The document provides guidance on measuring and optimizing AdWords campaigns using key performance indicators and reports. It recommends using 3 reports - efficiency, effectiveness, and coverage - to evaluate campaigns and determine areas for improvement. Specific optimization techniques are also outlined, such as adjusting campaign structure and keywords, testing ad copy, and ensuring budgets are adequately allocated to high-converting campaigns and opportunities are not being missed through missing extensions or targeting options. The overall message is that simple approaches can often provide useful insights, but optimization is an ongoing process.

1. @adwexp
How to measure
AdWords optimization
Gianpaolo Lorusso
@Gianps

2. @adwexp
Who I am
 I have been working in web marketing for more than 10
years on middle or large size projects.
 I have created ADworld Experience, one of the largest
events in Europe about contextual advertising.
 I think Usability and CRO are the last frontiers of web
marketing
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3. @adwexp
The most common questions…
When you first look at an existing campaign:
 How is the situation?
 Which margins of improvement do we have?
 How can we improve?
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What if I say…
we can answer these questions with only 3 reports &
some qualitative checks.
I will show you how to know if you are:
 Buying clicks at lowest possible rates
 Choosing the right clicks
 Showing ads to the right people
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5. @adwexp
Direct response campaigns goals
 Get the maximum number of useful contacts
 Paying the minimum possible cost
 From our target users (final clients or companies
of the right dimension in defined areas)
 In the right stage of purchase (beyond the initial
generic informative searches)
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6. @adwexp
To achieve them
 Use all targeting options provided by
AdWords
 Without complicating too much campaigns
structure (and their monitoring)
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Minimal structure…
 A campaign for each geographic/linguistic area
 Separate search & display campaigns (or «search +
display selection» in case of limited budget)
 One group for each promoted product/service category +
brand (+ competitor?)
 One group for each target channel (final users, other
companies, agents, etc.)
 Better if distinct groups for different display channels (You
Tube, Gmail, vertical pertinent sites or particularly effective
ones)
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8. @adwexp
Key Performance Indicators
 Efficiency
is Cost Per Click the lowest possible?
 Effectiveness
are we getting all the conversions we can?
 Coverage
is budget adequate and correctly allocated?
 Missing opportunities
are we doing everything we can do?
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9. @adwexp
Efficiency in AdWords
In Search all top spending keywords should have a
7-10 Quality Score and Display campaigns should
have good CTR, lower CPC (unless for very specific
placements) and acceptable Bounce Rates.
NOTE: If there is enough search traffic for our target market
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10. @adwexp
This is due to…
Max CPC Quality
Score
AD Rank Position Real Cost Per Click
Advertiser 1 € 2.00 8 16 1° 15/8 = 1.87 €
Advertiser 2 € 3.00 5 15 2° 12/5 = 2.40 €
Advertiser 3 € 4.00 3 12 3° 8/3 = 2.66 €
Advertiser 4 € 1.00 8 8 4° auction min.
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Quality score is a multiplier in ranking and a divisor of CPC

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Visualize Quality Score

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Improve efficiency
 Change campaigns structure
 Limit geographic and language target
 Use extensions (especially site-links, callout, local and call)
 Negative keywords
 Keywords matching types
 New ad texts/images (min. test 5 versions for each group)
 Dynamic Keyword Insertion
 Dynamic Search ADS (& targeting)
 Select highest CTR placements
 Remarketing & Retargeting (positive or negative)
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used cars
ads will appear in searches similar to:*
used cars, uesd cras, second hand cars, used automobiles, new and used cars, cars on offer, car sales, 0km car, company cars,
car fleet, car dealers, used Audi, used Fiat 500, used BMW, used SUV, used vans, MOT test used car, used car parts, good
mechanic used car, cars movie, etc.
+used +cars
ads will appear in searches similar to:
used cars, uesd cras, used automobiles, new and used cars, used Audi A4, used Fiat 500, used BMW, used SUV, used
vans, MOT test used car, used car parts, good mechanic used car, ecc.
«used cars»
ads will appear in searches similar to:
used cars, used car, uesd cras, new and used cars, MOT test used car, used car parts, good mechanic used
car, etc.
[used cars]
ads will appear in searches similar to:
used cars, used car, uesd cras, etc.
–new or –«new» or –[new]
block ads if these words are in search queries
* Broad match includes all synonyms and false “search twins”. It is impossible to foresee all associations the engine will do.

16. @adwexpwww.searchenginejournal.com/quick-guide-create-ad-copy-gets-clicks-competition/86521

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Keywords or placements cost per conversion has
to be lower than the direct/indirect profit
generated by themselves
NOTE: Do not forget to consider customer lifetime value, «impossible»
conversions, discovery effect & word of mouth and statistical data
relevance
Effectiveness in AdWords

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Some conversions examples
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 On line sale (for e-commerce)
 Information request (via form or e-mail)
 Registration to reserved area
 Newsletter subscription
 PDF Download (ex. company profile or product sheet)
 Longer visit (session time) or deeper visit (page
viewed) than site average (via Analytics)

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Tracing conversions
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 From AdWords or Analytics
 Always connect AdWords and Analytics account (even only to
import landing pages bounce rates)
 Import conversions from Analytics (AdWords cookie lasts 30 days
and arrives to 90, Analytics’ one lasts 6 months)
 24/72h import delay in conversions from Analytics
 Numbers will always be different because AdWords attributes it to
the last click on ads, while Analytics to the last website session

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Out of scale conversions

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Black budget holes

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Improve effectiveness
 Tracing customer engagement conversions too (PDF download,
NL subscriptions, long/deep visits, etc.)
 Tuning CPCs to balance daily budget with real expense
 Top ranking only for effective keywords, less visible for the others
 Landing page tests (optimizely.com, vwo.com, unbounce.com)
 Enhanced CPC or test CPA (cost per action/acquisition)
 Aggressive display targeting (Display Campaign Optimizer)
 Shopping campaigns (a must do for e-commerces)

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The most effective keywords and placements
must have the maximum possible impression
shares (geographically and by time of the day too).
IN OTHER WORDS: When users search for queries or visit pages that
have proven to be effective, they have to see our ads.
Coverage & budget spending

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Visualize coverage
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consider adding budget
add budget & increase CPC
data consistence filter

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 Add budget for high converting campaigns/groups (dividing top
keywords from the others)
 ADS active only in days/hours your target users are on line (ex.:
office hours for Business to Business)
 Schedule extensions and ADS according to offers and customer
care opening hours
 Block or adjust bids for less performing geographical areas &
demographic groups (display only)
Optimize coverage
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27. @adwexp
Missing opportunities
 Use all possible extensions
 Dynamic Search Ads
 Shopping campaigns (vital to e-commerce sites)
 Keyword insertion in ads
 Remarketing lists (static/dynamic) for display/search
 Negative Remarketing (ex: excluding for a while lists of users who
already converted)
 Retargeting (interests/categories) positive/negative

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May be you missed some interesting targeting opportunities
 Talk with front desk or direct sales agents
 On line surveys
 On line feedback facilities
 Live chat on the site
 Social networks comments
And then… start again!

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Final thoughts…
Simple answers to complex questions are often
wrong.
But it is useless to complicate your account more
than needed to get the best targeting you can
achieve!
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everything should be as simple as it can be, not simpler
A.Einstein

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http://bit.ly/adwords-optimized
(April 16-17, 2015)
To see the full video for free…