Two more reasons to target prospects with pay-per-click

If you are familiar with Pay-Per-Click (PPC), also known as Search Engine Marketing (SEM), then you probably know that one of the most valuable aspects of this tool is its ability to target ads toward specific online users.

This allows you, as the advertiser, to reach prospects who are more likely than others to purchase from your dealership. Search engine technology has data that would never be accessible with traditional advertising methods.

That is why it’s a no-brainer to include PPC in your dealership’s overall advertising strategy. If you thought search engines like Google had high-level targeting capabilities before, get ready to be impressed – updates to search engine technology in 2017 have paved the way for even more advanced audience targeting, further increasing the likelihood that your ads will convert to sales.

There are two major updates in 2017 that contributed to hyper-targeted audience accessibility:

• In-Market Audience Targeting: Google now aims to reach consumers who seem to be getting ready to make a purchase. The search engine gathers this information using “intent signals” like search queries that online users have recently made. For example, instead of only targeting online users who make straightforward searches such as “2017 Sun Tracker pontoon boats for sale,” Google now also targets people who make less obvious searches like “boats with 12-person capacity.” This update allows your ad to reach not only prospects who know what kind of boat they want from a dealership like yours, but also consumers who are still in the process of researching or considering their purchase. Your ad could point them in the right direction.
• Similar Audiences: Google can now collect targeted groups of online users who made specific types of search queries when they visited or converted on an advertiser’s website. For example, instead of only targeting a broad group of online users who are interested in “Boating” or “Water Sports,” Similar Audiences targets users in those groups who also made searches like “USCG-approved life jackets” or “water ski fin protectors.”

This update gives you a greater chance of receiving conversions from your ads. Instead of targeting a huge audience with a generic interest, you are targeting members of that audience who are serious about that interest and have made specific searches that prove their intention.

Search engine technologies change and improve every day. With each update, search engines are making changes that increase the performance of ads on their platforms. As the world moves further away from traditional advertising and digital advertising becomes more advanced, it’s worth dipping your toes into the world of PPC.

Lauren Labunsky is the public relations manager for Dealer Spike, a company that provides innovative websites as well as a suite of powerful online advertising solutions that help marine dealers help increase sales and service profitability. For more information, visit www.DealerSpikeMarine.com or call 800-288-5917.