Advertisers on Google often ask whether or not it is a good idea to pay for branded keywords on Google AdWords campaigns. The usual argument is that “we appear at or near the top of results organically so why should we pay for our own brand name”?
It’s a good question. Buying branded keywords has to be considered carefully in the context of your objectives with the campaign you are trying to run.
Although there may be a myriad of reasons why a site wants to generate paid traffic through Adwords, for the purpose of this discussion let’s assume there are only two:
- To increase qualified traffic to your site so that your on-page advertisers get more eyeballs and clicks.
- Because you’re selling something yourself.
I would argue that if your intent is to increase traffic then your focus should be around the major category themes on your web site. For example let’s consider a magazine web site. Magazines generate revenue in two ways – through advertising (both in print and online) and through subscriptions (again both print and online).
If you’re a magazine advertising on Google with the intent to create organic traffic for your own on-page advertisers, then you probably don’t want to bid on your brand. Why? Because you can create traffic through your Meta description (the description that Google shows in organic results) and that appears on the Google results page. However if the purpose of your campaign is to sell subscriptions, you need to deliver your offer through both the title and the copy that appears in your ad.
Let’s look at Vanity Fair Magazine as an example. If I Google the phrase “Vanity Fair Magazine” then the organic result that appears is the following:
Vanity Fair Magazine | Vanity Fair
From world affairs to entertainment, business to fashion, crime to society, Vanity Fair is a cultural catalyst that drives the popular dialogue globally.
www.vanityfair.com/
The Meta description is quite compelling. However it does not suggest that I should be subscribing to the magazine. If I look at the ad that appears for the same phrase it reads as follows:
Vanity Fair Official Site
Subscribe direct and get the US edition of Vanity Fair for $38/year
vanityfair.com/subscribe
As you can see the message employs specific ad copy that tells me that I can subscribe at a rate of $38/year. The copy could be improved; however the message is clear – subscribe. And when I click through I am brought immediately to the subscription form and am not distracted by all the articles and pictures on the Vanity Fair site.
Vanity Fair has got it right. It is the Circulation Department that owns the branded keywords in search engine marketing campaigns because they can better communicate an offer that ties to a search around its brand. If you buy branded keywords, make sure they make sense for what you are trying to achieve. If you are trying to sell something, your brand can be a powerful factor. Of course equally powerful is the offer – which you can control using ad copy.
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