Learn How the Method of Site Targeting Can Boost Your ROI
Site targeting is a hidden gem within the Google AdWords set up and something that very few people use or even know about how to use. Site targeting is basically a sniper use of the content network. Instead of entering keywords and letting the system decide which sites to run your ads on, you just enter the URL’s and pages that you want to run on so nothing is left to chance. One of the keys to this model is, because of recent changes, you can now bid either in a traditional CPC way, or you can use the old fashioned method of CPM, or cost per thousand impressions. Now, many people online will tell you that CPM is bad, doesn’t give you a good ROI and will lose you money.
But this is simply not true. Now, if you feel more comfortable bidding CPC, then by all means go with that. Bid a little higher than you would on content because, firstly, you know you are getting highly targeted traffic, and secondly you will very rarely be charged your max CPC. But, if you are running a campaign that has a CTR of 1% or higher then it may well be prudent to look towards a CPM campaign. That is, it may well be possible to get your ad running for $0.50 CPM and if you are getting a 2-3% CTR. Then you are looking at between 20 and 30 clicks for $0.50. This is the secret that people are referring to when you occasionally hear that it is possible to get less than $0.01 clicks on AdWords these days. This is a statement that is designed to create hype and controversy, but it is entirely true. It’s no secret, though; the key is a high CTR and low CPM bidding.
Another reason that the site-targeting method is great is that you do not have to worry about quality score. That’s pretty awesome if you have spent a long time working out ways to be considered good enough to give Google your money. Your sites will be reviewed and it is a manual review process so it can take up to around 3 days for the ads to be approved to run but this is not for quality score reasons. This is because they want to make sure that the ad conforms to the other rules (no pop-ups, hate speech etc.) and also that you are not saying anything that may affect the business or reputation of the site you are advertising on.
Site targeting takes time, research and a willingness to experiment to find the most effective approach. Contact the internet marketing professionals at Icon to find out if site targeting is the best way to use Google Adwords for your situation.