Need PPC Help?

In case you missed them, PPC Help Part One and PPC Help Part Two are here.

Today we are concentrating on the headline of your PPC ad. This is your one chance to grab the attention of your prospect. Since you only get one chance to make a good first impression, you’ll be glad you spent so much time fine-tuning your PPC headline.

The first line is your headline. This is the most important line of your Ad. This line has to stand out from all of the other ads on the page.

How do you do stand out from the crowd?

There are 3 keys I like to follow:

1) Relevance. If your Ad is relevant, then your ad will stand out from the rest. It will most likely be highlighted by Google for you as well, since it will probably have at least a word or two that are also found in the user’s search.

2) Keywords used in headline. I like to use the main keyword from my ad group in the headline if at all possible.

3) Get Emotional. You can easily connect with your prospective customer using emotional triggers (pain or pleasure).

So now that you understand that we need to stand out from the crowd using the 3 keys described above, let’s take action!

You’re going to do some competitive market research. I would first start out by browsing the current top headlines in Google when I search for my keyword. Chances are you will see a pattern in the ads that appear day after day for your keyword. Take note of those ads you see every day. They are the winners! You many notice the successful ads will have your exact keywords in their headlines.

Next, you’re going to start writing possible headlines. When you first start out with a new ad, I suggest you use the other ads as a starting point. This is a good start and you know you’re starting with something solid.

What headlines are your competitors using? Are they catchy? Do they ask a question? Do they grab YOUR attention? Use this information to craft a list of ten possible headlines for each ad group. Take this list to someone (preferably an “offline” family member or friend) and ask them to choose the 3 headlines that stand out to them. You may be surprised with the results!

Side note:  Perhaps you’re thinking that you should be incredibly creative with your headlines in order to “stand out”. I would strongly suggest that you don’t first try gimmicky headlines. I encourage you to first write solid headlines built from a foundation of sound advertising principles, then test these ads to further improve their CTR.

When you start with a solid foundation, and you test the results yourself, you can then start to branch out. You might hit a homerun with one of these “off the wall” PPC ads, however, but try them after you have already tried the basic ads.

For basic ad headlines, it’s important to follow these steps:

1. Research Successful Ads

2. Connect with Emotion

3. Use Keywords in the Headline

Have fun writing some killer PPC Ad Headlines! When I say “have fun”, I really mean it. It can be so fun testing out different headlines to see what actually gets people’s attention. Keep testing and trying till you find something that works for your market & product. Enjoy the process and be sure to ask questions along the way. I’m happy to help you.

Thanks for your support!

P.S. Have you contributed to the discussion yet? What are you waiting for? Come on, join in and share your thoughts in the comments section below!