It seems like every week Google announces a new change or update, and many of the recent ones have been about Adwords. Many people think of Adwords as a one and done form of advertising, but it really is important to keep up with the latest updates to know if and how they affect your campaign.
Some of the more significant changes that were rolled out in 2016 included:
Removed Right Rail Ads
The ads that used to be shown along the right column next to the search results have been removed, and you’ll now only see ads appear directly above and below the organic results. This change decreased the number of ads on page one from eleven to seven.
How does this affect your campaign? To get on the first page, the minimum bids have steadily increased. This change was made due to stronger competition between advertisers for that coveted spot on page one. Since the average cost per click in the medical industry is $3.17 for search ads, which is higher than the average cost per click overall, as a medical practice or hospital you’ll want to get the most bang for your buck.
How do we help? To help our clients combat this increase in competition, we monitor our cost per click bids daily to see where we can afford to spend more to get as high on page one as possible.
Expanded Text Ads
Advertisers now have more space to work within Adwords text ads. The headline space increased by 35 characters and the description section increased by 5 characters.
What did Google see as a result? A significant increase in click-through-rate. This means you have a better chance of getting clicks each time your ad is shown. Expanded text ads are shown on both mobile and desktop, so updating all ads to the new format is very important. The typical click-through rate for the medical industry is fairly low at 1.8%, which isn’t a point of concern since you only pay when someone actually clicks on your ad. However, there is an opportunity to beat out competitors in ads and organic results by updating your ads and getting more clicks.
How do we help? In addition to updating all of our clients to the new format, we’ve also utilized historical data to write the most compelling and relevant ad copy to take advantage of expanded text ads. In doing so, we are able to research the trends to find out what makes a specific formatting of ad copy successful or unsuccessful in order to develop a stronger campaign.
Ads in Google Maps
Starting last April, ads were shown in the Local Finder. This is especially important for local businesses, such as medical groups, to take advantage of.
How do you get your ads to show up in the Local Finder on Google Maps? Only ads with a location extension added will appear in Maps results.
Ads may even start appearing in the Local Pack (the 2-3 maps results on the main search results page), so it’s more important than ever to utilize location extensions, and all relevant extensions for that matter.
Maintaining A Successful Adwords Campaign
To ensure you’re leveraging your marketing dollars and Adwords campaign to their fullest potential, be sure to stay on top of the latest changes from Google and adjust your campaign as needed. Because Ad campaigns ___
Our online marketing staff can discuss strategies and opportunities for your ad campaigns. Contact Practis today to learn more and start your campaign.