How to Achieve PPC Success in 2019

Are you looking to use PPC advertising to try and get ahead of your competition in 2019? If so, then you might need to be prepared to either spend an unreasonable amount of money or take some time to build a smart PPC campaign that can help you beat your dental competitors. So, if you want to make 2019 the year that you create a stronger digital presence, then here are some smarter ways to achieve PPC success.

Create a PPC strategy before ever spending a dime.

The amount of money wasted by dental practices on poor PPC campaigns or using Google AdWords Express to manage your campaigns is shocking. We see that the majority of our clients are wasting over 50% of their ad spend. How are they wasting their money? Well, most of the time it is because they are not focusing on the correct keywords or search terms and they don’t know who their audience is. And, if you think about it…that is just thousands of dollars tossed into the trash.

Therefore, the only way you can be successful is by creating a PPC strategy. Here is where you can begin:

1. Start With SEO

If you are not optimizing your website and trying to get on page 1 of Google search results, then you are just wasting your money. An optimized website with some of the keywords or searches within the copy on your site is going to help your campaign. Google looks at how relevant your website is compared to what the user is searching for and puts more weight on what position your ad appears for those search terms. PPC and SEO go hand-in-hand. Don’t do one without the other.

2. Know Your Budget

If you are not sure how much you want to spend then you should evaluate the value of your patients first. What is the value of a new patient at your practice? Then, what percent of the new patient value are you willing to spend on marketing? We say for dental practices that you should spend 5-7% of your total collections on your marketing. What percent of that can you commit to PPC? We recommend spending at least $1000 a month on PPC depending on your location.

3. Know Your Objective

What do you want to get out of your campaign? How many new patients do you want to get? How many calls do you want to get? Is there an amount of website traffic you are expecting? How long do you want the campaign to run? Is your objective calls or clicks? If you truly know your objective and what you want for your campaign, then you will be more prepared for your PPC advertising.

4. Know Your Campaign

PPC campaigns can be complicated. There are a lot of moving parts. Therefore, you need to plan your ad copy and your ad design. You need to create custom landing pages along with tracking phone numbers and custom forms. What do you want to focus on? Is it Dental Implants or Emergency Dental Care? This might sound like a lot…but, it is just the tip of the iceberg.

5. Do Your Research

The biggest mistake you can make is not doing your research. What are people in your area searching for? What time of day are they searching? Also, look at your competition. How many dentists in your area are utilizing Google AdWords? Do you know the costs of some of the keywords that you are trying to hit for? If you can answer some of these questions, then your PPC conversion rates will be through the roof.

6. Plan Your Keywords

Listen. Everyone is going to try to rank for “dentist near me.” But, you should also know that you that high-value keywords like “dentist near me” or “best dentist in (fill in your city name here)” are going to cost more. Just know that there are other keywords may be just as valuable or more. You can find other valuable (and less expensive) keyword phrases with the help of Google’s autocomplete function, using Google’s keyword finder, using software like Spyfu.com, or by visiting answerthepublic.com. On top of that, make sure you plan your negative keyword list as well.

7. Have Realistic Expectations

Just because you run a PPC campaign does not mean immediate results. It can take up to 60-90 days to gather important information about your campaign before you can really understand how your campaign is going. The longer it goes, the better you can adjust your campaign strategy to ensure you are running the best, optimized campaign for your practice. Give the campaign time. Know that you shouldn’t expect thousands of qualified leads at the start.

8. Hire Someone To Help You

Like we said, PPC advertising can be daunting. Hiring someone like Lucent Spot can you’re your build and manage your campaign. A marketing agency has an understanding of what great ad copy routinely win clicks and conversions. PPC advertising is a full-time job. You have to stay on top of it. You have to make adjustments and monitor the campaign as it goes.

We want you to be successful. But, before you ever begin a PPC campaign, create your PPC strategy. Do your research and plan out every aspect. Or, if you want help, feel free to reach out to us. We would be happy to help!