Search Marketing Experts Since 1995 Anton E. Konikoff Acronym Media December 4, 2006.

Search Marketing Experts Since 1995

Anton E. KonikoffAcronym Media

December 4, 2006


Another job interview at Acronym..

Anton: Why do you think ad testing is important?

Candidate:Mmm.. So that you can increase the click through rate….?


Why Engage in Ad Testing?

• Get quantifiable insights in a controlled environment

• Understand messaging effectiveness

• Identify the most attractive product offerings/benefits

• Create the optimal search campaign that maximizes ROAS/ROI


More Compelling Image?


Responder Set


Clear Winner!

39.3% 58.1%


Search Provides a Perfect Platform for Testing

• Google democratized the concept – Everyone feels like a research pro– Need for careful experiment design

• Keeping it simple (for now)– CTR and conversion rates– Memorability, brand perception by demo next?

• Direct Marketers’R’Us– No assumptions; let customer voice be heard


Fundamentals of Ad Testing – Where Can You Test?

Google/MSN – Allows for a controlled environment with Ad Rotation

• Ad Rotation – Ability to rotate multiple creatives for a group of similar keywords.

• Google automatically delivers the ad with the higher Click-through Rate (CTR) more frequently.

– Turn this option off when doing ad testing to ensure equal delivery of ad variations


Ad Testing on Google


Fundamentals of Ad Testing - Where Can You Test?

Yahoo & Other Engines- Ad rotation is currently not available in Yahoo! and Tier II engines

– These engines have a 1:1 keyword-ad copy relationship

– Ad tests for Yahoo! and other engines can be conducted by rotating in different ads at different times

• Example: For 2 weeks, use ad copy A. For the next two weeks, use ad copy B, and so on

• Changing with Yahoo Panama release


Fundamentals: Key Metrics

• Click-Through Rate (CTR) – How attractive is your ad or offering– Which messaging is more effective

at driving traffic – A high CTR allows ads to maintain the same

position with lower bids due to increased Quality Score

• Conversion Rate By Ad – Ultimate measure of success! – Capability to track both on a keyword and ad creative level

through Google Value Track and similar systems


Effective Ad Testing Strategies


Ad Testing Setup

How Much to Test?• Small budgets: 3-4 ads • Larger budgets: 5+ ads

• Allow enough time and spend

Data sample size• How much data should be collected before

evaluating ad copies?• At least 100 clicks, ideally at least 1,000 clicks


Tactics For Title Lines/Display URL

• Title Lines– Leverage your titles lines to closely

match the keywords in your ad group

• Display URLs – Use display URL to test additional messaging:

• Paltalk.com/FreeTrial” vs. “Paltalk.com” as display URL


Description Lines

• Keep your title line consistent to test descriptions, then test titles

• Create a variety of description lines using a themed approach:

– Price Points “All Time Low Price!”– Official Site “Visit Official Site”– Time Sensitive/Urgency “Buy Now!” “Apply by

12/6”– Promotional Offers “Save 50% With Coupon!”– Language Variations “Join Now” Vs. “Signup Now”


Award-Winning

Unique

• Tested three themes of ad copy across all ad groups• Discovered that the “Award-Winning” theme had the

highest CTR with a 11.72% and highest conversion rates

Klutz Toys – Themed Copy Testing

How-to


More Granular Ad Testing

• Punctuation‘Try Free Today!’ vs ‘Try Free Today.’

• CapitalizationSirius.com vs SIRIUS.com in display URL

• Proper Case vs. Sentence Case‘Get Free Trial Now. Vs.. ‘Get free trial now.’

• Accent Usage vs. Non-Accent UsageUseful in foreign language campaigns

• Keyword Insertion vs. Non-Keyword InsertionUsing Keyword Insertion in titles will almost always increase CTR, but

not necessarily improve the conversion rate


Sirius Radio Case Study

• $30 rebate OR Low Subscription Fee of $9.99/month • Test Period: 1 Month

$30 Off One Free Month

PPC Referrals 27,856 28,412

Click-Through Rate 4.5% 3.5%

Conversion Rate By Ad 3.5% 1.5%

$30 Rebate Free Trial


Ad Testing: Path to Success

• Start with the most straightforward test

• Try multiple (and radical) hypotheses

• Keep up a testing regimen TEST TEST TEST, then INVEST

• Set aside a budget for testing

• Reserve multivariate testing for Stage 7


Be curious. Don’t settle. Always Be Testing.

“What we have to do is to be forever curiously testing new opinions and courting new impressions.”

Walter PaterEnglish Writer and Critic,

1873


Contact Information

Questions? (or for a visit to the top of the Empire State Building):

Anton KonikoffAcronym [email protected]

www.acronym.com

Search Marketing Experts Since 1995 Anton E. Konikoff Acronym Media December 4, 2006.

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