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Wondering what you can do with Google's Enhanced CPC Bidding setting? I was too until after I watched Google's webinar introducing the feature. Here are my notes from it:

What the heck is Enhanced CPC Bidding and why was this developed?

• Enhanced CPC Bidding takes the likelihood that a keyword will convert and either raises or lowers the bid.

• Some advertisers want CPC bidding control, normal conversion optimizer is incompatible with 3rd party software, and it is easier for people managing bids daily.

How exactly does it work?

• Enhanced CPC predicts a conversion rate for your ads every time they are eligible to appear. This is based on past conversions and the data from those users who converted, such as the search query, broad vs exact match, user location, operating system, browser and language. These are just "some of the factors".

What are the benefits?

• Increase profits, retain control over bids, and easy and safe to try out(they claim that results will be neutral or better).

Why use this over Conversion Optimizer?

• Enhanced CPC is compatible with advanced campaign settings and 3rd party management systems.
• It can complement what you are doing manually with your campaigns, i.e. focusing on advertising goals, and unique info about the company, then Google uses data we can't see.

This is another good feature that Google has rolled out with. They seem to know how to use all the data that they are collecting effectively(at least in Adwords) and it can pay off in your PPC Campaign. If you have any questions you can email me at luke@getfoundfirst.com and I will try my best to answer them!

-Luke

Last night my Ohio State Buckeyes started their season of with a 45-7 romp of Marshall. It was no surprise but I still had to wear my Ohio State shirt to work today to celebrate. As I expect many more wins from my Buckeyes I'll need to get some better gear to represent them! So while I'm shopping and as Stu promised in his last post, I'll sort through the ads and landing pages and show you the good and the bad... From a PPC managers perspective!

I decided to go with a jersey, so I Googled "Ohio State Jerseys". If you want to follow along, do the same:

The Good:

• Ad Text- Ohio State Buckeyes Shop   Shop Ohio State Apparel & Gifts - Jerseys, T-Shirts, Caps, Souvenirs.   CollegeFootballStore.com/Ohio_State
  • Good:
    • Ohio State mentioned and bolded 3 times which makes the ad stand out.
    • Jerseys also mentioned and bolded.
    • Google Checkout Option- Makes the ad stand out more, gives an option to buy quick.
  • Bad:
    • No Call to Action.
    • Not focused just on jerseys.
• Landing Page- http://www.collegefootballstore.com/COLLEGE_Ohio_State_Buckeyes
  • Good:
    • Clean looking, well organized.
    • I can easily find the jerseys I want to shop for.
    • Good selling points/confidence builders on top.
  • Bad:
    • I wasn't taken directly to jerseys, which is what I wanted.

The Bad:

• Ad Text- College Store Gift Shop   Every major Schools Gift Store We sell for less free Shipping too!   www.SportsNutsOnline.com
  • Good:
    • I had to think for a second to find something good here, but their ad stands out because they have 0 keywords in there. However, I am probably the only one that would click on that ad because I think about things like that as a PPC manager! So this might actually be a bad.
  • Bad:
    • Ohio or State or Jerseys not mentioned once!
    • I don't really know what they are selling.
    • No Call to Action.
• Landing Page- http://www.sportsnutsonline.com/
  • Good:
    • Again, hard to find... At least you feel some confidence with the "secure" logo on the right.
  • Bad:
    • Homepage as a landing page, usually a no no. Definitely a no no this time.
    • Where is your NCAA stuff?
    • Where are your jerseys?
    • Where is an Ohio State Jersey???
    • Navigation is hard to look at.
    • The logo looks trashy.
    • In all the whole website looks thrown together and I would not trust these guys with my CC info.

In order to sell online you have to have it all! Like a good pass from Terrell Pryor(the Buckeyes quarterback), you have to catch your customers and keep em until you score, or in this case sell! By having all the pieces together starting with your ad and finishing on your webpage you can make Online Marketing work for you.

-Luke