The second tip is to include a local area code number to give the appearance of being local. Your only goal with an ad is to get people to click. Specific numbers get consumers to trust you Check out this classic click-bait headline from Business Insider: Numbers give you a few advantages over words. That’s why numbers work in everything from your ads to landing pages. Try to match your messages People have specific expectations when they search for a topic on Google. If someone clicks on your ad, and the landing page doesn’t match your promise, the consumer bounces. Here’s the landing page the ad sends you to: Perfect match, right?! If you click on a corner of the page and drag it over, it should collapse like this: Making your landing pages responsive is just the first step. Best of all, all it takes is a simple line of code that looks like this: Call Us Last but not least, let’s go back to our ads and customize those for mobile. In other words, the specific way that text or headlines look on visual ads.
The best ads don’t stand out.
The goal isn’t to be obnoxious or annoying.
Instead, the best ads match your expectations.
They catch your eye because you were just thinking about the subject.
It seems like the best advertisers are reading your mind.
They have a sixth sense for understanding what you’re looking for. And then they craft the perfect ad to get you to click.
The techniques they use are subtle. But you can steal their genius when you break everything down.
I’m going to walk you through my 9 favorite ad copywriting tips.
You’ll be able to replicate each one when we’re done.
Hopefully, to get the same double-digit results they get, too.
Let’s get started!
1. Target your local customers
Let’s do a quick hypothetical example.
Go ahead and Google a service professional like an accountant or attorney.
Seriously, go ahead and try it.
I promise there is a point to this exercise.
Because I bet you’re going to do one of these two things.
First, you’re going to type in a local query like “New York CPA.”
You won’t even realize that you’re typing in a city or state. It will just naturally happen.
Additionally, you’re going to select someone from the local results that Google already provides. You’re going to be drawn to the people with offices close to where you live.
Think about this for a second.
You need a local plumber. They have to be able to come to your house to fix things.
However, you don’t necessarily need an accountant or attorney in the same city.
They can be anywhere in the state. They can be out of state if they have the necessary knowledge and license for your area.
But you probably still want to hire someone local. You’ll still give preference to the one with the office on that one street you recognize.
People like meeting face to face. Or at least knowing that they have the ability to meet in person.
Those up-close-and-personal meetings always convert the best.
That’s good news for you! You can target local customers first before expanding out to new locations.
For example, your “CPA” or “attorney” query probably brought up something like this:
AdWords allows you to geotarget users within specific locations.
However, you can also edit the ad text copy to include location names. They stand out better that way.
This can include proper names like “Saint Joseph” and nicknames like “St. Joseph.”
Simple, right?
There are three more ways to make this even better.
The first is by including the city name in the URL for different locations. We’ll come back to message match in a few minutes.
The second tip is to include a local area code number to give the appearance of being local.
For example, you can buy local phone numbers and replace toll-free numbers with those local area codes in ads.
And the third tip is to include local jargon that people in the city would immediately recognize.
Here’s one that uses “SanO,” which references San Onofre, CA. That’s a local surfing hot spot.
No one outside of that location would probably recognize the local slang.
However, it’s a dead giveaway to those in the community you’re trying to reach.
You’re local. You belong, and they should trust you.
2. Make your value prop explicit
Your ad text is important to a certain point.
But people are easily distracted.
You’re probably doing something else while trying to read this post right now.
The trick is to laser-focus your ads on what people get versus what it’s going to cost them.
Perfect calls to action use very specific language. They don’t beat around the bush.
Here are two perfect examples.
The first one is saying that you can “Download Competitor Keywords.” The second one is focusing on “120,000,000 keywords.”
And both are also free. That’s always a good value prop to fall back on!
Each one introduces its own competitive advantage that the other can’t claim or match.
Easy, right?
Now, don’t forget to consider the medium.
For example, the ad text is even less important on Facebook. Instead, the image is what catches people’s attention.
People are preconditioned to look at visuals on Facebook.
They’ll scan images and ignore the copy entirely at first.
So your image needs to somehow sell the value by itself.
Check out this image of a beach cottage.
I think that image says almost all it needs to!
There’s some copy around it. But the image is what draws you in and immediately conveys the value.
You definitely want to find out how to “make this beach cottage yours” now.
3. Refine your headlines
AdWords ads are pretty basic when you think about it.
There are only a few characters allowed on each line.
So you don’t have a lot of room to be fancy.
The trick to crafting powerful headlines is by using simple and direct language.
Your only goal with an ad is to get people to click. That means you’re not actually selling anything.
The sales process will start once someone clicks on a link that takes them to your landing page.
So instead of selling, you need to grab attention and set visitor expectations.
For example, MarketingExperiments.com showed that aligning the ad and landing page headlines increase leads by 2.5X.
The ad headline itself wasn’t special. It doesn’t have to be!
However, you can get a little fancy with the new expanded headline format.
For example, you can squeeze in a few extra details about your competitive advantage next to the old keyword, like this:
Then, when consumers get to your landing page, you draw them toward the sale.
So if someone Googled “how to poach eggs,” you can lead them to a magnetic headline like this:
This example uses a cliffhanger-style headline to keep you glued to the page.
The page’s copy can now sell you on the content and CTA.
4. Consider each buying stage when writing ads
Your site visitors aren’t all equal.
Many of them are at different points along their own customer journeys.
For example, some…
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