AboutJim Novo Expertise Questions about using customer data to inmprove online profitability, particularly in retailing. Topics include profiling customers using weblogs, figuring out which ads generate the highest value customers, how to reduce the numnber of 1x buyers, how to generate higher sales from current customers, customer analysis, ROI calculation, reducing discounts while increasing resaponse rates. Do you collect customer data (purchases, page views, surveys) and not really use it for anything? Want to find out how? Just ask.
Experience
Past/Present clients Cellular One, MBNA, SteelTorch Software, Retek Direct, CBS Sportsline, Kobie Marketing, Aerial, Tupperware, Barnes and Noble, Comcast Corporation, Home Shopping Network
Question Hello! I just started a business and I am looking for cost effective ways to begin advertising it online. I've heard of google adwords, is this a good way to go? I would appreciate some suggestions. Thank you!
Answer Google Adwords is probably the easiest, least costly, most effective online advertising you can buy if you are selling something online.
However, the performance of any online advertising is directly related to the ability of your site to convert visitors to buyers. The best advertising in the world will not solve this problem with your site.
So, you can waste a ton of money on ads and not make any money if you don't make sure your web site is easy to use and provides the info people need to make a purchase decision FIRST.
Then when you start with the advertising, make sure you research the kinds of phrases people are using to search for your products. Use the "Keyword Tool" in Google Adwords for this.
Next, when you start out, bid only for detailed search phrases that you find in Keyword Tool and watch to see if you can convert any visitors to buyers. This will keep your costs down (detailed phrases are cheaper) and visitors using these phrases are the most likely to convert to buyers. If they don't, this lets you know there is a problem with your site converting visitors into buyers. Use Landing Pages - a page that refers specifically to the search phrase - as the page you send people who click on the ads.
So, for example, if you are selling hand sewn, dyed by hand cotton quilts...
Do not bid for the phrase "quilts" or even "hand made quilts". Bid for "hand made cotton quilts" or "hand dyed cotton quilts" using Exact Match. The search volume will be low but that is what keeps the costs down. Link the ads to a Landing Page (where visitors go when they click on your site) that talks all about "hand made cotton quilts" or "hand dyed cotton quilts" and why yours are better or cheaper or last longer or whatever your benefit is.
As you work through this and actually start converting visitors into buyers, you can begin to expand your bids to less specific phrases like "handmade quilts" and continue to boost sales and traffic, always using a specific Landing Page for each search concept.
There is a ton of info on the web about designing and writing good Adwords ads and Landing pages, just search for it.
