Observe and track your competition
Observe the competition. Write a script to track ads of your targeted keyword list.
Record competitor ads for several weeks. Note changes in ads. Analyze ads that
changed. If the ads are not changing, this could mean they are working.
Experiment
Don’t stop with weeding out the nonworking keywords. Experiment with new keywords.
Learn of any new competitors. Learn what their keywords are. Don’t be afraid
to gradually lower your bid prices to see the effects on your CTR.
Refine your ad copy
A poor CTR usually means bad ad copy, bad keyword targeting, and bad timing. You
can easily create several versions of your ads for your campaign. Use that to your advantage.
Learn which ads are converting and which are not. Learn which words are
being used in the ads that work and in the ads that do not. In general, the higher your
CTR, the lower your average cost-per-click will be.
Try other platforms
If you have stiff competition on AdWords, you may want to examine other PPC platforms.
Yes, search volumes may be lower, but less competition and more keywords of
interest could compensate for the lack of volume.
If you score a successful campaign with ads producing clicks and, ultimately, profits,
you may want to consider replicating the campaign across the other platforms—
especially Yahoo! and Microsoft. Replicating your winning formula is smart marketing.
Observe the competition. Write a script to track ads of your targeted keyword list.
Record competitor ads for several weeks. Note changes in ads. Analyze ads that
changed. If the ads are not changing, this could mean they are working.
Experiment
Don’t stop with weeding out the nonworking keywords. Experiment with new keywords.
Learn of any new competitors. Learn what their keywords are. Don’t be afraid
to gradually lower your bid prices to see the effects on your CTR.
Refine your ad copy
A poor CTR usually means bad ad copy, bad keyword targeting, and bad timing. You
can easily create several versions of your ads for your campaign. Use that to your advantage.
Learn which ads are converting and which are not. Learn which words are
being used in the ads that work and in the ads that do not. In general, the higher your
CTR, the lower your average cost-per-click will be.
Try other platforms
If you have stiff competition on AdWords, you may want to examine other PPC platforms.
Yes, search volumes may be lower, but less competition and more keywords of
interest could compensate for the lack of volume.
If you score a successful campaign with ads producing clicks and, ultimately, profits,
you may want to consider replicating the campaign across the other platforms—
especially Yahoo! and Microsoft. Replicating your winning formula is smart marketing.