CTR Click Through Rate explained ..

[sandyakamom]

Thank you for the description of what all the alphabet soup means (hehe). I really do think I finally understand it now.

[spires]

Don't worry, I still get very lost.

[simonwar]

Spires you said

If google displays your ad a 100 times

Is this "100 times" because users have entered the SAME keyword 100 times, or can it be, for example, 50 of 1 keyword plus 50 of another that led to your URL being displayed?

If it is the later, which I suspect it is, (because I can have many keywords per URL), is it fair to say that Broad Matchs will almost definately compromise Exact Matchs?

Also, when you say "displayed" does that mean actually on the page the viewer is reading or perhaps pages later under the same search.... I suppose it must be relative to the page they are on..... can you confirm?

Am I on the right track?

Also has there been any stats on the likelihood of getting a hit based on the fact that Google ususally displays 19 links, 2 Sponsored in the Header, 8 Sponsored on the RH margin, and say 9 Search Results

S.

[spires]

Yes, 100 times is from all of your keywords in your ad group.
This is why you want to be using negative keywords, so your results are only shown to high quality veiwers.

Broad Matchs and Exact Matchs need to be tested.
You can not guess, guessing will cost you lots of money in the long run.
Have all three matchs running for each key word.
Or start up different campaigns, All exactly the same but with different matchs.

You need to be testing everything, the people that test are the ones who save lots of money.

Good luck

[sandyakamom]

Okay - now I'm lost again. LOL

Could you explain what you mean by "negative keywords."

[spires]

Negative keywords are,

MATCH:
broad
"phrase"
[exact]
-negative

If your selling soafs for £1000.00, you dont want joe bloggs typing in 'free soafs' and having your ad appear, They might click on it and waist you money, and give you unwanted impressions.

So you would have a negaitive keyword:
-free

Every time some one types that in, along with your keyword, you ad will not be displayed.
This will keep your imperssions down, and also stop un-qualified visiters clicking on your ad.

They have a double function.
higher CTR
and less clicks (which saves you money)

Hope this helps.

[sandyakamom]

Well GOOD GRIEF - it looks like I have some work in front of me.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

[spires]

Anytime,

I'm glad to pass on what i have learnt.
Theres always areas that i don't know, and people are
always willing to put themselves out for me.

What goes around comes around.

[rockafalla]

Good to see somebody who knows their stuff.As an advertiser you want to have the best position you can, as we all know the highr you rank, the better the chance that you will receive clicks. But positioning isn't all about how much you are willing to pay!

Google bases everything on "importance", and there are a lot of things that go into the mixing bowl to calculate your importance rating, such as:

Validity of the keywords chosen (eg if you are a florist and you use Ipod as a keyword because you know it is a keyword that attracts a lot of search traffic, it is seen as a invalid keyword by Google)

The wording of your ad - how closely does it match your landing page and keywords.

CTR - the better your ad is performing, the more important it is deemed to be.

The amount you are willing to pay - The more you bid does not necessarily mean the more you will pay. As your importance grows, the amount you pay will PPC will decrease.

And there is more, but these are the major importance factors that will help drive down the amount you pay. Obviously the key is to monitor your performance and to keep optimising the campaign - nothing happens if you don't keep on top of it - don't expect miracles if you don't do the work!

I take all of the above into consideration for every campaign that I create for clients, and the majority of them have a high CTR (at least 5 - 15%)after about three months (depending on the industry, competition etc).

So go ahead and get optimising today, see how much better you perform!