Google AdWords is one of the most effective ways to grow your business. Google once reported that businesses make an average of $2 in revenue for every $1 they spend on AdWords.
The prospects seem seductive, but many businesses leave wads of cash on the table by not employing the right strategies. And for many, the technicalities involved are discouraging.
Whether you’re starting out and deem AdWords a good call, or you already have it as a game plan, this article will show you how to improve your Quality Score by optimizing your landing page.
What is a Quality Score?
Simply, a quality score is the quantified quality of your ads, which are weighed on a scale of 1 to 10 – where 1 is the lowest and 10, the highest.
Quality isn’t merely perceived; three factors are always taken into consideration: landing page experience, expected click-through rate, and ad relevance.
Why You Need to Improve your Quality Score.
The following are some opportunities that an improved quality score offers:
- An Increased Ad Rank: A substantial increase in your quality score shoots your ads some levels up in paid search rankings. This comes in handy in boosting visibility and increasing your website’s traffic.
- Reduced Budget: An increased ad rank will, in turn, tighten your belt as regards your daily Adwords budget. All you’ve got to put in is the least amount needed to beat your immediate competitor.
- Positive ROI: Of course, gaining more while paying less will enhance your return on investment.
Follow these tips to optimize your landing page for a better quality score:
#1. Reduce Page Load Time
Google thinks well of landing pages that load swiftly. This is a no-brainer, as it’s assumed that a super fast webpage is less likely to piss users off and to offer a better experience. Thus, efforts must be made to turbocharger speed. Katharyn Aragon provides a number of ways by which this can be done.
View Google’s Page Speed Insights, to better understand what is required of your landing page.
#2. No Deception – Let Your Landing Page Speak Your Ad’s Language
Most of the time, users click an ad after sighting eye-popping items. Thus, you’ll be killing your business by repaying prospects’ interest with a turnoff as a landing page. Take time to structure your landing page in such ways as will reflect your ad’s intent. Magento exemplifies this:
As can be seen, the ad highlights the major features of Magento’s services. And underneath the features are three calls-to-action. After clicking the ad title, you’ll find the following page:
The above landing page isn’t an unknown zone. It fulfills all expectations triggered by the ad. Hence, it speaks the ads’ language and is a good example.
#3. Make It Responsive and Mobile Friendly
A web developer who isn’t thinking mobile isn’t worth your penny. Google abhors webpages that aren’t optimized for mobile devices. In April 2016, its algorithm was updated to rank sites perceived as ‘mobile-friendly’ higher in mobile search results. And, today, mobile friendliness is a yardstick for ranking users’ landing page experience.
A mobile-friendly page must be responsive – it should be flexible enough to fit any screen size. To keep pace with the requirements, here are some tips on how to create a responsive website.
Also, exclude elements that are likely to impede your page’s performance and appearance in mobile devices. These include flash, relatively large texts and images, poorly spaced content, and many more.
You can use the Mobile-Friendly Test Tool, Mobile Usability Report, and Hubspot’s Website Grader to measure your website’s mobile-friendliness.
#4. Get Rid Of Interstitial Ads:
As of now, this is a must-do. Google recently asserted its decision to soon clamp down on sites that display intrusive interstitial and popup ads on mobile devices.
If you use these, now is the time to stop. Being obstinate will not only make your search ranking plummet but also make your Quality Score fall flat. Your landing page must be seamless.
Prospects need to navigate your landing page. So make it easy for them.
First, a clean and well-arranged layout should be used. Each section must serve a specific purpose.
If your landing page is meant to drive conversions, establish a clear opt-in form and call-to-action.
Showing navigation bars is useful only if your landing page is strictly meant to provide information about your business, and not drive conversions. According to research, users are more likely to get distracted and to not fill a form in the presence of navigation bars. In this case, your call-to-action must be enticing enough to make prospects take the desired action and explore other parts of your website.
If your landing page is meant to inform, navigation bars should be displayed conspicuously. This will decrease bounce rates, and flaunt your page’s quality right at Google’s face.
#6. Be Credible And Ask Permission:
Your landing page should look, and be credible. Where there is a form, make explicit why you need a user’s information, what you’ll do with it, and also promise privacy.
For example, the above landing page above why users need to fill in their personal information (to “reserve your grove”) and promises security.
Conclusion
Managing an Adwords campaign might come off as a herculean task. But, using the right strategies, massive opportunities abound. This article reveals some ways by which your Quality Score can be increased for maximum benefits. Make the necessary changes right away.
