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Search is one of the most frequently used online tools among US adults. A 2012 Pew Internet Survey found that 91% of adults use search engines to find information on the Web. This survey also revealed that younger and more educated people, meaning current or prospective college students, are most likely to use search engines. So for these young people, when they make one of the biggest decisions of their life — where to go to college — search is one of the top few resources they use to narrow down their choice. This was confirmed by another Noel Levitz survey of 2,000 college bound students which found that search engines are the second most used resource by prospective students for researching colleges. The popularity of search engines in this user group has led to a huge increase in search engine marketing – both PPC and SEO – in the higher education marketing space. An interesting story recently aired on … Continue reading
Posted in: Inbound Marketing, paid advertising agency, pittsburgh paid advertising agency, Pittsburgh SEO agency
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What are some factors to keep in mind when making the decision to invest in higher education digital marketing channels?
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
Retargeting is a form of online advertising that can help you keep your brand in front of prospects or customers after they leave your website. Did you know that 98% of visitors leave websites without converting?! That means that for every 100 visitors to your website, only two are likely to take a next step with you, whether that means making a purchase, completing a form, signing up for an event, or taking another concrete action. For most websites, only 2% of web traffic converts on the first visit. The rest of your visitors may spend a minute or two on your site and then leave, possibly without plans to return. Retargeting helps you reach the 98% of visitors to your website who did not initially convert. How does it work? Retargeting is a cookie-based technology that uses a Javascript code to anonymously ‘follow’ your audience all over the web. When a person visits a site that is tagged for … Continue reading
Many people approach PPC and SEO as completely separate strategies. But if your PPC and SEO campaigns aren’t talking to each other, you’re wasting time and money. It’s important to share insights learned in each area to avoid duplicated efforts and missed opportunities. When used strategically, PPC can actually help your SEO strategy. Here are a couple of things to consider: When running PPC, you can see what specific search terms are getting clicks and driving leads. It’s important to factor this in when deciding which keywords are best to optimize for organically. You’ll dominate the search engine results page when you effectively optimize both efforts: PPC + SEO = 2/20 listings. Increasing the visibility of your brand is always beneficial. Dominating the paid and organic search results will prove that you’re an established presence in your market, and greatly increase traffic as a result. Here you can see where our client’s PPC ad is in the #1 PPC spot … 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
Are you seeing a decline in visits to your website this month? Did that decline, perhaps, begin in November?
Do not fear! You’re probably part of one of many industries that feel the effect of seasonal traffic. For most, December is the worst month.
At Elliance, we believe that a mix of smart website structure and content, search engine optimization and pay per click (PPC) work can effectively grow the pool of international prospects.
Here are some areas to focus on when you consider a PPC campaign for recruiting international students.
Over the last few months, I shared some important factors to consider when writing PPC (pay-per-click) ads: What’s in an Ad? Writing Effective PPC Ad Copy, Part 1 What’s in an Ad? Writing Effective PPC Ad Copy, Part 2 Today, I want to wrap up this short series, and conclude with some of the successes we’ve seen specifically with higher education paid search ads. So far we’ve discussed using these best practices to ensure successful PPC ad performance: Include keywords in your ad that relate to the search query Include brand name in your ad Use numbers – pricing, dates, percentages Use strong call to actions Call out specific deadlines Use a phone number dedicated to PPC for tracking Emphasize that your ad is yours with “official site” Highlight rankings (e.g. “top ranked by the Princeton Review”) The last thing I want point out for consideration with higher education paid search ads specifically: location, location, location! Include the actual city … Continue reading
Last month, I shared some important factors to consider when writing PPC (pay-per-click) ads Part 1. Today, I want to share some thoughts about writing effective PPC ads that are industry specific — particularly for higher education paid marketing campaigns — and ensuring that they fit into your competitive mix. 1. Use strong call to actions. Here are a few that are definitely worth testing: > Phone number to request information (ensure the phone number is dedicated to only inquiries coming from your PPC ads so you can track back to your PPC campaign and overall marketing totals) > Dates of info sessions (consider testing months vs. exact dates to see which convert best for you) > Application deadlines 2. Emphasize that your ad is yours. For higher education paid marketing, particularly with all of the lead aggregators out there, it’s important that prospects know that your ad really leads to you. > One particular phrase that has always performed … Continue reading