Editor’s notice: This case research was initially printed in 2019. It has been up to date for accuracy and to mirror trendy practices.
In our conversations with lots of of eCommerce enterprise house owners, many have advised us that their Google Advertisements campaigns aren’t performing in addition to initially thought — and might be working extra effectively for a lesser value.
Many of those manufacturers assume that establishing their product feed and launching one Purchasing marketing campaign containing all of their merchandise is all that it takes to create a revenue.
Spoiler alert: It takes much more than that to create a profitable eCommerce PPC technique.
If managed appropriately and applied by professionals, Google Advertisements could be a nice income driver to develop your eCommerce enterprise — nevertheless it takes extra than simply key phrases and advert inventive to convey it to fruition.
At the moment, we’ll present you how you can make it occur, by demystifying the mixture of eCommerce PPC advertising and marketing methods that we use to get outcomes for dozens of on-line companies.
Within the following case research, we’ll cowl:
- The Google Advertisements methods we used for a 9.89x ROAS
- The tiered bidding technique that drives substantial Google Purchasing outcomes
- And the opposite PPC greatest practices we suggest to cut back your model’s spend
The Actual-Life Outcomes
It was this frequent situation — frustration of their subpar Google PPC campaigns — that introduced this consumer to our doorstep.
As an internet retailer within the digicam gear area of interest, they wanted to enhance their Google Search and Google Purchasing campaigns for an funding return on their substantial spend.
Six months after Influx took over their PPC efforts, we helped them exceed that objective, with a 76% improve in ROAS (5.61x to 9.89x)from their earlier company’s work.
Even higher: 12 months over 12 months, we netted them a 56% improve in ROAS, from 6.34x to 9.89x.
So, how did we do it?
Preserve studying to search out out.
Our purchasers embody not solely seven- and eight-figure companies, however nine-figure annual income eCommerce firms, as nicely. Speak to us right now to see if our eCommerce advertising and marketing consultants can enhance your model’s PPC promoting, search engine marketing (web optimization) efforts, and conversion charges.
eCommerce PPC Methods Applied for a 9.89x ROAS
Whereas each eCommerce retailer presents distinctive benefits and challenges, by working with lots of of them, we’ve realized simply how essential it’s to comply with a system.
Earlier than we do the rest, we at all times begin with an audit and evaluation of the consumer’s product feed, campaigns, and different KPIs to see what’s (and isn’t) working.
For this consumer, their web site had a excessive search quantity and an in depth product catalog of cameras, lenses, and different camera-related gear. However, because of the retailer’s scale, there was incomplete and lacking details about these merchandise of their Google product information feed. Their present PPC campaigns had been additionally too broad given the completely different product classes on the positioning, which created wasted spend.
So, we created a plan to extend the consumer’s ROAS by the next steps:
- Product information feed setup and optimization
- Google Search & Purchasing marketing campaign restructure
- Google Show advert optimizations
- Implementation of profitable Google campaigns into Bing
By optimizing every of the above, we positioned our consumer’s merchandise to encapsulate the shopper’s total shopping for journey — leading to much less spend per click on and extra gross sales.
1. Product Feed Setup & Optimization
The Google product feed (present in Service provider Heart) accommodates your entire merchandise and their associated info, together with:
- Product class
- Model
- Portions
- Sizes
- Colours
- Supplies
- And extra
Google Purchasing Advertisements and Show Advertisements pull this info instantly out of your retailer’s feed to populate its search engine outcomes pages (SERPs). This is the reason optimizing your product information feed is so essential.
For this consumer, we had to make sure that info (like digicam manufacturers, lens sizes, and so forth) was all current, correct, and simply discovered by Google.
Due to their huge product listings, the positioning had big potential to be proven for a lot of completely different particular product queries — however, because of the restricted feed information, Google couldn’t match these search queries to merchandise within the retailer’s catalog.
Now, when a consumer searches Google for a product in our consumer’s catalog (corresponding to a particular digicam lens mannequin), our consumer’s product is extra more likely to seem proper there as a Purchasing advert.
Scorching tip: You possibly can simply optimize your feed utilizing a instrument like Feedonomics.
2. Purchasing & Search Advert Marketing campaign Restructures
We suggest a mix of Google Purchasing advertisements, Google Search advertisements, and Google Show advertisements for many huge on-line retailers. Implementing all three typically results in enhanced product visibility throughout the customer’s total journey, from analysis by buy.
So, with their product feed optimized, we started restructuring the consumer’s Search and Purchasing campaigns.
As a result of this explicit trade has excessive search quantity, it makes it a lot simpler to realize site visitors to advertisements — but additionally more durable to find out the particular mixture of queries that drive the highest return.
To deal with this situation, we created a number of tiered campaigns segmented by product sort. In different phrases, we constructed completely different tiers for various product classes — on this case, a lens tier, digital digicam tier, video digicam tier, movie digicam tier, and so on.
3. Show Advert Optimizations
Product advertisements that comply with prospects across the net may appear annoying at first look. However, the truth is, retargeting advertisements convert very nicely and have an awesome ROI.
Why? As a result of they market to prospects on the finish of the shopping for cycle (as soon as they’ve already visited the shop and checked out product pages).
Earlier than we got here on board, consumers had been visiting our consumer’s retailer however not being remarketed to. Utilizing Google’s dynamic remarketing function, we mechanically displayed advertisements to prospects who left the consumer’s website with out finishing a purchase order.
Dynamic remarketing makes use of your product feed to find out which merchandise Google shows on its advert community. It might probably additionally intelligently group completely different merchandise collectively primarily based on what’s more likely to convert greatest.
Utilizing dynamic remarketing is a reasonably easy technique to skyrocket eCommerce gross sales and model consciousness, and we imagine it’s a should for any on-line retailer.
Scorching tip: Mix your PPC retargeting technique together with your paid social media remarketing information for cross-platform effectivity.
4. Bing Account Modifications
As soon as we noticed what was working in Google, we started transferring these adjustments to try to duplicate that success in Bing Advertisements (now referred to as Microsoft Promoting).
Whereas Bing has a far decrease search engine market share than Google, we’ve discovered that what works nicely in Google Advertisements can typically work in Bing Advertisements, too.
So, why not duplicate the methods that work in Google to seize consumers from one other search engine?
Earlier than we might do this, although, our group first needed to collect actual information for these campaigns in Bing — to determine what did and didn’t work on the platform. As a result of Bing continues to distinguish itself from Google, direct integration of campaigns gained’t at all times achieve success. The place vital, we pivoted our bidding and focusing on technique to higher accommodate Bing’s setup.
After all, this actual method might not work for each eCommerce enterprise — however, given the decrease promoting value of Bing, it’s typically well worth the experiment.
Influx’s Tiered Bidding Technique: Implementation & Finest Practices
In terms of eCommerce PPC campaigns, endurance and willingness to regulate alongside the way in which are essential. Over time, you’ll determine the highest-return queries and modify your bids to prioritize them. Nevertheless, it’s an ongoing course of.
On this consumer’s case, we recognized the highest-return search queries primarily based on this retailer’s completely different product classes and the account’s historic question information. Then, we created a tiered marketing campaign for every class.
Beneath, you’ll discover a visible illustration of that tiered technique. The search queries every tier drives are primarily based on damaging key phrases. For optimum return, we created a number of tiered campaigns for every product class.
Find out how to Set up Your Tiers
Replicate our tiered method to your Purchasing campaigns by following these steps:
1. Run Search Question studies.
Assessment historic efficiency in Google Analytics by working search question studies, going again at the least six months. Establish the queries or question mixtures which have pushed the best income or ROAS to your model previously.
2. Filter these queries in Google Analytics.
Establish which phrases of those high-return phrases have churn (and which don’t). Then, determine which of them you wish to filter into Tier 2 or 3.
3. Mark any fascinating patterns.
As a result of what you are promoting and target market are distinctive, be aware of any patterns or traits that pop up throughout your evaluate.
For instance, with this consumer, we noticed a sample of queries containing sure modifiers that tended to transform nicely. So, we recognized the income and ROAS for these phrases for extra knowledgeable marketing campaign planning.
4. Construct out your findings in a spreadsheet.
Set up any discovered patterns in a spreadsheet checklist containing the search question, income, and ROAS numbers.
5. Phase tiers in keeping with income and ROAS numbers.
After getting all the information, it’s time to optimize your Google Purchasing campaigns. For this consumer, we used precedence settings, bid stacking, and damaging key phrases to create tiers.
The essential premise is to use low, medium, and excessive bids on search phrases with low, medium, and excessive returns — thus optimizing your cost-per-click (CPC). Conversely, apply excessive, medium, and low precedence ranges to low, medium, and excessive bids/returns.
For context, precedence setting determines the order by which Google will cycle by the campaigns. Excessive precedence actually means Google takes that marketing campaign into consideration first. (To make use of prioritized bidding, you’ll additionally must arrange a shared finances among the many campaigns.)
The Actual Consumer Instance
Right here’s how this tiered system performed out for this consumer:
Tier 1:
We positioned low bids on our catch-all marketing campaign that drives all normal queries. We additionally added damaging phrases to keep away from focusing on queries that we wished to bid greater on within the different tiers.
We set this tier to the “high-priority” setting.
Tier 2:
We positioned medium bids on search queries we discovered to have a better return than these in Tier 1 (however decrease return than the queries we wish to filter to Tier 3).
Like in Tier 1, we added damaging key phrases for the queries we wished to filter to Tier 3. This tier was set to a medium-priority setting.
Tier 3:
Understanding what probably the most worthwhile search queries had been for this consumer, we positioned the best bids on them. This tier was set to a low-priority setting.
Why the tiered system works: By recognizing the efficiency of a retailer’s completely different related search queries, you possibly can have rather more management over how a lot advert spend is allotted to every question, which was key in delivering outcomes for this consumer.
Different Google Advertisements Methods to Scale back Spend
Many elements can affect the success of your eCommerce PPC technique. Like with most digital advertising and marketing efforts, you’ll must run some checks and regularly modify your campaigns for optimum return.
In our years of working with eCommerce websites, we’ve recognized a couple of different greatest practices that drive gross sales with minimal spend.
As you arrange your campaigns, think about incorporating these extra PPC methods for eCommerce:
1. At all times ship the best-performing/highest-return queries to Tier 3.
By figuring out the highest-return queries, you possibly can guarantee much less wasted finances by spending the least amount of cash on low-return queries and allocating the largest share of cash to phrases you’re optimistic will truly drive a excessive return.
As well as, through the use of your highest CPCs/bids in Tier 3 and your lowest CPCS/bids in Tier 1, you possibly can management spend allocation and particular person ROAS for every tier, too.
2. Use damaging focusing on.
Adverse key phrase segmentation in a tiered system permits us to pay much less for lower-returning queries. It’s additionally a useful instrument in common campaigns for filtering out low-intent or irrelevant search phrases.
By including your most worthwhile queries as negatives to Tier 1 and a pair of, you’ll push these queries to Tier 3 — the place you need them, together with your highest bids.
Notice: If you wish to negate irrelevant phrases in a tiered system, a shared damaging checklist should be utilized to all tiers.
3. Optimize by machine.
After your tiers have run for sufficient time to assemble important information, additional analyze efficiency by machine to make sure no wasted spend.
A lot of our eCommerce purchasers see higher efficiency from desktop, so we usually separate tiers into desktop and cellular counterparts. That manner, you need to use decrease bids in your mobile-specific tiers to save lots of extra money.
4. Lower spend on the worst-performing hours/days of the week.
After gathering important information, you need to use a time-of-day evaluation to make sure you’re optimizing for our best-performing days and hours.
For instance, in case your PPC advertisements have greater click-through charges (CTR) within the night hours than within the early morning hours, allocate extra money to the previous for a greater potential ROAS.
5. Launch Search competitor campaigns.
Operating Search advertisements constructed round different manufacturers’ key phrases and bids means that you can goal your greatest competitors. (Relaxation assured that they’re doing this to your advertisements, too.)
Don’t know who your opponents are? Begin with these seven Google Advertisements competitor analysis instruments.
Mix this technique together with your common search advertisements to maximise your audiences and make it more durable to your opponents to succeed.
6. Optimize by demographics.
Run demographic-based analyses for age, gender, and family incomes of your viewers. Then, implement your bid changes accordingly.
7. Optimize show advertisements to seize retargeted viewers.
Whereas bids and finances are essential in your show advert campaigns, you additionally want to repeatedly replace your advert copy to higher goal consumers at completely different phases within the shopping for funnel. For instance, newer customers require extra brand-focused messaging and calls to motion, whereas earlier purchasers don’t.
8. Embrace new advert options.
Google is regularly releasing new options and capabilities inside its promoting community, like its Efficiency Max campaigns. Don’t hesitate to check these new options as quickly as they’re launched!
Being the primary to implement these options will typically provide you with a aggressive benefit, as different manufacturers could also be slower to undertake these new choices.
Takeaways & Outcomes
If there’s one factor to find out about eCommerce PPC, it’s that it’s a dynamic promoting technique. You’ll want to repeatedly handle your campaigns and method for the very best outcomes, primarily based on what you study from checks and previous efficiency.
In different phrases, Google Advertisements shouldn’t be a “set it and neglect it” platform.
However, if you do put within the work to repeatedly optimize and enhance, the outcomes could be nicely value your time. In any case, it was this ongoing adjustment to our consumer’s technique that delivered a 56% improve in ROAS, 12 months over 12 months.
If you happen to study something from this case research, I hope it’s how a Google Advertisements technique primarily based on systematic evaluate and restructuring can shortly yield a better ROAS to your eCommerce model.
Need to see related outcomes for what you are promoting? Each eCommerce web site that works with Influx receives a personalized set of methods like these to maximise their Google Advertisements marketing campaign budgets.
If you want us to judge and enhance your on-line retailer’s PPC advertising and marketing campaigns (or determine extra progress alternatives), request a free proposal right now to see how we may also help.