How Do Effective Paid Ads and Content Creation Work Together to Increase CTR?

Paid ads, or what we usually refer to as PPC, are a quick and effective way to increase your brand visibility on the search results page. In addition, the increase in voice search and continuous algorithm changes mean more and more digital marketers put PPC ads as a line item in their marketing budget.

If you’re currently running or plan on running PPC ads, then you’ve probably heard it all before for getting the maximum ROI on your campaigns:

“Use negative keywords!”

“Optimize your account structure!”

“Improve your quality score!”

And so on. While these are all crucial tactics for increasing the effectiveness of your PPC campaigns, excellent content creation is a competitive strategy that’s often overlooked.

Let’s break down how effective PPC ads and content creation work together to improve your visibility, click-through rates, and ROI.

How does content creation impact PPC ads?

It’s a symbiotic relationship. Quality content creation improves the effectiveness of your PPC ads. But by the same token, PPC ads get eyeballs on your content, enhancing your brand awareness.

But what role do these two marketing tactics — PPC ads and content creation — play in improving conversion rates, the ultimate metric for deciding if PPC ads work?

You have to back your PPC ads with quality content.

Why?

Because paid search ads bring more people into the sales funnel. But it is your content that has to nudge them through the funnel to conversion. It's your content that turns marketing-qualified leads (MQLs), into sales-qualified leads (SQLs).

Content is the ultimate vehicle of persuasion.

And it’s a highly effective one at that. In fact, quality content converts leads six times higher than other leading marketing tactics.

  • Content converts
  • Content is purpose-driven
  • Content increases trust

The bottom line is, for your PPC ads to have the greatest impact, you must back them with quality content.

Okay, now that you understand the why behind effective PPC ads and content creation, let’s get into the how.

#1. Effective PPC ad copy

If you’re running a PPC ad campaign, the ad copy is the first impression people will have of your business or offering. As such, it is the most powerful tool in your PPC arsenal, influencing the ad’s click-through rate (CTR).

Creating compelling ad copy that will possibly impact CTR and conversions may be simple, but it’s not easy. The execution is vital. Compelling ad copy boils down to catching people’s attention and convincing them to click on the ad.

On top of that, you want to make sure your ad copy is aligned with your landing page. Using a clickbait-y ad that doesn’t have much to do with your landing page won’t help your conversions.

Another tip:

Make sure your PPC ads contain your targeted keywords and that your landing page also contains those keywords. When your target keyword is included in the ad copy, it’ll be bolded after the user triggers it in the search box.

But a caveat — don’t stuff the ad copy with your keywords. Instead, only use the most relevant keywords that also match the landing page text.

Spy on your competitors and look at the effective PPC ads they’re running. Then, test and experiment to get the best ROI and highest conversion rates for your business.

Summary:

  • Use keywords throughout ad and landing page copy
  • Make sure keywords are relevant, and don’t stuff the copy with them
  • Spy on your competitors
  • Test, tweak, optimize and repeat

On a related note, keywords are a useful tool in your content creation arsenal. Keywords get your offerings served up on Google. But they can also make it much easier for you to come up with strategic content.

#2. PPC insights can inform a broader content strategy

Consistent content creation is essential for businesses in the digital age. It informs, engages, and convinces people to trust your brand and make a purchase. Content is what nudges people along the sales funnel to final conversion.

In turn, consistent content keeps your brand top of mind. And it’s important to remember that it’s less expensive to sell to a previous customer than to find a new one. Content creation and marketing helps you do that.

But here’s where it gets tricky. Coming up with new and engaging topics regularly is much easier said than done. Fortunately, your PPC ads and content share something in common — keywords.

So, you can leverage your PPC data insights to find new, trending keywords to build content around. PPC data insights can save you time and effort searching for and coming up with fresh content topics. With your PPC ad data, you can see what’s popular and will help drive traffic to your site.

Some quick tips:

  • Promote your offerings with commercial intent keywords
  • Use branded keywords since these are highly effective at increasing CTR
  • Combine your keyword strategies together
  • Use the success of one keyword strategy and transfer it to another campaign
  • Determine which keywords are best within a campaign via A/B testing

#3. Increasing website traffic with effective PPC ads and content creation

Millions of blogs are published every day. However, while blogging has its place in the marketing ecosystem, content creation alone won’t be as effective as possible for driving increased website traffic.

The best way to leverage the power of blogging and content creation, especially if you have a new site lacking on-page SEO juice, is to run PPC ads.

The bottom line is, the most effective content creation campaigns are those part of a more comprehensive, broader strategy. This will give you more traffic to your site faster than relying on blogging alone.

Focus on both campaigns simultaneously, and target the same keywords in your blogs and ad text. You can inform, describe, and build trust with content while your PPC ads work to convert.

#4. Using PPC ads and content creation to build awareness

PPC ads can get more eyeballs on your organic pages. Studies have shown that people who have seen your ads are more likely to remember your brand and search for your organic listings. On average, the incremental ad clicks percentage across verticals is 89%.

So contrary to popular belief, PPC ads won’t cannibalize your organic traffic. Instead, having two listings on the same page makes your brand appear more authoritative and trustworthy. This increase in brand awareness will also drive repeat visits to your site.

#5. Content and PPC ads help you acquire more SERP real estate

When you have multiple links on the same search results page (SERP), you will get more website clicks. Not only that but having several listings on the same SERP will increase brand awareness and authority.

Effective PPC ads and content creation will give you more internet real estate and, therefore, traffic and eyeballs on your offerings.

PPC ads and content: Your next action steps

Now that you understand how effective PPC ads via content creation work together to make marketing magic, here are some actionable steps you can take to get the most out of your campaigns:

  • Promote your content on social media with organic and paid posts — Target people who liked your page and their friends and utilize insights to target specific audiences. Social media insights can also inform your PPC strategy and targeting for greater effectiveness.
  • Write informative and engaging headlines for more clicks and shares — Headlines should inform and entertain enough to get a click. Put keywords in your headline, and don’t be afraid to A/B test for maximum conversions.
  • Prioritize mobile searchers and format ads and content for these visitors — Think short. For mobile users, you want short headlines, smaller images, and clear CTAs. Also, avoid using pop-ups as these can negatively affect CTRs and conversions with mobile viewers.
  • Craft irresistible CTAs to entice more clicks and conversions — Above or below the fold? We suggest putting a CTA above the fold and at the end of the text to give viewers more chances to click and convert.

Effective PPC ads and content creation: Punchline

Many marketers and agencies put various marketing tactics in siloes. While this may have been effective in the past, digital marketing campaigns have gotten more complex. Having your marketing tactics and methods working together will give you a better ROI and nudge more qualified buyers along the sales funnel.

In particular, running effective PPC ads boils down to having effective content to back them up. The bottom line is, you need engaging copy in your ads and engaging copy in your landing pages.

Use the tips and strategies in this article to increase your PPC ad conversions and CTRs and drive traffic to your website and offerings.

Ready to maximize your PPC ad and content ROI? Reach out to us today, and let’s grow your eCommerce business.