Direct Marketing News

Google Adwords is a pay per click program that allows you to put ads on Google, other search engines, and even non-search websites. The object is to write a targeted ad that gets a lot of clicks. The more clicks you get, the less you pay for each click.

One way to improve your ads over time is to split test them. You can run two or more versions of your ad and have Google show each ad approximately the same number of times. Note: you have to go into your campaign settings to tell Google to show your ads evenly instead of optimizing for you.

So once you are showing two versions of your ad, how do you know when you have a winner? If the first ad gets 3 clicks after showing 30 times and the second ad gets 4 clicks after showing 31 times, is the second ad better? Google assigns a number to the ratio of how many clicks you get versus how many times the ad shows. This is known as Click Through Rate or CTR. So even though the second ad has a better CTR, is the ad better than the first?

There is just not enough data to tell. On the other hand, if the first ad gets 29 clicks after showing 30 times and the second ad gets 1 click after showing 31 times, do you think you might know by then? Probably so. But the way to tell is to run a statistical formula on the numbers called a Chi Square.

This article will not go into detail about how to calculate the actual results, but when the numbers are entered in the right place in the formula, you can tell with degrees of certainty whether or not you have a winner.

Once you have determined that you have a winning ad, the goal is to archive the loser and write a new ad to try to beat the winner. Over time, your CTR will get better and better. This means you will pay less per click and have much more effective ads.

You can use this same formula to split test and improve:
1) Opt In Boxes where you ask for a name and email address
2) Sales Pages where you sell your product
3) Order Pages where you ask for the customers payment information
4) Email messages where you ask the customer to take some sort of action

Constant improvement is the key to making money online. If you dont test, track, and improve, your business will most likely become less and less successful as competitors pass you by.

Useful Links:

No words can compare in expression to a simple band of gold or silver. Express your love with our exquisite collection of bridal jewellery .