Google AdWords™ For Dummies®, 3rd Edition

Using Permission (Search) Ads

As we show in the plumber example at the beginning of this chapter, permission and interruption ads have different approaches. Ads in the Search network need to understand and respond to the searcher's intent.

Tuning your ad to the Search intent

Imagine that your goal is to sell a photocopier to Al Schmendrick, a local business owner. Which ad headline has the best chance of success?

• Big Sale on Business Machines This Week
• Are You Tired of Clearing Paper Jams from Your Old Copier?
• Hey, Al Schmendrick: Are You Tired of Clearing Paper Jams from Your Old Copier?

If your kids' college tuition depended on the sale, you'd choose headline C in a heartbeat. Why? It's all about the prospect, and it's very likely to get his attention. In fact, if Al Schmendrick doesn't read the paper that day or skips the page that contains this ad, we'd bet that one of Al's friends will tell him about it.

The meta-message of your ad to your best prospect is, “This ad is all about you.” Marketing consultant Dan Kennedy talks about the message-to-market match. The keyword defines the market — who they are and what they want. Your ad is the message that must address their self-identity and desires. As we talk about in Chapter 7, the tighter your ad groups, the more precisely your tone, message, and offer can match what each market will respond to.

Cutting through the cluttered search results page

The most important rule when trying to stand out in a crowd is, “When they zig, ...