Bing Ads

Save Time and Money with Bing Ads Updates

September 24, 2014 by Justin Miller 29 Comments

Over the past few months, Microsoft has been rolling out several changes to its Bing Ads Platform. The goal is to help advertisers manage their PPC Campaigns more efficiently and effectively. Here is a quick recap of some of the changes that you may or may not have seen and experienced.

Redesigned Interface

The new interface gives Bing Ads a cleaner more streamlined look. By combining the title bar and the first set of tabs into one row and keeping the side panel collapsible, user can now view more rows and columns of data at on time. This make data comparison and analysis easier as you no longer have the trouble of scrolling, or at least not as much.

View up to 1,000,000 Keywords (Yep, 1 Million)

For those advertisers with monster keyword lists, this will allow you to see (hopefully) your entire list in one view. This means no more searching through pages and pages for that particular keyword. So now, instead of loading each page, instead you only need to scroll through a single view.

Top Movers

Top Movers reveals what has had the biggest impact in performance change given the selected timeframe. This helpful tool can be found under the Dimensions tab and will give 3 possible reasons for the change: Your Account (your changes), Search Traffic (users’ changes, i.e. search trends), or Competitor Data (competitive changes.) With these insights, you will know how to edit your PPC campaigns to keep your ads and keywords performing at their best. To read more about Top Movers, check out the Bing Ads blog.

Bid Landscape

This new features gives you an estimated idea of how bid changes would affect your overall performance. Sometimes it is difficult to determine how much of a bid increase is needed. This tools removes the guesswork by clearly graphing out the estimated impact.

Better Opportunities Tab

Previously, Bing Ads’ suggestions given in the Opportunities Tab have been “spend more” or something equally unhelpful. The new Opportunities Tab now gives actionable insights, new keyword suggestions, and even groups the suggestions into new ad groups. In addition to the suggestion, Bing Ads also provides the estimated effect it would have on your PPC if implemented. If you approve the suggestion and want to implement, you can click apply and the suggestion is implemented into action with a single click. It’s a huge time-saver, not needing to go back into each Campaign and Ad Group to make the changes yourself.

Online Insertion Order

Previously, advertisers using Insertion Orders as their payment method had to call Bing Ads and set this up over the phone. With this update it is now a much quicker and easier process that can be accomplished entirely online within the Bing Ads interface. If you are using an insertion order, then you realize the time you will save being able to set the next one up online.

Auto Tagging

This is by far my favorite update. If you were tracking your Bing Ads performance via Google Analytics, that means you were manually tagging each of your ads. Now with auto tagging, the utm_ parameters (medium, source, campaign and term) are all done for you at the account level. This has already saved me a lot of time in setting up campaigns and new ad groups inside Bing Ads.

And More…

This list does not cover all the new features and updates that Microsoft has made to Big Ads. It does highlight several that affect many advertisers’ daily usage of the Bing Ads platform. We would love to know which update(s) to Bing Ads has been your favorite and has helped you save time and money.

Tell us your story in the comments section below!

Why A Low Quality Score Shouldn’t Get You Down

May 14, 2014 by Justin Miller 5 Comments

Both Google AdWords and Bing Ads give a Quality Score out of ten (10) at the keyword level. These scores are primarily based on relevancy among your keyword, ad copy, landing page, and your competitiveness, which is mainly shown by your Click through Rate (CTR). There are huge differences in how these seemingly similar Quality Scores affect your PPC advertising. For instance, a low Quality Score could be costing you additional money per click, or it could be saving you money by preventing unwanted clicks.

A Low Quality Score Can Be Good?

For Google AdWords, there is no question that a low Quality Score equates to needing a higher bid in order to stay competitive. On Bing Ads however, a low Quality Score could save you money. Bing Ads will reduce your impressions share for low Quality Score keywords. This reduction of impressions will most likely cause two outcomes:

1) Increased Click through Rate (CTR)

2) Reduced Clicks

While this may initially seem like one positive and one negative, remember that you are charged for each click. This means that fewer clicks equates to fewer charges, or lower cost. If the impressions being prevented are less likely to obtain clicks and/or conversions, then the low Quality Score is actually helping you. Let’s look at some examples to clarify.

Google AdWords Low Quality Score

This table shows the real value (or cost) of Quality Score on AdWords. The numbers are based on keeping the same Ad Rank (value of 10), which is calculated by multiplying Bid and Quality Score.

Bing Ads Low Quality Score

There is no clear-cut formula (at least not one shared publicly) that determines how much impression share or how many impressions a low Quality Score keyword can/will receive. The numbers in the table below are entirely made up, but plausible and realistic.

Note: 7 – 10 are lumped together because Bing Ads does not lower impression share for these “good” Quality Scores.

The table above assumes that your CTR remains consistent despite the change in Quality Score, meaning that the number of clicks drops in proportion to the decrease in Impression Share. We are also assuming that your CPC does not change either. While these assumptions are unlikely to play out perfectly as depicted, the table still reveals how a low Quality Score could actually cause a decrease in cost. The real question is whether the value received from the acquired clicks drops as impression share and clicks decrease. If value is declining then the lower cost is not necessarily a good thing, but if value remains high while cost decreases, then your Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) will increase, which means your boss won’t worry about the low Quality Score.

Conclusion

Overall, Quality Score — whether on AdWords or Bing Ads — shows how relevant and competitive your PPC keywords, ad copy, and landing pages are. On Google AdWords, there is a clear path from Quality Score to impact on your bottom line. On Bing Ads, the path is not as clear, but Quality Score is still important. Remember, a low Quality Score is not always a bad thing on Bing Ads. Always track the value of conversions from PPC so that you know when/if a keyword is profitable despite its Quality Score.

We would love to hear about your low Quality Score keywords that are still profitable. Share your story in the comments!

Achieve PPC Success by Working Backward

July 10, 2013 by Justin Miller Leave a Comment

If you are measuring your PPC Campaigns to monitor their success, then you know that there are a lot of metrics to consider. There are the straightforward metrics (Impressions, Clicks, Cost, etc.), the calculated stats (Cost/Click = CPC, Click/Impressions = CTR, etc.), and now there are even assisted metrics (referring to Impressions and/or Clicks that eventually lead to a Conversion.) With so many different ways to measure your PPC, it is not realistic to attempt to be the best (whether that is highest or lowest) in every metric. Instead, you will need to focus on specific metrics and measure your success based upon your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs.) However, with so many metrics, which should be your KPIs? This question can easily be answered by determining your Goal, or purpose, for wanting to run PPC.

What’s Your PPC Goal & Strategy?

Before you start paying for and running your PPC ads, you should have a purpose, or goal that you want the ads to achieve. This purpose can range from increasing brand awareness, to generating leads, or driving more online/in-store sales. The fulfillment of this goal will determine if your PPC is a success or if it needs more work. Once you have chosen your PPC goal or purpose, the next step is to figure out a way (strategy) to accomplish it.

Your PPC strategy is simply a more defined method of how to achieve your PPC goal. For instance, if your goal is brand awareness, then your strategy should be to expand the reach and increase the visibility of your brand. However, if your goal is to drive online sales, then you will want to focus and target your PPC efforts towards people who are ready to purchase your product/service online. And, of course, if your goal is lead generation, then your strategy will broadly target people interested in your product/service, as well as similar, related and connected products/services.

What are Your Key Performance Indicators?

Your goal and strategy are now in place, but you still need metrics to measure to ensure success. The best and easiest way to determine which metrics to monitor for success is to work backward from your goal. Ask yourself, “What does the user have to do or go through to accomplish my goal?” Using increasing online sales as an example, the user would have to:

Purchase online [Conversion]
Browse & Select a product/service
Arrive at your website [Visit]
Click on one of your Ads [Click]
See one of your Ads [Impression]
Conduct a search that would trigger one of your ads

As you read through this list, certain metrics, your KPIs, will begin to stand out. First, an Impression is needed, then a Click which leads to a Visit, and finally a sale (Conversion.) After figuring out the straightforward stats, look into the calculated stats that would help you achieve your goal. In this case, Click Thru Rate (CTR = Impressions/Clicks) would show that quality of your targeting efforts. A low CTR indicates that you are getting Impressions, but either to the wrong people, or your competitors are getting the Clicks rather than you. Another calculated metric (via analytics) that you will want to see is your Bounce Rate, which is the percentage of visits that leave your site after viewing only 1 page. Because online sales require visiting multiple pages, your Bounce Rate will reveal Visits that did not turn into sales.

After looking at those that did not make a purchase, look into your Conversion Rate (Conversions/Clicks.) This metric will, again, validate your targeting efforts and give you a success rate. Additionally, do not forget to watch your Cost. Keep track of Cost per Click (CPC) as well as Cost per Acquisition (CPA) – this is the same as Cost per Conversion, but CPC was already used. Lastly, you should also be tracking the value of your Conversions to compare it to your Cost and make sure that you are obtaining a positive ROI. This process will be different for each of your PPC goals, but is a crucial step to ensure that you are measuring the correct metrics towards your PPC success.

PPC Success – Backward is the Way Forward

Success is no accident. It requires goals, strategy and KPIs measurements. For PPC, this requires starting with your goal and working backward through a user’s process to accomplish it. The important metrics, or your KPIs, will be clear once you determine the steps people have to go through to achieve your Goal. This process may seem tedious, but is absolutely mandatory to achieve success. Of course measuring is not the final step. If something isn’t working, adjustments need to be made, but without measuring (and measuring the correct metrics) you will never know why you did, or did not, achieve your goal.

Rebranding of adCenter & Search Alliance

September 26, 2012 by Justin Miller Leave a Comment

I’ve just finished taking the Bing Ads Accreditation exam , which is free until the end of September. Microsoft is graciously offering this exam for free as part of its rebranding promotion, which includes the renaming of adCenter to Bing Ads and Search Alliance to Yahoo! Bing Network. Offering something for free is always good at getting attention; in my opinion however, Microsoft did this a bit hastily.

What’s In A Name?

Image courtesy of InlineVision.com

The first issue with offering the Bing Ads test for free is the lack of updated questions. Sure, there are a few questions on updates to adCenter/Bing Ads features. The problem is that throughout the test the questions constantly reference adCenter, not Bing Ads! This also holds true for the Yahoo! Bing Network, which is never mentioned in the test either. Microsoft, if you are offering the test free for rebranding purposes, it makes more sense to make sure you call your own advertising platform (Bing Ads) and Network (Yahoo! Bing Network) by the correct name.

PPC Done By the Books

On top of missing a great opportunity to drill the correct/new name of Bing Ads and the Yahoo! Bing Network into the accredited professionals’ heads (assuming they pass the exam), the substance of the test still seems to be mostly textbook definitions. The only exception is when Microsoft starts asking about how to navigate and use their desktop editor, which is still called adCenter desktop in the test. Although this tool is useful for agencies who manage multiple accounts, it is not a necessity for everyone that manages a PPC campaign on Bing Ads to download and use the desktop editor.

As a recently re-accredited Bing Ads professional, I would love to hear your feedback on the rebranding and renaming of Bing Ads and the Yahoo! Bing Network. Also, if you have taken the Bing Ads test, please share your thoughts about it in the comments section below.

3 Steps to a Successful Strategic PPC Campaign

June 14, 2012 by Justin Miller Leave a Comment

Pay per Click (PPC) are the paid ads the show above and and along side of the search results, when you use Google, Bing, or other search engines. PPC can be a very powerful form of advertising. Google and Microsoft often brag about its amazing reach and how cost-effective it is. However, like everything else in business, if your PPC advertising efforts are aimless, then the profitability will most likely not be there. In order to not waste your time and money, here are 3 Steps (Strategy, Implement, and Optimize) to consider prior to running a Pay per Click Campaign.

1) Strategy

First ask the all important question: Why? What is your purpose of advertising online? This begins the strategy building process, which all starts with an overall objective – Increase brand awareness, generate leads, drive more sales, etc. This defined objective gives your PPC Campaign a focus. Next, decide how much you are willing to spend. Your budget is best set either monthly or daily. The final stage of the strategic process is setting specific and measurable Goals – i.e. to increase sales 3% month over month.

2) Implement

Now that you have an objective, budget, and at least one goal, the next step is setting up the Campaign. Before heading to Google AdWords or Microsoft adCenter, you will want to do some research. A few questions to consider are – Who is your target audience (broad or niche), what are they searching (keywords), and where are they online (websites, Social Media, etc.)? With all of this newly found information, it is time to head to the most appropriate advertising platform(s) (AdWords, adCenter, Facebook, etc.) and set-up your PPC Account. Remember to include multiple ad copy variations, keyword match types, and landing pages for testing purposes, because it is never too early to begin testing to see what will be the most effective and efficient.

3) Optimize

Finally, your PPC is up and running. The last step is to monitor its performance and make adjustments accordingly. Re-visit your goal(s) and determine all your Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s), not just the final goal metric. For example, if your goal is to increase sales 3% month over month, your KPI’s would include:

Impressions – Number of times the ad was shown
Clicks – How often your ad was engaged with
Conversions – Sales, Lead Generation, Phone Calls, etc.
Cost – Cost/Click and Cost/Conversion
ROI – Measure and show Profitability

Between checking the important KPI’s and continuously testing different elements (Ad Copy, Landing Pages, Keywords, etc.) of your PPC Campaign, you will be able to make the modifications needed to ensure that you reach your goals and objectives.

To summarize, Pay per Click can do wonders for your business, but you have to put work into it, rather than just running it aimlessly. Start with putting together a strategy. Use that strategy to guide you through the set-up and targeting process. Finally, stay focused on your business’s goals as you monitor, test, and optimize your PPC Campaigns. This simple, yet time-consuming and work-intensive 3-step process will help you build and manage an effective and efficient PPC Campaign.