Becoming a GACP (Google AdWords Certified Professional) Seminars for Success
I’m breaking up my “Becoming a GACP….” post to write about my experience attending the Seminars for Success – Google Web Optimizer one day course. I really wanted to attend the two day Google Analytics seminars, but I had a personal commitment on the second day, so I decided to sit those out.
The seminar was very informative and well worth the $250 bucks I paid for it. It gave a great deal of information on using Google’s Web Optimizer for landing page testing, as well as showing you how to go about inserting the code into your website, and teaching you how to inertput the results of the test, and make the changes you need to increase conversion rates. The seminar also covered a great deal about best practices for setting up landing pages, the psycology of selling on the net, and ways to tweek your landing pages for optimal click through.
These are the notes I took, but I was only able to keep up until they hit the coding section. Once they hit the coding section, they pretty much followed exactly what they gave us in slides, so I have omitted that section. The rest of my notes are below.
Website Optimizer: Test performance of ad campaigns
Conversion Testing/Split Testing: Slightly different versions of each campaign to see which one performs better, measuring the impact of each.
Post Click Optimization -> Landing Page -> Goal Funnel
You should have multiple landing pages, and goal pages to see which one will perform better.
You never get a second chance to make a first impression.
Attention Span case study: 1998 = 12min vs. 2008 = 5min
Ways to drive advertising using different parts of the brain:
Contrast: (differences)
Variation: (color, or visual, visual over text)
Finality: (beginning and end, or first and last experience. The first and last line of your ad copy is more important than the middle)
Emotions: Wish, Want, Need, Pain, Fear (from first to last, highest to lowest.)
Tangibility: What you can feel, touch, hold, etc. In some cases a problem/solution. Reviews by third parties.
Visual: Anything you can see. OR changes you can see.
Types of testing:
A/B testing: sends ½ of your traffic to each new landing page (2 variables only) to see which one performs better. (This is for drastic changes)
A/B/C testing: send 1/3 of your traffic to each new landing page (2 variables only) to see which one performs better.
Split Path testing: same as A/B only several pages (each forming a path).
Multivariate testing: getting the best combination of variables. (Larger sample size and for smaller changes) Variables that may interact with each other.
Segmentation testing: Knowing where your traffic is coming from, or who your traffic is, and directing them to specific pages.
Sample info:
Sample size has to be relevant. The higher the better.
Google Website Optimizer Limitations:
A/B/N: Max number of pages: 127
MultiV: Max page sections: 8 / Max variations per section: 127 / Max combinations 10K
Use Google Analytics to find the worst page then use Google Web Optimizer to test those pages.
Google will generate the code you need to copy and paste into your website
Landing Page Info:
Google Webmaster Tools to customize your 404 pages.
1024×768 centered large text, easy to read font, with a call to action!
Dumb down your text, short bulleted points, graphics over text.
Stay within expectations, follow what works, use “hard lines” if possible.
Use the word FREE
If your graphic has eyes, set it up so the eyes LOOK at your call to action.
Keep your items in chunks of 7 plus or minus 2 (no larger).
People like to look at people (women over men, duh!)
800 numbers are a big PLUS
Also, the hours you are available.
Use testimonials or text that looks like testimonials.
Likewise with reviews.
Top 10 lists work (positive or negative)
Trust logos work.
Additional Info:
Google’s Website Optimizer Partner’s
Google’s Website Optimizer Blog
Resources:
Buylogy – Truth and Lies About Why We Buy.
Landing Page Optimization – The Definitive Guide to Testing and Tuning for Conversions.
