Last week, Google started rolling out a brand new AdWords feature called Search Funnels. It’s still in beta, of course, but we here at Engine Ready have been poking around with it anyway, like all shiny new toys deserve to be poked around with.

So, first things first, what the heck is a Search Funnel, and why the heck is it capitalized?

Well, you know how sometimes people don’t always buy things or sign up on the first click of your ad? Yes? Maybe?

Yes, sometimes they don’t. In fact, sometimes it takes quite a few search queries and clicks before a customer ever gets to the check out lane or sign-up form. That means, in a nutshell, that your PPC campaigns aren’t necessarily getting all the credit they deserve, especially when a customer does something like click on your ad, check things out, decide what they want, then wait until their paycheck comes in or their wife approves to get to your site organically and buy everything.

This is where the Search Funnel comes in. No longer will your campaigns be undercut by indecisive or vacillating searchers, because AdWords will be keeping tabs on every single click and query that leads to a conversion.

To put it simply: Search Funnel equals conversion path. All roads lead to the conversion, and the Search Funnel is the map.

So how do you check out this nifty new Search Funnel feature?

In your AdWords account, hover over the Reporting tab and click Conversions. Then, on the next screen, hit the Search Funnels option on the left hand side. This brings you to an overview of all your conversions, including stats on the average days, ad clicks, and ad impressions to conversion, among others.

So far, we’re still playing around with all the different data the Search Funnel feature provides, and we suggest that you do the same. While it might not change your entire outlook on conversion reporting in AdWords, it does provide some very valuable insight anyway. And yes, people can still switch computers and clear their cookies, so the system isn’t entirely perfect, but it’s still another step closer to the goal of happier optimizing.

Want more information on Search Funnels? Google’s got it covered.

Adwords, conversion improvement, conversion reporting

If business is war, then landing page testing and development are pitched battles to win consumers over competitors. Just as in war, the first thing we do in developing landing pages is to create a strategy

This is the process we use in Engine Ready’s landing page development section. First we like to list out strengths and weaknesses of a clients offer, product, or service.

For this example let’s say our new client makes stand up desks (a hot topic in the office lately!)

These are the strong points of their product:

- Numerous Health benefits to using one over a traditional desk.

How is it healthier? Answer: Better for posture and back. Aids digestions and increases calorie consumption by burning an additional 60 calories per hour over a sit down desk. Breaking this out for someone uses a desk 8 hours a day 5 days a week leads to burning an additional 9,600 calories per month.

- Client reports receiving emails from customers who are very pleased by their new stand up desk.

If someone pays full price for a product or service and still writes a thank you note to the company they’re more than a satisfied customer. If it’s possible, we like to speak with them directly. A conversation with a customer evangelist can be very beneficial to the development of a strong landing page.

- Height Adjustment is very easy.

Since it’s easy to adjust, it’s especially well suited for home offices where more than one person uses the same computer. And for companies where more than one person uses the same work station.

This is the weakness of the product

- It’s 9% more expensive than similar desks.

Why is it more expensive? The main reason is that because our client is smaller he does not get the same discounts larger manufacturers get when they buy materials in bulk.

There’s not much we can do with this.

Almost as a side note, the client mentions that the ball bearing system in the adjustment arm he uses is more expensive. Why? Because he uses Swiss made ball bearings and pulley system which are better quality. What does this mean to the consumer? It’s smoother to adjust than other standup desks.

After bouncing ideas around we decide on turning the weakness of the price comparison to competitors into the focus of the pitch.

We do this by building text around this theme:

“The only stand up desk with the Glide Adjustment System. It might be a bit more expensive but over the life of your desk it’s less than a penny a day.

Because all stand up desks provide the same health benefits, the secondary focus will be the calorie burning and health benefits.

From there, we fill out the rest of the page with applicable text and order a 15 second video clip showing an elderly woman adjusting the desk height.

For the first split test we reverse the benefits focus and make the health features the main focus and the glide adjustment the secondary point.

If  you’re considering landing page development, why not give Engine Ready a call?  We’d love to speak with you!

Engine Ready, Internet Marketing, Landing Page Development, Landing Page Optimization, Landing Page Testing, search marketing

EDIT: Use promo code “ENGINEREADY” when reserving your seat and received a $200 discount

Engine Ready’s very own President and CEO, Jamie Smith, and Vice President Brian Lewis will each be holding sessions at the AdWords Advantage Online Summit, which will run from March 9^th to the 30^th.

Jamie will be hosting his session, Promoting to the Right People at the Right Time: Advanced Ad Scheduling & Geo-Targeting Techniques, on March 11^th at 10 a.m. Pacific (that would be 1 p.m. Eastern). He’ll be discussing how to use advanced ad scheduling and geo-targeting techniques in order to lower ad spend and cost per sale, as well as dupe your competitors into thinking you’re no longer marketing in AdWords. Tricky cool, right?

Brian will be holding his session on March 18^th at 10 a.m. Pacific (again, 1 p.m. Eastern). In his session, called 30 Tips in 60 Minutes for Converting More AdWords Visitors into Buyers, Brian will delve into the acronym M.O.R.E. and how it can increase conversions on any landing page. In the end, he’ll have 30 tips to convert AdWords visitors into buyers, just like the session name implies.

Everyone here at Engine Ready, including Jamie and Brian, invite you to check out their sessions. The good news is, the summit will be held online, so there’s no need to worry about getting there. Just sign up and sit back.

Registration (and more information) can be found here: www.AdWordsAdvantage.com

AdWords Advantage, Conferences, Engine Ready, Industry Events

Engine Ready’s President and CEO, Jamie Smith, and Vice President Brian Lewis have been co-hosting a segment on Webmaster Radio called Best Search Strategies. A very concise name, don’t you think?

Along with co-host Jim Ledger, Jamie and Brian delve into topics like keyword monitoring, Google product extensions, the latest studies and observations from all of us on the Engine Ready team, our Conversion Critic software, and much more fun stuff. Their latest segment, in which they discuss competitive intelligence and keyword strategies, can be found here: Advanced Competitive Intelligence Tools.

Each (approximately) 30-minute show is aired monthly, and can be streamed online or downloaded as a podcast. They’ve been doing this since July of last year, so there are quite a few interesting shows in the backlog if you want to catch up. And their next broadcast is due any minute now, so make sure you stay tuned here: Best Search Strategies.

Conversion Critic, Engine Ready, Industry Events, Keywords, Webmaster Radio