How Charlotte Businesses Can Reduce Google Ads Costs and Improve Lead Quality | Geekonomy

There’s a lot of paid search going on in Charlotte. South End and NoDa restaurants, banks and finance companies in Uptown, medical offices, contractors in Ballantyne and Lake Norman, real estate agents in South End, law firms, home service companies all compete for the same part of the page. As more companies push on the same keywords, clicks get more expensive and you end up wasting a bunch of money.

The nice thing is most Google Ads accounts are wasting more money than they think. An optimal set of best practices for a handful of keywords, settings, landing pages, and tracking will reduce the cost of each lead and increase the percentage of leads that become customers. There is no need for a larger budget; the solution is a better understanding of where the money goes.

This page will take you through Google Ads’s cost model, how most Charlotte PPC campaigns lose money, and what you can do about Google Ads cost. On this page, you will also learn how to evaluate lead quality so you aren’t rewarding only the campaigns that perform well on paper.

Google ads happen through an auction. Every time a person searches, Google determines which ads to list and in which position. The advertisers aren’t charged a flat rate, but rather a fee depending on the demand for a particular click and how relevant the ad is for the person searching.

Charlotte has a few features that push costs up. The city is growing, which brings new companies and more advertisers into the same auctions. High-value services, such as legal help, home remodeling, medical care and financial products, naturally attract higher bids because one customer is worth a lot. And many advertisers run broad campaigns on default settings, which drives up competition for terms that are not even a good fit.

But it doesn’t mean you have to spend more than you should. It does mean that the businesses that pay the closest attention to their accounts tend to get the most out of each dollar – and with Charlotte PPC the difference between a well-managed account and a neglected one can be significant.

Before we get to the dollars, here’s what you’re buying. Most search advertising works on a cost-per-click basis. You pay when someone clicks; how much depends on where your ad shows up and how much you’re willing to pay, based on a Google score called Ad Rank that’s made up of your bid and the quality of your landing page.

Much of that quality image is a quality score, a 1 to 10 scale below your keyword data. It is made up of three parts:

What does this mean? It means that the best ad with a better Quality Score can outbid the biggest bid and it can happen at a lower cost! This can be translated as being more relevant – and paying less for this relevance. Quality Score is a diagnostic tool and not a ranking factor. Yet, the diagnostics flag where an account is weak.

If you are going to do any kind of change at all; check for the leaks. These are the ones I see most.

Most accounts have at least three of these. Fixing them rarely needs more budget, and the savings are often used to fund better campaigns elsewhere.

You should never cut results in half when you cut the cost. The goal is to eliminate the clicks that weren’t going to convert and put that spend into what will convert.

If this seems overwhelming to keep up with on top of running your business, a Charlotte PPC agency can take a look at the account, clear up the mess, and communicate the cost per lead and lead quality in easy to understand language.

A cheap lead is not a better lead, if it doesn’t turn into a customer. After removing wasted clicks, many Charlotte companies realize they still receive calls from price shoppers, out of service areas, or those who aren’t what they thought they were. Lead quality is a result of the complete journey, from ad copy to follow-up.

Define what a good lead is

Before you optimize, take the time to write out what a good lead is for your business. Perhaps a homeowner in a specific ZIP code that is interested in any project above a certain size? Or a patient with the right insurance? Or a specific number of employees? Once you do this, you can craft everything else around it – your team, your ads and your forms.

Let the ad do some of the filtering

Ad text can identify and repel the wrong people. If you’re only working with homeowners, say so. If you have a minimum project amount, say “starting at” a reasonable dollar amount. Your service area, “Serving Charlotte, Matthews and Huntersville,” lets folks outside your area disregard the click. Slight drop in volume is OK if the folks who do click are more qualified.

Ask the right questions on forms

Conversely, short forms receive more submissions, but shorter forms can lead to bad leads. Including one or two qualifying questions, like “What type of project do you have?” or “What is your timeline?” weeds out the chaff and provides valuable context when your team first gets on the phone. Try out a few versions and gauge the quality of leads rather than quantity.

Track what happens after the click

That’s the problem, this is where most accounts go wrong. Google can only optimize for the data it receives – if it sees a form submission is all the same, it’ll try to get you as many of the lowest value forms as possible.

Tracking how many calls come from your ads and what the calls are about, as well as how long they last. Then, if possible, report to Google Ads which leads converted into a booking or paying customer. Known as offline conversion tracking, it tells the system what a lead looks like for your business.

Respond quickly and consistently

Speed counts above all else. The prospect submitting your form may be reaching out to multiple companies; the first to be polite and professional wins the race. Be certain someone is taking care of calls and form leads and that missed calls get a prompt follow-up by text or email.

Yes, the click-through rate and cost per click are part of the story, but they’re not the part of the story that contributes to your paycheck. These numbers are a little bit more complete.

Go through your campaigns monthly and identify patterns based on weeks and seasons, not just days. A campaign that appears expensive in terms of cost-per-click might still be your top performer if those leads convert at a high rate.

Most spend on Google Ads doesn’t go through all at once. It’s the small actions, pieced together over a few months, that can really chew into your budget – especially when the dashboard isn’t easily misleading with clicks and impressions. This is what we observe most frequently.

Address just two or three of these and typically you’ll get costs down within a month or two, without losing good leads.

Whether you do it yourself, use an employee or you hire a PPC agency in Charlotte, a few signs set apart judicious management from hunch work. Here’s what a healthy account should look like:

It’s also useful to be aware of the red flags. Beware of anyone who guarantees rankings, results or a set amount of leads. Paid search relies on competition, budget, seasonality and the appeal of your offer, so reputable agents will tell you their predictions in ranges and give you the logic behind the forecasts. Also be wary of anyone who won’t give you access to your own account (you should own the data and the billing).

Effective management is not about clever tricks. It is about dogged attention, honest measurement and the willingness to change direction when the metrics demand it.

How much should a Charlotte business budget for Google Ads?

There isn’t just one figure. Costs will vary depending on your industry, your average customer value and how many searches occur in your region. To get started, you need to set a budget based on your goals – for example, if each customer will generate thousands of dollars in revenue and 10 percent of your inbound leads convert, you’ll have a clear idea of how much each qualified lead should cost. Set a budget that will generate sufficient data; analyze it monthly; and adjust once you determine your cost per qualified lead.

How long does it take to reduce Google AdWords costs?

“Certain adjustments – like negative keywords and correcting location targeting – can begin to eliminate waste in just days. Several weeks of data are needed to see meaningful impacts of Quality Score, landing page, and bidding adjustments. Automated bidding may require a learning phase, so don’t make major changes too often. Generally, accounts have a steady positive trend over two to three months of optimization.”

How come I am getting leads but not converting them?

The top culprits include broad targeting, keywords that don’t establish expectations and conversion tracking that treats every lead the same. Narrow your keywords and sharpen your match types, then include qualifying information in your ads and forms. Finally, measure what happens after the lead comes in – including which calls were jobs – so Google and your team can laser in on the best prospects.

More affordable, higher quality leads often are the result of the same effort: deciphering what people are searching for, presenting them with an ad and taking them to the right page, then monitoring what happens. Charlotte’s PPC space is more competitive; which is the best reason to track and control every dollar. Once you start weeding out the bad clicks, you can afford more good ones.

Begin with this week’s search term report and conversion tracking. These two checks alone can often show where the majority of the money is ending up. Then work through location settings, landing pages, and bidding one step at a time, and check out what these are doing each month.