8 Mistakes that are Destroying Your

Franchise PPC Strategy

PPC, or pay-per-click, is an advertising strategy that many franchisors use to attract attention

from potential investors or franchisees. The great thing about PPC is that franchisors don’t need

to know anything about customers except for their web search habits. They also don’t need to

design elaborate flyers, brochures, or print advertisements. An eye-catching, keyword-rich

headline, a short phrase of text, and a link to a high quality landing page can direct interested

consumers to the franchise website.

Also, pay per click for franchises can be exceptionally cost-effective. A franchisor pays nothing

unless consumers click on the displayed ad. While franchise PPC ads may seem like a no-

brainer, many first-time PPC campaigners make simple mistakes that destroy a pay per click for

franchises. Here are 8 costly mistakes that can be avoided simply by choosing an experienced

franchise marketing agency like ClickTecs.

Generic Keywords that Attract the Disinterested

This is the biggest mistake that new marketers make when starting a PPC campaign. There is so

much that is wrong with using generic keywords for a franchise PPC strategy, that it is hard to

discuss the issues in a single blog post subheading, so this mistake is broken down into three

sections: attracting the disinterested, increasing costs, and displaying ads in unrelated searches.

Many first-time marketers or franchisors assume that attracting customer attention means using

the most general keyword terms possible. This line of thinking isn’t entirely illogical. After all, if

a business uses general keyword terms, more people will probably search for those terms, and

more people will see the ad.

Here are the problems, though, that franchisors don’t consider. First, by using generic keyword

strings, a PPC ad will be exposed to larger number of consumers. “Wait a minute,” the franchisor

says to himself. “Isn’t that what I want? More people seeing my ad?” The answer, surprisingly,

is “no.” Increasing the exposure of a PPC ad is only valuable if the population of ad viewers is

made up of interested consumers. If a franchise PPC ad is displaying to consumers who care

nothing for investing in a franchise, each click is money slipping down the drain. Generic

keywords may pop up on more web browsers, but they aren’t increasing conversions. They’re

being shown to disinterested consumers who will click, reach the landing page, and immediately

navigate away.

Generic Ads that Cost Too Much

The second problem is competition. PPC ad campaigns require a complicated bidding process.

The ad with the highest bid per click is the ad that gets displayed. Franchisors who bid on

generic keywords can expect to pay ten times the amount per click they would if they selected

specific, long-tail keyword strings. Paying more when it’s not necessary is simply bad marketing.

Generic Ads that Pop Up in the Wrong Places

Here’s the final problem with generic PPC keyword ads: they can start popping up on unrelated

keyword searches, and this is bad news for a brand. Search engines pay close attention to the

PPC ads running on their sites. If a franchise pay per click campaign is too generic, and it starts

putting ads on unrelated searches, the franchisor is going to be penalized. Search engines, above

all, care about satisfying consumers with relevant searches. They will not tolerate spammy,

unrelated, or misplaced ads on their search pages.

There’s a delicate balance required in creating a franchise pay per click campaign that uses

keywords generic enough to get exposure and specific enough to avoid these issues. Using a

professional marketing agency like ClickTecs is a great option that can help franchisors save

money and avoid costly errors.

Ignoring the Landing Page

Franchise PPC campaigns will direct interested investors or entrepreneurs to a landing page

created for the franchise. Many new franchisors make the mistake of investing time and energy

into the ad without paying attention to the landing page. Consumers who click a keyword-rich ad

want to see the content of that ad mirrored immediately on the site where they are directed. If the

ad mentions a low-cost, profitable franchise opportunity, those words should be at the top of the

landing page.

Skipping the Localized Keywords

Using geographically-specific PPC campaigns is a proven strategy. Consumers feel more

comfortable about interacting with local businesses, and if they see an ad that mentions their

specific city, their eye will be attracted to the ad. Local keywords also help to reduce

competition, which can make the bid price per click much lower. ClickTecs is a professional

marketing agency with experience in subdividing market populations into different locations for

franchisors, and this is essential when using pay per click for franchises.

Skipping the Negative Keyword Field

All PPC franchise ad campaigns have fields for negative keywords. Negative keywords are

search words that will prevent an ad from displaying. For example, if a franchisor is looking for

serious entrepreneurs willing to invest in a franchise opportunity, he may want to add the word

“free” to a negative keyword field. A person looking for a free opportunity won’t be a good fit,

and there is no reason to pay for an ad directed toward that person. Negative keyword lists can

also prevent a franchise PPC ad from popping up in unrelated search fields, which will please the

search engines.

Failing to Bid for a Franchise Name

This mistake is a common one: franchise owners often fail to create pay per click franchise ads

that feature their business name as one of the keywords. This is a crucial strategy for a couple of

reasons. First, if a franchise owner doesn’t create PPC ads that feature the business name, a

competitor might. What if consumers search for a specific franchise and see only ads for

competitors? The result is predictably bad for the franchisor.

Second, PPC campaigns with brand names are great for monitoring how many consumers search

for a specific franchise each month. It can be hard to track total searches for a franchise, but a

PPC bid for brand name keywords can provide valuable information about brand recognition.

Failing to Analyze the Data

Finally, the biggest mistake that franchisors make that may destroy a PPC strategy is failure to

analyze data. Marketing is a learning process. It changes from one minute to the next. Continuing

to pour money into an ad strategy that is clearly not working will run a franchise into the ground.

Only by using expert data tracking and analytic techniques can franchisors create customized,

adaptable franchise PPC campaigns that will add value to the business.

Tracking data, creating high quality PPC ads, performing adequate keyword research, and

developing effective pay per click for franchises can be an enormous challenge. Many

franchisors simply avoid the task because the challenge seems insurmountable, and they don’t

want to waste money. A better option, however, is hiring a professional marketing team with

experience creating effective PPC ads. ClickTecs will help franchisors save money, reach new

clients, and avoid the pitfalls listed above.

http://clicktecs.com/