As I said in my last blog back in 2009 miracles could be performed for clients by dramatically improving an account’s CTR. Get CTR right and instant stardom awaited you.  The simple 3 step process I created for stopping the bleed, regenerating and expanding an account revolutionised the industry. For a brief period in AdWords overnight turnarounds could be achieved. The concept has since been copied by all and sundry. It was brilliant and it appealed to the inner monkey within all of us.  As we know all decisions are made by our monkey brain, yet when we’re asked why we made a decision our logical brain will create a reason to justify the decision made on impulse by the inner monkey.

The popularity of Cookery programmes like the Great British Bake off and even Tom Kerridges Proper Pub Food appeal to our inner monkey for food and instant gratification. As I sit here writing this Tom is busy on the TV presenting his pub grub as a simple easy exercise you could waft through without even the slightest spec of flour being left on your worktops. It looks so easy and Friends will beat a path to your kitchen, the days will always be summer and everyone will be beautiful.

If we think about it, you know it’s not going to be dreamy exercise. I cook a mean pizza, but I am rarely allowed to delight us all with my creations due to the flour and tomato mayhem that is left across the kitchen when I’ve finished.

The truth is that Tom is the only person to own a pub in the UK with two Michelin stars. That takes hard work, a systematic approach coupled with imagination and drive.  I don’t think there is an easy 3 step process to 2 Michelin stars!

The same can be said about a successful Google AdWords campaign. Success with AdWords takes knowledge, hard work and a systematic approach coupled with innovative strategies.

What worked last year will not work now.

Back in the day, an increase in CTR had a heavy influence on quality score and as every smart direct marketer knows, you don’t bid by price on AdWords, but rather in Ad Rank points.  Ad Rank is cost per click multiplied by quality score. Some simple maths doesn’t take you long to realise that if your quality score is a 5 then you’re paying double that of a competitor with a score of 10. Even at a reasonable 7 you’re still paying 30% over the odds.

That simple piece of knowledge literally made my AdWords Mentoring clients small fortunes a few years back. Today the formula may still be the same, but with product listing ads, search partners and remarketing it’s a completely different world.

Yet still too many of you seek the simple the simple 3 step solution of stop the bleed, regenerate the account and expand.  You’re chasing a quick fix dream that ends in tears. Its why so many of you rushed to dip your toes into the Facebook and Twitter waters with the hope of a low cost sales nirvana.  Yet time after time, online marketers find either expensive sales or a low volume of sales that wouldn’t keep your offspring in mobile calls for a week.

Quick fixes are hot button marketing that pushes your inner monkey’s instant gratification button. Whilst Tom’s food probably will provided instant gratification without the summer days, simple AdWords solutions are long dead.  I urge you to stop looking for the quick fix and start seriously investing in your own development. Avoid the pushy salesmen who promise you the world and look for those who can really help you. Face the facts that whilst the young are full of enthusiasm, you need people in your team that have experience and in direct marketing you can’t get that before you’re thirty – the beatings, failures and successes take time to acquire.

The Google AdWords world has changed. Traditional CTR was important as those that clicked had a buying intent, now you’re more likely to be an entertainment provider than a direct marketer. You’re still paying large sums for clicks, but are those clicks even worth anything? Are impressions really worth anything? Recent research showed nearly 40% of free time is spent interacting with mobile devices. More time is spent online, but it’s not to purchase, but rather entertainment.   You’re going to have to adopt your model to this changing market. Customers have more interest in whether a status update is met with a like than a desire to purchase your product.

Only the smart advertisers willing to invest in their development survive. Just stop and consider; how much have you invested in AdWords development? In no other line of work would you consider or would it be acceptable to spend such large advertising budgets with often such little experience or knowledge.

The solution is that you need to be PREPARED to SPEND money for the information you use to run your business. There is no use in looking to books for salvation – by the time they are published the AdWords interface will have changed and the strategies will be out of date. I know better than most as I’ve been attempting to write a book on product listing ads, but it’s like trying to hit a moving target at speed.

In the heady rush of running a business with demands left and right for your time and money, investing in your AdWords development and skills is often overlooked.

However, time and time again the smart clients making the largest returns are those who continually invest in staying at the forefront of AdWords. Frankly you need to invest in your knowledge development today. If you haven’t spent money recently in AdWords training, coaching and development your future may not be that secure.

Have you been investing in your AdWords Training or AdWords Management? If not why not? Contact us now before it’s too late and get your AdWords campaigns back on track.