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  • A Guide To Google Ads With Wix

    A Guide To Google Ads With Wix

    Using Wix to Set-up Google Ads

    Starting a business is no easy feat and includes a lot of steps. Two of which are making a website and getting said website in front of customers to promote your product or services.

    If you have ever thought about setting up a website before, we are sure most of you have heard of a little platform called Wix, an easy to use, code free website developer. However did you know that Wix also allows you to set up Google ads directly from their platform? 

    We know that when starting a business there is also a LOT of research that needs to be done. Scouring the internet, bouncing from page to page, trying to decide which path is best, and not everyone has time for that.

    Today we are going to keep it all in one place! Everything you need to know about using Google Ads through Wix and if it’s better than setting up a Google Ads account directly through Google. 

    How To Set Up Google Ads on Wix

    Before we go through the pros and cons of using Wix to set up Google Ads, let’s walk through the steps to set it up. Wix keeps things pretty simple so there are only 5 main steps we are going to touch on.

    1) Set up location targeting

    Advertisers are able to enter up to ten locations based on country, state, city, zip code, and region, or advertisers can enter a street address that they want to advertise near.

    2) Set Up Ad Schedule

    Choose if you want to run your ads all the time or at specific times. If you opt for specific times you can then choose which days and which hours your ads run.  

    3) Select Keyword Themes

    You can then select up to 10 keyword themes that you think are relevant to how people might be searching for products and services like yours. You can enter in your own keywords or pull from Wix’s suggestions. You only get 10, so choose your themes carefully to encompass everything that you want your campaign to target. 

    4) Assets

    Advertisers enter in 3 headlines and 2 descriptions about their company and landing page. This is what will appear when your ad shows to users.

    5) Set Budget

    For Wix, you must first purchase a monthly subscription starting as low as $150 a month. This will then pool as the ad credit acting as the money that your campaigns can then pull from when you set your daily spend on the campaign level. It’s important to keep in mind that your campaigns also have a minimum daily spend so if you have a second campaign you will need to purchase more ad credit via a one time purchase or an increase in the monthly subscription. 

    Pros of Running Google Ads Through Wix:

    And just like that, in five easy steps, you have yourself a Google Ads campaign set up through Wix, which leads us to our first pro for using the Wix platform to run Google Ads.

    Pro 1) It’s Easy

    Wix uses a simplified version of Google Ads that allows you to run search ads, as opposed to the Google Ads platform which has a number of different ad types, complex targeting, and more nuanced ad set up.

    Though some people like the bells and whistles of Google Ads, not every company has the band-with to set up and manage complex campaigns.

    Wix’s easy to use pared down platform is efficient. Plus it comes with step by step tutorials to walk you through how to set up Google Ads in Wix.  

    Pro 2) Integration

    Using the same platform cuts down a lot of time. Right off the jump, you don’t need to create a Google Ads account, become a verified advertiser, or enter credit card information into a new platform.

    In fact, You don’t need to learn another platform at all, because it’s all right in Wix, so you are already familiar with their tools.

    Pro 3) Singular Platform (part one)

    The pro of a singular platform in terms of integration is great but there is a lot to be said for its simplicity of a singular platform in the long term.

    Let’s be honest, as a business owner there is a lot to manage and that includes the 101 tabs open on your computer that you need to check on.

    Well advertising through the Wix platform instead of the Google Ads platform cuts down on one extra tab that you have to remember to check.

    Instead of bouncing around between Wix and Google Ads you are able to view your advertising data alongside your organic data on one platform.

    Time is money and there is a lot of time being saved by having one less platform to pay attention to.

    Cons of running Google Ads Through Wix

    There are a lot of pros to using the Wix platform to run Google Ads but some of those very things that are pros can quickly become cons for advertisers.

    Con 1) Limited Data

    Having one platform is great when you don’t have time to learn or set up a Google Ads account, however it also means that Wix is not built to report the same way the Google Ads platform reports.

    Wix has very limited data compared to Google Ads.

    In Google Ads, advertisers have the ability to do detailed audience reports, gather data on individual keywords, and track many metrics such as impression share that Wix does not report.

    This lack of reporting prevents advertisers from gathering insights on their target market and limits ad optimization. 

    Con 2) Limited Ad Control

    Again another pro that can quickly become a con. Wix has a simplified ad set up, which makes ads easy to build, but easy doesn’t necessarily mean better. Here are a few ways Wix is limiting:

    The biggest drawbacks of ads on Wix is that you can only run search ads, so any display or video advertising is out of the question from the jump. 

    Wix also doesn’t allow for more than 3 headlines and 2 descriptions. In Google, Advertisers are able to enter up to 10 headlines and 4 descriptions that then get optimized based on performance.

    On Wix, advertisers can’t add extensions to their ads, meaning they are missing out on images, pricing, and call outs that can help an ad stand out, be competitive and attract users.

    Finally, Wix has advertisers pick out keyword themes and not specific keywords, meaning that the search terms your ads are showing up for are more broad and might not be relevant. Thus, there is also less data on the success of a keyword/keyword theme.

    Con 3) Campaign = Ad

    Right now every ad that is created in Wix is its own campaign. In Google Ads there are campaigns, ad groups and then ads.

    There can be more than one ad group in a campaign and more than one ad in an ad group, allowing advertisers to organize ad content and gather data on different markets in a concise manner. 

    Con 4) Google Ads and Wix Don’t Connect

    Though you are able to advertise with Google Ads through Wix they are separate platforms.

    This means, if you start advertising through Wix and then decide you want to switch to using the Google Ads platform for all the tools and data that Google provides, you aren’t able to retroactively pull your data from Wix into Google Ads.

    As far as Google Ads is concerned you have not been running ads through them. Thus you won’t have all your data in one place.

    Is Using Wix to run Google Ads Worth It

    Truthfully this is going to depend on your business.

    As an agency, we wouldn’t use Wix to advertise for our clients because it does not provide near enough data for us to work with and make intelligent observations on campaigns.

    However, advertising is our world and we have the time, means and knowledge, to quickly and effectively set up Google Ads campaigns.

     A small business owner looking for a way to easily advertise their business might benefit from having a simple platform that is in the same place as where their website is being hosted.

    In conclusion, if you have the time, Google Ads is more worthwhile, however if you don’t have the time or desire to learn Google Ads, then setting up ads through Wix is a good resource to get you started in advertising. 

  • Sales and B2B PPC Programs

    Sales and B2B PPC Programs

    Business-to-business (B2B) marketing has many facets. And a given company may employ just one or many of them. The challenge for PPC programs is determining where they fit (if at all) in the various B2B go-to-market strategies.

    What is PPC for B2B?

    First, let’s cover what PPC means in our context. Yes, it is pay-per-click, but beyond that, PPC used to be nearly synonymous with paid search engine advertising. While still including search, it encompasses so much more. Some platforms are not technically PPC, yet most have a PPC component. But, even with a CPM channel, ROAS-based advertising and tracking are helping bring PPC and CPM under the umbrella of the cost per lead or cost per sale metric.

    One benefit of starting with a PPC model (even with CPM channels) is that we start with a “cost-per-action” mindset. While CPMs are great up funnel, when we try to maximize ROAS, the more actions we can drive, even a basic click, the further we are down the path of the value of the advertising. 

    PPC advertisements management has the perspective of driving measurable value from the ad spend at any funnel stage.

    Role of B2B PPC Advertising

    The goal of advertising in B2B can vary among industries and even between companies within an industry. Yes, ultimately, it is to make money. However, how advertising can impact the prospect is, to a large extent, determined by the sales cycle. 

    Direct-to-Sale

    Perhaps the easiest to measure, direct-to-sale, is what it sounds like. From the advertising engagement, the prospect is to make a purchase, usually through e-commerce. These tend to be low-involvement purchases or product-lead strategies. The sales are usually e-commerce but can also be PO-based.

    Lead Generation

    Many B2B advertising programs are developed to drive leads a sales team follows up on. A lead-quality feedback loop is important to assess the value of the various PPC lead channels. While qualitative input from the salespeople is important, quantitative input is essential.

    Many companies employ CRMs with marketing automation tools. These allow each lead and lead value to be tracked and then fed back for media optimization. As a result of direct media optimization, the more efficient programs allow the sales teams to spend more time on likely leads and less on low-quality leads.

    Sales Support

    Perhaps the more difficult way to attach value is a sales strategy involving support in pre- and post-contact. The intent is to ensure prospects can easily access product and service information during the buying process.

    Phases of B2B PPC Implementation

    As an agency, we work with B2B clients across the strategy spectrum. The key to our success lies in our communication with the clients’ senior management, ensuring that everyone understands the role the PPC program has in supporting the sales process. This best plays out in phases.

    Initial conversations: getting alignment

    With this understanding, we set the target metrics and developed a plan to achieve them. As part of this process, we ensure that everyone is in agreement. Once we align the first stage, we start the program.

    Launching the PPC Program: confirming metrics

    In the initial stage of the program, metrics are validated, and the feedback loop is verified. During this phase, assumptions are tested, reporting is confirmed, and the sales team is consulted to ensure all aspects are as they should be.

    Any needed adjustments are made to the program or the tracking and reporting.

    Ongoing PPC optimization

    Once the tracking and metrics are confirmed, the PPC management team will begin optimizing the program. Depending on the program objectives, this stage may start immediately or require a longer period to start seeing actionable data.

    B2B PPC optimization is an ongoing process. Over time, the competitive landscape may alter, prospects may change, or industry dynamics can force small or even large adjustments to the PPC program. Additionally, Google’s algorithms may also change. The PPC programs must continually be monitored and optimized.

  • Do No-Follow Links Help SEO?

    Do No-Follow Links Help SEO?

    First, What’s a No Follow Link?

    A no-follow link is a hyperlink that looks like this:

    <a href = “https://fd.idatatools.com/” rel= ”nofollow” >

    See the no-follow tag? This tag tells search engines to ignore the link.

    A Brief Refresher on Search Engine Crawlers

    Search engines use hyperlinks like these to create a map of the web.

    They’ll read the content of web pages and use hyperlinks to jump from page to page and website to website.

    The more links that a page has pointing to it, the more valuable the page is assumed to be and, therefore, the more potential that page has to rank.

    No-follow tags tell search engines not to include the link in their web map.

    Why Do Websites Use No-Follow Links?

    You’ll most often find no-follow links in social media posts, comment sections, and forums.

    Back in the early days of Google, savvy folks realized you could spam blogs and forums by linking to their own websites in the comments. 

    This would artificially inflate the number of links pointing to their own website, making it seem more valuable.

    To combat this, Google introduced the no-follow tag in 2005, and other search engines quickly followed suit.

    Nowadays, search engines have become smarter and can detect spammy behavior regardless of no-follow tags.

    But you’ll still find them across the web, like on social media, certain blog posts and news sites like Forbes and Huffington Post.

    No Follow Links & SEO

    There’s a fair amount of debate in the SEO world over the value of no-follow links.

    And Google doesn’t help clarify the issue, saying “In general, we don’t follow them.”

    When it comes down to it, a no-follow tag is merely a suggestion that search engines ignore the link.

    Do No-Follow Links Help SEO?

    In short, yes. No-follow links have the potential to help your SEO.

    Let’s take a look at a few case studies that correlate no-follow links with improvements in organic rankings and traffic.

    Case Study 1

    An agency called Teknicks ran a case study in which they increased a client backlink portfolio over 16 months, 89% of which were no-follow links.

    The client saw a 288% increase in organic traffic.

    Now, this is not a perfect study (SEO studies never are). It doesn’t control for other factors, such as the impact of on-page content changes or the 11% of new links that were do-follow.

    However, the gradual increase in keyword rankings and traffic suggests that no-follow links could absolutely have contributed to their success.

    Case Study 2

    Another case study conducted by SEOJet does a better job of demonstrating a more direct relationship between no-follow links and improved rankings.

    After being stuck on the third page for “backlink software,” SEOJet placed a no-follow sidebar link on an SEO blog.

    Although it was only a single backlink, the results were immediate. They jumped to the first page within a week.

    Why would this be?

    Google May Still Follow Them

    Again, a no-follow link is merely a request that search engines ignore the link.

    This second case study suggests that Google does follow certain backlinks, especially if the content is relevant.

    Referrals Matter Too!

    When discussing backlinks and SEO, we often forget about the value of referrals.

    Links placed in relevant locations can bring in referral traffic, people who navigate to your site from the hyperlink.

    These are real human beings who check out your website and could potentially share it with others. This is a valuable benefit that shouldn’t be overlooked.

    So, Do No Follow Links Help SEO?

    In summary, no-follow links do have the potential to help your SEO by increasing organic traffic and referral traffic.

    However, the impact of no-follow links is often indirect and can be difficult to measure. 

    In addition, Google’s algorithms are constantly changing and evolving, making it challenging to determine the exact impact of no-follow links on SEO.

    Ultimately, while no-follow links may not necessarily directly contribute to your website’s rankings on search engine results pages, they can still play a role in driving traffic to your website and increasing its overall visibility.

    So, the next time you come across a no-follow link, don’t dismiss its potential value.

  • Why is it so hard to get a Verified Google Business Profile?

    Why is it so hard to get a Verified Google Business Profile?

    Looking to get your new business verified on Google or an existing business reverified? Everything from opening a business to changing a phone number or location can lead to a new verification process. Until it’s complete, you will have no information or (perhaps worse) the wrong information appearing on Google. It is critical to a well-rounded SEO program.

    What is A Google Business Profile?

    First, let’s discuss a Google Business Profile. Over the years, Google has recognized that people are searching for local businesses, and much of the information about the name, location, and phone number (known as NAP) varied and was incorrect. So, Google created business profiles that appeared on the search results as a separate ‘panel’ on the side of the desktop search results. We’re going back 15+ years.

    To populate the results, Google would scan the Internet and use its search technology to determine a business’s correct NAP. An entire industry was dedicated to spreading NAP information around the Internet so that Google’s spiders would be more likely to pick up the right information rather than the wrong information. There are remnants of that industry, but it is less about Google than getting the right information to where people may be looking.

    Then Google opened up the ability to provide NAP directly to the search engine. But it still used its spiders to determine whether the submissions were correct. At the start, there wasn’t a real verification process. You could submit the right information, but it did not appear if the contradictory information was too prevalent.

    Introducing Business Verification

    Google opens the verification process for local businesses. At the time, virtual or remote was not a big part of the scene. So, the process was developed around brick-and-mortar businesses. Simply put, Google would send a postcard to the location, and on the card was a verification URL and a code. Log into your Google account, go to the URL, and enter the code… you were verified. 

    This allowed businesses to fully control the NAP that appeared on their Google business information. The name changed over the years to Google Business, previously Google My Business. Along with the NAP, Google added the ability to manage hours, services, messaging, and more. But, at the heart of it all, it was about the Name, Address, and Phone Number.

    So, what changed that makes it so difficult now?

    Two major factors have forced Google to make the verification process more vigorous. 

    Fake locations 

    For various reasons, fake business locations were appearing. Remember that Google Business is about local businesses. Using its algorithm, Google determines how close a business needs to be to the person searching in order to be considered “local.” 

    If you want to get a call from people in a target geographic area, you must have a location near enough that Google would show your results. The closer, the better. So, use a fake location (mailbox locations, virtual office centers, etc.) to receive and forward the verification postcard Google sends, and you’ll be verified. 

    For businesses where the customer always comes to the location, the phantom location process simply does not apply. But, think of regional or national service chains with a fleet of technicians that can travel long distances to their customers. A fake location makes it more likely that you will get the call. 

    To help businesses that serve an area and travel to the customer, Google provides the ability to designate an area no more than a 100-mile radius from the location. For most small businesses, this is adequate. Most Business profile appearances are much less than 100 miles away.

    But for regional or national players, the economics are better if they can have a single real location and create multiple phantom locations, even within the 100-mile radius. They’d be more likely to show up in the search results.

    Growth in No-Premise Businesses

    Over the past 5+ years, the number of small businesses operating out of a home has increased. Professional services like accounting, legal, and consulting have gone remote/virtual. Small businesses for home services like plumbing, electrical, or contractors grew and are virtual as far as their offices are concerned. They still serve a local community, but they don’t have a physical location (other than a home) that can be verified.

    With the growth and acceptance of virtual meetings, people have become much more comfortable with the no-premise business model. Google has struggled with a method to verify these types of companies.

    How are Businesses Verified in Google?

    Google has moved to a video verification process. Unfortunately, the foundation of this process is still based on the brick-and-mortar model. 

    Business owners are asked to take a video of their location that includes:

    • An outside view of the premise with the address clearly visible. Usually, a street sign and build number.
    • Clear signage with the business name.
    • An interior view of the business to demonstrate that it is operating.

    More details on Google business verification are here.

    But what if you don’t have a brick-and-mortar storefront to verify?

    You will still need some kind of NAP information, but you toggle the profile not to show the address and mark you as an area’s service provider.  You will set your area in the profile. There is a good chance that you will need to request a verification call even after you submit a video, but the video will be a required first step. 

    So, if you don’t have a storefront, what are you showing Google on the video/call?

    Keep in mind that Google is not intentionally making it difficult to verify. It is trying to prevent fraud and fake locations. With this in mind, the following is a pain but not unreasonable.

    1. You still need to show a physical location to verify that you are in the area. Provide the street and number of your home or apartment.
    2. The space where you work. Should be an “office-like” environment and clearly a place where you are working on business. 
    3. A business card with the company name. Show both sides. Other marketing materials can help as well.
    4. Your face in the video.
    5. You access your business accounts on the computer. These can be a Google Business profile, business email, etc. 
    6. A vehicle. This can get tricky if you don’t have one. But, a video of the outside with the tag visible (state license plate), and you get into it and start it with the dashboard in view.

    Here is where Google is a bit behind. It gets difficult if you don’t have transportation because you operate virtually or you are in a city and use public transportation to visit customers. Your best bet is to get a video call set up as early in the process as possible and talk to a Google representative.  They may be able to help with an exception.

    Here is a screenshot of the current Google video process.

    steps for Google business video verification

    Using a different verification process

    Google’s documentation shows various methods for verification, but not all are available to each business profile. Going through the help section and diving deep, you can get to the point of “contact us.” While this should not be your first step, once you’ve submitted a video that gets rejected, and perhaps one revision, getting a direct contact is a good next step.

    Verification can take some time and patience. But, it is worth the effort to be present when people search for your services on Google.

  • Google Ads Updates – Feb 2024

    Google Ads Updates – Feb 2024

    Over the past month, the two biggest (but not surprising) announcements have to do with Google and the automation of the PerformanceMax, or PMax campaigns.  Google has faced several critiques about its AI-driven programs.

    Because there is no transparency, ads are run in objectionable places. 

    Google will launch placement visibility and exclusion capabilities to PMax, according to Campaign.com.

    Gemini (Google Generative AI) will become part of PMax 

    One challenge advertisers may face with PMax is creating ad assets to fit within all the possible placements of a PMax campaign. With Generative AI, Gemini can create appropriately formatted ad assets for the campaigns. Google PMax and Gemini

    Google continues to push for AI control while advertisers are looking for more visibility and manual input, if not actual control(that ship has sailed.)

  • How much should a new website cost?

    How much should a new website cost?

    Well, we have to say it. The cost of a new website depends. And it can vary greatly. 

    We’ll start with a price range for building a site. It’s useless really, but if we don’t show it up front we won’t answer the basic question. 

    Building a new site can range from a few hundreds dollars to 10s of thousands. Is that vague enough? 

    Most small businesses can expect to spend $2,000-$4,000 for a new site that is not one of the template drive CMS systems. More on those in a bit.

    So why the wide range in cost site development? 

    Broadly speaking, there are a few factors involved. The following will impact the price of building a new website..

    Technical complexity of the user experience. 

    Once you step beyond the basic HTML code of a site and start to address functionality, costs can rise. Any reaction the site has to a user action increases the technical complexity. Common elements  like form fills or simple roll-over/clicks to display expanded content, are usually not too costly.  Most front-end developers can handle these things, and if you have a CMS like WordPress, there are plugins the take care of them.

    If you start to get too complex, you will need to engage UX designers and site architects as well as developers. The project can go from easy to difficult very quickly. It is not just a matter of coding a function, but ensuring the entire site navigation/interface  is user friendly, the technologies are compatible, and the structure is manageable as the technical aspects get complex. Very few sites get to this level, but when they do, it can be a 5 to 6 figure cost.

    So the more you want the site to do, the more time and higher level of technical knowledge is required. This simply costs more.

    The creative/aesthetic level

    Do you want a truly unique creative execution with custom design and graphics, or are you good with available themes and stock creative?

    There are a lot of stock image and video resources available. You can get some nice creative elements for relatively cheap. Then there is additional time to make the images web-friendly, resize and change their format. While it takes some time, it is a more economical option.

    Custom creative elements take time to design and execute. For this site (fanaticallydigital.com) the creative is entirely custom. The graphic designer created the elements for all the main pages. This takes talent and time. A site that uses custom graphics can easily have a five-figure price tag. 

    Managing the cost of revisions

    Beyond the general directions (stock vs custom), is the number of revisions. Whichever route is taken, the website owner rarely accepts the first version. Each iteration is more time and adds more cost. Scopes of work have to be very clear on the number of revisions allowed or the approval process for the additional hours to make them.

    Ongoing cost for hosting and maintenance

    Once built, a website has to live somewhere and be updated regularly. Hosting can be as cheap as $15/month (or less) or $100+ (though rarely this high.) Most websites can have adequate hosting for $15-$30/month. 

    Maintenance is another issue. For something like a WordPress site, basic upkeep is pretty straightforward. But, most site owners are not familiar enough with the CMS to do this. As a result, maintenance is not done and then a core WP update breaks the site because the site was too far out of date. 

    Ultimately, time/hours are the most costly part of building a site. And the more specialized the knowledge needed, the higher the hourly rate.

    So, realistically, what can a business expect to pay for a website to be created?

    On the low end $20/month using templates and doing the work yourself.

    Cost of Captive CMS Systems

    Using platforms like Wix or Squarespace for a basic site, or Shopify for ecommerce, you can have a relatively low development cost IF you use the templates and do the work yourself. 

    Wix starts at $17/month, but you’d likely want to opt for the $29/month Option or higher

    SquareSpace starts at $16/month, but again, you’d want to opt for the higher $23/month option or higher.

    Both Wix and SquareSpace have ecommerce capabilities, but if you are serious about selling online, you’ll want to look at Shopify

    Shopify starts at $29/month and has good base packages. 

    What about WordPress?

    WordPress (WP) is one of the most popular content management systems (CMS),however  it is not an out-of-the-box solution. Where the above-mentioned website builders are straightforward if you use their templates, WordPress requires a basic understanding of how the CMS works and the ability to work with the Themes and Plugins. If you are not familiar with it, WordPress can be frustrating (you do need that for the others, but they are easier to grasp.)

    That said, companies like GoDaddy and BlueHost have built website wizards to help you create a WordPress site. What is challenging is that, even with the wizards, things can go sideways. You can only deal with that if you learn the ins and outs of the CMS. 

    So, why is WordPress so popular?

     It was an early entry into the CMS ecosystem before sites like Wix and SquareSpace became popular. As an open source CMS, developers could implement sites and site owners could edit the sites without having to pay recurring license fees. It became an early goto for a CMS because little else could compare.

    WordPress is also more flexible than the captive CMS systems like Wix and SquareSpace. The UX can be customized and functionality can be created that is unique. Developers soon specialized in WP development, making it their goto for client solutions.  It also has a vast library of plugins that extend functionality for little or no additional cost. 

    Other CMSs can be customized, but there are simply fewer resources available to do so and the knowledge is applicable only to the respective CMS. Besides, once you start with customization that requires code development, you step away from the low-cost advantage of these CMSs.

    Also, WordPress is portable. Unlike the captive CMS systems, you can move a WP site from one host to another. This allows site owners to assess their hosting costs and make adjustments if needed.

    What should a site developed in WordPress Cost?

    If you hire a WordPress developer to create your site, the cost will range based on customization.

    Using a theme with no customization, but adding your graphics and images, you can expect $750 on the very low end to $3,000 on the higher end. 

    If you add custom page templates, the cost can increase by a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. Sorry, but it just depends on the complexity of the customization.

    Add custom graphics and WP sites can cost $10k or more. 

    The two pricing elements in site development (including WP sites) are time and specialized knowledge. 

    Most businesses can get a nice WordPress site developed for a few thousand dollars.

    There is much ambiguity in website development pricing. Some of this has to do with the number of technical variables and some has to do with who is developing the site. Domestic developers cost more, off-shore is less to varying degrees, As you reap the benefit of lower cost, you experience the trade-offs of off-shoring projects. 

    We may dive into the components of a website development project to provide a better understanding of why the cost and experience you have can vary so much.

    Finally, we’ll close with this: Whether a development project is successful or not depends as much on your ability to understand what the purpose of the site will be. Is it a sales-assist for your sales team, is it a lead gen, ecomm/sales,  or is in branding and awareness. Chances are it can be all, but your company may emphasize one or two more than the others. The site needs to be designed accordingly. 


    Is SEO critical, Conversion Optimization, Calculators for prospective customers, disseminating sales material? This an a host of other questions should be answered before the site development project gets going.

  • Why is it hard to trust Google Ads AI?

    Why is it hard to trust Google Ads AI?

    There is no doubt that Google is pushing advertisers and their agencies to implement Google Performance Max or PMax (combined with Gemini.) PMax is Google’s latest iteration to automate the advertising program for companies. Whether your program is search, display, or shopping, Google wants to move you to PMax, promising that it will outperform anything you do.

    If you are new to digital advertising, you’ll see that implementing a PMax campaign is not too difficult. But that is part of the issue. As the path of least resistance, it makes it easy not to consider what you don’t see and don’t know. For advertisers that have worked through the programs of manually managing ads and automated campaigns, as well as implementations between the two, fully trusting PMax is a challenge.

    Trust issue with Google Ads

    When you speak with a Google rep, they are confident that the automated system is the best. They quite sincerely believe and recommend advertisers use it. The confidence with which they tout PMax is borderline cult-like. If you dive into the details of the ads and run a PMax for an extended period, your trust in their confidence will wane.

    Some basic observations with Search Terms

    In a fully automated program, Google will present your ads to users in various channels that the AI considers important and likely precursors to a conversion. With all the data that the AI is fed, it makes sense that it should be able to determine what leads to a conversion. So, why do we lack confidence?

    Run a managed search campaign

    Even if you use an exact match or phrase match, Google will present your ads to people based on what it deems to be a close variant. While doing this, Google continually asks you to move all your terms to a broad match. In theory, this allows the system to match against what it deems intent, even if the search term used doesn’t appear to match with your target keywords.

    Take a look at the search terms that were entered and triggered your ads. Some very basic things stand out. As an example, look at geographic terms. 

    Run ads for your local market using geo-targeting. With that, you can also use geo modifiers, such as “xyz companies in Chicago.” You will notice some things:

    1. People who enter “xyz companies in Canada.”  will show up.
    2. If you add “Canada” as a broad negative match, suddenly, “XYZ companies in Toronto” or some other geography like France, New York, San Diego etc will show on the search query report.
    3. Long-tail bidding has not been possible for a long time, but Google is still showing that people are using long-tail searches.

    Google Ads Deliver to Inappropriate Searches

    These few (of many issues) used to be fully manageable through match-type implementation. Now that Google ignores match types, all we can do is add negatives. This has always been part of the process, but it is now the only tool we have.

    To the issue of trust in Google’s AI: A company can only work with other companies in a market, they set up the Geo-targeting correctly and also set up target keywords correctly, but Google is showing ads to people who explicitly are looking for providers in other markets. 

    When giving the AIs even a little latitude, Google spends advertising dollars on searches that cannot lead to a qualified prospect. It seems to be a simple concept that when we target a geo and use geo-targeted terms, the AI should be able to weed out bad queries. It just doesn’t.

    A cynical perspective is that Google is simply amping up the number of bidders for each user search, thereby driving up the average CPC. Similar to the implication of removing long-tail bidding. Lump every 4+ word query into an auction with three or fewer words, and you increase the number of bidders for each auction. 

    Whatever the drivers behind showing queries that are not appropriate, the effect is the same: higher CPC and lower qualified clicks.

    The Fragility of PMax

    Moving from keywords to complete AI-managed campaigns through PMax, there are a few things that show up.

    Consistency matters to AI

    The PMax platform depends on a period of learning. Set a budget, and the system starts slowly, learning how people respond and eventually spending the entire daily budget. This can take 1-2 weeks. If you have a change, your PMax campaign can reset itself. 

    Budget Matters

    The representatives at Google will direct PMax users with large budgets to a special team with more experience on the platform. One thing we did notice is that the performance at the higher spending level did not match the performance at the lower spending level. It deteriorated. 

    This can happen with manually managed programs as well. However, there is a notion being presented that PMax is some kind of magic that can make your program work on any budget. 

    Learning Matters

    As marketers, understanding our customers and how they respond to our marketing is important. We can cross-seed our channels by learning from another channel. PMax campaigns (and, to a lesser extent, the responsive ad campaigns) remove our ability to learn. It either performs or it doesn’t. We can’t tell why because we can see nuance.

    Premature Confidence in Artificial Intelligence

    Over the past couple of years, AI has been hyped as the holy grail of advertising optimization. In reality, it has a long way to go. From basic mistakes that it doesn’t know are happening, or the need for a relatively steady state in order to maintain optimization, or not truly outperforming manually managed paid search programs at scale, PMax has a role in search but not the only part to play.

    Opaque AI Tools

    As mentioned earlier, learning matters in marketing. It is not enough that the AI “learns,” but the people managing the programs also learn. This is important to other marketing campaigns. Understanding how changes in your overall marketing, products, and competitors might affect campaign performance is also important. With the black-box AI, not only can you not see what is working, but you can’t see what isn’t… and the AI doesn’t know either.

    Take the recent problems with Google Generative AI Gemini and it’s image generation. It produced historically inaccurate images when users asked for it to create images of the pope (and other historical cases), and the images were clearly not an accurate historical representation(CNN.) Given that only white men have been popes (for better or worse), it is a simple historical fact; there is no ambiguity. But Gemini didn’t know that, or wasn’t allowed to apply it. 

    If real people hadn’t reviewed the images, the AI would continue to produce inaccurate results and never make adjustments. 

    So, we know Google Ads’ AI delivers ads for a Chicago company (that only wants to do business with other Chicago companies) to people interested in Canadian companies. What else is it doing that we can’t see? How much waste is there when implementing a fully AI-driven campaign with no inputs or visibility other than your URL?

  • Technical SEO An Overview

    Technical SEO An Overview

    Technical SEO is the process of ensuring search engines can access and easily crawl your website. From very basic things like a proper server response to the many aspects of how content is delivered to the web browser, they are reviewed and adjusted as part of technical SEO optimization. When done properly, search engine bots can crawl the site, and the search engine can index it so that it appears in the SERPS.

    Website Speed

    Website speed can be tricky in that site owners may not fully understand the elements involved. From their perspective, when they go to their site, it seems to load fast, and they’re lulled into believing that they have good site speed. But this is not necessarily the case.

    Browser Cache & Load Speed

    Browser caching is fairly standard practice. This means that the content one sees after visiting the site for the first time is rendered from the browser’s memory or cache, a very fast experience. This was developed to improve the user experience and to decrease the load on servers and bandwidth. For a site with frequent repeat visitors and few content changes, this is great. But, new visitors to a page may have a very different experience, and perhaps not a good one.

    Because site owners frequent their own sites often, their experience comes from the cache more often than from the server. When Google assesses a website’s speed, it does so from the perspective of a first-time visitor with no browser cache. Google’s assessment and a site owner’s speed experience can be very different.

    Content and Speed

    When site owners think of content, they typically think of what they see. But, when Google assesses site speed, there is a great deal more involved. Using PageSpeed Insights, SEOs can see the various elements of a page that are causing issues with load times. Here are three common speed bumps for websites.

    • One of the most common issues with non-optimized sites usually involves images that are way too large and not web-optimized.
    • Unused CSS and JS code is also an inhibitor to page loading
    • Render-block scripts cause issues with visible content not being loaded because it has to wait for js or other scripts to load first.

    Improving site load speed is one of the more difficult things to do. Balancing image size with creativity/quality and knowing what parts of the scripts are vital to the initial load versus what can wait or be eliminated, it is time-consuming to optimize for speed.

    Page Architecture

    Behind the content people see is code. Website architecture, including the code structure, helps search engines parse and understand the content. One of the tricky things is that you can use different approaches to render content the way you want users to see it, but those methods may not be good for search engines to understand it. The content needs to be rendered well for users and structured well for search engines. Both are absolutely compatible, but often one is forgotten.

    General User Exprience

    Beyond load speed, Google also looks at what happens when content is rendered. Is it within the screen, does it shift once loaded, is the contrast between elements visible, how is the element spacing, and so on? These elements play into how users will see and navigate the site.

    Trickier still, how the site is rendered is different for desktop vs mobile. Generally speaking, if the site is mobile-friendly, it will be good for the desktop. But, the reverse is seldom true. Whether using a mobile-first approach or depending heavily on responsive design (which should be ever-present anyway), the site code has to adjust the rendering appropriately for the users’ devices.

    These more common elements of technical SEO need to be addressed for every website to some degree. How deep you have to go and how much effort is needed really depends on your starting point.

    While there are tools out there that can identify problems, their proposed solutions are not always easily achieved by the average site owner. The process needs to set priorities and provide the right resources, which are often not available. If you are wondering how to improve site speed for your website, give us a call.

  • How to Use Remarketing in PPC

    How to Use Remarketing in PPC

    The Role of Remarketing in PPC: Strategies for Targeting and Converting

    In the fast-paced world of online advertising, capturing and retaining the attention of potential customers is crucial for success. Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising is an effective way to reach targeted audiences, but what happens when those initial clicks don’t immediately lead to conversions? This is where remarketing comes into play. In this article, we’ll explore the pivotal role of remarketing in PPC campaigns and provide strategies for effectively targeting and converting prospects.

    Understanding Remarketing:

    Remarketing, also known as retargeting, is a digital marketing strategy that involves targeting users who have previously interacted with your website or mobile app but haven’t completed a desired action, such as making a purchase or filling out a contact form. By tracking user behavior and displaying targeted ads to these individuals as they browse other websites or social media platforms, remarketing aims to re-engage them and encourage them to take the desired action.

    The Importance of Remarketing in PPC:

    Remarketing plays a crucial role in PPC campaigns for several reasons:

    • Re-Engagement: Remarketing allows advertisers to re-engage with users who have already shown interest in their products or services. By keeping your brand top-of-mind, remarketing helps nurture leads and encourages them to return to your website to complete a conversion.
    • Increased Conversions: Studies have shown that remarketing can significantly increase conversion rates by targeting users who are already familiar with your brand and are more likely to convert. By delivering personalized ads based on users’ previous interactions, remarketing helps create a more tailored and compelling user experience.
    • Enhanced ROI: Remarketing campaigns often yield higher returns on investment (ROI) compared to traditional display advertising. Since remarketing targets users who are further along the sales funnel, the likelihood of conversion is higher, resulting in a more efficient use of advertising budget.

    Strategies for Remarketing Success:

    When launching a remarketing strategy, it is important to not think of it as a one size fits all campaign. Not all people who have been to your site are the same. In fact they aren’t even all at the same place on the conversion path. The plus side of a remarketing campaign is that advertisers already have information on the users, so use it! Cater your ads to the segment.  

    Remarketing segmentations can get pretty niche depending on your previous campaigns and website, but today we are going to focus on two of the most common remarketing segmentations: landing pages and abandoned carts.

    Landing Page Remarketing

    Users who bounced off your landing page without taking action may still be in the early stages of the buying journey and may need more nurturing before they’re ready to convert. In this case, remarketing ads can focus on providing valuable content or showcasing other products or services that may be of interest to them.

    Abandoned Cart Remarketing

    For users who abandoned their carts, they have already expressed a strong intent to purchase, making them prime targets for remarketing efforts.

    By creating remarketing campaigns specifically targeted at cart abandoners, you can remind them of the items they left behind and provide additional incentives to encourage them to complete their purchase. This could include offering a discount or promotion, highlighting free shipping or returns, or emphasizing limited-time offers to create a sense of urgency.

    Wrapping Up

    By creating distinct remarketing segments, advertisers are able to tailor messaging, assets, and landing pages to their target audience to increase click through rate and ROI. By delivering relevant and personalized content that resonates with each segment, advertisers can optimize campaign performance and achieve better results from their remarketing efforts.

  • The Impact of AI on SEO (So Far)

    The Impact of AI on SEO (So Far)

    Generative AI & SEO

    In the rapidly evolving digital landscape, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a game-changer, particularly in the realm of Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

    As we reflect on the pivotal year of 2023, it is evident how large-language-models (LLMs) and generative AI tools have revolutionized SEO practices, akin to the transformative impact of internet and smartphones.

    In this post, we’ll delve into the impacts and implications of AI on SEO, highlighting the efficiency and value brought by AI tools in simplifying labor-intensive SEO tasks, while also examining the yet-to-be-realized potential of AI-generated search results in influencing website traffic.

    AI & SEO Tools

    When it comes to search engine optimization, the biggest impact AI had was in the available toolset. Copywriting programs, bulk on-page optimization, and rank tracking tools have streamlined the more tedious aspects of SEO.

    Content Generation

    After the release of ChatGPT’s API, content generation software quickly became ubiquitous throughout the SEO and content marketing space.

    Tools like Jasper and Copy.ai  can assist SEOs by suggesting blog topics, assist in writing the blogs posts themselves, as well as generate website copy like product descriptions.

    As you can imagine, these tools helped to cut down the time and effort for tasks that many SEOs may find tedious like researching new potential blog topics and content spinning.

    Data Analysis and Trend Identification

    AI tools have also revolutionized data analysis and trend identification in SEO. Tools such as Pro Rank Tracker and MarketMuse can automatically perform keyword research, identify content gaps on a website, and suggest topics for future posts.

    These AI-assisted programs allow for a new level of precision to keyword research and trend identification, enabling quicker response to search trends.

    SEOs also find value in the predictive insights that these tools provide, allowing content to be appropriately tailored for future search algorithm changes.

    When used properly, these advancements in natural language processing (NLP) and AI free up SEO from the more tedious elements of their job to focus on the strategic side for their clients.

    Impact on Search Engines

    Natural Language Processing & Search Engine Algorithms

    In the early days, search engines relied heavily on keywords to understand a given text and match search queries to the appropriate results.

    However, with the advancements in natural language processing (NLP) and AI, search engines can now analyze content more comprehensively and better understand context and intent, allowing for more accurate results.

    This has rendered old SEO tactics such as keywords stuffing obsolete. Over the years, content marketers have had to place a greater emphasis on the quality and relevance of their content.

    One example of these NLP algorithms in action is Google’s BERT, which uses AI to understand the meaning behind a search query and deliver more relevant results.

    With systems like BERT, search engines are able to understand more complex and conversional queries and factors in context from previous searches.

    This has led to the rise of voice search and the need for SEOs to optimize their content for natural language queries.

    In essence, AI has forced SEO professionals to shift their focus from optimizing for robots to creating valuable and user-friendly content.

    Generative Search Results

    While advancements in NLP has had a massive impact on how search engines’ process language over the past decade, much of these improvements have occurred behind the scenes. However, technologies unveiled in the past year and a half have the potential to advance the capability of search algorithms to a new stage in their evolution.

    We’ve seen these NLP and AI advancements go from improving search engine’s ability to understand and interpret text to actually generating text themselves. No longer simply selecting the best results for a particular query but understanding intent well enough to formulate a response itself.

    Programs such as Google’s Search Generative Experience and Bing’s Copilot use generative AI to create answers to search queries on the spot by cross referencing relevant organic results with their own internal knowledge graph.

    This technology has vast implications for SEO, as websites will need to compete not only for top placement in search results but also for generating the most relevant and accurate information.

    As of now, these AI-generated search results have yet to achieve widespread prevalence that significantly impacts website traffic. However, as this technology continues to advance,  it may dramatically alter the current SEO landscape.

    Wrapping Up

    In conclusion, AI has already had a significant impact on the world of SEO, primarily through automation and optimization of tasks. But as we’ve seen with NLP advancements and generative search results, the potential for AI to shape the future of SEO is immense.

    While it’s unclear exactly how these technologies will continue to evolve, it’s safe to say that AI will be a driving force in the world of SEO for years to come. As search algorithms continue to improve and become more sophisticated, so too must our strategies as SEO professionals.