The whole idea of optimization is to make your advertising dollars produce more traffic and more conversions, and thus put more money in your pocket. Google has plenty of money. There’s not much point in giving them any more than you have to.

With just a little patience, dedication, and applying these tips to your PPC advertising campaigns, you really can get more bang for your advertising buck.

Choose Keyword Matches Wisely

Google really loves it when you choose the “Broad Match” option. THEY will make a lot more money. The fact is that choosing the “Broad Match” option means that your ad will be displayed many, many times, and you’ll get many, many clicks for which you will pay Google. But not many of those clicks will convert into sales.

Choosing “Phrase Match” or “Exact Match” will result in fewer impressions and fewer clicks, but the clicks are much more likely to convert to sales. Fewer clicks + more sales = More bang for the buck.

Develop a Meaningful Relationship with Negative Keywords

Adding a long list of negative keywords to your PPC campaign will prevent many clicks that will not result in sales. For example, if you don’t offer “warranties” or if you aren’t giving anything away “free,” those words need to be added to your negative keyword list. If you sell “red widgets,” then “blue widgets,” “green widgets,” “yellow widgets,” and “purple widgets” are all negative keywords.

Reduce the number of clicks on your ads by adding to your negative keyword list. Use negative keywords to get fewer clicks + more sales that will equal more bang for the buck.

Make “Educated” Bids

Your keyword bid will determine your ad’s position. If you bid too low, your ad will be so far down the food chain that you’ll be invisible. On the other hand, if you bid too high, you’ll go broke in an amazingly short period of time.

The only surefire way to get your bid “right” is to test, test, test, and then test some more. We’re back to keywords. Use Google Analytics to find out which keywords are actually producing traffic that converts into sales. Big higher on high-performing keywords and lower (or not at all) on junk keywords.

Use All the Tools You Have

Using Google’s Search Query Reports can give you real insight into what words people are using to search, and if they are relevant, or not, to the content of your site. And Google’s Keyword Conversion Tracker is invaluable.
Learn to use Google Analytics to get more bang for your advertising buck.

Think! Optimize! Remember the formula:

Fewer clicks + more sales = More bang for the buck.