Use Callouts To Optimize Ad Copy

There's seldom a reason not to be using all the ad extensions you can. Callouts are an easy extension for anyone to implement. But here's a way to make callout extensions more useful in an your campaigns.

The short explanation is to take a look at the peformance of each callout, find the winner and test it in your main ad copy. Done!

If you need a longer explanation read on. Let's have a look below at some callouts used in a campaign for an apartment complex. There's actually not enough data here yet, but you'll get the idea.

From the numbers here, it looks like people converted best when the ad contained "Pool & Water Views".

Of course we all know that correlation is not causation, but armed with this data its' a good idea to test that messaging in the main section (desc line 1 or 2) of the ad copy to see if we can't boost our conversions.

So now instead of guessing at new ad copy to test, we can glean some insights from our callout extensions and make some informed tests! Hopefully this helps you optimize your accounts. Let me know how it goes!

Search Terms Now Appearing In Keyword Tab

Man I hope Google keeps this feature around. There is now a sub tab under the keyword tab that includes both search terms and Negative keywords. This majorly streamlines the process of going through a search terms report and adding keywords and negative keywords.

Some of us may remember there used to be an option to do this from the Search Query report section. But at some point this convenient feature was taken from us.

But now it’s back and way more conveniently placed. Take a look at the image below. You can now select a keyword and either add it or exclude it

 

Once you select a keyword to add you are given some options. You can choose whether to add the keyword to the ad group, campaign or even to a negative keyword list you've already created in the shared library.  

You even have the option to change the keyword text or match type. In the screenshot below, I may just decide to edit that to just say cheap to avoid showing up for similar keywords in the future. 

 

This feature has not been rolled out to all advertisers yet, but I really hope to see this awesome capability in all accounts soon. 

3 Ways Bing Beats Adwords

Just to be perfectly clear, I'm an Adwords fanatic through and through. If I have to choose between the two I will choose Adwords over Bing in almost any given situation. Now that that's out of the way, here are 3 instances where Bing takes the upper hand.

1. Location Targeting at the Ad Group Level

I still can't figure out why Google doesn't do this. In Adwords you must select your location targeting at the campaign level. Bing allows you to make changes to your location at the ad group level.

Why This Is Awesome

When running a national campaign you might select the entire US and make sure all your keywords contain Geo Modifiers (i.e. dentist in Alexandria VA). Well what if you want to capture more search volume by leaving out the "VA"? Then you risk showing your ads to people who are actually interested Alexandria, Tenessee or Alexandria, Kentucky or Alexandria, Nebraska... you get the idea.

With Bing you could just create a separate ad group that targets only Virginia and house your non "VA", "Virginia" keywords there. Boom, problem pretty much solved.

2. Location Extensions

Let's face it, having to link up your Google My Business page to Adwords just to add location extensions is a huge pain. With Bing, you don't have to do that.

Why This Is Awesome

While I can totally see the benefits (for Google and Advertisers) to linking up your Google My Business account to Adwords, it's just not practical for some clients. One of our clients is a manages the marketing for apartment complexes all around the country and each property has it's own Adwords account. You can see the logistical nightmare this presents.

3. Ad Extensions

While Adwords has remained miles ahead of Bing in this department, Bing is quickly catching up. A few upcomming releases are going to be game changers.

Image Extensions

This concept was undoubtedly stolen from Adwords (See image below from Inside Adwords) which released this feature as a Beta awhile back but ultimately killed the idea. Not sure if it crowded up the SERP too much or what, but Bing is stepping up to deliver this awesome feature that I personally cannot wait to test.

Action Link  Extensions

Basically Bing will allow advertisers to have highlighted call-to-action text in their ads. Not sure how I feel about this one yet, but it will really help your ads stand out.

Read more about Bing's upcoming ad extension releases in a post by Search Engine Watch.