Give People What They Want or Else...

Okay, so today I'm going to talk more on relevance and the practical consequences of failing to adhere to it's strict guidelines.

I thought I'd try an experiment to see if people looking for one thing would actually buy something related and get FREE what they after in the first place as a 'bonus'.

The result?

A resounding failure.

Why? Well, I believe it's pretty simple - but I can only theorize and give it my best educated guess.

The original thing they were after is relatively cheap anyway but I was offering it to them free... but there was a catch: They had to spend more money to by this other thing in order to get what they were after free.

Now in this particular industry they don't necessarily need to purchase the extra 'thing' because they may not necessarily need it. So the offer may not have been very compelling at all.

Conclusion: I don't have a solid conclusion yet but I think I'll try and come at them from another angle and then see if they bite.

If they don't then I think it's safe - VERY safe - to say that semi-targeted offers will NOT convert. And if in the long run they may make a few 'token' conversions then sure, why not? But on the whole it's just not a good idea.

So this points - early at this point as it may be - to the necessity of targeting - no matter the keyword type - your offer...

Whether it's an offer for free and valuable content (e-courses, free membership website, free video tutorials, or cheaper-better-faster-stronger offers. No matter the situation give people what they want - BETTER than anyone else and you'll SUCCEED.

So, with that in mind I'm going to run a few more experiments and tweak each offer and then report back to you with the results.

In an upcoming installment I want to go over running experiments for your own campaigns so that you can learn and continually increase your 'hands-on', real-world knowledge and skill. This is the most valuable knowledge by far and away.

Book knowledge is good but street-knowledge, learn-as-you-go (I call it the LAYG Process) knowledge is superior.

But in the next installment I want to talk more on conversions and my experiences and experiments.

Until then this is your captain speaking,
The PPC Assassin.

As Promised... (oh yeah, I need some bandaids too)

I'm in alot of pain at the moment.

I just made one of the biggest mistakes in my PPC career and I'm about to share it with you so YOU do NOT make the same blunder yourself!

You see, I already knew about this mistake but I got a little - what shall we say? - careless. I didn't even think twice about it - I just flew in like a Kamakazi pilot, first class! Arghhh!!

...You can guess what happened next.

I'll tell you about it in a sec but I want to first deliver the goods as I promised in a recent blog entry.

In that entry I unvieled a truly dazzling, spectacular [- insert whatever happy, excitable word you want here -] event which marked a true milestone in my PPC career: The advent of the 1 cent click!

Well, I'm about to reveal some important info on just what I think helped get them.

One word: relevancy.

As you may or may not know Google places high priority on this word not just in lip-service but in PRACTICE. And... ge this: they reward anyone else who does the same. In our case, with cheaper clicks. Instead of a Google Slap we get a Google Pat on the Back.

You've heard their moto: "Do no evil" right? Well, I think it'd be safe to say that the relevency factor would fall into this like a quater into a vending machine.

So how does relevancy have to do with getting 1 cent clicks - or at the very least cheaper clicks? I say everything.

The relevancy factor is simple really and it goes something like this:

The Google user goes to Googe's home page and types in a search query and expects to get yep, you guessed it, results that are relevant to what they were originally looking for. Now this is where Google's primary concern is - in my humble opinion.

If they can't serve up relevant search results to the common user it would have an adverse effect on their reputation as a search engine. This will, in turn, cause people to look elsewhere and gravitate towards the competition. Evil.

In fact this is why they gained the momentum, dominance and reputation they have so far because they were different from the competition in that their SERP's (Search Engine Results Pages) were serving up far more relevant websites than the other search engines.

And this is where YOU as the Adwords advertiser comes in! YOU must take your MKL (Master Keywords List) and get into the mindset behind what that person was looking for. What was the original intent behind their search query? You have to figure this out and then respond accordingly by creating websites that best meet their search needs.

You have to employ some good ol' fashioined mindreading to try and intuit or determine what it is they were looking for.

Of course keyword phrases like "buy cheap car stereos" aren't't exactly hard to figure out what it is they're after is it? Nor is "how to draw simpsons cartoons". The more difficult keywords to decipher are the broad keywords. You know, the ones like "weight loss" or "arthritis". There could be - no, there ARE - many different possibilities and scenarios behind these keyword terms.

In an upcoming book I'm going to reveal exactly how to exploit this concept and a whole lot more to the maximum.

Okay, now it's time to come clean and reveal the blunder I made with my latest Adwords campaign.

Here's what I did...

I decided I was going to increase my daily budget. *Sigh*.

Let me tell you something. If you want to control your monthly costs with Adwords or any other PPC search engine then here's how you do it and here's what I didn't do - much to my horror!!

I increased it by 1000%. Bad move. VERY bad move.

The result?

A hideously big amount of cash thrown down the Google drain! Ah, but that's not all my furry friends...

Can you see the share brilliance with this maneuver?

You see, you're suppose to test SMALL and THEN, once you've found a proven winner, roll it out LARGE! But oh no, yours truly - the PPC Assassin - shot himself in the foot went to bed and didn't feel a thing until he woke the next morning and is now - literally paying for it!

Okay so I hope you've got that loud and clear.

In the next episode of 'How To Be A Total PPC Brainiac and Other Hair-Raising Revelations' stay tuned where I will unveil the mysterious PPC Undertow.

The PPC Assassin.

Breaking news:

I know I promised that I would reveal some more important info related to helping you get 1 cent clicks for yourself but I just couldn't wait to share some *Great* (excuse the pun) news.

More 1 cent clicks!

Here a screenshot I took of my account just minutes ago:

Talk soon,

The PPC Assassin - a.k.a. Paul.

I Struck Oil - PPC Oil that is!

Well, it's been nearly 2 month whole months since I last posted to this blog but let me assure you: the wait will have been worth it! Read on...

You've heard the fables, you've read the stories, now prepare for a cold hard dose of in-your-face, see-I-told-you-so REALITY!

Presenting...

For it's debut role in a short digital blog entry....

*Pause for effect*...

*Insert dramatic epic movie music*....

*Slowly cresendo a troop of timpany drums*.....

Curtains:

The 1 Cent Click!!!!

Click images for proof:

If you wil recall in an earlier post I spoke of the elusive 1 cent click. Well, as it turns out it wasn't as elusive as I once thought it to be.

Forget the hype folks. The 1 cent click is alive and kicking. And trust me when I say, it isn't that elusive. Keep testing, keep brainstorming for new ideas for your ads, and you'll get there.

But in the next post I will talk a bit about something that I've intentionally left out here. It will help 'thicken the plot' or should I say, clear up the fog and help move you toward gettting 1 cent clicks for your self.

Until then it's adios my PPC banditos!

The PPC Assasin.