AdWords ads: how not to write
If anyone is interested, I can do a whole post on "How to Write Good Ad Copy," but I keep seeing examples of bad and/ or funny ads, so I will be talking now about those.
Here's the first one. It's funny because it's just so….aggressive. Like, I was just reading an article on my phone, minding my own business. This ad sounds like this guy is going to "SUE MY EMPLOYER" without even asking me. The headline is so forceful, it kind of makes you want to go "Oh, did I give you that impression? I'm actually fine– don't do anything on my account….no, seriously. I DON'T WANT THIS. STOP. YOU'RE GOING TO GET ME IN TROUBLE."
I PhotoShopped the guy's name out because he seems very litigious, but this is an example of an ad that is not targeted enough, so it's triggering on the Google Content Network probably more than it should. This is flawed logic, inferring that just because I was reading an article obliquely related to this subject, I have this problem myself (which I decidedly do that). This, right here, is why many people hire me (or other consultants) to refine their AdWords buys, because they are not getting any results.
Then there's this ad:
First of all, please believe me when I say that SEO (Search Engine Optimization) that lasts is based on high quality writing. That's the first reason this is hilarious to me, because This Person Is Going to Write All of Your Content Like This and Google Knows That No One Talks Like That.
This is also funny because there is no lead up to the big-ticket minimum required retainer of $2,000/ month. YIKES. I don't even know you, your grammar is not great, and I need $2,000/month just to get in the door? No loss-leader product like a site audit so I can see how brilliant you are and what suggestions you have for me BEFORE you tell me your minimum monthly fee? This scares me.
I also would like to point out how ironic it is that this person, Despite Having Been in the Industry for 15 Years, is paying for ads, when paid traffic is the opposite of SEO traffic, so that is a joke that only I will get.
Here are some best practices for AdWords buys, in case you're going to take the plunge. These are my own findings, so take from them what you will:
— Phrase the headline as a question. For the first ad, I would probably re-target the whole buy and change the headline to something like "Got Problems With Your Employer?"
— Test, test, test. If the second advertiser is smart, they ran this ad at the same time as another one WITHOUT the minimum retainer mentioned, then compared the results from the two. This is the main problem I see with small businesses– they run only one ad, then wonder why they wasted that money. You need at least two ads running so you can compare the results, otherwise you are advertising in a vaccuum.
— Measure Results. This is the # 1 problem I hear from people, and yet it never fails to surprise me– people will start running these ads and spending huge amounts of money, but they really don't have any mechanism in place to tell if those ads are even getting them business (like setting up conversion tracking in Google Analytics, or making a special page where the ad leads so you can measure the traffic, OR JUST ASKING PEOPLE WHERE THEY FOUND YOU).
–Pay Attention. Google will take your money, even if your ad isn't targeted correctly or is failing to get you the leads you wanted. Make a note in your calendar (or email, or however you remind yourself) that your ad is running, check it every day, and PAUSE / DELETE it if it's not performing. Do not go on vacation with that ad running, or you will end up with an unpleasant surprise in the form of a huge bill when you return.