More and more people are using their mobile devices to search for things online.
This trend is causing a big change in the world of search advertising. More than half of all Google searches come from a mobile device. Google’s recent algorithm update has changed how well websites rank in the organic results depending on their mobile usability.
How to Think of Mobile Users Versus Desktop Users
People tend to have different intentions when using a mobile device as opposed to a desktop computer. For example, people are more likely to be looking for directions or looking to make a purchase on a mobile device than on a desktop.
Remember that people will be using these devices in different situations. Consider what they will need to do. Instead of being on a laptop, mobile users will generally spend less time researching.
The mobile market is unique compared to other industries as conversion rates and user behavior varies greatly. The conversion rates for e-commerce stores on mobile devices tend to be lower than conversion rates for local lead-generation businesses. A study has revealed that more than half of all mobile searches eventually lead to local visits to a store. This is a much higher number than what is typically seen with e-commerce businesses.
Users don’t just stick to one device, they move around. If you analyze user behavior, you will see that they switch from device to device. A smartphone might be used to start a search, but a desktop computer might be used to finalize the search, compare the results with competitors, and get more information.
How to Structure an Efficient Mobile Ad
You have to be aware that you have less space to work with when creating mobile ads. An ad that appears only at the top of a web page, where it is immediately visible, is called an above-the-fold ad. Above-the-fold ads are more effective than ads that appear lower on the page, but they are also more expensive.
This means that your ads have to be even more effective to be successful. This also means that if your ads are successful, you have a great opportunity to make a lot of money.
1. Use Short Words for Mobile Ads
Given that mobile users have shorter attention spans and smaller screens, it can be challenging to capture their attention. Ads that focus on short words are one of the oldest best practices.
Don’t try to impress people by using big words that they might not understand. Be precise. Get your point across. Highlight your USPs in short terms.
This is also important for regular description lines in AdWords ads, but it is even more critical to remember for mobile AdWords ads.
2. Consider Environmental Changes from Desktop to Mobile
Some industries are not affected much by the change from desktop to mobile. However, there are important factors that should be considered for others.
The ad copy for a desktop and mobile consumer researching their next desktop purchase wouldn’t require many changes. You can of course test different messages, but it is not a fundamental change to the way you have to write your ads.
Now imagine a consumer searching for an emergency plumber on her smartphone at 10 pm at night. Do you think the environment has changed? The situation now does not merit a completely different ad than if the user was searching on their desktop at 4 pm on a Saturday. Of course it does.
A great ad to present in such a case would be:
Emergency Plumber 24/7 Ready by the phone. Call now! 1-hour guaranteed response time.
The most basic rule of marketing is to write ads that are relevant to the customer’s situation. You can target specific audiences very effectively with mobile devices and the right keywords.
3. Write Mobile Ads That Highlight The “Mobility” Situation
One of the longest-standing best practices for mobile ads is to write an ad that touches upon any of the following statements:
- Mobile-Friendly Website
- Call Us Now
- Call us from your mobile
- Display URL with “Mobile” in it
You can’t just expect success if you only focus on the word mobile. The goal is for the user to know that you have considered their mobile experience and not just added ads as an afterthought.
4. Include Call and Sitelinks Extensions
Advertisement extensions are a great addition to any AdWords ad, however there are so many options available that you need to consider which ones are right for your specific needs.
Call extension allows users to call the advertiser directly from the ad, and Sitelinks extension allows users to click through to specific pages on the advertiser’s website.
If your goal is to generate calls, then you definitely need to use call extensions.
The Sitelinks extension allows you to take up more space on the search engine results pages, making your ad more visible.
Marketing KPIs You Should Be Tracking
When setting and tracking marketing key performance indicators (KPIs), many marketers and business owners give all their attention to the usual suspects:
- Sales revenue
- The number of sales-qualified leads generated
- Cost per acquisition
The right marketing KPIs help you identify which campaigns and tactics are most effective in achieving your sales and marketing goals. Nobody wants to keep funding a marketing campaign that’s hemorrhaging their company’s money. The right marketing KPIs will help your company make the necessary adjustments to various strategies and budgets.
Digital marketing ROI
It’s important to calculate your digital marketing return on investment so you can see how well your mobile marketing campaigns are performing. It is just as important to be able to plan strategies and budgets for upcoming planning periods.
You don’t want to continue investing more money into a marketing activity that isn’t effective and is costing your company. Your return on investment will determine how you should proceed in the future, regardless of what marketing activity your company is using.
Traffic-to-lead ratio (new contact rate)
It is very important to understand the origins of your website traffic. This is especially true if the traffic is coming from organic sources, social media, direct channels, or referrals.
If you aren’t converting traffic to leads at the same rate, it means that something is missing on your website.
The main problem seems to be that users are not getting the information they expect when they click on something. This could be due to a number of factors, but the most likely one is that the thing they’re clicking on is not properly aligned with the information being presented. You might be unintentionally showing your audience content that is either too advanced for them or that doesn’t answer their questions. As a result, they will have to find another resource to get the information they need.
Before making your content more efficient, you should figure out which pages have the most people leave immediately (high bounce rate) and which pages have the fewest people contact you as a result (low view-to-contact rate). The following information will help you identify which pages you should optimize first.
This information can help you see if people are actually reading your content all the way through. If your content doesn’t have a call to action (CTA), consider adding more of them throughout your content instead of just at the end. Or ask yourself, are you answering searchers’ questions?
It is a good idea to keep track of how many people visit your website and how many of them become leads so that you know when it might be time to change your website. This includes things like the copy, design, CTAs, or forms.
