89% of consumers use their mobile phones while out shopping. They often use their phones to search for new products, check out the reviews, and find a local store that’s selling a product or service they want. SMS or text message marketing is the shiny new kid on the block when it comes to digital marketing techniques that you can leverage for your business.
Google AdWords is one of the largest, most effective PPC and display ad networks in the world. As a leader in the tech and marketing field, Google AdWords marketing platform has added SMS marketing to their arsenal. Called “message extensions,” here’s how you can set up text message marketing to increase your conversion rate in Google Ads.
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Why text message conversions are useful advertising feature for businesses?
Google owns roughly 80% of the world’s search market. Getting your products and services in front of your target audience has never been easier or more affordable, thanks to Google’s marketing platform, AdWords. Recently, Google changed its search algorithm, and now mobile-responsive sites and ads get priority position on the SERPs.
With the rise in mobile use, Adwords has created a text message option that businesses and consumers can enjoy. With message extensions, Adwords supports text messages. People who view your ad can send you a text right from the ad. This is a very user-friendly feature that is convenient for shoppers. Studies consistently show that people, especially younger consumers, would rather text a business than make phone calls.
What exactly are Adwords text message extensions?
AdWords campaigns text message extensions are similar to other ad extensions in the ads campaigns dashboard. Message extensions will show up along with regular Adwords ads on the SERPs. In general, this means adding message extensions to your ads will make your ads more feature-rich, while also increasing your click-through-rates. Message extensions allow viewers to send a text message directly to your business. This gives you the chance to include a pre-written, keyword-rich text in your ad. With this feature, you can increase conversion activity and make it easier for time-pressed shoppers to get a hold of your company quickly.
Won’t this increase your ad spend? No. Advertisers on Google AdWords will be charged the same cost-per-click for message extensions that they would be charged when a viewer clicks the headline or other extensions like call extensions.
How do you set-up message extensions?
First, you’ll need to head to the ad extensions tab in your AdWords dashboard. It’s possible to create message extensions at the ad group level or the campaign level. When you try to create a new message extension, you’ll need to enter the following information:
- The Business Name
Enter your business name that your target audience will recognize. You’re allotted 25 characters for a business name.
- Text Phone Number
Enter the phone number where you want text messages to go. The number must be able to receive SMS text messages and be relevant to your business. You can use a personal cell phone number or an SMS system.
- Extensions Text
You’re allotted 35 characters for an extensions text, which is the text that will show up on the SERPs next to your original ad. It’s a good idea to use a clear call-to-action that people will recognise and understand on your landing page. Think of things like, “Text Us” or “Message Us” for the extension text. You want your viewers to understand that what they are doing by clicking the CTA is sending a text message, not making a call or sending an email, for example.
- Message Text
For this part of the extension, you get 100 characters. Once a viewer clicks on your ad extension, Google fills in the message in the text field of their message app. This part of the ad allows your business to help prompt the viewer into starting a conversation with the sales team. Use specific language here that will bring both your customer and your company closer to the end goal.
You could populate the message field with things like, “I’d like to learn more about free trials,” or “I want to schedule a consultation for X, Y, or Z.” Make sure the messaging aligns with what your ad displayed in the copy. For example, you won’t want to use a message text for free trials if your ad mentioned scheduling a consultation for a specific service. Using specific language will bring you closer to making a sale and converting prospects than using generic messages like, “I want to hear more.”
How well do message extensions perform?
Message extensions can improve your click-through-rates and quality score. In some cases, text message extensions can perform better than mobile ads alone and even call extensions. But there are a few things advertisers need to be aware of before getting started with message extensions.
For one thing, this is a new feature with Google Ads. Right now, it’s not possible to use conversion tracking or Google Analytics with message extensions. Currently, Google can’t track texts from message extensions as conversion activity. To see how well text message extensions are working, advertisers will have to make their own system for monitoring and measuring text message conversions. It’s safe to say though that Google will unveil some way to accurately track text message conversions through AdWords at some point in the near future.
At Australian Internet Advertising, we’ve been helping businesses create optimised Google ads featuring message extensions, and we know how to track conversions to get you the maximum ROI for your business. If you’re ready to take your Google AdWords campaigns to the next level, contact us today, and see what we can do for your digital marketing efforts.
