Article Archive by Nydia Davis

Google First Page Bids

by Nydia Davis

So you’ve launched your Google campaign and you see that you are getting tons of impressions for your keywords, but no clicks. When you take a look at your keywords you see that Google recommends a higher first page bid estimate than what you are currently bidding. This estimate is higher than your bids for other keywords, but a particular term is very targeted and important to your campaign. It’s time to make a decision. What do you do? Increase your bid.

On the Keyword Analysis tab within the Google Adword’s interface there is a metric labeled “Estimated bid to show on the first page”. This metric is also called the first page bid estimate and it approximates the cost-per-click (CPC) bid needed for your ad to reach the first page of Google’s search results. The estimate is based on your Google Quality Score and current advertiser competition for that particular keyword.

Meeting your first page bid is not a guarantee of placement. Ad placement will still be dependent on Quality Score, your cost-per-click (CPC) bid, your budget, account settings, and user and advertiser behavior.

A common misconception about increasing cost-per-click (CPC) bids is that it would instantaneously eat away at your budget. Although this may seem apparent, it’s not always true. Depending on your keyword’s potential to result into a conversion; the return on investment should be evaluated, therefore increasing the cost-per-click bid if needed accordingly.

Lastly, while increasing your cost-per-click bids, remember that Google sets daily spending budgets for each campaign. As long as you set a realistic budget, the increase in cost-per-click cost should not eat away at your ad budget.

Myspace Syncs with Twitter

by Nydia Davis

Most of us don’t have the time to update one of our social media profiles, let alone all of them. Myspace has recently implemented a two-way syndicated function between Myspace status updates and Twitter tweets to assist in making multiple social media updates easier.

This application works both ways. It updates whichever social media profile status update or tweet that is the most current. So if you’re on either Myspace or Twitter, you have the option of dual updates. Users can decide if they want status updates to be one-way or two-way.

When users post a status update on MySpace, it syndicates to their Twitter feed. Twitter will show “MySpace” as the service the tweet originated from, similar to its display of TweetDeck, Twitterfeed, and other services that allow users to update their streams away from the site.

So far, MySpace’s Twitter sync is in beta. Myspace said that they will be adding other networks soon. For now, you can try out the Twitter sync in your MySpace profile by inputting your Twitter credentials under the “sync” menu in account settings. Once the accounts have been synced, all you have to do is simply update your status on MySpace as you normally would (from the Home page, Status and Mood page, or your mobile phone).

Google Opportunities

by Nydia Davis

Google has created yet another tool to assist advertisers with optimization of their Google Adwords campaigns. Recently, Google rolled out the Opportunities tab within the new Adwords interface. The Opportunities tab is intended to help advertisers discover new ways to improve their campaign’s efficiency.

Google automatically lists their suggestions within the Opportunities tab. Listings alert advertisers that they have recognized suggestions from Google that may benefit your account. The Opportunities tab is a central location for keyword and budget optimization ideas across the Google Adwords account.

The two types of opportunities that the tab currently suggests are keyword and budget ideas. Keyword ideas are linked to ad groups and can help advertisers receive more impressions and clicks. This new tool analyzes the volume of Google searches that could be captured with new keywords; if those keywords are added, the campaign has more ad exposure and gains the attention of more potential customers.

Budget ideas show the amount of ad traffic available and are only visible for campaigns that are meeting or exceeding their current budget. Google reviews how many searches your ad could appear on and then recommends a budget amount that could help you reach that potential.
Since the Google Opportunities are automated, it’s possible that you will see some suggestions that may not be pertinent or do not suit your business objectives. All optimization “opportunities” should be reviewed thoroughly before implementation.