Google’s Black Box
Advertisers are one step closer to having the information from Google required to determine how to improve their click cost on Ad Words. Up to this point we knew only of the black box that determined the Quality Score for the Ads. We know that the price we pay for a click is based upon a good Quality Score. Previously we could only infer that our ad and/or landing page was bad or good when our cost per click went up or down, respectively.
Why a Quality Score?
The enforcement of Google’s Quality Score makes sense. Its ultimate purpose is to nudge the advertiser toward more relevant ads and landing pages. As advertisers we see that an ad is doing good or bad by the click through rate. Since, reportedly, the Quality Score factors in the relevancy of the landing page, among other things, the introduction of a gauge other than the click through rate is welcomed.
Quality Score Grades
Google is now assigning a Quality Score grade (Great, OK, Poor) to each keyword. We don’t know where Google draws the lines but I think it is safe to assume that a grade of “Great” indicates you are getting a better cost per click that the guy with a “OK” grade. Also a Quality Score of “Poor” is likely to yield a higher click cost than “OK”.
Improving the Grade
The first thing I will do with the Quality Score grade is to compare it with what I thought I knew. If I have a “Great” score does it mean I will always have a good click through rate? Can I detect any variations and trends in this? Is there any correlation between a “Great” score and how many times I repeat a search term on the landing page? Can I overdo it and cause my score to drop? Can I detect other patterns related to a poor grade? Some may look at this new keyword column as a simple monitoring attribute. I see it as a little more information that can help perfect an ad word campaign.
Check back here periodically to see what I learned. Feel free to share your thoughts on this new addition.
Technorati Tags: Pay per click, Google Quality Score, Search Engine Marketing
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