Can AdWords Make You Money? – It’s About Your Web Site!

It is 9:00pm and I don’t know what to do about the lack of sales on my web site. I had hoped that the AdWords campaign I implemented would have generated some much needed profit. (For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term AdWords, it’s a way of paying Google to have an advertisement for your business appear on the web pages that Google serves up to people when they conduct a search on a keyword.) But, I have learned now how increased traffic to my web site does not necessarily mean that sales will increase. It’s all about the proportion of the traffic that eventually makes a purchase, (referred to as the conversion rate). I have also learned how historical rates of conversion may or may not be appropriate to use in estimating conversions from a particular advertising campaign I am considering.

So, now that I have learned what does not work, I wonder what a person can do to make sure any increased traffic that results from an advertising campaign will actually convert into sales.

The answer is simple.

But, it is one we often ignore. Before we spend any of our hard earned money in an attempt to increase traffic to a web site, we should do the numbers! And, if after doing these numbers we don’t like the results, we should take a hard look at our selling process. We should make sure the products and services that we sell as well as our web site appeal to our customers and motivate them to purchase. We should analyze existing traffic to make sure we understand who our customers are and why they purchase. If the historic conversion rate is not as high as we would like, we should look for ways to increase it.

The following factors should be considered when making your analysis.

Are you getting qualified leads to your web site?

Are visitors coming to your web site looking for something else only to then leave? Your “bounce rate” (a rate that report reported by many web hosts showing how many visitors leave your site after a short visit) can help you figure this out.

Another technique used on web sites is to simply ask visitors as they leave why they didn’t stay. This is often accomplished through a pop-up window or other display. Unfortunately, this type of inquiry requires the skills of a programmer and adds to the cost of your web site.

Is your web site not closing on the sale?

Are interested and qualified leads turning away from your site because they don’t find the information they need? Or, perhaps they find your site too difficult to navigate. Worse, do they wonder about the stability and credibility of your business? Reports that analyze the visits to your web site, (such as Google Analytics and reports provided by web hosts), can often be used to track visitors to your site and figure out when they leave. But, unfortunately, you won’t understand why they leave. To understand their motives for leaving requires you to step into the shoes of a prospective customer visiting your web site and try to understand how they perceive the situation. If you can’t step into their shoes for and remain unbiased in your perspective, then find someone who is a member of your target customer group to visit your site and give you honest feedback. It simply does not matter if your web site communicates what you value. It matters whether it communicates a message that serves your customers and will eventually motivate them to purchase.

Is your product or service simply not what customers are looking for?

This is probably the most difficult question you must ask. You likely have a lot of time and effort invested in either creating or choosing a product or service to sell and have spent hours convincing yourself and others why it is “a great deal”. The thought that it might not be what customers are looking for is quite frightening. None the less, this is a question that must be asked. If changes must be made, they should be done before you invest any more money in advertising something people do not want.

Unfortunately, existing software and reports (such as Google Analytics) don’t provide you with the answer to this question. To understand whether or not your products and services appeal to your customers, you must have an open and objective mind as you listen to what members of your target customer group have to say. This will include learning about what they think about the products and services of your competitors.

If there are blogs where your target customers can be found, join in the conversation. Ask for people’s advice in finding the type of product or service you sell. If they recommend a competitor, ask them what they enjoy or do not enjoy about the competitor and his product. But, remember to listen to what they have to say. Do not use this time to sell. If you can find members of your target customer group who you can trust to provide honest feedback, (such as friends and relatives), ask them for an honest answer. Many people will provide honest feedback if you are receptive to receiving it.

In conclusion, before rushing out to spend money on an AdWords campaign, (or any advertising campaign for that matter), do the numbers!  And, if the numbers don’t look all that promising, find out why. Put yourself in the shoes of a prospective customer and ask yourself if the products and services offered on your web site inspire you to make a purchase. If not, advertising is probably not a good idea. Your money would be better spent on making changes to what you offer and how you offer it. This isn’t easy to do. And, it is often involves information you don’t want to learn.

But, you need to make sure the fundamentals of your business are in place to support your advertising before spending your money to drive traffic to your web site.

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