Yesterday (July 16, 2007) I received a call at my office from Google Headquarters straight from Mountain View. No it wasn’t Larry or Sergey, but rather a Google Ad Words specialist named (Anna C.) who (after many weeks) was finally responding to an email I’d sent regarding the best ways to maximize your investment with a Google Ad Words campaign.
As a user of Google Ad Words I’ve devoted many hours to writing ads, rewriting those ads and testing the effectiveness of each machination. I’ve poured over Google Analytics and modified my keywords determining the most effective keywords/keyword phrases. Through this research I’ve determined one thing (which Anna C. agrees with) and that is this: businesses offering products stand to benefit more from a “keyword campaign” and business offering a service stand to benefit more from a “site targeted” campaign. As Anna C. puts it, “Things get a little bit different when you aren’t selling widgets.” Touche, Anna C. touche!
The differences between a “keyword” campaign and a “site targeted” campaign are quite simple: a “keyword” campaign opens you up to the entire internet and a “site targeted” campaign allows you to submit your ad to certain sites (which you can hand pick or determine by age/financial demographics. I love this option as your ads then have more context, thus you’ve stepped into the world of contextual marketing. As Anna C. says, “It all depends on whether you want to “brand” your service or “sell” a product and the best option to making that happen.”