by Sali Earls
We've already covered the set up of a Google AdWords campaign here on itwales.com, but this article will show you the pros and cons of the programme compared to the nearest rival - Overture.
Pay per click search providers are a highly effective way to attract targeted traffic to your website. The adverts are selected for viewing in the same was as the search engine lists web pages, in that a user enters a search terms and the most relevant pages and adverts are displayed. But the difference with a pay per click campaign is that you have the ability to affect your listing by simply increasing or decreasing the amount you are prepared to pay or adapting your advert.
You set a daily budget and maximum cost per click, and this, combined with the click through rate for your chosen search terms sets your ranking for any given moment. You are charged for each click on your advert that brings a visitor directly to your website. Often you can buy this search engine traffic for as little as a few pence per click, but very popular search terms can cost much more.
AdWords has something to offer companies of all sizes, but the startup and ongoing costs are extremely attractive to small companies, or those with limited marketing budgets.
For an investment of £5.00 activation fee, and a minimum cost per click of 4 pence, AdWords offers a targeted and easy to use programme with potentially great results at a minimal cost. The user decides the ongoing cost of the campaign with daily budgets starting from the same 4 pence, to an upper limit at the users discretion.
The account is billed every 30 days, and funds are automatically taken from the credit card, or bank transfer used to set up the account. The account is charged every time the advert is clicked on, so users pay retrospectively.
Adverts can be targeted to potential customers in over 250 countries and 14 languages, and this is defined as the first step in each campaign. If choosing an alternative language, the adverts, which must adhere to Google's editorial guidelines, need to be written in that language.
The editorial guidelines, while stringent, are designed to ensure that users set the most effective campaigns from the start. The rules, which are automatically checked, range from spelling and grammatical errors, to disallowing claims such as "We're the best" etc. Should you disagree with the ruling, you can contact Google with your reasons - for example Google's own branding of "AdWords" made up of two separate words written together would most likely be disallowed, and require proof that it is in fact a company name or product brand.
Recently introduced is a conversion tracking module which helps users identify the keywords that deliver buying visitors to your website. To set this up, you will need to have an AdWords campaign running, and also need to edit the HTML code of your website to include Google's tracking code. The unique thing about this is that you can track conversions for any online advertising campaigns you run using Google's code, including those with Overture.
Google AdWords puts the control of the campaign in the hands of the user thanks to a range of easy to use online performance reports, giving instant access to the account.
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Cons:
Overture were the original pay per click search engine, and still offer one of the top solutions on the market. However, unlike Google AdWords, the time it takes to setup an advert, and the ongoing costs make it perhaps a little less attractive to small companies, or those with limited budgets.
Overture offer two options to set up your account. There is a "Fast Track" option for those who would like to see their adverts online quickly - in this case, within 3 business days - and require assistance with the advertising copy, keyword selection and account management. This assistance costs £79.00. The alternative to "Fast Track" is "Self Service", where the user sets up their own account, and can expect to see their advert online within 10 business days.
Unlike Google AdWords, the Overture account needs to be in credit so funds can be taken at the time of the advert click through. A requirement of use is that £60.00 is initially deposited in the Overture user account, with an ongoing monthly deposit of £20.00 required. This £20.00 is the campaign's monthly click through requirement, and if users fall short of that they will be charged the difference, meaning that an Overture campaign costs at least £20.00 per month to run. If the advert is offline for anytime during the month, the £20.00 cost still stands, unless the advert is offline for the entire month, in which case the cost is waived for that month. Should the account run out of funds at any time, Overture will stop the campaign running, and a deposit equivalent to at least 3 days worth of click through charges - based on the most recent activity of the account - is required to reactivate the campaign.
Overture recommends that users select at least 20 search terms, or keywords for each campaign, and that they write a separate advert for each term. Adverts are reviewed by Overture's editorial staff to ensure that the website linked to actually contains the content visitors are looking for, and specified in the advert.
Once a "Self Service" campaign advert is processed, users receive an email from Overture staff to inform them that the advert is live. Those users opting for a "Full Service" campaign receive a proposal of relevant keywords, bidding strategies, and advertising copy within 5 business days of request. The user then has to email approval of the proposal for Overture to put the advert online. Once live, the adverts appear on a variety of UK sites including Yahoo!, MSN and AltaVista.
Overture also offer a conversion tracking tool, but this works by placing a "cookie" on the visitor's browser. When the visitor reaches the Overture user's transaction completion page - sales confirmation, or sign up - the conversion is registered, and linked to the visitor's previous search. The cookie is active for 30 days, so users can track conversions even if your visitors do not convert the first time they visit the website.
A new offering from Overture is "Auto Bidding" which allows users to set the maximum they are prepared to pay per click, then adjusts the cost per click to provide the best price. Users pay only 1 penny more than the maximum selected bid of the next highest competitor without exceeding their own maximum bid.
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While Overture has been available for several years as an evolving programme, Google AdWords appears to have stripped out everything considered unnecessary and provided an online marketing solution that is cost effective and easy to use.
For small companies, or those with limited marketing budgets, a commitment to an ongoing monthly spend may not be an option, and a quick turnaround time of adverts from an initial idea to an online presence can be very important.
In defining the pros and cons of each offering, I have highlighted the costs, as this is a consideration when choosing a package. In an ideal world there would be no set up fee, and the minimum cost per click would be 1 penny.
There is no doubt that Overture are very successful at what they do, have many satisfied customers and provide over 5.7 million targeted leads to those customers each day, but for organisations who need to watch their spending, and attract new customers quickly, Google AdWords is an altogether more appealing option.
Useful links:
Google AdWords