How to Write Ads That Convert

[LaDonna]

Frustration! I have been at e-commerce for about 5 months now, running a Google adwords campaign most of this time. My market is a competitive one, however, my copy is targeted, lands on the specific page, includes free shipping on all orders and still I can not get to even a 1% conversion.
I had my site reviewed on another forum, good feedback, made the few changes recommended, the site is professionaly done, photos are good, I even changed the size and place of the "buy button".
Now that I am done crying, is it time to look for professional help with SEO? How do I know that all the money spent will result in more sales? Finally, can anyone recommend a firm for a small business?
I am not looking for a miracle, just a few daily sales!
Thanks!
LD

[purpleC]

Google has become a complicated beast and so many factors impact on your quality score, average CPC and therefore conversion. Now Google has announced that the landing page has an impact on your quality score too! Obviously different match types will give you different conversions.

I do not know what you do and how you are positioned against your competitors eg. your USP's, but you need to look at your SEM campaigns as part of your overall marketing mix. To see if your overall proposition is competing aswell as it can.

Be careful when selecting an agency, especially when your budgets will be small. You may only attract those small agencies or one man bands that if they do not know totally what they are doing, may result in an increase in spend and not the corresponding increase in ROI. As they say, you get what you pay for! Good Luck

[seth_wilde]

How granular is your ROI tracking for PPC? (to the keyword, query string, etc)..

[wheel]

It's not clear to me if you're talking about conversion into sales from visitors, or conversion from search users to your landing page (CTR). If it's the second, writing good ad copy is the biggest fix. If it's the first problem (i.e. you're already getting visitors) then your problem is likely on your landing page.

Two second rundown of what I do:
for three line ads:
first line; parrot back their search term as much as I can.
second line; qualify the user. Tell them exactly what to expect when they click on the ad.
third line: call to action. "Click here right now dognabbit!"

For landing pages, make sure whatever you're conversion thing is (a form, a shopping system, whatever) is right front and center on the landing page. If they searched for 'lady's cotton dresses', take them to a page where they can directly add lady's cotton dresses right into their shopping cart.

[roxyyo]

Maybe your product is such that people take longer in the purchase decision process. Some things are easy and quick "I need pens, you sell pens, I want them now, I can afford this purchase and I'm buying NOW!" Another product may (especially in a niche area) require more looking around (think WEDDING DRESS for example...) and those visitors may indeed be converting, only after a few repeat visits to your site.

[LaDonna]

Thanks for the advise. I repeat the keyword phrase on the first line. Second line includes a few name brands that I carry and currently lists a percentage off. (ie 40% off) Third line states Free Shipping.
Also, when I mentioned 1% conversion, I mean after they click to my site my conversion rate is .05%. Less than 1% buy.
I would appreciate more advise!
Thanks
LD

[watchthis]

thanks for sharing the advice.

[purpleC]

The questions I would ask myself are:
1) Are you getting targeted clicks to your site? eg You repeat the keyword in the AdWord, but that may not be enough. The whole listing needs to be specific to that keyword... so the user has as much information about what you offer before they click to your site. And make sure each product has its own page that you can link to and the user is not distracted by "noise" (eg. other unrelated products). This may eliminate any wastage which you may currently be seeing. You may wish to experience with Google's various match types; Exact match will be the most targeted but may not give you enough clicks. Broad match will give you better exposure but think about adding negative keywords to ensure that you are not being displayed for products that you do not stock.
2) Is your market price sensitive? If yes, how do you compare to the competition? If they are not price sensitive do you know enough about your customers to understand what their needs are when they are purchasing products like yours eg. do you offer money back guarantees etc, to reduce the risk in the purchase.