Challenge
Take a rapidly growing online university that was looking to further leverage paid search, and optimize their PPC campaigns to deliver the maximum number of qualified leads at the lowest price all while staying within a fixed budget.
At the start of the project the cost per lead was much higher then desired and their initial set of keywords did not capture the full spectrum of keyword opportunities. Also, at that time, the online university space was becoming increasingly more competitive which was resulting in an increase in keyword costs. Evaluating these different factors showed that a new bidding strategy would be necessary in order to build robust PPC accounts that delivered results in order to exceed the clients’ expectations
Solution
While the client had correctly implemented the bid management software that was already in place it was not being used to the full extent of its capabilities.
We conducted a comprehensive historical analysis on the performance of each degree programs campaign as well as each individual keyword within every ad group to obtain the essential data that was necessary to overhaul the current PPC accounts.
The Redboots team then began using the bid management software to aggressively optimize keyword bids based on the historical and projected ROI that each individual keyword delivered. As a result, the team was able to effectively manage all the keywords in each account and cut out wasteful spending while putting additional resources towards those keywords that had yet to reach their full potential.
We performed in-depth keyword research based on the online university industry as a whole, including the competitive environment, , down to the level of their unique offerings, in order to allow the clients PPC accounts to reach a broader range of their target audience. The result was a vast expansion of the keyword list, so that by the conclusion of this research, we were bidding on approximately double the original number of keywords.
Through a process of A/B testing, new ad copy was continuously tested to find the best performing ads in each ad group.
Results
As dictated by the client’s budget, the average monthly cost remained steady over the next year. During this time there were major shifts for all the success metrics used.
Total Leads: Increased 108%
Applications: Increased 134%
Requests for Information: Increased 88%
Total Cost per Lead: Decreased 50%
Cost per Application: Decreased 56%
Cost per Request for Information: Decreased 45%
At the start of the year, PPC had been their third leading source of new leads, after the work detailed above had been completed, it had become their number one source of new leads.
Filed under: PPC on Tuesday, July 17th, 2007 by Nate Linnell |
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You explain really good topic. It’s helpful for the pay per click management. I will increase traffic on my site through your tips……
↓ Quote | Posted June 9, 2008, 7:29 am