The goal of your online marketing efforts is to convert site visitors into customers. Landing pages are an absolute must for achieving the best conversion rates and getting the most out of your marketing investments.

Your website is an all-encompassing resource that offers information on your company and the various products and services that you offer. While this information is important, your visitors are not directed to just one specific location which can lead to more browsing and fewer conversions.

Landing pages increase conversions by targeting specific audiences and encouraging them to complete an action, such as filling out a lead-capture form. Traffic from an e-blast with a promotional offer, or a pay-per-click campaign highlighting a specific product or service, should always be directed to a landing page rather than your homepage. The landing page should provide information directly related to the offer or product being promoted and be free of distractions, allowing you to convert more visitors into quality leads.

How a Landing Page Works

Let’s say you are running a pay-per-click campaign promoting FHA loans to first-time home buyers. Information on FHA loans is abundant so to encourage users to click your ad, you are offering free FHA mortgage consultations to first-time home buyers. Your landing page should highlight the benefits of FHA loans for first-time homebuyers and provide a lead-capture form where visitors can submit their information to receive their free consultation. If your ad directs users to your homepage, they can become discouraged and leave your site if they do not immediately see information on your offer. Sending visitors to your homepage almost always results in lost leads.

Landing Pages Offer Many Benefits

In addition to increased lead generation and conversion, landing pages offer several other benefits. If you are running multiple pay-per-click campaigns, having unique landing pages allows you to determine which of your ads is generating the most traffic, converting at the highest rate, and offering the highest return on your investment. Similarly, if you are running ads for the same product in various locations such as pay-per-click and social media ad campaigns, you can determine which source is generating the largest number of quality leads. Demographic information collected through your landing pages lets you see what types of visitors are converting at the highest rate, allowing you to adjust or refocus your campaign toward specific visitors. The insight that landing pages can offer into your marketing efforts is endless.

Landing pages are one of the most valuable tools you have in online marketing. Don’t throw away leads by not taking advantage of all that they offer. Contact us today at 619-758-9696 x2 or service@my220.com to schedule a marketing appointment to learn more about landing pages and how they can help you convert more visitors into leads!

The post The Benefits of Landing Pages appeared first on 220 Marketing Group.

Take Advantage of Negative Campaigns

One of the most overlooked features of PPC campaigns is the use of negative keywords. Negative keywords allow you to hand select words that will not trigger your ad. Negative keywords help you to attract clicks from the most serious buyers and save on your PPC dollars. For example if you are a new car salesman you probably don’t want someone clicking on your ad looking for a used car. In this case, it would be wise to add “used” to your negative list.

Location Specific

Not focusing your impressions by location is one of the easiest ways to drain your PPC budget. Why have your ad appear in California when you are only licensed to sell in the state of Maine. Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo all offer geo-location features to target your market based on IP addresses and/or geo-specific keywords.

Differentiate Your Ad with a Call to Action

Your ad should stand out and differentiate itself from the competition. The ad needs to have a compelling call to action and provide value. You have to provide searchers with a clearly labeled reason to visit your website. Your offer should be as compelling as possible, encouraging searchers to act. For example: Use our FREE quick and easy website doctor to help you determine whether or not your website has what it takes for your business to achieve success online.

Long Tail Keywords

Long tail keywords are phrases that are specific to your product consisting of three-to-four words. Long tail keywords help to target the most qualified customers. Visitors using very specific search phrases related to your product or service are typically further along in the buying process, ultimately leading to a higher conversion rate. Long tail keywords have the added benefit of fewer bids meaning a smaller cost per click. Target those who are ready to buy by including words like “buy,” “price,” and “where to buy.”

Do Not Hope for the Best

A successful PPC campaign requires adequate testing and analysis. Adjustments are almost always necessary throughout the life of your campaign. The metrics provided allow you to analyze and understand your campaign. You may need to setup a series of A/B tests to track what works well for you and what does not. Alter one variable at a time while running multiple ads simultaneously to gather the data you need.

Timing Is Key

Timing can be just as important as geo-targeting. Analyze your metrics to help determine when your ads are at the highest conversion rate. Save your budget by restricting your ad impressions to your most successful time frames. You might be getting a lot of clicks at 2 am, but are you converting these clicks?

A Homepage Is Not a Landing Page

Do not direct traffic to your website’s homepage! If a customer does not find what they are looking for in the first 10-15 seconds they are going to go elsewhere. Direct customers to a targeted landing page geared towards what they are looking for. The landing page should be simple and straight to the point, not cluttered with unnecessary content. Give them a reason to provide you with their contact information. Do not throw away all that time and money by sending targeted customers to an irrelevant page on your website.

Use Keyword Generators as a Guide, Not as the Ultimate Answer

There are several tools available online to help you generate keywords. Some of the most used tools are the Google AdWords Keyword Tools and Microsoft Advertising Intelligence. Keyword generators can be a helpful first step in determining your keywords, but do not rely solely on these tools. Go with your gut feeling. You know your target market more than anyone else.

Quality Score

Your Google Quality Score determines where your ads appear in the sponsored results for a given query. Higher Quality Scores across your AdWords account generally mean that your ads receive more impressions for lower costs.So it’s definitely in your interest to understand the system. You should always be monitoring your quality score.

220 Marketing specializes in Online Marketing and Management for industries such as Insurance Marketing, Real Estate Marketing, and Mortgage Marketing.

The post Get the Most Out of Your PPC Campaign appeared first on 220 Marketing Group.