Google Advertising Made Easy For Small Businesses

With online advertising spend overtaking TV advertising last year for the first time, and the majority spent on Google Adwords, clearly SMEs need to understand how to master Google to survive and grow online.

The benefits of Google Advertising versus offline are clear: low cost commitment, high level of control, high measurability, the ability to perform accurate geo targeting of customers, and the ability to react quickly to improve performance.

The issues SMEs face are considerable: limited time and money (75% of SMEs from a recent survey ran advertising campaigns direct and not via an agency to save money), yet very few feel they understand how to optimise campaigns with 46% of the survey saying they don’t understand it enough to make campaigns work effectively and 39% saying they don’t have time to manage the campaigns. Fifty-two per cent said their campaigns were not profitable, with 54% saying they get traffic to their site but very little converts to actual business.


There also is the fear factor: the fear from the mountain of questions such as whether to use Google’s Search or Network service, an agency or to run campaigns directly, what the optimal levels to spend are, what is a good ROI, how to make banner ads, and how to use the Google tools and reports to optimise campaigns.

In terms of the agency versus direct question, the advantages of using an agency are the experience you tap into and the time saved as campaigns can be live the same day. The disadvantages are cost (with fixed monthly charges, a percentage charge on advertising spend and 6-12 month lock in contracts).

The Search versus Network question on Google depends on the nature of your advertising. If the service is very niche and specific to a limited number of keywords then Search is the better option, otherwise you should pick up businesses from the cheaper network showing banner ads.

Banner ads can be a costly exercise and SMEs should try and use a quality online service.

In terms of optimising campaigns, there are a number of techniques including AB testing of different ad styles, developing specific keyword journeys (from keyword to ad text to content on the landing pages) to build up Quality Scores and lower the cost per click paid, testing board and narrow keyword terms, long versus short tail, optimising between click through rate, impressions and conversion rates on your site, to name a few.

In short optimising on Google Adwords is possible and can deliver real value to your online business but it needs focussed daily management. Alternatives include using an agency specialised in Google Advertising and working specifically with smaller businesses.

Adam Singleton writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.

Tags: google, traffic, advertising campaigns, adwords, time and money, niche, converts, limited time, optimal levels, contracts, tv advertising, fear factor, costly exercise

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Source: http://www.a1articles.com/article_1599175_7.html

How to Rank Higher in Google Local Business Listings!

Google offers a free business listing to small businesses at the top of most local search results pages. Local Google Advertising is what we're after when we talk about Google's local business listing center. Anatomy of a Google search result page:

*Listings on the right side bar are paid advertisements, often called "sponsored links" *The main body of a search result page are called the "organic" or "natural" search listings *At the very top in a colored text box are also paid advertisements, sponsored links *Above the organic listings are "Google Local Business Listings" This wiki deals with only with the Local Business Listings

You will notice a map associated with each listing, this is because Google used the existing infrastructure of Google Maps to implement the free business listings. It's generally thought that Google offered this free service, and gave its location on a search result page prominence above the organic listings because of the popularity of Google's Adwords program.

Adwords is a PPC (pay per click) advertising system where keywords and keyword phrases are bid on in an auction like system. The immense popularity of Adwords priced smaller Mom n Pop stores out of the market due to the ever escalating costs of certain keywords. Google became fearful that it's search platform would be return search results of the "rich and famous" thus reflecting only what the rich and powerful wanted seen on Google search results.

How does Google determine which website should rank higher than another? Google uses a computer program algorithm based on hundreds of factors as the vast size of the internet precludes any human capability of keeping the listings accurate or current. That algorithm is a closely guarded trade secret within Google. Search Engine Optimization Consultants learn what Google apparently likes and doesn't like from the observable behavior of search results.

Local Business Listings IS Googlemaps Google Maps algorithm is different from the algorithm that anoints one site over another. It's also slower to update. If your customers leave glowing reviews of your product or service on the link provided your site will climb in rank. You are permitted up to 10 photos of your product or service, use as many of those slots as possible. Fill out as much information about your business as space allotted provides, being verbose is better than being succinct when it comes to Google Local Business Listings



Many small businesses get leads and interested inquiries from a local business listing even if they don't have a website url. Still other small businesses find it unnecessary to have their company listed anywhere other than the top local business listings. If your listing falls in ranking or is bumped out of it's spot by a newcomer and you find your company losing sales because of it, you may want to outsource your rankings management to a local search engine optimization firm.

The fees involved for a local business listing may be less than the fees for improving your company website's organic listing.

What Determines Rank? Ever wonder why your companies listing in Google does OK in the main body of Google's search results page but is not in the top 10 of those pesky Google Local Business Listings?

Ultimately what you want is to be found in BOTH sets of listings, the net effect of which would be to drive home in your prospective customers Mind's Eye that Google apparently thinks pretty highly of your company if Google is displaying YOUR company listing in the Local Business Listings and in the Organic Search Rankings.

Well, people's perception and Google's reality are far, far apart.

Google didn't *pick* you to be #1 and your competitor to be #11

A computer program picked you over the hapless fella you compete with. A person did not visit your site, take notes, compare notes, make a decision, hear the belly aching and whining of the poor fool who got bumped off of his front page listed by a website that ranked better than his...

nope, an algorithm picked you over them.

Think about it... there are what? a Gazillion webpages already indexed in Google? And how many tens of thousands of new webpages being created as we speak? Some of those tens of thousands are being "generated" by a "bot".

There is no way on God's Green Earth a staff of humans could possibly keep up with that kind of volume. An algorithm did it. The robot that scours the Internet (in the SEO industry we call that "spidering") is titled GoogleBot



GoogleBot Can't Really *Read*

GoogleBot can NOT read... but it CAN count

Googlebot counts the words on your webpage, it counts the keywords and keyword phrases you use in your copy. Is y0ur company website a little light on copy? Too bad for you.

It matters little to Googlebot if the fancy flash graphic and dramatic digital photos depicting your most important product are... well the damn thing can't decipher a photo! but it CAN read text.

What ever makes your photos good, better or best and likewise your competitors photos crappy is subjective. Art is subjective, math is not.

Either the keywords are on your webpage (Prominently placed at the top of the page I hope) or the keyw0rds are not.

He who has the most keywords (elegantly, tactfully and deftly constructed with proper enough grammar for the spell checking programmed Googlebot to index).. Wins that coveted top spot!

But... the Google Local Business Listings are a different story. The algorithm that runs it is different.

What Google is looking for and rewards when it sees it for the organic search results page (the body of the page) is one thing. What Googlebot is looking to see in the Free Local Google Advertising Listings is quite another.

I'm not about to reveal the entire loophole in a "Google Secrets Revealed" post, not even for a hefty $1000 fee for an ebook (I'd do it for that price if it were ticket sales to a seminar and I got a couple dozen of you to buy $1000 tickets to eagerly learn how I do what it is I do) (that's in the works by the way)

No, I'm not telling, not the whole thing but I will give you a hint, and I'm giving said hint in the form of my own Maryland search engine optimization results. This is not theory, This is not alleged, What follows is battle tested.

I'm competing against the best of the best, the top guys and gals in Maryland: other SEO professionals. Link building technicians like me:)

If your customers leave glowing reviews... and they leave them USING a gmail account, and that Gmail account is associated with a Google Profile, and the person leaving the review has a picture or avatar uploaded to that Google Profile... Your Google local business listing will climb in ranking. There are other ways to improve your ranking in Googlemaps, the purpose of this blog post is not to tell you EVERYTHING Frederick Web Promotions can do to improve your ranking, the purpose of this particular blog post is to:

* Educate you about Google Local Business Listings * Let you know there are things you can do to improve y0ur ranking * Help you improve your ranking for free * Once you see that this works, you'll begin to see that I know what I'm talking about and you'll subscribe to this blog * Tease you enough want to learn more and subscribe to my main website's mailing list at Maryland Search Engine Marketing

Many of you know you have to do something, you're reading this to research if there's anything you can do to "make the phone ring" in this challenging economy. More than a few of you will learn that you know you want to do something about SEO (search engine optimization) but simply don't have the time... and you'll hire me to get YOUR company website dominating the local Google search results!

David Bruce is a Local Google Advertising Consultant, Local Organic Search Ranking Expert and professional blogger with over 100 blogs.

Company Facebook Pages Ghostwritten

Tags: google, local search, keyword phrases, search engine optimization, adwords, pay per click advertising, natural search, computer program, google search results, advertising system, immense popularity, search listings, google maps, pop stores, local business listings.

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Source: http://www.a1articles.com/article_1248996_62.html

Earn Money by Google Advertising!

Google is one of the best search engines and it is a gigantic money-making machine that provides you with several money making strategies out of which Google advertising is one of them. Did you know that by this method of advertising, you can earn money from your blogs too? In fact, this is the talk that is prevailing over the internet forums everywhere.
Some statistics clearly show that most of the internet users depend solely on Google to search for any information on the earth. Some of them look for products to buy and some of them look for ways to sell their products. This is definitely the best search engine that produces so many meaningful results that you never have to look back to any other search engine. The simple user-interface it has is one of the main advantages.


First step towards earning money through this strategy requires that you have to boost your website or blog’s popularity. Using some simple techniques, you can make sure that your web pages appear on the top of Google. For this to happen, you need to learn the tricks that will help you go about this procedure. Also, you can take professional aid from companies that are known to provide best search engine optimization to websites. This is in fact the only way left to increase the popularity of your link and also boost the web traffic.
Earning money through Google advertising is relatively simpler and it does not involve any rocket science that only professionals can handle. Most of the time some simple strategies can take you a long way and to make you successful. This is such a down to earth procedure that no matter whether you are a novice or an expert, you can make money easily by this strategy. The only thing it requires is that you know some basics of internet marketing and work consistently.


The best part about this advertising is that you are given enough opportunity to implement your own ideas and designs in making adverts and also use your keywords that you think will impact your business in the right way. Once your adverts are ready, you can choose the PPC or pay per click ads services that will help you place your website in the top pages of the search results. Thus, more customers are attracted to your website and your business improves and you can make money through this Google advertising.

At the end of this article, I'd like to share cool website with more information on related topics like Google Advertising and Internet Marketing . Visit for more information.

Tags: google, web pages, novice, search engine optimization, popularity, web traffic, internet users, adverts, other search engine, best search engine, user interface, earning money, best search engines, rocket science, down to earth, internet forums, meaningful results, righ, professional aid, basics of internet

Google Adsense Boost with Google Advertising!

1: Google Advertising is by far the most direct marketing system ever invented. You actually get to place your ad directly in front of a prospect that has searched on a term related to your product or business. Your prospect is proactively looking for what you have to offer. You cannot get a more targeted form of advertising.

2: Market research has never been easier. You now have the opportunity with Google advertising to measure a markets value quickly and cheaply simply by targeting a few ads at this market. With a few targeted Pay Per Click advertising campaigns you can now measure potential ROI across a whole market within a few days for pennies rather than the months and big bucks it used to demand.

3: Market to the planet or to your small hometown. With the introduction of local targeting last year Google Advertising have opened up a whole new opportunity for small businesses. If you offer a service such as a garage or hairdressers etc. before now there was little point in using Google advertising. You can't offer this service over the web. But now with local search you can pinpoint a district for which you would like your ad to appear. Your ad will then appear only to your most likely prospects. At the other extreme if you offer a product that is not reliant on physical location you can now get highly targeted visitor from across the planet or country.

4: If you have a new site you will struggle for a long time to get anywhere near a good listing in the search engines. Google advertising will allow you to take your business straight to market the day your website goes live. Saving you months in potential lost earnings.

5: Recent innovations have seen Advertisers given more control in where their Adwords Ad will appear. You now have the option to advertise on specific sites. Even more recently site owners now also have the option to place a banner on their site advertising the opportunity to visitors to advertise there.

6: Variety. Although Adwords is the leading Google advertising system it's by far the only one. Yahoo have their own system known as Yahoo Search Marketing, formally Overture. MSN are about to bring their new system online, MSN adCenter. Then there's Findwhat, LookSmart, Miva etc. Are your chosen keywords to costly on Adwords? Try one of the other Google advertising networks.

7: Opportunity favours the quick and the prepared. Google and online advertising spending in general is set rocket over the next few years as more and more businesses become disillusioned with the results of their traditional advertising avenues. By learning to utilize Google advertising properly now you can position yourself to take advantage of future developments fast.

Conclusion

As more businesses come online SEO competition is hotting up. Google Advertising already implements a 'Sandbox' which will see new sites get very little traffic for 8 to 12 months after going live. The sandbox is a 'holding pen' for new sites. Google introduced the sandbox as a means to monitor and control new site listings. This was introduced as a defence against the rash of Spam sites that where appearing across the Net.

This being the case don't expect a good ranking or any traffic from Google Advertising for a long time after your new site goes live.

Some cynics will accuse Google Advertising of leveraging their position as market leader in the Search Engine arena to force the owners of new sites to join the Adwords program as the only option for traffic from Google.

To be fair it has crossed my mind in the past but then I remember the Spam results Google suddenly started serving back in March 2004 and I'm thankful I don't see those anymore, thanks in part to the Sandbox.

Google advertising is the fastest route to site traffic