5 Essential Guidelines for Running AdWords Enhanced Campaigns

On July 22, 2013, Google made the biggest change to paid search in recent years with their mandatory roll-out of AdWords Enhanced Campaigns. The Search Optics SEM Team has been diligently testing all the new features since February, when Google announced the ability to voluntarily upgrade. Here are five essential guidelines our team feels PPC (pay-per-click) users must consider to refine their AdWords account with any enhanced campaign strategy.

1. Set Your Mobile Bid Adjustment – Now that you can no longer run mobile-only campaigns, it is important to set your mobile bid adjustment based on your account’s historical data. Ensure that you set your bid adjustment to the appropriate level to achieve your desired goals for mobile traffic. For example, if you are already dominating the top position, reduce your mobile bid to attain a cheaper CPC (cost-per-click), and vice versa.
2. Create Ads for Mobile Devices – Previously, when you wanted to target mobile users, you had to create separate campaigns for each device: desktop, tablet, and mobile. With enhanced campaigns targeting all devices, you can now create mobile-only ads by simply checking a box and inputting your mobile URL. Your ad copy should be geared toward users on mobile devices and include a specific call to action. It is important to keep in mind that mobile users tend to be on the move and are often ready to take this specific action, be it calling your business, getting directions to your physical location, or comparison shopping.
3. Start Geo Bidding and Use Bid Multipliers – With enhanced campaigns, you can now set a bid adjustment for certain locations to bid higher (or lower) for users searching in that specific area. For instance, if you have a particular region or city you would like to aggressively target, just select that location, set the bid multiplier, and monitor the location’s performance.
4. Optimize Call Extensions & Sitelinks for Mobile Devices – In the same way you set up mobile-specific ads, you can also designate call extensions and sitelinks exclusively for mobile devices. This attribution allows you to correctly monitor mobile click-to-calls and to ensure mobile users who click on sitelinks land on the desired mobile page (e.g., New Inventory, Directions). Remember that space is limited on mobile devices, so keep those sitelinks concise and relevant.
5. Auction Insights Reports – Google has recently released a new Auction Insights Tool, which compares performance – for more than one keyword – with other advertisers who are participating in the same auctions that you are. (Previously, only one keyword could be compared). Now you can look across entire ad groups and campaigns to see how the competition is performing in the same keyword auctions. Use these statistics to monitor how aggressively your closest competitors are bidding against you, especially for brand, manufacturer, and geo-modified dealer terms. Although this is not part of the enhanced campaign roll-out, it is extremely useful when doing a competitive analysis for paid search campaigns.

The weeks and months ahead will be the real test, as all search marketers are now able to use these exciting new tools in enhanced campaigns.

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