A fantastic digital marketing seminar hosted by our MD, David

David Mitchell hosting a seminar to regional business owners about digital marketing

On behalf of the Stoke-on-Trent & Staffordshire Growth Hub, our MD David Mitchell, hosted an insightful and informative seminar on digital marketing last week.

Presenting to local and regional business owners and managing directors, David led attendees through the process of developing, planning, implementing, and assessing an effective digital marketing strategy.

David presenting to regional business owners & MDs

Delving into the processes and disciplines involved in digital marketing, this gave the attendees the knowledge and understanding they require to make impactful decisions, enabling them to efficiently create, implement, and continuously improve their digital marketing strategies.

A big thank you to all who attended last week, David is very grateful that the seminar received great feedback and obtained an average satisfaction score of 9.4. Some positive comments on what attendees liked most about the training were; “the credibility of the trainer” and that the training session “covered the essence and trends of digital marketing and its relationship with branding, so we have the right mindset to build strategies- rather than focussing too closely on tactics and details”.

Due to the fantastic response to the event and after receiving great feedback from the first group of attendees, there may be another seminar hosted by David on behalf of the Growth Hub in the future. As the Growth Hub independently organise these free events, we will share the details as and when they are confirmed.

How to Win with Google Ads

Win With Google Ads

Google dominates the search engine market with over 83% of users worldwide, making it the most used search engine on the market. If you want more customers/clients contacting your business, then you need to be advertising on a platform that reaches the maximum amount of people possible - you need to be using Google Ads.

What are Google Ads?

With 3.5 billion daily searches every day, Google is the obvious search engine of choice. So, it’s more than likely that you have already come across Google Ads whilst looking for a gift, restaurant, the latest gadget or simply looking for the meaning of a phrase.

Nowadays we use Google like we used to use Yellow pages; we use it in moments of information gathering or wanting to buy something. We call this ‘the moment of intent’ and there are 3.5 billion moments every day on the Google network.

Google Ads (previously known as Google Adwords) is Google’s online advertising platform that enables you to get your message in front of someone in their moment of intent. It runs on pay-per-click advertising, also known as PPC, which simply means that you only pay when someone clicks on your ad. To find out more about PPC, read our ‘What is Pay Per Click’ blog here. What you pay can also vary massively, so speak to a team member today to see how we can help you get the best out of the platform.

How can you benefit from using Google Ads?

There are many benefits of using Google Ads. Here are just a few:

  • Google has a massive audience as it is the most used search engine; this means that more people will see your adverts!
  • The ability to advertise to both a global and local audience.
  • Adverts can be personalised to ensure you reach your target audience at the right time.
  • Google gives you the ability to advertise to people who are specifically looking to purchase your product/service.
  • You don't need a big budget to get started with Google Ads.
  • Any business of any size can start a Google Ads campaign. You can even create daily budgets so you can be sure that you’re never spending more than you want to.

The different types of Google Ads

There are multiple different ways that you can advertise with Google Ads, here are a few of the most popular ways:

Call Ads

Call Ads do exactly what you would expect; they encourage people to call your business. These types of adverts only appear on devices that can make phone calls. This eliminates any barriers that could stop the user from phoning your business.

For more information about how to get more phone calls, watch our YouTube video.

Using Google Call Ads to create more inbound sales for your business

Display Ads

In order to understand Display Ads, you first need to understand what the Google Display Network is.

The Google Display Network is a group of over 2.5 million websites, apps, and videos that display adverts. It has a lot of advanced targeting options, enabling you to strategically advertise to potential customers who are currently looking for your product/service. This allows you to find your perfect audience.

So, Display Ads are shown all over the Google Display Network in front of the right audience at the right time.

Using display ads to target customers when they are not expecting to see your brand

Google Shopping Network

If you are selling products, Google Shopping is essential. You can put your product right in front of someone that is actively looking to buy it.

For Google Shopping Ads to be successful, you will need a more advanced setup. Once you have the product feed set up with the correct back-end tracking, it can explode your business very quickly indeed. If you need help setting this up then get in touch with a team member today.

Google shopping ads used to promote your product at the moment a consumer is searching for something similar

Search Ads

Search Ads appear in the search results pages on Google, above organic listings. As you can see below, three ads are displayed above any other search results. These three companies are appearing at the top of the page, and the best part is, they only pay when someone clicks on the link.
Appearing at the top of the organic search results can take a lot of time and dedication using many different SEO techniques. Once you’re at the top it can provide many benefits, however, it still doesn’t guarantee that you will be the first website that users see as multiple ads could be displayed before your site. This shows how important Search Ads are if you are a company that has a lot of competition.

YouTube Ads

YouTube Ads can provide a massive opportunity for business owners. By using cookies, you can target customers based upon what they are already searching for, showing your YouTube Ads to interested and potential buyers. Your content can be shown to those customers that have already visited yours or a competitor's website giving you the chance to strike while the iron's hot. Sounds like a winner, right? Check out our video to discover how YouTube Ads can get you more sales.

The best part about YouTube Ads, you only get charged if and when customers watch the full video so make those first 5 seconds before 'Skip Ads' count!

 

YouTube ads are great for targeting customers that have already been searching for your service / product

How to get the most out of your Google Ads

If you are looking for advice on how to get the most out of your Ads, you may benefit from talking to our PPC expert. We can provide you with specific advice, based on your personal business goals.

In addition to booking an appointment, you may benefit from reading our blog post all about the top 4 tools for Google Ads.

Google Ads and remarketing

Google Ads are great for remarketing, or as some call it, retargeting. This is the practice of bringing past visitors back to your site if they have been a visitor in the last 10 days, for instance, giving you the second bite of the cherry, so to speak.

On average it takes a customer around 21 days to go from thinking about your product/service to actually purchasing. Therefore, without remarketing, you are losing sales. Your business needs to keep in contact with that potential customer over a period of 21-days. Google Display Image Ads are a fantastic way of doing this to increase brand uplift and direct sales.

For more information about the average customer journey and how to optimise it, watch our short 90-second video:

If you have any questions or need any help with your Google Ads, then give the marketing people a call on 01543 495752.

What is Pay Per Click?

What is Pay Per Click?

Pay Per Click, also frequently known as PPC, simply refers to when advertisers will only pay for an ad when a user physically clicks on its content. These ads are usually displayed across platforms such as Google, Bing, Facebook, etc.

Unlike the organic method, (the slower route to more customers) these platforms generate revenue by offering pay per click services. This is essentially an auction for businesses to advertise in prime space on their websites, for example, at the top of Google search or in the newsfeed in social media.

Pay Per Click enables you to jump the queue, avoiding months of getting your content out organically, to get in front of people who are actively looking for your product or service.  You can pay platforms like Google, Bing, Facebook and Instagram to push your content to users who are likely to be interested in what you are promoting and you only pay when customers click. (Please note: depending on your campaign objectives, Facebook charge by impressions too, so be careful).

 

Pros of Pay Per Click (PPC).

  • Very fast to market, on the same day in most cases.
  • As a business, you get to control what prospects see.
  • PPC gives you scale, providing your profitable ads, rather than you simply giving the platform more money.
  • You get in front of someone in their moment of search, increasing the chance of getting that sale enquiry or appointment.
  • You can remarket your website visitors to bring that person back to the website to enquire. This is a massively powerful tool, as in Google you can show your ads and you only pay when a person clicks on the ad.

Cons of Pay Per Click (PPC).

  • Requires a regular budget for optimum results.
  • You need a solid sales process already in place and to work on your customers’ digital journey to ensure those clicks are producing sales, enquiries, or bookings (whatever your goal might be).
  • PPC requires commitment and patience to continuously test different ads over time to refine the ideal ad content.
  • PPC is not a “set and forget” process, it requires continuous support and attention, so it may be worth investing in an agency (such as ourselves) as they have the expertise and dedicated time to keep on top of your ads.

 

Now, if you’re still reading this, then why not check out a case study from one our pay per click campaigns, where we took a client who was running their own pay per click campaign and cut their costs by 90% in 3 months. Click here to watch the video and if you think you would benefit from a quote on your pay per click campaign, then you can get a quote on that page too or give us a call on 01543 241247.

However, if you are not at the stage of publishing ads just yet, no worries, check out this YouTube video on 4 ways to grow your business here.

We hope this quick blog has been insightful into the world of pay per click (PPC) and if you want to learn more about digital marketing head over to our YouTube channel.

Digital Marketing Live Q&A

We recently went live on our YouTube channel to answer an array of Digital Marketing questions sent into us by you! If you didn’t manage to catch us then here is everything you missed:

 

 

Before we go any further make sure you are subscribed to our YouTube Channel and have clicked the notification bell so you never miss a video again.

 

“Hi Pete, we’re a small retailer and have recently been running Facebook Ads very successfully however, as of yesterday we had our account suspended. What should our next steps be?”

Unfortunately, we’re not Facebook so we can’t explain why your specific account was suspended, but this is something that we are seeing more and more often. Facebook claim that accounts are being suspended as they are violating policy guidelines but you will have to contact Facebook support directly in order to get your account back.

Ideally, your business should be running ads on more than one platform in case problems such as this one occur. There are multiple ways to advertise on Google which we have discussed in a previous Digital Marketing Tuesday video but if you would like to discuss this further with us then book an appointment to speak with us.

 

“We are a florist that sells locally and online, can you help us increase sales? Currently, we’re doing leaflet campaigns and email marketing, are these methods effective?”

Email marketing is a great step in the right direction, especially since we’re coming up to Christmas and Black Friday has just passed. I think everyone is being bombarded with emails from e-commerce businesses at the same time though, so you have to be careful and make sure you stand out, but great job on setting that up.

What I would recommend for Florists and Gift Shops is to continue with the email marketing but alter the frequency. Also, top tip for you, make sure you get people’s birthdays from them so you can contact customers around their birthdays and send out reminders. You should also be sending emails to customers during any major holidays such as Valentine’s Day etc.

 

“We are a business that sells high-cost products. Can you help us find more ways to grow our business?”

All of this comes down to business metrics. What we witness a lot is clients approaching us saying “I want to run Facebook Ads” or “We want to run Google Ads or YouTube Ads” but before we do any of that we have to work out the Business Metrics for your specific business.

That might sound technical but it essentially comes down to:

  • How many customers do you need?
  • How many customers can you support at one time?
  • When you make a sale to that particular person how much revenue does that bring you?
  • And ultimately, what is your sales process?

You essentially need to identify where you are now and where you want to be in the future. If you would like us to go through this process for your business then book an appointment now.

If you’re selling high cost products or services, you don’t need many clients to get that initial upfront cost back. The way we grow businesses with that business model is through online events such as livestreams like the one at the top of this blog. They’re currently very popular and a great way to interact with your clients/customers. You could even just film videos and send them out to your customer base.

If you don’t have a customer base then you will have to put a bit more work into it to drive a bit of awareness and traffic to your business but by using platforms such as the Search Network, you can get in front of people who are searching for your product/service.

 

“We run ads at the moment Pete, were getting a high number of impressions but a low click-through rate. How do we amend this?”

This particular business is running Facebook Ads, Google Ads and Display Ads and this is what we call a click-through rate issue. So, they are being seen but no one is clicking on their ads. Whenever we see this issue, we tend to review the wording on the ads and if possible, we call out to the target audience directly.

For instance, a client we are currently working with has a customer base of both domestic and business users but their ads are calling out business owners only. This essentially narrows down their audience and targets specific people, so the more specific you can be, the better.

Another key thing to review is where you are sending people to once they have clicked on your ads. A common mistake we see businesses make is when they send people to the home page of their website – this is a massive no-no. You should be sending users to a page that’s specific to that problem and offers a solution as well, to reassure the person that has clicked on your ad that they are in the right place.

 

“Hi Pete, our business is currently focusing on doing email marketing. We are currently using Mailchimp but no one is opening any of our emails. What can we do to solve this?”

This has been a common question so if this is happening to you, you’re not the only one. We mentioned earlier that many businesses are sending out emails, due to the time of year, so there is a very high competition at the moment.

The way to fix this though is to look at your deliverables. Ideally, you shouldn’t be using your normal email provider, instead, you should be using software such as Mailchimp, Active Campaign, Infusionsoft etc (again if you need help with any of this then get in touch with us).

These types of software will allow you to look at your deliverables through the dashboard, so when you send out an email broadcast, you will be able to see:

  • How many people have received the broadcast
  • How many people have opened it
  • How many people have clicked any of the links in it

If you’re getting a very low open rate, which is typically anything less than 5%, we recommend that you review the subject line or the opening line of the email. At the end of the day, if people are not engaging with that subject line then they’re definitely not going to open the email to find out more information.

The main risk with having users ignoring your emails is having your email end up in the spam folder. If this is the case for your business then get in touch with us and we can help you take the next steps.

 

If you would like to find out how we can help you to attract, engage, convince and convert customers for your business then give us a call on 01543 387 047  or book an appointment.

How to Increase Website Visits with Ad Extensions

­­Google is the king of search marketing. Over 63,000 searches are made every second, which presents businesses everywhere with a massive platform to advertise on. This blog will demonstrate how you can increase visits to your website using ad extensions on your Google Search and Display Ads.

Ad extensions essentially expand your ad with additional information, giving visitors more reasons to visit your website. Google have even found that adding a single ad extension could improve your click-through rate by 10-15%.

If you have any experience with Google Ads then you will know how restrictive the character limit can be. With millions of people all across the globe using Google to look for solutions to their problems, it can sometimes feel impossible to provide any solutions in such a short amount of characters. Ad extensions enable you to lengthen your ads by adding more valuable information for consumers.

Ad Extensions can include a multitude of things such as:

  • Telephone numbers
  • ‘Book an appointment’ link
  • Company reviews
  • Location/s
  • Staff profiles
  • Current offers
  • And much more…

Below is an image of the search results page when we searched for ‘Divorce lawyer Kingston upon Thames’.

Google has deemed that the first result will provide the user with the best possible experience. As you can see, they have used multiple ad extensions, which is one of the reasons why Google has rewarded them with the top spot on this page. These ad extensions have increased the ad relevance, enabled the user’s questions to be answered in the ad copy and even provided further information about the business.

This advert is also the largest that appears on the search results page. This is a massive benefit as it will stand out against the other ads. If the user is also on a mobile device, this advert will take up the entire screen meaning the user will only be able to see this result unless they scroll further down the page.

By using the site link extension (the second box in the screenshot above) you can add specific pages on your website to your ad. This helps the user to quickly navigate your website and find the information they are looking for. In this example, the user can easily book a consultation, find out more information about the business and even engage with staff members.

The great thing to remember here is that ad extensions do not cost you any extra. In fact, in most cases the costs are actually reduced. When it comes to search you only pay if someone clicks on your ad, so you don’t have to pay for impressions.

If you need help, then get in touch by booking a 15-minute call with our expert team here or during office hours call 01543 495752.

How We Increased Sales By 76% & Reduced the Cost of Customer Acquisition By 94% For Our Client

Discover how we increased our client’s sales by 76% and reduced the cost of customer acquisition by a whopping 94%, all whilst in lockdown. In this short case study, we take you behind the scenes and show you the difference in results between the ad campaign run by our client in June – August 2019, and the ad campaign run by The Marketing People from June – August 2020.

Read on or watch our short video below to see the mind-blowing results:

Our client was managing their ad campaign in-house and, whilst they were happy to be generating phone calls, the cost to get an inbound phone lead was £217.

Our client’s ad campaign June – August 2019 BEFORE we managed it

We were approached by the client to see how we could reduce their cost of getting customers, without reducing the volume of enquiries.

The client could see they needed external help to improve results, by dedicating time to the campaign whilst they focused on running their business – a wise investment.

In our initial Google Ads review with the client, we delved deep into their business, looking at their products and services so we could target the cash-cow clients (the most profitable ones) first. Knowing the numbers in their business enabled us to identify areas where we could add value fast.

Whilst our Ads experts went under the bonnet of the campaign, our web design team looked at the website to see where we could increase the calls to action and generate leads.

The client’s sales process is by telephone, so the goal of the website and ad campaign was, and still is today, to get phone calls.

Once we reported the GAP Analysis to the client and showed them where improvements could be made, we agreed a step-by-step process that would generate more calls from the campaign, without rocking the boat.

Using our internal process, we changed the campaign bit by bit, always looking at efficiencies where possible.

As you can see in the diagram below, the KPIs show improvements across the board.

Our client’s ad campaign June – August 2020 with TMP managing it

We took over the ad campaign at the beginning of June 2020 and, during the lockdown, we still managed to increase the performance of the ads, and much more.

We increased phone volume by 70%, and reduced the cost to get a customer by over 94%.

In addition to Google Search Ads, we also implemented a range of Brand Ads across websites that their customers visit, targeting the ideal client they wish to reach.

We delivered the company brand message and service offering to a group of people in the key geographical locations who are looking at similar products online, but haven’t yet been to our client’s website or called, thus getting a second bite of new customers at a fraction of the cost in search.

If you’re running your own marketing campaigns and you are looking for some help, we’d like to extend an invitation to speak to us and let our experts see where we can help you improve efficiencies, and get you customers more profitably.

You have nothing to lose, so book your free 15 minute call here or jump on the phone and call 01543 495752 to speak to the team today.

Who’s our next success story?

Why Use Dedicated Campaign Numbers in Your Ads

tmp Ad call graphic

Business is always about knowing your numbers, and sales and marketing is no different. In this short blog post we explain how dedicated ad numbers help you get the most out of your campaign budget.

One of the many benefits of our digital marketing services is the dedicated campaign telephone number which is connected to Google Ads, YouTube Ads, Facebook Ads or LinkedIn Ads.

When prospects get in touch with you on dedicated numbers after seeing your ad on social or search, we track the incoming calls and therefore know which campaign is working and we can drop the ones that aren’t working.

No unnecessary ad spend, so we can use your budget more wisely and lower the cost per click.

TMP reduce ad cost
Dedicated ad numbers help us to utilise your ad campaign budget in the best way

With our campaign management, we can also see exactly when you are receiving inbound calls, giving you the intelligence to ensure staff are on hand to take these calls and convert leads into customers.

TMP dedicated campaign numbers
We can see how many calls you are getting, on what day and at what time

So, what’s the catch?

There isn’t one.

There’s no need for another phone or another line, and you don’t need to worry about which number goes where.

We will sort everything for you and point a number from the ads to your sales number. So your ads will have a dedicated number and you will answer all calls as you usually would.

No extra work for you, and no confusion for your prospects as they will simply press ‘Call Now’.

If you’d like to see how dedicated numbers can improve your ad campaigns, schedule a call with our team today here.

How To Fix Your Ads Fast

Digital-Advertising-Animated-Inpage

Have you tried Google Ads and it hasn’t worked for you? Read our blog and watch our short video below to find out why you aren’t generating leads, calls and clients from your campaign, and how to fix your ads fast.

As the world’s biggest search engine, Google gives you the opportunity to get your brand, product or service in front of your target audience, at the point of interest. There is also Facebook Ads, YouTube Ads and Instagram Ads which, done correctly, can increase opportunities for you to sell.

So, why aren’t your ads working?

Consider Your Customers’ Journey

Are your ads saying the same thing as your website? Consistency is key to create a positive customer journey.

When someone clicks your ad, make sure you’re sending them to a designated web page that will sell the particular product or service that you have advertised to them.

Provide the solution to their pain and you will convert those clicks into customers.

Look at Your Follow Up

82% of sales happen on the second, third or fourth visit to your website: a good first impression isn’t enough to generate enquiries.

You need to create remarketing campaigns to stay in touch with your prospects throughout the 21 day buying cycle.

These campaigns will help you build relationships with your target audience and get them back to your website to finally make the purchase.

Watch our short video for more information here:

If you’re running Google Ads and your campaign has been unsuccessful, we can help.

Want a FREE ads review? Book your discovery call here to fix your ads fast and start generating sales.

 

How to Use Video Shopping Ads to Sell – Without Breaking the Bank

Gone are the days where you have to invest hundreds and thousands of £s into a TV Ad campaign. Now, you can simply use TrueView for Shopping in YouTube.com and get sales at a fraction of the cost, and in less time too. This blog is a short introduction into TrueView for Shopping Ads on YouTube.

Firstly, if you’re selling consumables or products online (aka e-commerce), then you will already be familiar with Google Merchant Centre; it’s where your products are initially uploaded to, in order for them to appear in Google Shopping Ads.

This is the first step in this process, but if you are not yet at this stage then do not hesitate. Get in touch with our team and we’ll give you a helping hand.

What is TrueView?

Google’s TrueView promises that you’ll only pay when someone chooses to watch your video ad.

Viewers see videos they’re curious about, and you get more views from an audience you know is already interested in your product or service.

TrueView Ads are opt-in, so you aren’t restricted by time limits, and you can take the time to tell your story.

How TrueView can work for you

In the image below you will see Jonathan from Caraselle using TrueView to advertise his product. It is a unique Pet Hair Sticky Roller which he demonstrates using on his stairs at home.

Now, a great way to sell your product is to demonstrate it working, whilst also providing a great offer. You essentially want to provide this great offer to the right person at the right time, which is exactly what Jonathan is doing here. There is a demonstration of the product being used and another advert on the right-hand side of the video, displaying a multi-pack offer.

The advert to the right of the video will appear like this if the user is watching the advert on a desktop. On a mobile device the advert will simply appear below the video.

Advertising in this way can be very rewarding, whilst remaining very cheap. Jonathan’s advert only targets dog owners. This means that none of his budget will be wasted on people that have no need for the product. By using this targeting, Jonathan is only paying 3p for every two-minute view. That is extremely good value, especially when the product itself is selling at £4.

If you would like us to help you utilise TrueView then please get in touch today. Call us on 01543 387 047 or click here to book an online meeting for 15 minutes with the team. We’d be more than happy to show you more.

How to Reduce Exposure to Your Increasing Ad Cost

If you want to reduce your Ad Spend, you must read this….

It is critically important to generate leads from your website, but do you know how to do this effectively? Read on to discover how to utilise your website efficiently to start getting quality leads.

 

Amazon, Facebook and Google are just some of the eCommerce and service businesses that realise the benefit of collecting user data, not just pixel data, to retarget visitors to their sites.

By now you understand that all the major companies know more about us than our mothers do; where we like to eat, drink, what we like to wear and where we buy those clothes from etc. If you ever have ever visited any of these websites, then chances are, you are on their email database, or in other words – a buyers list.

 

Why do I need an email database?

An email database of buyers and prospects is absolutely critical to online businesses.

Put simply, the job of the website is to create sales opportunities for your business. So, if your website does not have the ability to gather an email database of potential clients, then it is not working effectively for you.

Imagine having a shop and 100 people walk in and out. Now imagine only three people buy a product from you and the other 97 people leave and don’t give you any contact information. You won’t be able to send them offers or keep in touch to remind them to come back and make a purchase in the future. Just think about how many opportunities you would be missing out on.

So, given that 97% of people that come to your website will not make contact on that visit, you need to have something in place to ensure that there are no missed opportunities. In order to make your website an effective sales tool, you must have a system in place that allows the visitor to do something without committing too much information, such as allowing the visitor to download certain guides, etc.

 

How do I create an email database?

In order to start collecting information for your email database you need to evaluate what value you can provide to the visitor. This can be anything from:

  • PDF guides
  • A video series
  • A webinar
  • Whitepaper reports

The visitor would essentially download one of the above in exchange for their name and email address. This then allows you to easily follow the visitor up, whilst they get value from the downloads.

 

How does this help my Ads?

If you are running Ads at the moment, be sure to create a lead magnet on your page, so visitors to the website can give you their best email address to contact them. This way you can retarget these leads without spending money on Ads to push towards email sales.

Once you create a lead magnet, you then gain the ability to build your email database where you can contact potential clients or take them further down your sales process. This works for both B2B and B2C industries, so it is essential for any type of business.

 

To turn your campaigns into a sales-making machine, speak to us today. Book a call here or call the office on 01543 495752.