Adam Marquardt
With over 80% of internet users now owning a smartphone, more and more searches are being conducted via mobile devices. In fact, according to a study commissioned by Google, 42% of B2B researchers now use mobile for the purchase process.
This article was originally published in EContent Magazine
Sufficed say, if you have a poor search marketing strategy for mobile then you might as well shut down shop and ferry your prospects to your competitors’ doors. The success manufacturing businesses can reap from being accessible on mobile depends on their ability to effectively answer a searcher’s questions.
In manufacturing, users often want a spec or quote on products or to research new solutions to their problems. Even if you have a nicely designed responsive website, you’re not really getting much out of it if it doesn’t pop up for the most relevant searches on mobile.
Here’s a deep dive into mobile search marketing and what you can do to stay ahead of the curve:
1. Use Google AdWords Call Extensions
To be able to display your business phone number directly in search results or have a clickable call button displayed with your ad, you need to utilize Google AdWords Call Extensions.
Setting this up greatly increases the effectiveness of your ads on mobile because it encourages engagement with a simple click of a button, making it easier to access for people on the go.
Call extensions skip the landing page “middle ground” and move the person from a landing page prospect straight to a lead. More importantly, call extensions (as well as other ad extensions) are now included in quality score calculations. The more ad extensions you utilize, the better it is for your ad.
2. Have a Separate Local Targeting Strategy and a Separate National Targeting Strategy
To have truly effective mobile marketing, you need to separate specific strategies for targeting locally and nationally. By having a unique approach for each, you’ll be able to appropriate your resources better and spend on areas that are the most important for your business.
By rule of thumb, national search volume is always larger than its counterpart. That being said, you’ll want to make sure you saturate the market locally first before you move on to a national focus.
You should also keep in mind that a growing number of searches use geographic proximity and localized terms in their searches, so tweak you local ads to reflect this.
3. Match the Search Intent in Your Ads to Search Terms
When looking for a manufacturing service or product, searchers are more likely to click an ad if the copy matches their query.
The closer your copy is to what is being searched, the better click-through you’ll have. Because of this, Google offers advertiser’s lower costs per click if they have highly relevant ads associated with each keyword being searched.
With that in mind, it’s important to strategize your approach to writing your ad. Use a keyword tracking application such as SEMRush to analyze what relevant terms are being searched and apply them creatively to your copy. Remember not to keyword stuff. The goal here is not to deceive everyone into clicking, but for your ideal targeted users to recognize the solution you’re offering, click through, and convert.
4. Use Call Tracking to Measure Data and Improve Performance
If you’re not tracking your calls, you’re missing a grand opportunity to measure data and improve your performance. Phone calls are the most common action taken by website visitors.
If you are not tracking your phone calls then you are missing out on tracking at least 50% of your leads. Lead tracking is important because it gives you the data to determine which keywords and ads are generating the most value per dollar spent.
Additionally, call tracking lets you record calls so you can replay and review how a call is being received on your end. For instance, if you notice calls are dragging on, information may not be communicated as effectively as it should be. You’ll also learn if calls are being received poorly. This will enable you to train the team or individuals in charge of picking up the phone easily and with context on what should be done better.
The Takeaway
Don’t spend your money on mobile search ads without a strategy.
Set a goal and create a mobile ad strategy that puts your target audience at the center. At the end of the day it’s not about what you think makes the perfect ad, but what ad resonates the most with them.
Follow search engine guidelines and utilize the tools they have created. Doing so will help your ad perform more effectively. Don’t forget to pay close attention to data and be sure to tweak your mobile search strategy accordingly.
Of course the most important piece of advice here is to have an overall pleasant user-experience on mobile with a mobile optimized website. It doesn’t matter if your mobile ads appear for the most important queries if searchers bounce off the moment they land on a frustrating non-mobile optimized website.
If they are looking for you via mobile, they will most likely implement the next action whether it’s to conduct research, call, or fill out a form on mobile as well. Don’t miss out on potential customers because of poor mobile experience.