When I first started advertising online back in 2007, the place to be was with Google Adwords.
But after I’d exhausted Adwords, the question was, “where can I also advertise?”
One of the places I went to was Microsoft’s Bing ad network.
Sure, the amount of traffic at Bing Ads is no where near what you get on Google, but here’s what’s great about Bing Ads:
1. Better value on Bing
Not as many businesses advertise on Bing as they do on Google, so there is less competition. Less competition means more ad exposure and less costs per click.
2. All the features of Google Adwords
Just as you can target specific countries and cities on Adwords, you can do the same on Bing. You can also use keyword tracking, negative keywords, ad groups, keyword variables and so on.
3. $100 credit coupon
If you’re new to Bing, when you create a new business listing on Bing (it’s free, you can do it here) you’ll be sent an email coupon (see below) for $100 of free advertising on Bing Ads. That’s pretty cool 🙂
Some tips when advertising on Bing Ads (or any other PPC network):
Tip 1: Location
Yes, it should go without saying (but you’ll be surprised how many advertisers don’t do this), but make sure you restrict your Bing Ads reach to only the areas that you want to reach customers.
Bing allows you to choose specific countries, or states, and even cities and postcodes.
Tip 2: Keyword targeting
To keep your ad costs down, and your return on investment high, only target specific ‘buyer’ keywords.
For example, if you’re an electrician, you want to be targeting these keywords:
- [your suburb] electrician
- electricians near me
And you don’t want to be paying for keywords that are too broad, like this:
- electrician
Tip 3: Use Negative Keywords
Bing Ads gives you the opportunity to ‘hide’ your ad from certain people.
For example, if you don’t want customers that haggle for money, you might want to use the following negative keyword phrases and words:
- cheap
- cheapest
- bargain
- free
By adding these keywords into your ‘negative keywords’ list, whenever someone types in phrases like these…
- cheap electrician
- cheapest electrician
…your ad won’t show up 🙂
Tip 4: Don’t Get Into a Bidding War
Your ad doesn’t need to be no. 1 to get the best traffic. You don’t have to try to outbid your competition to get your ad right at the top of the page.
Pay less and have your ad appear second or third. You’ll still get a lot of great traffic, without paying the hefty ‘first place’ price.
Also, it’s important to understand that it’s not just how much you bid that affects where you appear on the page. It’s also how relevant your website is.
Make sure you are sending your paid Bing Ads traffic to a page on your website that is relevant to your ad. If you do, you will end up paying less for your ads, while still maintaining a high ad position ranking.
hi very good post, thanks
andre
Much appreciated, Andre!