In the first two parts we talked about keywords and your advertising copy for a successful Pay-Per-Click (PPC) campaign. The final piece is all about your landing pages.
Here at Palo Alto Software, we use custom landing pages often – I am actually in the middle of a big project to create about 20-30 landing pages. For example: when a potential customer searches for “business plan”, they will see different text and a different landing page than the customer who typed in “Business Plan Pro Premier”. Each of these customers are at a very different buying stage and deserve copy and pages that speak directly to them – and their willingness to purchase.
As with the keywords to advertising text connection, the advertising text and landing pages must also be consistent. If the user saw an ad for Green Widgets and the landing page was information about widgets in general, the user wouldn’t have a great experience. If the user saw an ad for Green Widgets and the landing page showed a Green Widget and talked about Green Widgets, the customer had a great experience and got the information they were seeking.
If your keywords, ad copy and landing pages do not mimic each other, undesirable high bounce rates are sure to come your way!
Bonus Tip: Use Website Optimizer. Users respond to changes on your website. Some changes could be good, others could negatively affect your conversion rate. By utilizing Website Optimizer, you can test many variations of your website (such as changing the wording of the headline, placement of images, etc.) or you can test several completely different designs. You will be amazed at what changes affect customer behavior.
Although many companies have an online presence and are involved in Pay-Per-Click advertising, few get it right. By getting back to the basics (keywords, advertising text, and landing pages) you are sure to be competing well in your space.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this series and have taken something away from it.
Nicole Poole
Online Marketing Manager
Palo Alto Software
