Don't 'Pray Per Click’: Improve PPC Performance With Quality Score

There is a fundamental process to search engine marketing that you can use to improve click through and conversion rates - as well as lower your average cost per click - that doesn’t involve devising any cunning tactics or holding top-secret board meetings: improving your ads’ ‘Quality Score’.

Google defines the Quality Score as the relevancy of your ad to the user’s original search query and intent; those with higher scores tend to be charged a lower cost per click rate by Google than others.

Here are four of the main factors used to determine your Quality Score:

• How does your click-through rate compare to similar ads for the same search query?
• How many people are leaving your landing page straight away?
• How close does your ad text and landing page content match the original search query?
• How well has your average click through rates performed historically?

Therefore, you can improve your Quality Score by making sure your ads are:

• Targeted to the correct search phrase, with it included in the ad and landing page copy
• Clear in intent at the beginning (are you asking people to buy today or sign-up for a free newsletter?)
• As attractive to users as possible through entertaining copy, special offers and smart design

By doing this, you will ensure your ads get a strong click-through rate; that people do not instantly hit the back button when they arrive (bounce), and are more likely to convert into sales.

So revise your ad text and landing pages constantly to deliver relevant content that matches the search content closely to push your Quality Score up, and your cost per click down when using search engine marketing.