When it comes to a paid search (PPC) campaign, it’s not just important to make sure that your ads are seen. It’s important to make sure that they’re seen by the right people. Your goal is to ensure that the people who see and click on your ads are likely to connect with you and take action. Using negative keywords is an important way to do help optimize your campaign. What are PPC “negative” keywords? A negative keyword is a type of keyword that prevents your ad from being triggered by a certain word or phrase. Depending on where your PPC ads are running, the negative keywords that you choose tell Google or Bing not to show your ad to anyone who is searching for that phrase. For example, if you add “bachelor” as a negative keyword to your campaign or ad group, you’re telling Google (or Bing) not to show your ad for any search term containing “bachelor.” You … Continue reading →

Earlier this month, Google announced a significant change to their AdWords advertising platform – “Enhanced Campaigns.” The new functionality of “Enhanced Campaigns” allows for more efficient campaign management when advertising across multiple devices – PCs, laptops, tablets, smartphones, hybrid devices, mini-tablets, and more. Here’s a quick look at the specifics behind this change. Why “Enhanced Campaigns”? Accordingly to Google, a recent study of multi-device consumers found that 90% move sequentially between several screens to accomplish a task. When Google realized that potential customers search for brands on computers, tablets and smartphones, they realized they needed to adapt to how users search seamlessly across devices. What Has Changed? If you are running a mobile-targeted campaign, with mobile specific ads, the biggest change is that you are now able to do this without having a separate mobile campaign. You can now mark an ad as “mobile preferred” and Google will know to serve this ad to a mobile search. If your mobile … Continue reading →