It’s no surprise that mobile-specific ads are an essential part of any successful PPC marketing campaign. Considering mobile is a huge part of how we connect with customers, we want to outline the importance of approaching your ads in the right way. How you optimise your mobile ads will depend on a number of things including your brand, your intended outcomes, and what you can offer your customers.
The most important thing is understanding and delivering what mobile users are looking for when they search. So, we have written our top tips for creating a better mobile user experience.
Creating a better landing page experience
Your landing page is the first thing a user will see when they click on your PPC ad. It’s essential that you have a relevant, engaging and fully-optimised landing page to encourage your site visitors to use your service or buy your product. Poor mobile experience will lead to lower engagement – so it’s crucial to get it right. We’ve listed a few tips to a better mobile landing page:
- Click-to-call – Making your phone number clickable will improve user experience by saving them time and effort on your landing page. To make sure users are not missing your hyperlink – we suggest using a button to create padding and therefore be easy to spot and click.
- Shorter copy – Your mobile landing page doesn’t need to include all the information on your desktop page. As expected on a mobile device, users will want a fast and straightforward process. We suggest creating short and concise content that is still using the most relevant messaging. Bullet points can be used to share key points, while shorter paragraphs can be used to break the text up and keep customers engaged.
- Don’t overdo the visuals – You don’t need to go overboard with the visual content on mobile. Videos and images will use data – so keeping your landing page visuals to a minimum will be appreciated your site visitors who are not using Wi-Fi. For any videos you do use – it’s best not to have them on autoplay as this could distract a user from completing the desired action and also potentially be invasive.
- Increase site speed – Site visitors don’t want to be spending any more than 3 seconds waiting for your page to load. If your landing page is too slow, you’ll miss out on customers who have decided to look elsewhere. You can compare performance with your competitors by using Google’s Speed Scorecard and Impact Calculator. It’s essential to optimise for mobile users. Minimising CSS and HTML and enabling compression will improve your customers’ conversion journey (making it easier for them to purchase)!
- Consider voice search – Recently, there has been an increase in the number of users doing voice searches on their mobile. With the rise in digital assistants, this isn’t that surprising – so it will help to adapt your campaigns as a result of this advanced technology. We’ve got a blog all about voice search in PPC, feel free to have a read here.
Device-specific ad copy
Your ad copy could include your location – this is because a lot of users searching on mobile are often looking for a quick nearby solution or a local service. If this doesn’t apply to you – another technique could be speaking directly to mobile users through IF functions.
What are IF functions?
When targeting mobile devices, people often run brand new campaigns which are fully targeted, or, create multiple ads for each device. IF functions are a faster and effective way to target both desktop and mobile devices.
So, how does it actually work? As opposed to creating a new campaign, you can customise the messaging in your ad within one single ad campaign. Your messaging will depend on the targeted device. If a user is on mobile, they’ll see an altered version of your ad. For example; “Shop now from your phone” might increase CTR as it is offering a quick and straightforward answer to a search – while speaking directly to mobile users.
You could also benefit from targeting mobile users with a unique deal or discount. For example, offering mobile users free-shipping could entice them to make a purchase there and then – rather than waiting to browse other options. Remember, mobile users are probably on-the-go and want immediate answers, so a small incentive could lead to a quick conversion.
Focus on generating calls
People who are searching on mobile want an easy solution – so, focusing on calls could work to your advantage. Calls are a great source of leads – and using call bid adjustments can monitor how often your call extension or call-only ads should appear.
Call-only ads are ideal if a phone call or direct conversation is your main objective, as opposed to site visits. You’ll drive users straight to a direct call through your PPC ads, rather than to your landing page.
If you want to get the most out of your call-only ad, we suggest using callout extensions and structured snippet. Include the most relevant and exciting information about your brand to make sure you stand out.
Mobile-friendly extensions
We previously shared a blog about the benefits of using ad extensions – and we touched upon how they work with your mobile ads. They’re a way of adding valuable information to your PPC ads. Things you’ll benefit from highlighting include promotions, pricing and any other unique features your business can offer to customers.
Location extensions
As we mentioned before, using location ad extensions will make you stand out, especially to mobile users. Location has a strong link to mobile intent, so it’s really likely to increase your conversions.
Call extension
Using call extensions in your ad will likely increase your CTR and provide a quick and efficient point of contact for users. If you want to generate local and mobile conversions – then call extensions can lead you towards your desired outcomes.
Message extensions
Message extensions are also a great alternative – they allow users to directly message you by clicking on your PPC ad. If you’re worried about being overloaded with queries, you can schedule them only to appear during your preferred business hours.
If you’re not sure which extensions to use – it might be worth having a look at your competitors. A quick and easy way to do this is by conducting a mobile search, including your targeted keywords – then you’ll know what other high-performing businesses in your field are utilising.
Auto-fill lead ads
Facebook lead ads often provide a good user experience – which is largely down to auto-fill features. Understandably, users might go elsewhere if the checkout process on one site is too time-consuming. With Facebook lead ads, mobile users can connect to Facebook and have their data inputted automatically – helping to speed up the conversion process.
Review your mobile strategy
We’ve outlined some of the most critical steps you can take towards creating a better mobile PPC ad and a smoother customer journey. Implementing more mobile ads using the features we’ve mentioned is likely to generate more valuable traffic from your campaigns.
If you have any questions about how you can benefit from mobile ads or if you have any other questions – please get in touch.