Managing Contextual Ads

Rant on why there is only one real contextual ad method

Running a contextual advertising campaign through the big three can be very easy, click and go. They make it simple, fast, and if you’re not paying attention, expensive (relatively). Even with Smart Pricing from Google, you can pay too much. In these scenarios, your ad CPC is the same as or directly related to your search CPC (Smart Pricing adjusts it downward). First suggestion: Don’t run a contextual ad buy mixed in with your search program – more below.

Before you start contextual advertising, identify your metrics. For some, the desired event is exactly the same as the search program, a sale, newsletter signup or other asset building event. For others, it may be less lofty, such as engagement metrics which they believe will be a precursor to an asset building event; something like page views or time spent, or an information request. This is not just good marketing, it sets the stage for keeping search and contextual apart. Only after thinking about this for some time do people begin to create a separation between contextual advertising and search. Even though these can be run through the same campaign / ad group, they are actually two distinct vehicles and the metrics should treat them as such. Which brings me to my next point…

To properly manage a contextual ad program, you should create an independent or separate campaign (or at least a separate ad group.) The new campaign will allow you to set a max budget and target independently from the search campaign. This has some advantages when it comes to optimization.

With proper tracking, you can more easily measure your results and manage the program against the content target metrics. You will also be able to finitely control the budget that the contextual program can absorb based on how well it is performing. By keeping it separate, you create a necessarily separate focus on the relevant metrics and value.

Since the intention of a person that sees your contextual ad is likely different than that of a searcher, the ad should treat them differently. Rather than a message used for search that may say “buy now”, your content ad can be more targeted to a content audience with a “more information” message for instance. You’re hitting someone in a different stage of the purchase funnel, so cater your message accordingly – then test it.

Like search, the content of the ad, and the landing page should be as specific as possible. This will allow the content matching to more closely align your message with the information the user is viewing. Allow some ad groups to remain broad, such as “home entertainment systems”, while others get progressively more targeted down to the models (if appropriate). Populate the ad group with the relevant keywords, allowing for some but limited duplication at the more general keyword level and reserving model or product specific keywords for the ad groups with appropriately targeted copy.

Finally, the landing page should be as targeted to the ad copy as possible. Bring the user deep into your site if the subject becomes more relevant. This helps keep the user engaged by tightly connecting your content to that which triggered the ad. If someone is at the stage of researching a specific product, and your ad speaks to it, but you bring them to a general category page, you’re taking them back several steps in the purchase process. In their eyes, they’ve already covered this material. You’re job is to add value to the research process, not set it back a step. So, help them by keeping their progress going and making the landing page well targeted.

Don’t let the similarities in considerations between search and contextual advertising mislead you. These considerations, at some level, are the same in all marketing efforts. It is what you do with them that will distinguish the vertical. Only by virtue of technology is contextual advertising related to search advertising. From a consumer’s perspective and therefore from a marketing perspective, these are two entirely different beasts. From messaging to landing page to desired event, these two are distinct. While it may be easier to lump them into a single buy, it is far less effective. Keep them separate in thought and practice.