Over the past year, I’ve dedicated approximately three hours daily to immersing myself in the world of online marketing, particularly paid search. This adds up to roughly 780 hours spent absorbing the newest case studies, practical tips, comprehensive how-to guides, and innovative research – we’re talking a massive volume of articles!
In case you haven’t matched my daily dedication, I wanted to highlight my top picks for the most insightful, must-read PPC articles of 2013.
Some were bookmarked, others etched in my memory, and others still were contributed by industry peers like Robert Brady, Melissa Mackey, Danny Goodwin, Sam Owen from PPC Hero, Michelle Morehouse at Clix, and AJ Kohn – a huge thank you to all of you! (Discover more incredible contributions in this Twitter thread.)
The standout PPC articles this year went beyond mere rants or intriguing facts devoid of practical takeaways. While 2013 saw its share of impactful news, the top posts provided additional insights that marketers can leverage to evaluate this year’s performance and truly excel in 2014.
Drum roll, please…
Shining a Light on the Best PPC Case Studies
Surprisingly, 2013 saw a scarcity of case studies. This was unexpected, especially considering the analytical nature of SEM/PPC work. I anticipated more articles grounded in real-world data, as opposed to generic advice and speculation. Nonetheless, these case studies truly stood out:
Sam Owen, over at PPC Hero, crafted a brilliant piece analyzing whether Do People Actually Click Sitelinks? His answer: Yes and no – head over to his post for the details!
Melissa Mackey provided a client case study at Search Engine Watch showcasing the real impact of PPC visits on sales.
While some criticized her for omitting cost considerations, kudos to Melissa for crafting a comprehensive, in-depth case study and sharing actionable insights.
Marty Weintraub of AimClear argued that content marketing should always be boosted through using both paid and organic social content distribution regardless of how effective the organic distribution is. He believes that neglecting paid promotion significantly limits a content’s potential reach.
We also love showcasing case studies based on the wealth of data at our disposal. Two particularly well-received examples include:
- Data-driven insights gleaned from 18 months of remarketing, aimed at achieving specific goals in Remarketing: How to Make Your Content Marketing and SEO up to 7x More Awesome, featured on Moz.
- A deep dive into Quality Scores, using a small insurance business account for analysis, in Case Study: The Anatomy of a Killer Quality Score, right here on the nexus-security blog.
The key takeaway for PPC professionals and bloggers is clear: we need more case studies! Enough with the “do it this way because I said so” articles. As Google continues to restrict data access, it’s more crucial than ever to provide solid, evidence-based advice grounded in real-world research.
Navigating the World of PPC with Detailed How-To Guides
I’m a huge fan of well-crafted how-to guides. When done right, they offer immense value and serve as an excellent platform to share knowledge with the community. Here are a few exceptional how-to resources shared by your fellow PPC experts in 2013.
Eric Couch from Hanapin Marketing delivered an outstanding guide on AdWords scripts you can use for account analysis, featured on the PPC Hero blog.
Also on PPC Hero, Amanda West-Bookwalk presented The Total Guide to Product Listing Ads series, kicking off with Step 1: Setting Up Your Data Feed.
Lisa Raehsler from Big Click Co. provided an impressive breakdown of RLSA in her resource, Google AdWords Remarketing Lists for Search Ads: The Ultimate Guide. Going beyond mere setup instructions, she delved into best practices, innovative applications, and inspiring campaign ideas. Brimming with tips and valuable insights, it truly lived up to its “ultimate guide” title.
Spring saw Google rolling out a major overhaul of its AdWords Keyword Planner, introducing features and modifications that would undeniably reshape the workflow for marketers. My guide on the new planner subsequently became Search Engine Land’s most popular article in 2013! You can also find additional analysis on Search Engine Watch.
It’s worth noting that exceptional resources aren’t limited to blog posts. Matt Umbro, founder of #PPCChat on Twitter, has made significant contributions to the paid search community by uniting and encouraging marketers to share their best tips and tricks weekly. If you’re not already following this hashtag, you’re missing out! Kudos also to David Szetela for curating countless PPC articles throughout the year – be sure to follow him on Twitter if you haven’t already!
Unveiling the Power of Original PPC Research
Again, it’s rather surprising to note the lack of original PPC research conducted this year – perhaps due to the time commitment and extensive data requirements! Here are a few noteworthy studies, including contributions from Bing, Adobe, and nexus-security:
Kohki Yamaguchi, part of Adobe’s digital marketing team, authored a timely and comprehensive post on his PLA research. He meticulously tracked impression data across over 180 product categories for six weeks, later integrating his findings with bid and CTR data to gain deeper insights into PLA behavior. For a more in-depth look, check out his 4 Must-Know Facts on Product Listing Ad Mechanics on Search Engine Land.
Bing Ads Evangelist John Gagnon consistently shares valuable original research, including Bing’s series of reports examining consumer interest in various keywords in ad titles and copy across various industries. One of John’s standout contributions this year, following Google’s transition to “not provided” keyword data, was his sharing of comScore data highlighting Bing’s unique audience (see below).
Here at nexus-security, we’re constantly brainstorming our next research endeavors. One project that resonated strongly this year was a comparative analysis of ad offerings from social advertising giants Twitter and Facebook. We evaluated factors such as network reach, ad performance, mobile ad performance, and ad formats. Curious about the winner? Dive into our findings.
Delving into the Hottest PPC Topics of 2013
Every year, certain stories dominate industry news. This year, Enhanced Campaigns undoubtedly took center stage. It was a major talking point upon its announcement and remained a hot topic throughout the year. Quality Score, however, wasn’t to be outdone and managed to steal some of the spotlight.
Enhanced Campaigns
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Enhanced Campaigns, announced in February on the Google Blog, were the subject of at least half the PPC articles published in 2013.
Furthermore, I’d venture to say that 99% of those articles expressed disapproval of the changes, with headlines like “Why No Tablet Targeting!” [Shakes Fist at Google]. There are literally too many to list out here, but Marty Weintraub from AimClear provides an excellent roundup of around 100 such articles in his piece titled Enhanced Campaigns? Love Em or Loathe Em, Kiss Your Sweet $ Goodbye..
My reaction to the news differed significantly from the majority. I found the old system of campaign cloning unnecessarily complex and cumbersome. In fact, its clunkiness meant very few people were actually utilizing those features. In contrast, the new system felt far more intuitive, and I recognized early on its potential to even enhance performance, as outlined in I argued at Search Engine Land back in February.
More recently, our research revealed that ECs weren’t nearly as bad, contrary to initial assumptions.
And just last October, George Michie from RKG confirmed that companies leveraging Enhanced Campaigns and mobile bid modifiers were reaping tangible benefits. In his column at Search Engine Land, Michie aimed to dissect a common issue with ECs: modifiers needing to be applied on top of one another in a stack, which isn’t ideal if the desired effects aren’t entirely independent of each other.
Quality Score
Earlier this year, I might have stirred the pot with my new research and analysis indicating that Quality Score is now worth 200% more than it was just two years ago. The underlying premise was that, as average Quality Scores have trended downward over the past four years, the value of achieving an above-average score (in terms of lower CPCs and higher ad positions) has increased significantly.
Michelle Morehouse from Clix Marketing provided an excellent summary of the various viewpoints and offered valuable advice in her article, AdWords Quality Score: Hype, Changes and Tracking Tools.
Among those advocating for Quality Score optimization were James at QualityScore.com and Michael Wiegand from Portent Interactive..
On the “No” side, we had several relevant posts, all penned by Susan Waldes at 3Q Digital. The first cautioned against “fuzzy math,” stating, “While Google claims that QS is evaluated in real time, they don’t clarify whether the displayed QS is also updated in real time, nor do they disclose the frequency of these updates.” In July, she reiterated her position, having established herself as a “QS skeptic,” following Google’s announcement of changes to how QS is reported. (Be sure to check out Kohki Yamaguchi’s insightful analysis of the change as well.)
Fuzzy math aside, additional data we published later in July clearly demonstrates the impact of QS on cost per conversion. Further information regarding its calculation became available on Search Engine Land in August.
Another must-read: Former Googler Frederick Vallaeys, writing for SEL, offers his insider perspective on the evolution and calculation of QS.
So, are Quality Scores more valuable now than before? You be the judge.
PPC Tips & Tricks You Won’t Want to Miss
These helpful tips and tricks received top votes from our PPC community:
- Call to Action Cheat Sheet for Writing Effective PPC Ad Copy – LunaMetrics
- How to Apply the AIDA Marketing Principles in PPC – Clix Marketing
- When is 2% Not a Good CTR? The Relationship of CTR & Ad Position – nexus-security
- 8 Killer Landing Page Optimization Tips for PPC – Beyond the Paid
- 5 Insanely Great AdWords Automation Tricks – Andrew Goodman from Page Zero Media on ClickZ
- AdWords Account Audit Checklist – nexus-security
- PPC in 10 Minutes Per Day – Melissa Mackey from Gyro on Search Engine Watch
Anything We Missed?
It’s inevitable that some outstanding resources may have slipped through the cracks. We’d love to hear from you: what were your favorite PPC/SEM/AdWords articles of 2013 and why? Share your thoughts in the comments!
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