ebook. Later, we'll add other products, member services, etc., IF we can reach the market as planned.
On the client's site, a long-form sales letter operates as the main selling tool. But to get prospects to it, we use a three step process. First an ad, then a landing page, then the sales letter.
Here's the strategy behind the ad. (In future installments in this series, I'll cover how the different pages of the site work, but for now let's focus on the ad that gets it all started.)
If you're writing a Google Adword ad, you have three lines to use, plus a link.
On the first line, put your key phrase. If it's longer than 25 characters, take out the least important key word. The closer you can make it to the actual search phrase, the better. You're flagging down prospects here by telling them you're what they're looking for. Google bolds the keywords plus it underlines the first line - so this is your big chance to get attention.
Make the second line your offer. Using the word "Free" is always good but be careful about excess punctuation. Google will refuse any ad with multiple exclamation points, etc.
On the third line, make a promise. Cram in as many benefits as possible. Sometimes you can just list but it's usually stronger to employ an active verb plus a list – for example: "Protect your kids and money."
For your link, use the domain name without the http://, which is added by Google, and without the www, which isn't necessary here. Add a slash and then something that ties back to the keyphrase. That's because you need to reinforce that you're linking them to a special page just for this keyphrase, and not just sending them to something that won't really meet their need. It adds to credibility. Note that this is not the actual link. It's just for show. You get one more line that doesn't appear in the ad to fill in your real link.
EXAMPLE: For the Key Phrase "Home Hazard Checklist"
(Note: Numbers in parentheses are the maximum characters allowed on that line. )
Line 1: Keywords (25) ----- Home Hazard Checklist
Line 2: Your Offer (35) ----- Get a Safety Plan Checklist - Free
Line 3: The Promise (35) ----- Protect Your Kids, Home, Money, Car
Line 4: Your Link (35) ----- SafeguardingFamily.com/Checklist
Which will make an ad that looks like this...
Home Hazard Checklist
Get a Safety Plan Checklist - Free
Protect Your Kids, Home, Money, Car
http://SafeguardingFamily.com/Checklist
YOU'LL MAKE IT EVEN BETTER WITH TESTING
You should test your ads by always running two for each key phrase. Replace the loser every time the winner reaches 30 – 50 clickthroughs.
Limit what you test. Only vary one line or phrase between the two ads for each test. For example, in the above, you could have one ad that said "Protect Kids, Home, Money, Car" and the other say, "Safeguard Kids, Home, Money, Car." Keep the first and third lines of both ads exactly the same when you're testing the second line. Never test more than one thing at a time.
Google requires that whatever you say in your ad, like "Free Checklist," must be found on the landing page. They actually have people checking it so make sure not to overlook that part.
FINAL WORD
The small space given to advertisers for Google Adwords might make you think they're like classified ads in newspapers or the backs of magazines. That would be a mistake because they're so much more. Traditional principles of copywriting certainly apply. But you have to write from the perspective of the searcher.
Use pay-per-click ads well and you'll get traffic streaming into your site. Just make sure you've got those hot, buttered muffins waiting...
Ron Murphy is The Expert Marketer and heads the specialized marketing firm of the same name. The Expert Marketer works exclusively for Experts - those unique professionals, consultants, and specialists in every field whose income depends primarily on what they know.
Murphy's firm makes money for clients by turning their expertise into lucrative new information products and services. Books, Podcasts, Videos, Seminars, membership web sites, and more. The Expert Marketer can handle the entire project - from writing and designing the product, to publishing and producing it, to selling and supporting it.
Clients also rely on The Expert Marketer for business promotion. A full range of direct response, internet marketing and public relations services are available.
Ron Murphy's product development and marketing experience spans more than thirty years. He's been selling online since 1996.
Visit the web site at http://TheExpertMarketer.com for more information.
