How to write a PPC ad

Once you have chosen your PPC platform to create accounts on them. Then, create campaigns to group your PPC ads and outcomes. For example, group ads by geographic location, goal or product. Next, you will be required to decide on the type of ad that you want to create. Make sure that you have a distinct outline of who you want to target and why. Factors such as location, language, keywords, additional demographics, landing pages and action goals.

Most PPC ads follow the same content formula:

• Headline
• Two lines of text
• Visible URL
• Unseen landing pages

Each search engine sets its own length for each line but, roughly speaking, keep your heading under 25 characters and each line of text under 35 characters. There are also additional rules governing word use and punctuation so make sure that you read the rules of whichever search engine that you are using before you write an ad.

How to write a headline for a PPC ad

Writing headlines takes a lot of time, patience and practice. Try a variety of headlines and do some A/B testing (which is also known as split testing) to see which one works best. The goal is to achieve a high CTR (click-through rate). Google allows you to run multiple ads using the same search term, which makes it easy to A/B test ad variations as only one ad will appear at a time for anyone of your keywords.

Here are some best practices which you need to remember when writing headlines for your PPC ads:

• Use keywords in your headline
• Always ensure that headlines are attention-grabbing and not generic
• Avoid using small words like the, in and an as they take up characters and don’t mean anything to Google.
• Consider using a question in the headling to draw the reader into the ad.
• Consider the exact needs to your target market and then offer a solution in the heading.

Once you’ve put together a headline that will convert, here are some tips on how to write the rest of your ad:

• Be very specific and targeted with your words.
• Use small groups of keywords.
• If you have several ads for the same product, focus on different benefits or product offerings. This is a good idea for A/B testing. Different words appeal to different audiences.
• Look at competitors and be unique.
• Always use the active voice and second person (‘you’ instead of ‘we’) and imperative verbs (for example absorb, enjoy, fly, buy or satisfy).

A great PPC ad is nothing without a landing page

Remember that landing pages do not have to be your website home page but can be any destination page that will fulfil an action or goal. Always choose a landing page that has content that is closely related to the content of your ad. You set an expectation with your advert so don’t disappoint the potential client by taking them to a page that isn’t completely relevant.

Crafting copy that sells is an art form as well as a science. This needs to be precise as it acts as your virtual salesperson when people are looking for products and services while you’re not physically able to connect with them.

Get in touch with the Digital School of Marketing

If you want to learn how to craft compelling copy, you need to do our Digital Copy Writing and Content Marketing Course. For more information, please follow this link.