In review, 2015 turned out to be a very interesting year digitally. Although many advertisers didn’t plan on increasing their PPC budgets in 2015 and predicted sticking with the proven ad channels: text ads, mobile, and remarketing; budgets were, in fact, increased throughout the year. The increase was in part due to the multitude of PPC advertising options now available. Some budgets were increased in the traditional channels while new budget money was spent on various social advertising options due to the low cost per clicks. The increase in popularity of shopping ads also added to extra dollars being funneled into PPC. This year proved to be a stronger year than 2014 for advertisers due to advancements in the PPC industry which helped businesses have better than expected results.
As 2015 comes to a close and the last of the holiday ads pop up, it is a vital time to review the performance of your Pay-Per-Click Campaigns and determine how you will allocate those same marketing dollars or more as you head into 2016. Are you ready for 2016? Have you reviewed your 2015 statistics? Did you meet your goals? Do you need to decrease spend or increase your budget? What PPC channels worked best for your business? These are just a few of the questions you need to answer by end of year. Take time now to review and make a resolution to set up an effective 2016 PPC Plan. Your PPC Plan should include a month by month breakdown of budgeting, scheduled promotions, and the addition of new channels when and where applicable.
Heading into 2016, we should expect to see continued growth in video and mobile video as well as an increase in spend across multiple platforms. The biggest budget increases are expected on mobile, Google AdWords, Facebook, Bing and Display Advertising. It is predicted that advertisers will diversify their budget as they expand into new digital channels. Social advertising and the use of specialized targeting (the use of mobile location) will be on the rise. One word of caution as you increase your mobile spend…be sure to monitor the stats from those mobile clicks, focusing on time on site and conversions. Advertising on mobile can be tricky, and you want to make sure that the person clicking on your ad is truly interested in your product or service and not just inadvertently clicking your ad while trying to remove it from their screen.
So what will be your PPC New Year’s Resolution? Here are three easy steps to get your started:
1. Review your 2015 data for trends in performance…what worked, what didn’t. Base your trends on top performing months, days of the week, and even hours of the day.
2. Cut the clutter in your Campaigns. If there was no benefit from particular keywords or strategies, get rid of them.
3. Set up a PPC Strategy, complete with budget, but be prepared to make changes to that strategy as the year progresses.
Happy New Year and Happy Pay-Per-Clicking!
Sources:
http://www.clixmarketing.com/blog/2015/12/08/ppc-new-years-resolutions-for-2016/
http://www.hanapinmarketing.com/the-state-of-paid-search/