The Golden Brick Road

Listen up, marketing adventurers! We’re  back, this time to hand you the keys to a kingdom of knowledge that’s as vast as it is deep. 

Think of this as your express lane to marketing mastery…the sweet stuff.

The GPT Revolution

Early 2023 DigitalMarketer dropped Marketer Vision for GPT-4..and let me tell you, it’s like strapping a jetpack to your marketing strategies. 

Each version is a leap forward, making your predecessors look like they were riding tricycles. Stay sharp…this is the evolution you don’t want to miss !!

Exclusive Invitation: Unlock Your Special GPT Bonuses Now!

For the sharp and fortunate few, I’m revealing a treasure trove of special bonuses! 

These aren’t for everyone, only the keenest minds and the luckiest souls will get access to these extraordinary secrets and tools. 

If you’re reading this, you’re already ahead of the pack. Seize your advantage and claim your rightful bonuses, designed exclusively for the astute and the fortunate. 

Act now and be one of the select few to elevate your success.

Captain Habit Hack, Mastering the Habit of Habit Formation

Embark on a transformative journey with Captain Habit Hack, your guide to mastering the art of habit formation in the dynamic world of 2024 marketing. 

Imagine a habit as more than just routine..this is about embedding a powerhouse strategy into your daily world.

Aligning Your Deepest Wants to Skyrocket in Life and Business

( GPT’s are more limited than GPT-4, and getting full performance may require an extra regeneration. )

The Arsenal of Habit Formation:

Routine Reconnaissance: Identify small, impactful actions. These are your daily wins that compound into monumental success.

Strategic Scaffolding: Build your habits like a seasoned architect. Start simple, then escalate to complex strategies, reinforcing your foundation of success.

Feedback Finesse: Navigate adjustments like a captain steering through changing tides. Each tweak is a step closer to perfection.

Automation Alliance: Make consistency effortless. Integrate habits so seamlessly they become second nature, propelling you forward on autopilot.

Laughing with Logic, Meet Steven Wright Bot

Want a sidekick that’s as quick with a joke as it is with a meme? Steven Wright Bot is your guy.

Imagine having the wit of a stand-up comedian in your back pocket, ready to lighten the mood and engage your audience.

It’s not just fun… it’s strategic genius.

The Brilliant Benefits of Infusing AI with Humor

Meme Challenge

When posed with a meme challenge, Steven Wright Bot rose to the occasion with the simple prompt of the uploaded image itself. 

What resulted was nothing short of brilliance.

( GPT’s are more limited than GPT-4, and getting full performance may require an extra regeneration. )

Winner !! -( on the first try too!  fortune of GPT’s )

It’s easy to see how one can begin to appreciate the power of GPT’s.

The Value of Humor in Marketing:

Engagement Boost: Captivate your audience with humor that makes your message stick.

Emotional Connection: Forge deeper bonds by sharing a laugh, building brand loyalty and love.

Stand Out: Use wit to cut through the noise and make your brand the one they remember.

Viral Potential: Funny content is shareable content…get ready to go viral!

Complexity and Nuance: Navigating the subtleties of humor is tough for AI, but mastering it can mean a big payoff.

Risk and Reward: With great jokes come great responsibilities—avoid the pitfalls and reap the rewards.

The Ultimate Goal: Imagine AI that doesn’t just understand humor but creates it, transforming engagement.

Controlled Chaos of Creative Marketing

Ever dreamed of a marketing strategy so deliciously creative it feels like a trip to Wonka’s factory?

 We’re talking about ideas that pop, strategies that dazzle, and campaigns that leave your audience craving more. This is where imagination meets results.

Creative Campaigns Inspired by Fiction

( GPT’s are more limited than GPT-4, and getting full performance may require an extra regeneration. )

The Power of Wacky Marketing and Lateral Thinking:

Breaking the Mold: Dare to be different and watch your brand become the talk of the town.

Creative Sparks: Step out of the box and into a world of endless possibilities and fresh ideas.

Risk-Takers’ Reward: Embrace the unusual and discover the unique appeal that sets you apart.

Lateral Leaps: Sidestep the conventional and surprise your audience (and yourself) with brilliance.

Signature Style: Be bold, be quirky, and become unforgettable.

Capturing Magic: When you hit that creative jackpot, it’s not just luck; it’s strategy.

Consistent Innovation: Tools and tricks to keep the creativity flowing and the ideas fresh.

Marketer Vision GPT, AI Consultant Framework

Here’s the crown jewel, the secret weapon I promised Marketer Vision GPT. 

Think of it as your personal marketing oracle, deep and wide with knowledge, ready to tackle the nitty-gritty. 

This isn’t your average tool…it’s the heavyweight champion in a world of featherweights.

Super Power of Dynamic Real-Time Knowledge

Imagine an all knowing savant guiding you through the corpus of material.

( GPT’s are more limited than GPT-4, and getting full performance may require an extra regeneration. )

Instant Research & Knowledge for Campaign Building with DigitalMarketer Resources:

On-the-Spot Insights: Tap into a treasure trove of knowledge and turn data into decisions.
Strategy at Speed: From research to reality faster than ever before.
Diverse Toolkit: Broaden your horizons with a plethora of perspectives and tactics.
Stay Ahead: Ride the wave of the latest trends and tactics.
Seamless Integration: Enhance your campaigns with authoritative resources at your fingertips.
Tailored to You: Customize content to perfectly suit your brand’s unique voice and vision.
Edge of Excellence: Equip yourself with the knowledge to outshine and outperform.

In Short.
You’re smart, you get it. These aren’t just tools..they’re your ticket to the top.

Together, we’re not just riding the wave of innovation, we’re creating it.

Stay tuned, stay sharp, and remember, in this fast paced world, being quick on the uptake isn’t just smart…it’s essential.

Welcome to the future of marketing, where you’re always one step ahead.

Captain Habit Hack:
https://chat.openai.com/g/g-pHLJHkahf-captain-habit-hack
Steven Wright:
https://chat.openai.com/g/g-m7rrWldwZ-steven-wright-bot
Willy Wonka:
https://chat.openai.com/g/g-ewmm6KFQs-willy-wonka
Marketer Vision GPT:
https://chat.openai.com/g/g-5st5mADnq-marketer-vision

The post 2024 AI Marketing Frontier: GPT Wonderland Unveiled appeared first on DigitalMarketer.

As I was auditing yet another Google ad account at my agency Digital Street, one of the biggest and most common mistakes that popped up once again was no negative keyword list or negative keywords added to any of the campaigns.

The ad account in question is spending $1500 a day i.e., around $45000 per month. I’ve audited 1000s of Google ad accounts and this one mistake annoys me to the hilt.

You Must Be Wondering, Why? What’s the Big Deal?

Let me explain.

First things first, let’s define what negative keywords are. Simply put, they’re words or phrases that you add to your Google Ads campaign to tell Google which search terms you don’t want your ads to appear for.

By excluding these keywords, you can save money, improve your click-through rate, and increase your conversion rate. 

For example, let’s say you own an online shoe store that sells high-end designer shoes. You might want to bid on keywords like “designer shoes,” “luxury shoes,” and “high-end shoes” to attract potential customers who are specifically looking for your products.

However, you probably don’t want your ads to show up for search terms like “cheap shoes” or “discount shoes,” since those searchers are unlikely to be interested in your expensive products. In this case, you would add “cheap” and “discount” as negative keywords to your campaign.

Now, Why Are Negative Keywords So Important?

Well, let me break it down for you.

By eliminating irrelevant clicks and focusing on high-intent searchers, you’re likely to see a higher click-through rate (CTR), a lower cost per click (CPC), and a higher conversion rate. That means you get more bang for your buck and achieve better results from your Google Ads campaigns.

And who doesn’t want that?

So, How Do You Create An Effective Negative Keyword List?

Here are some steps to follow:

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• Step 1: Start with a brainstorming session. Think about the types of search terms that would be irrelevant or low-intent for your business. There are certain words such as ‘free’, ‘reviews’, ‘cheap’ that we always exclude across all our accounts.
• Step 2: Use Google Ads’ Search Terms Report to see which search terms are triggering your ads. This report shows you the actual search terms that people are using to find your ads and can help you identify any irrelevant or low-intent search terms that you might have missed. At my agency Digital Street AU, we mine search terms every 48 hours. It’s part of our optimizing the ad campaigns process.
• Step 3: Add Negative Keywords to Your Campaign. Once you have your list of negative keywords, you can add them to your campaign by going to the “Negative keywords” tab in your Google Ads account.
• Step 4: Refine Your List Over Time. Remember, creating an effective negative keyword list is an ongoing process. Keep track of your campaign’s performance and adjust your negative keyword list accordingly.

In conclusion, negative keywords are a powerful tool that can help you save money, improve your ad performance, and achieve better results from your Google Ads campaigns. So, don’t neglect them!

Take the time to create an effective negative keyword list and watch your Return on ad spend (ROAS) soar.

Until next time, keep optimizing!

The post Don’t Waste Your Google Ad Spend: How Negative Keyword Lists Can Improve Your Google Ads Campaigns appeared first on DigitalMarketer.

The Ad Grid is the method DigitalMarketer uses to increase our ad success rate 20 times over.
It’s how we plan, test, and measure paid traffic campaigns. It’s the way we organize and systemize our traffic strategy.

The Ad Grid takes the guess work out of creating an ad campaign.
It looks like this:

But, the Ad Grid is much more than a spreadsheet… the real power is the process that goes along with the grid.
Systemizing a strategic process is tough. Systemizing the creation of an entire traffic campaign is nearly impossible. But, after 3 years, we’ve developed a 7-step system we’ll share with you today.
At DigitalMarketer, we follow this 7-Step Plan no matter the product or the traffic platform because it works.
The Ad Grid is applicable to ANY business OR traffic platform.
Today, you’ll get all our inside details on the Ad Grid including, but not limited to…

• How we stopped creating “one-hit wonder” campaigns across ad platforms…
• How to achieve scale and move prospects through the customer journey…
• How we create high converting campaigns…
• How to systemize your traffic strategy – whether that means outsourcing, or having an internal traffic team…
• How to create a congruent market to message match…

Even better — we’re showing you a real campaign we launched at DigitalMarketer using this exact 7-step strategy. You’ll get the Avatars, the Hooks, the copy — everything.
Let’s first talk about the trap you’re susceptible to falling into if you’re not utilizing the Ad Grid. It’s one we’ve fallen into plenty, and one we want you to avoid. It’s…

The Dreaded One-Hit Wonder Campaign

One-hit wonder campaigns come about when marketers just make ads.
But there’s a problem with just making ads. It leaves you open to creating “one-off” ad campaigns without a system or a plan.
The one-hit wonder, if you will.
One-hit wonder campaigns usually target one or 2 different audiences, may test a few different images or copy variations, and that’s pretty much it…
…the person on the other side of the computer expects to launch this type of traffic campaign and BAM… sales and leads will start pouring in.
But, most of the time they don’t. And, if they do… the campaign is only successful for a few days or weeks.

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Then, said person complains… “FACEBOOK ADS DON’T WORK,” or “XYZ TRAFFIC PLATFORM DOESN’T SCALE.”
What they don’t realize is that they’re creating one-hit wonder campaigns. They’re only giving themselves 1 or 2 chances to sell their offer.
Well, what if those 1 or 2 copy variations still don’t resonate with the audience? What if those 1 or 2 targeting groups aren’t actually people who are interested in what you’re talking about?
The campaign will fail.
Most people quit after this happens. But, you shouldn’t.
You should use the Ad Grid, and give yourself a foundation for success… and 20+ different chances at success, not just one.
One-off campaigns are bad because:

• They don’t reflect the customer journey and repel prospects because the ad is being run down their throats.
• They only work for a short amount of time and have low quality scores.
• They aren’t scalable.
• They don’t put a specific message in front of a specific audience because the marketer didn’t think about segmentation or message match.

Let’s take a look at these mistakes, so you can be sure that you don’t make them:

One-off campaigns don’t reflect the customer journey.

You want to build a relationship with your customer like you would in person.
You’re looking to make friends.
Does it make sense to immediately ask someone you’re hoping to become friends with for money?
No.
But that’s exactly what some marketers are doing with their ads. They’re putting an ad in front of their target audience and saying, “Hi, nice to meet you! Buy this product! You’ll love it!”
But why should someone buy? They don’t know your brand from Adam.
Like all relationships in life, the brand needs to give value first. And that goes beyond the customer getting ABC product or DEF service.

One-off ads usually have low relevance/quality scores.

That means the audience isn’t resonating with the ads. The ad is repelling prospects, they’re not taking the action that you optimized your campaign for, or worse – they’re marking it as spam.
Why does this happen? Because you’re not speaking to the right audience, you don’t have market to message match in your ad copy, or you’re trying to sell to someone before they’re ready.
The next time the audience sees an ad from you, they’ll probably cringe and think, “Those guys.”

One-off ads aren’t scalable.

In the past, we found ourselves launching campaigns that broke the rules I outlined above. These campaigns weren’t scalable.
Not that there was anything wrong with these Facebook ads, they were successful in terms of ROI.
But, there were only a few ad variations within them. And they didn’t always work…
We found 80% of these ads failed, especially on Facebook. That’s the nature of traffic. Sometimes you swing and miss.
If you’re only setting one or 2 ads, and you’re only testing one or 2 audiences, you’re essentially putting all of our eggs in one basket.
And, we realized that’s what we were doing. We weren’t giving ourselves the ability to scale campaigns in the way we needed to grow our business. We were limiting ourselves.

One-off ad campaigns typically don’t have market to message match.

That means the ad is TOO BROAD.
Ads that don’t have market to message match are essentially talking to a large group of people and offering them a one-size-fits-all package/solution.
For the ad to be successful, it needs to have a specific offer that speaks to a specific group of people.
So how do you keep from making these mistakes? You deploy the Ad Grid.

The Ad Grid Process

The Ad Grid will help create a honed in marketing strategy, so you can stop wasting time and money.
It’s important to keep in mind that you’re going to create an Ad Grid for every offer you roll out.
When you create an Ad Grid, focus on the “offer” that’s the entry point for the funnel.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the funnel, ask yourself:

• Is the customer AWARE there’s a problem? Are they AWARE of you, and the solution you offer to the problem?
• Are they EVALUATING if they should fix their problem, or just leave it be? Is the customer EVALUATING you and your competitors? Are they EVALUATING what product or service to buy?
• Has the customer CONVERTED and bought from you? How do you get them to CONVERT again and more frequently?

Knowing where your customer enters the funnel will give you a better understanding of how to target them. Should you target them with a blog post? A Lead Magnet? A low-dollar offer?
The example that we’ll use for this particular post is a recent Lead Magnet we created here at DigitalMarketer called the 10-Minute Social Media Audit.

This audit allows you to assess the performance of your social media strategy or the strategy of your competitors. It gives you an actual “grade” and reveals opportunities for improvements where you could generate more followers, traffic, and/or make more money from your social efforts.

The Ad Grid Steps

Let’s get right into the steps so you can start putting this to work in your traffic campaigns!
Make sure to download the PDF version of this infographic for easy reference and even more resources.

The Ad Grid Step 1: Identify Your Avatars (Specific to the Offer)

You’ll start by creating an Avatar.
An Avatar is a profile of a person who would be interested in your message. The Avatar is a target audience.
Keep in mind when you’re filling out your Ad Grid, the Avatars aren’t necessarily the same Avatars you’ve set for your business as a whole. Your Business Avatars are going to be much broader than the Avatars that would be interested in this particular offer.
You need to create a SPECIFIC Avatar for each ad offer. You do this through research.
(To get more specific on who you’re targeting in your business, check out our worksheet for creating your Customer Avatar.)
Identify Avatars for the specific offer you’re running traffic to by doing intensive research on Amazon, Google, forums, etc. to figure out WHO these people are and what their pain points may be (the problem(s) they’re looking to solve).
Identify your Avatars, and place them across the top of the Ad Grid on the X Axis.

(Don’t force yourself to add 4 Avatars just because I have 4 in this example, just ensure that you have 2+ identified, or you lose the power of the Grid.)
Think about who would be interested in this particular offer? What different groups of people can you speak to? How are they different?
For example, with the 10-Minute Social Media Audit, we chose:

• Social Media Managers: this is the person actually DOING the work. They are probably an employee/work for a company.
• The Boss: This is the person that manages the social media manager. This person could be anyone from the CEO of a smaller company, a digital marketing manager, VP of Marketing, Editorial Director, etc.
• Agency Owner: This person owns/runs an agency that does social media work for clients.
• Solopreneur: This person is a one (wo)man team. They are probably doing all of the marketing on their own, including the social media strategy and implementation.

Step 2: Identify the Hooks

The Hook is the “marketing message.” The WHY that makes people want to take you up on your offer.
If your offer is missing a Hook, you’re going to have a hard time getting people to take you up on whatever you’re asking them to do.
You need to explain the benefits – the value – of your offer, in order to “sell” it.
So how do you come up with a Hook that conveys value?
Here are the 6 different ways we think about Hooks…

Have

If the customer takes this offer, what will they HAVE that they didn’t before? Think of it as Before and After.
(RELATED: How to Create and Market a Killer Offer)

Feel

How will the customer FEEL once they take your offer? Will they FEEL smarter or more confident, will they be pain free and FEEL better?

Average Day

How will your offer improve their AVERAGE DAY? What mundane task does your offer improve? How does your offer save them time or energy on a day-to-day basis?

Status

How does the customer’s STATUS change once they’ve consumed your offer? How are you helping elevating their status?

Proof/Results

This one is the most common.
Use reports or case studies to demonstrate PROOF or RESULTS that the customer could experience with your offer. This can create SOCIAL PROOF.
For example, part of your ad copy could include, “Join the thousands of people who have already benefited!” Or, explain actual results that have occurred because of your offer.

Speed & Automation

With SPEED, you speak to the QUICKNESS of the offer — how will this thing speed up a part of their life or AUTOMATE a task? For example, this razor will save 10 minutes of your day.
Get started, and see what Hook(s) work best to promote your offer. You can combine Hooks, as well.
If you don’t already have ideas in mind for why your offer is “sexy” it may be time to revisit the offer in general.
Place your Hooks on the Y Axis of the Grid.

For example, with the 10-Minute Social Media Audit, we chose:
The 10-Minute Hook
This is a broader Hook, and in the past this probably would have been the ONLY Hook we would’ve used to promote this offer.
This Hook speaks to speed and results:
Take 10 minutes to audit your Social Media Strategy and as a result get more followers, drive more traffic, and increase engagement.
The “Get A Grade” Hook
Most people like to self-analyze.
Most people like to take quizzes/tests to see where they stand. We were conditioned to respond to grades in school. The fact that the 10 Minute Social Media Audit gives you a “grade” is a Hook all in its own.
Create a Report Hook
This Lead Magnet isn’t just an audit.
It’s a document that you could use as a report to track social media progress over time. It can be used as an internal document.
Grade Your Competition Hook
Most people like to spy on their competition.
This Hook is all about grading your competition, too, and seeing where your social media strategy stacks up against theirs.
Know Your Goals Hook 
This Hook is about aligning your social media strategy with your overall business goals.
Are you using a social strategy that actually has an effect on your business? Is your social strategy in line with the goals you’ve set as a company?
As you can see, there’s a fair bit of “marketing” that goes into creating your Hooks.
You have to sit down and really think… what is ATTRACTIVE about your offer? What are different ways I can “sell” this offer?
Most of your Hooks are going to flop — and that’s fine! Testing multiple Hooks gives you room for error… you never know what people are actually going to respond to until you test it.

Step 3: Write Your Copy

This is where the magic starts to happen.
At this stage, you’ll create copy that has a congruent market to message match.
How?
Write specific ad copy for each block on the Grid. This will force you to write copy that corresponds to BOTH the Avatar and the Hook.
This will help you create powerful, segmented ads that will speak to a particular Avatar using a particular Hook instead of writing a broad ad that will miss.
Depending on the traffic platform, the length and type of copy will vary.
Think about why a particular Hook would appeal to a particular Avatar?
For example, with the “Get a Grade” Hook… the Social Media Manager would care about getting a grade because they want to self-assess, and maybe they want to take their “good” grade to their boss in order to get a raise.
But why would the boss care about the “Get a Grade” Hook? They want a way to assess their Social Media Manager… a way to show progress (or lack thereof), a way to measure their success.
Writing this amount of copy is time consuming, but it will give you the assets you need to run a full fledged campaign.
Below you’ll see Facebook ad copy that we wrote for this offer:

(You can expand this image in a new window for better viewing here.)

(You can expand this image in a new window for better viewing here.)

 Step 4: Avatar Research

If you put your campaign in front of the wrong audience, it will fail.
That’s why research is key.
Your Avatar research will become the targeting you use on the ad platform.
What’s important in Step 4 is doing research for each Avatar separately. You’re researching WHERE this particular Avatar would be hanging out on the traffic platform you’ve selected.

If your ad was about social media and you targeted anyone and everyone that’s interested in social media, your ad would be too broad. It wouldn’t be as effective as targeting each Avatar separately.
A marketer needs to look at their Avatars not as a group but as an individual Avatar. Look at them as very separate and different people, because they are.
When researching Avatars, answer these questions…

• What do they read?
• Who inspires them?
• What motivates them?
• What are their pain points?
• What interests them (books, magazines, blogs, movies, music, food, drinks, restaurants, hobbies, etc.)?
• What events do they attend?

…and so on.
This Avatar research will become the targeting that you use when you set up your campaigns. If you’re using Facebook, these would be the interests you target; on Twitter the handles you target, etc.
(RELATED: [DOWNLOAD] The Complete Guide to Facebook Ad Targeting)
So, take time to research each Avatar and create lists of possible targeting options. You can place these at the bottom of each column of your grid:

Step 5: Create or Outsource Ad Creatives

Your ad creatives are…

• videos
• pictures
• graphics, etc.

….for your campaign.
The creative you use for each ad will depend on the traffic platform your ad runs on: Video for YouTube, Pictures for Pinterest, etc.
What’s important about the creative is that it depicts your Hook – your marketing message.
You’re going to want to make a creative for EACH Hook.
It’s not about using bright, flashy images anymore… you want to use images that portray the message you’re sending to the audience.
This is a perfect example of a creative that does just that…

We have a process behind coming up with each image…
Each Hook will have keywords or phrases that relate to it.
In Google, do a search query for keywords within your Hook.
You’ll see the top images that are associated with that query, which will give you inspiration for your creative.
Here are the winning ad creatives for each Hook in the 10-Minute Social Audit Campaign:

The “Get A Grade” Hook (to Social Media Managers)

The “Create A Report” Hook (to the Boss)

The “Grade Your Competition” Hook (to the Agency Owner)

The “Know Your Goals” Hook (to the Solopreneur) 

Step 6: Compile Your Results
Once you’ve completed your research on your Avatars and Hooks, written your copy and produced your creatives, it’s time to launch your campaign.
After about 5-7 days of running your campaign, start analyzing your results.
Then use the Ad Grid to measure the success of the campaign.
Determine what your success metric for your campaign will be:

• ROI
• Cost Per Acquisition
• Cost Per Lead
• Cost Per Click

This will depend on your business.
(RELATED: Episode 40: 4 Facebook Metrics Critical to Your Success)
Once you know what metric you’ll use, apply it to the Ad Grid. It will give you a visual — you’ll see what’s working for the entire campaign in one glance. This will help you scale.
Here’s what we use at DigitalMarketer to track the performance of our grids:

Step 7: Scale

The best part… it’s time to scale!
You could just beef up a successful campaign’s budget on that particular platform and call it a day…
Or you could go beyond and further your success.
Use the Ad Grid to help you scale.
The Ad Grid shows you which Hooks and Avatars are winners. Scale out to the winners — the Avatars responding to your campaign, the Hooks converting, and the intersections between the 2.
You can see the insights and the data. You can see how to Scale.
Look at what Avatars your campaign worked best for — what Hook(s) they responded to. You can take that information, and apply it across the Web.
What are other platforms does that Avatar “hang out” on?
If you first ran an ad set on Facebook and saw the success you’re looking for, apply the ad to other traffic platforms – like Twitter or email – that are relevant to that Avatar.
Reach out to the Avatar on different platforms with the Hook they responded to.
You’ll also know which Hook(s) failed, so you won’t make the same mistake twice on other platforms – for example, you won’t use failed Hooks for your email list.
The Ad Grid will help you scale in 2 ways:

• Scaling past “doing more with what you have.” After seeing successful results on a platform, your first instinct may be to increase the budget of the ad, which is obvious for scale. But, the Ad Grid allows for true scale… taking your successful message and applying it to as many applicable platforms as possible… Taking high converting ads and creating new ad sets within Facebook to target more interests where this Avatar would be hanging out on the platform – this is Horizontal Scale.
• Scaling out to a traffic/media team. Following the steps of the Ad Grid gives you a process — a methodology to how you, or you and your team, can approach ad campaigns. The Ad Grid helps to break up the process of creating a campaign, and it will help define the steps and who is responsible for what. Imagine outsourcing steps 3-7 or breaking it out for certain members of your team.

Putting it All Together

The Ad Grid takes you from creating one ad that targets a broad audience to creating 20 SPECIFIC ads (if you use the 4 Avatars and 4 Hooks model).
You’re giving yourself more chances to hit a home run by creating a fully fleshed out targeting campaign that is more likely to increase your success rate 20 times over.
You also know where to scale beyond just throwing more money at a particular campaign on a particular platform — creating less trial and error and more results.

The post The Ad Grid: How to Build Traffic Campaigns that Convert Higher and Scale Faster appeared first on DigitalMarketer.

When it comes to digital marketing for eCommerce businesses, there are a whole lot of channels to choose from:

Social media can boost brand awareness and make connections. 

Email marketing can keep your community active. 

…And PPC (specifically Google Ads) can enable steady growth and sales.

Why PPC for eCommerce?

PPC (pay per click) advertising is a favorite among eCommerce marketers—and for good reason. 

Reminder: 

PPC Advertising = Ads that appear on search engine result pages, videos, apps, websites, and social media.

These ads appear everywhere, so they get a whole lot of views (like a billboard on the side of the highway). But the business owner doesn’t pay for views, they only pay when a user clicks.

The best part? PPC advertising is about finding customers who are ready to buy through search history, audience type, and a whole lot of data.

Why Google Ads for eCommerce, Specifically?

Google Ads is the most effective form of PPC (pay per click) advertising on the planet.

Think about it: 

The term “Google” has become so synonymous with “answer.”

We’re been trained to turn to Google with every question we have. And Google is so much more than a search engine, it is also YouTube, email, apps (like Google Calendar), Google Maps, and Android.

…And, Google collects information about us all, and can therefore predict intent—which means Google can put somebody who’s willing to buy your product in front of your ad (sometimes before the user even knows they want to buy).

In fact, 67% of all high commercial intent keyphrases go to a paid ad.

We’ll reiterate: 

When someone wants to buy, two out of three(!) of those Google searches result in clicking on an ad.

That tells us that when people are in the learning phase of the buying process, they go for organic search results. 

But when they are ready to buy—customers click the ads.

Is Google Ads Right for Your Business?

One more thing before we go any further: 

While Google Ads is the most effective marketing platform on the planet, it isn’t right for everyone. 

So, it’s imperative to determine Google Ads is right for your eCommerce business before you can hit the ground running.

It takes time to build, launch, and optimize campaigns—and ultimately, see results. 

That means you need to have realistic expectations. Here are seven quick questions to consider first:

1. Are you ready to commit? It typically takes about 90 days to determine if there’s potential for a predictable, scalable growth schedule. 

2. Can you afford the cost to get the ball rolling? You’ll want to spend at least $1,000-$1,500 per month at the bare minimum; but I recommend starting at a $2000 minimum.

3. What are your business goals? Ask yourself:

• Do I know my close rates?
• Do I know how many leads I need to make a sale?
• Do I know how many leads each month I need to make a profit?

By establishing your specific goals, you can determine if you can successfully run a Google Ads campaign in the long-term.

4. How is the quality and speed of your website? Your website should be:

• Fast
• Mobile responsive
• Informative
• Easy to use

5. Can you handle an influx of traffic? 

• Are you going to answer your phone when customers call? 
• Will people call you directly, or will you have a sales team that’s trained and ready to take calls?
• Are you fully stocked and ready to ship? 
• Can you accurately forecast how much product you need?

6. What is your audience size and location? If you’re local and rural—with only a handful of people nearby—your audience size might be too small. In this case, Google Ads probably doesn’t make sense for your business.

7. Are you ready to be competitive? Make sure your ad spend is competitive enough to get enough clicks; Otherwise, Google Ads won’t work in your favor.

How Google Ads Works Inside The Google Network

In order to be successful with Google Ads (or any marketing platform), it’s important to understand how the entire network functions.

Now, we tend to think of Google as the search engine, right?

But the Google ecosystem is massive and includes: 

• YouTube
• Gmail
• Apps (think Google Calendar)
• Google Maps
• Android
• The Google Display Network

And for every piece of “real estate” owned by Google (email, search engines, YouTube, apps) there is a way to advertise (i.e. a campaign type).

The Different Types of Campaigns

Let’s briefly cover the different types of Google Ads campaigns:

Google Search Campaigns

This is the campaign we generally refer to when we talk about Google Ads. 

Again, you’ll recognize these ads as the first results that pop up on the top of a Google search results page:

Google Shopping Campaigns

This campaign type exists inside Google’s shopping ecosystem but can also be expanded to Smart Shopping and other types of responsive display ads.

Google Display Campaigns

Websites that allow advertisements to take up space on their pages. The ads are usually an image (see: “display”).

Video Campaigns

Video ads that pop up before, after, or in the middle of a YouTube video.

These video ads can also appear at the top of a YouTube search:

But! Video campaigns are not just for YouTube. These types of ads can appear through Google display network (see above) and other areas of Google’s ecosystem.

App Campaigns

Promote your app across Google’s networks, including Google Search, Display, YouTube, and Google Play (the app, game, ebook, and general entertainment store for Android devices).

Google Smart Shopping Campaigns

Algorithmically controlled automated ads on Google and across the web.

Google Discovery Campaigns

These ads are pushed across the entire Google ecosystem.

Believe it or not, there’s more.

But for the sake of this guide, our sanity, and your business, we’re going to put most of our focus on Google Smart Shopping.

Standard Shopping vs. Smart Shopping: What’s the Difference?

You might be wondering what the difference is between Standard Shopping campaigns and Smart Shopping campaigns inside Google Ads.

Here’s a quick overview of how Standard Shopping campaigns work:

1. You (the business owner) send your product feed (the listing of all the products on your website) to Google using a Merchant Center account.

2. You set your budget.

3. Google uses your feed to create “placement shopping ads” that appear on relevant search results pages.

These ads include a photo of the product and its correlating information—a step above standard text ads.

These ads ensure the user sees all the important “must-know” details about your product before clicking—therefore, each click is (in theory) made by a more qualified lead.

However, Smart Shopping campaigns take standard Shopping campaigns a giant step further.

With Smart Shopping, you still: 

1. Send your product feed to Google via a Merchant Center Account.

2. Create a campaign and set your budget.

3.  …And Google still pulls your product information to create placement ads that appear when a shopper searches for a relevant product.

But, that’s just where it begins.

Why Google Smart Shopping Is The Most Powerful eCommerce Advertising Tool on the Planet

Unlike Standard Shopping, Smart Shopping uses algorithmic targeting to show ads to very specific users. 

How specific? We’re talking about users who have shown high intent and interest in a product based on their past search activity.

Smart Shopping uses all five channels to advertise: Search, display, youtube, gsp, and shopping. 

And with such powerful algorithm targeting, that means you no longer have to do the heavy lifting of pushing prospects strategically from the top of the funnel to the bottom.

Instead, Smart Shopping goes through their massive user database and matches your ad with the best user who’s ready to buy from you right now.

How? Dynamic Prospecting.

Dynamic Prospecting uses information about your current users and your products to find new prospective customers.

On the other hand, Dynamic Remarketing shows ads to those who previously visited your website or engaged in your ads. 

Feeling Psyched on Google Ads?

Hey, me too. 

Next time I pop in, I’ll go over the prerequisites every eCommerce business needs before building and launching a campaign.

But if you’re feeling eager, you can check out this Google Ads Mastery Workshop that has you covered.

Or, you can check out my entire guide to Google Ads for eCommerce here.

Happy campaign building!

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