Using AdWords for Lead Generation

Nowadays, if people have a problem or a question to ask, they turn to the internet for answers. Online search traffic is a great way to get in front of your target audience and to generate leads for your sales funnel. In this post, we’ll run you through how to use AdWords for lead generation and will share some of the tips and tricks that we’ve learnt as a leading PPC agency in Sydney along the way.

What is AdWords?

AdWords is an advertising platform owned and built by Google. The platform is designed to help businesses to display their advertisements to their target audiences on websites, apps and videos that are members of the Google Display Network. When people refer to AdWords they are usually referring to search advertising, and so we are going to focus on that aspect of AdWords within this post.

Search advertising with AdWords

Search advertising is used to describe any marketing activity that places a paid-for advert into a  search engine result. Advertising in search is widely considered to be one of the best ways to generate new leads because people searching the internet tend to reveal a lot about their intentions, making it easy for advertisements to be tailored to their search requests.

AdWords is the most popular type of search advertising because it is owned and run by Google who also happens to be the most widely used search engine. Despite Google dominating the market by a long shot, clever marketers can also make use of Bing Ads to target users on Bing, the second biggest search engine.

How AdWords advertising works

AdWords search advertising works by using an auction system in which businesses bid for the words they want to appear under, with the highest bidder claiming the top spot. The amount you end up paying per click and where your ad may ultimately end up depends on a number of different factors including your bid,  the popularity of the keywords you are bidding for and your Quality Score, which is a measure of the relevancy of your advert. Once your advert is live on the search engine, you will be charged on a PPC (Pay Per Click) basis, where you only pay when someone clicks on your advertisement.

Image Credit: Pexels, Free to Use Licence.

Using AdWords for lead generation

Here at HESK Digital, we are a leading PPC Agency in Sydney and so know a thing or two about using Adwords for lead generation. Here are a few of the things we’ve learnt.

1. Never underestimate the power of keyword research
   Keyword research is critical to creating an AdWords campaign that generates new leads. You need to put yourself into the shoes of your target audience – What language do they use? What are their problems and what are they likely to search for when trying to solve them? By conducting effective keyword research, you can ensure that your adverts are being displayed to the right people.
2. Create relevant ads
   To gain a good Quality Score and to attract potential leads to your advert, you need to keep relevancy at the forefront of your mind. Keep in mind your keywords, but don’t overuse them in your copy, be emotive and remember the needs of your audience and how you are proposing that you can help.
3. Keep in mind the cost
   No one’s marketing budget is unlimited, so it’s important to keep cost in mind by ensuring that only real potential leads are seeing and clicking on your ads. Two common cost-saving measures that we employ are geotagging, which means only showing adverts to people in a certain location, and dayparting, which means only showing adverts during business hours.
4. The work doesn’t end when your ad is live
   PPC campaigns such as AdWords require a lot of maintenance and monitoring to ensure that they remain effective and don’t start costing you the earth. Unless you have the time to dedicate to the optimization of your adverts yourself, then it’s often best to hire an experienced PPC agency who can handle the ongoing maintenance of your adverts for you.
5. Don’t forget about negative keywords
   When creating an AdWords lead generation campaign, it can be all too easy to get hung up on researching relevant keywords that you may forget to research negative keywords. Negative keywords can be used to tell your AdWords account exactly what kind of searches you don’t want to appear for. For example, if you are offering a paid-for solution then you may want to set the word ‘free’ as a negative keyword to stop you from gaining irrelevant traffic from people looking for free tools.

Writing your first AdWords advert

Writing your first AdWords advert can be daunting but you’ll be fine so long as you remember the basics. The most common mistake that companies make when writing an AdWords campaign is to remain too emotionally detached. A good AdWords ad connects with a potential lead on an emotional level enticing them to click it and to enter the sales funnel. Here are some key things to bear in mind:

• Avoid spammy words and the use of all capitals as these can make your advert look untrustworthy.
• Strong copy is essential as you only have a limited number of characters to grab the attention of your audience. Remember to proofread everything you write and to focus on how you can solve their problem.
• Focus on relevancy to keep your Quality Score up, and always link through to a relevant landing page that also contains your keyword.

Looking for help generating leads from Adwords?

Not everyone has the time to create and manage a successful AdWords campaign, so let us help. Here at HESK Digital, we are a specialist PPC agency in Sydney who can help you to create an AdWords campaign that will bring you in new leads. Our team of PPC experts are ready and waiting to help you develop an AdWords strategy that aligns with your SEO goals, bringing in new leads organically and through paid-for advertising. To find out more about the services we offer, get in touch with us today on 1300 088 544 or by emailing us at info@hesk.com.au.

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