Archive for February, 2012

Google Adwords and You

“I tried Adwords and paid a fortune for a few words. It did nothing to increase my business at all.” – Sound familiar?

Google AdWords is one step in a process. One link in a chain. And no matter how strong that link might be, any chain is broken by its weakest link.

Common areas of waste:

  1. Bidding on words like car, bicycle or computer. Generic terms that have lots of search traffic, but little relevance – these will burn a budget in no time and the clicks you pay for aren’t likely to turn in to sales.
  2. Bidding on a few keywords that generate lots of clicks. This is costly – better to have lots of low-cost keywords that generate a few clicks, or do both if your budget permits.
  3. Ads and landing pages don’t include the keywords that are being bid on. Google will charge you less if you address this.
  4. Poor ad copy; customers are only interested in their problem. Use copy that demonstrates that you can solve it.
  5. Visitors land on the home page for your site – you’re making the visitor search AGAIN for what they need. The keywords you bid on already told you what they are looking for, take them to the relevant page on your site.
  6. Not measuring results. If success or failure isn’t measured, money is wasted on the same mistakes rather than invested in the keywords and ads that make you the most money. In simple terms, if the 50% waste was spent on the 50% that worked, you’d double your profits.

Creating a Google AdWords campaign is just one piece of your marketing mix. You need a good marketing story, some good, relevant content on your landing page, clear calls to action and a very good understanding of your (potential) customer.

Web Content Writing Basics

0

Though it may be easy to forget sometimes, a website is simply a technology to deliver human content with.

SEO is important, but cannot be the only goal of web content writing. The best modern web copywriters do two jobs at once: they use their talents to engage an audience and get them to take action, while feeding keywords to search engines at the same time.

The most effective writers usually have a broad range of general knowledge combined with a proven track record that they should be able to share with you. The needs of your organization or company should dictate what you should look for in an online copywriter or editor. If it is necessary to convey a significant amount of very detailed technical information, you may need an expert in your field. But if you need advertising copy or more general material, someone creative can generate attention for your marketing and communication efforts. The ideal combination is often found somewhere in between the two.

Not only should modern copywriters be able to write for both humans and search engines, but they also need to understand the way online readers think. Long attention spans are a thing of the past, and anything which isn’t conveyed in a few paragraphs is unlikely to be read. Effective online copywriting requires a disciplined use of language and an ability to prioritize information. Simple, clear copy is a valuable asset to any website.

One thing to keep in mind is the market is filled with amateur writers whose first language often isn’t English. They may produce a lot of keyword-stuffed copy for low rates, but that kind of writing is painfully obvious to spot, even for the search engines. Quality copy is a major part of the first impression your company or organization delivers. We recommend safeguarding your reputation by investing in professional writing services.

Jim Haynes is an experienced journalist, copywriter and editor, who brings a range of knowledge to his work and consistently delivers accurate, purposeful copy which is easy to read.Visit: SEO Copywriter, Web Content Editor, Journalist

Go to Top