PPC Reporting: What to Do and What to Avoid

These 4 factors are important elements of PPC reporting and are initial to managing any PPC campaign. Here’s what to focus on:

What to Do:

1. Track Key Metrics: Use click through rates (CTR), conversion, cost per conversion, return on ad spend (ROAS) to determine how good or bad a campaign is.
2. Use Visuals: It is important to present the data in a meaningful manner by using charts and graphs so that one can easily note the trends.
3. Segment Data: By going into the campaign, ad group, and keyword level in an expanded view, you will be able to know what strategy performs.
4. Set Benchmarks: Compare the current results with the previous data and with possible standards in order to understand which aspects need improvements.
5. Regular Reporting: Make sure to report on the campaign often to see how it is progressing and whether adjustments should be made.

What to Avoid:

1. Ignoring Negative Keywords: Another area where people go wrong with Google AdWords is not modifying the negative keywords, this clearly means that amount spent on the ads can be wasted on clicks that do not bear any relevance. Refine your list regularly.
2. Overlooking Quality Score: That being said, there are always certain disadvantages of scoring low, as the cost is expected to increase and the ads become equally harder to discover. Thus, while these aspects that exist beyond the targeting options affecting relevance are crucial for campaign effectiveness, more attention should be paid to the options within the landing pages and click-through rates.
3. Data Overload: For example, while preparing a report, it is important not to overload the report with much information which may not be very useful. It is also advisable to stay clear from the soft techniques that will not necessarily make any difference in the goals that are set.
4. Neglecting Annotations: Performance variations should be noted to show the reasons why there is a change in the performance level and for future strategy planning.
5. Misaligning with Goals: Just as it has been pointed out that PPC is generating good revenue for your business, be certain that reports are made to encompass overall business goals and objectives of the company explaining how PPC is a key tool in achieving these objectives.