Thread: Talk to Me About Google AdWords

Been thinking about trying a paid search campaign through Google AdWords. My marketing goal, in the broader sense, is to book lots of parties. What have been your experiences? Tell me the good, the bad, the ugly ,r:;

Also, if your site already comes up on the first page of an organic search for all of the most relevant local keywords, would an AdWords campaign be unnecessary? My SEO/SEM skillz are already pretty fierce

Indifferent.

So, I take it, AdWords didn't make much of a difference for you?

I want to know, from a consumer psychology standpoint, if people really click on those ads. (Though conversion is really the more important figure). People in general seem to have become more suspicious and annoyed when it comes to conspicuous online advertising - but if they're clicking and booking, I'll consider ,r:;

As far as 'find-a-random-belly-dancer-market' goes, I don't think that the prime real estate on Google is in the margins, which is where the ads are, but within the search results, especially when at or near the top, which we are. Our Google Ad costs run five cents a month, meanwhile many customers and students report finding us 'via the internet.'

As far as selling classes go, we find that potential students WILL search through several pages of results and look at multiple web sites while looking for the 'right' teacher. So appearing in the first couple of pages and having an informative web site would be the optimum combination for attracting students via Google.

When looking at a page with both a search result in the prime real estate and ad words with a link, my eye scans the search result first and moves to the ads ONLY if no quality listings show up in the search results for the first couple of pages ... how about you? Therefore, if your search category is overrun by gig-masters and party-pop and similar websites, the ad in the margins might very well make a lot of sense.

IMO.

This is how my mind works. Personally, I glaze right over any ad that says "Sponsored" anything. Then again, others consumers might be different and I like to prove my own marketing theories wrong! ,r:;

Most customers also report that they found me "on the internet," and upon further prying, it's almost always through Gigmasters or the organic search. My site's consistently perched on the first page, so AdWords isn't really a necessity - just an option that piqued my curiosity while sketching up my 2010 marketing plan.

I wonder if anyone here has been wildly successful with AdWords...so far, I'm only hearing indifferent reviews.

I tried google ads earlier this year, in hopes of bringing in more students for fall classes. Got lots of clicks, but it didn't translate to more students.

I don't think it would necessarily help for a performer, but for vendors it could be helpful. When I am looking for costumes, I do glance at the ads as well as the search results, but not generally for teachers/performers.

Strictly consumer POV, I'm a little suspicious of those ads. I don't know why, but they seem odd to me.

They're kinda odd to me, too, but then again, some consumers are reached by stranger forms of advertising like late night infomercials or banners on airplanes! ,r:;

So the overwhelming verdict is "save your money for costumes." Hey, now, it works for me!

Originally Posted by bintbeled

I tried google ads earlier this year, in hopes of bringing in more students for fall classes. Got lots of clicks, but it didn't translate to more students.

Exactly my experience(s) with facebook ads. Generates a good bit of traffic, and continued traffic for a little while after the ad ends. I may get a couple emails with questions, but no warm bodies.

I do it. I think of it more as a tax write-off than anything else. No, not really tho. It has increased traffic on my site and moved me up in the ranks. As for getting gigs, the jury is still out. I don't think I get more gigs than other dances from the area because of it. It probably annoys them because they see my ad all over the place. LOL!

I can share my information with you. E-mail me at andalee.oriental at gmail dot com if you want to see some reports of how it works and what kind of ads I run.

I don't think they're very valuable for a local business, including performance/teaching. It's too easy to be on the first page of results for 'belly dancer Your City" or "Entertainment Your City" or "performer Your City" or whatever. Unless there are hundreds of bellydancers in Your City, in which case it might be valuable.

I think the same is true of any local business. If people are going to put their city or neighborhood into the search term to find you, then there has to be a LOT of competition to make advertising worthwhile.

It makes more sense for national or international advertising. So if you're a vendor, or running a site like Bhuz -- in other words, if you're going to make money off of people anywhere in the world who search on a broad term like 'bellydance' -- it's a great deal.

I like Facebook better for local business because you can target your ads and reach people who wouldn't be searching you out. You could run an ad for bachelorette shimmy parties, for instance, and target only engaged women within 25 miles of you...

Not sure about the dance industry. I will be setting up an adwords campaign for a bellydance shop but e-commerce shops are different.

You have to figure out how you will be able to differentiate which channel an enquiry came from. Adwords has conversion tracking but if people ended up calling you from clicking on an ad then that will be hard to track. You won't know if the person was from an organic search or paid search unless you ask them and even then they might forget how they found your website.

Normally if I am already in buying mode I was click both organic and paid results to do comparison shopping.

On second thoughts what you could do is have a separate landing page for adwords which has a different phone number and contact form to the main site. Basically a one page sales pitch. Then you would know if a caller came from adwords.

My eyes are trained to skip over these ads.

There is a theory that says people who are ready to buy will click on the ads. People who are just researching will stick with the organic listings.

Having managed a lot of campaigns I can vouch that people do click on ads. How it compares with the equivalent organic listing I don't know.

I spent an ample amount on adwords for the Intensive last year. I had received some vouchers from Google, so I took advantage of that and gave it a shot.

I did get tons of traffic, but I didn't really expect that much of it would convert, per se. But I'm "selling" an event...not a performance or a product. For me, I think it was useful for getting exposure. For me, getting the event name out there in as many places as possible is key.

I also have awesome organic listings, so this year I'm not doing Adwords. I am doing facebook ads (which I LOVE)...because they can be targeted so much more effectively.

Okay, so I ordered something from VistaPrint, and got a free coupon for GoogleAdWords. I'm going to take advantage of it, as I have nothing to lose.

I get visits from them, but conversions are very low (they land on my home page and have to click to either the class page or the booking page to count as a conversion).

I am thinking about dropping them. It is nice to see the web traffic, but like Satin said, I've SEO'ed the crap out of my site and it is very highly rated right now with any phrase I could possibly hope to catch clients/students with.

I honestly never clicked on them myself (as a consumer) until I started using them as a performer. I always thought they were like "spam" because I didn't really understand what they were. Now that I've used them myself, and understand they are targeted marketing, I actually look at and click on them. But most internet searcher are not savvy to the AdWords and I am sure skip over them like I used to.

As far as any business I got from them, it's hard to say. On my contracts, it says "How did you hear of Daniela?" but if they just write "Google search" I don't know what kind of search they mean. I did get a lot of clicks - until my money ran out, anyway.

I'll probably start them again after I have the baby because it's a no-risk form of advertising - you set a limit on how much you want to spend and after you get those numbers of clicks, you don't pay anymore.

Originally Posted by Samira_dncr

I also have awesome organic listings, so this year I'm not doing Adwords. I am doing facebook ads (which I LOVE)...because they can be targeted so much more effectively.

This is something I'm considering since I'm looking to market something very specific and I like how FB ads are so targeted. I might start experimenting with FB instead of dumping money into Gigmasters. Any luck with the FB ads?

I've been trying facebook ads for months, targeting various demographics (everyone in 20 mi radius, everyone in my town, everyone at my university, just females, all females, some females (18 to 50), etc. etc. etc. I'm not sure how many permutations I've tried.

I get thousands of impressions

BUT I HAVE NOT GOTTEN ONE SINGLE CLICK!

It is pay-per-click, so at least I haven't spent anything.

I would love to know what I'm doing wrong.

Originally Posted by ssipes

I've been trying facebook ads for months, targeting various demographics (everyone in 20 mi radius, everyone in my town, everyone at my university, just females, all females, some females (18 to 50), etc. etc. etc. I'm not sure how many permutations I've tried.

I get thousands of impressions

BUT I HAVE NOT GOTTEN ONE SINGLE CLICK!

It is pay-per-click, so at least I haven't spent anything.

I would love to know what I'm doing wrong.

Very strange. Can you post an example of the ad? Even just the text? It would give me a better idea of how to guide you.

My suspicion is that you haven't created a compelling reason to click or you are lacking a strong call to action.

The Vegas Intensive text ad reads:

Join us Sept. 9-12, 2010 for Vegas' favorite belly dance event featuring a festival, workshops, shopping, a contest, drumming, and fun!

When I did Google Adwords, I ran two nearly identical ads. One had the word "fun" in it, and the other did not. I found out that just having that one word nearly doubled the click through rate. Very interesting.

So perhaps you just need to make the ad...um...fun.

Get fit and feel beautiful with fun belly dance classes by _____. All shapes and sizes are welcome. Click here to get started today.

...not sure any of this is helping.

My current ad has this text:
title: Belly Dancing Classes!
text: Three locations in Carbondale and Carterville IL. Fall classes begin soon. Get in shape while learning sizzling hot dance moves!

Other equally unsuccessful ads have had this text:
You Can Belly Dance!
Work your core, legs, and arms while learning smokin' hot dance moves! For all ages and fitness levels! Next session begins July 20.

Shimmy your way to fitness! Two locations in Carbondale: classes begin June 8 at Great Shapes and June 23 at SIUC Rec Center!

pictures I've used include:




Edited to add: I've set my budget anywhere from $2 to $5 per day. I've also noticed that my current ad's impressions haven't increased in the past several days. its been sitting at 1603 for a while. My targeted demographic is around 10,000 so what's up with that? Also my CPC bid is at $0.48 per click, which was the recommended budget when I set it up, but now its telling me the recommended budget is $0.79 to $1.48. Do I need to increase my CPC bid?

Originally Posted by ssipes

Edited to add: I've set my budget anywhere from $2 to $5 per day. I've also noticed that my current ad's impressions haven't increased in the past several days. its been sitting at 1603 for a while. My targeted demographic is around 10,000 so what's up with that? Also my CPC bid is at $0.48 per click, which was the recommended budget when I set it up, but now its telling me the recommended budget is $0.79 to $1.48. Do I need to increase my CPC bid?

I'm guessing that it's your bid. My bid rate is pretty low because I'm only targeting people who already have the words "belly dance" and "belly dancing" in their interest list, although I target more geographical areas than you do. I'm guessing you are targeting a broader search base and are competing with other businesses. Perhaps it's affecting the impressions.

I've had less success with more restrictive geographic areas. I ran an ad for the drum classes for the Intensive that was geared more towards locals, but the click through rate is pretty low on that one, but it's a super niche. I wouldn't expect it to do as well as my other campaign.

I think your text is fine. I'm not in love with either of those photos. They don't scream "fitness" to me. It's not that they aren't lovely (they are), but I'm not sure that they are powerful either. If you don't have any of your own professional pics, then you could purchase ones from istockphoto. I think you'd be better off to use a 3/4 body shot that includes someone's head than just a cropped body shot...there's a thread somewhere here on Bhuz about that. I'll edit with a link if I find it.

ETA: Here's the link
http://www.bhuz.com/forum/business-b...-face-ads.html

...another thought.

You can set your ad to go to a website or you can set it to go to a "page". Personally, I'd rather get them to commit to something inconsequential (like joining the page) than to scare them away by asking them to buy right away. Once they join the page, they will get regular ongoing updates about my events. The more times they see me on their wall, the more likely they are to remember me when they are thinking about events. Perhaps a similar strategy might work for you? I have no idea how I'd translate this into something useful for you.

"Stay updated regarding shows, workshops, festivals, and parties, join our page today!"

Originally Posted by Samira_dncr

I think your text is fine. I'm not in love with either of those photos. They don't scream "fitness" to me. It's not that they aren't lovely (they are), but I'm not sure that they are powerful either. If you don't have any of your own professional pics, then you could purchase ones from istockphoto. I think you'd be better off to use a 3/4 body shot that includes someone's head than just a cropped body shot...there's a thread somewhere here on

I have some professional photos here; is there one you'd suggest?
Sedonia

And group shots here (the ad actually advertises for my classes and those of two of my troupemates). I am open to a pic of just me or of the group.
Group Photos

Thanks for the other tips. I will try increasing my bid.

Originally Posted by ssipes

I have some professional photos here; is there one you'd suggest?
Sedonia

Personally, I like the first purple veil shot. The one where it's draped over your arms. It's very pretty. It doesn't have a lot of movement though. I also like the one of you spinning with the veil with the very friendly smile. It's energetic and friendly. And I really like the one just after that one too. The one without the veil. I think you are leaning left with the pretty arms. But it's not as warm as the smiling veil shot.

Originally Posted by ssipes

And group shots here (the ad actually advertises for my classes and those of two of my troupemates). I am open to a pic of just me or of the group.Group Photos

Of the group shots, I like the first one best.