How to Improve PPC Marketing at the Start of a New Fiscal Year

Marketers at B2B companies can achieve stellar results with a robust Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising strategy, which includes search engines, YouTube and social. And a new fiscal year, whether it starts in January or in another month, presents a golden opportunity to revisit the PPC plan to improve and adapt to a changing marketing landscape. In this post, we’ll explore three critical considerations that can help your business retain its competitive edge through PPC advertising:

• Review past performance for clues on what to do more of and what to stop doing.
• Fight back against intensified competition and cost increases from the advertising platforms through a ruthless review of keywords.
• Embrace automation and AI-based tools for easy ways to work efficiently and improve results.

In fact, by utilizing the above guidelines, GGC saw PPC leads increase more than 150% in several accounts.

First up though—ever wonder what PPC can contribute to a B2B marketing plan? Here are several reasons why you need to incorporate PPC into your yearly marketing planning:

• Highly targeted. Paid media allows B2B companies to target your ideal audience based on parameters such as industry, job title, company size or location, and much more. Granular targeting helps your ads reach the most relevant decision-makers and potential clients.
• Immediate visibility. Companies will see almost instant visibility through search engine results, although ranking can take time and some tweaking. The first step, however, is to simply appear on the list of search results in response to a B2B buyer’s query. This increases the chance of engagement.
• Keyword specificity. B2B companies can rely on a trained, experienced specialist to identify the specific, industry-related keywords when developing the text for PPC ads. The ads enable businesses to target these keywords to increase the chances of reaching the proper target audience.
• Measurable results. PPC platforms lend themselves naturally to detailed analytics and reporting. A B2B business can track key metrics such as click-through rate (CTR), conversion rate (CVR) and return on investment (ROI).
• Global reach. Companies that work across borders or are expanding internationally can reach target regions or audiences using PPC for a cost-effective and traceable marketing effort that helps level the playing field. Also, it is easily adaptable to market locations, new product launches, niche marketing, and seasonal demands.
• Cost control. In terms of cost-effectiveness, PPC offers flexibility for managing budgets. B2B marketers can establish daily or monthly ad spend limits to help ensure the budget stays on track while continuously adjusting campaigns based on performance metrics.

Starting a new fiscal year or adjusting your PPC plan? Here are the top three considerations for companies embarking on a new PPC lead generation plan:

1. Review Past Performance

   Before diving into a new account, take the time to review your past PPC efforts. Understanding what worked and what didn’t can provide valuable insights for future planning. By performing thorough PPC audits, we were able to restructure and ultimately increase leads YoY by 150% for a Northeast Ohio company that supplies measurement and test equipment for advanced scientific research projects. Steps involved in this would include:

   • Assess previous campaign structure and performance.
   • Audit all settings from the account level down.
   • Adjust keywords or copy to better resonate with your audience.

2. Fight Intensified Competition and Inflation

   The business landscape constantly evolves. Economic factors like inflation can have a significant impact on a PPC campaign. One of our customers, a globally recognized manufacturer of industrial displacement pumps, was experiencing increased competitive pressure from larger companies. We alleviated some of this pressure by reducing our targeting and increasing our long-tail keywords. To navigate inflation and budget challenges, consider the following strategies:

   • Refine your targeting by using the right keywords to enable increasingly granular messages.
   • Focus on conversion optimization by testing and optimizing landing pages and ad copy. Small tweaks can make a dramatic difference in overall campaign performance.
   • Monitor and adjust budgets to allocate resources against the messages that provide the most impact. Don’t be afraid to adapt as the fiscal year progresses.

3. Embrace Automation and AI

   • Remain competitive and efficient by leveraging the power of automation and artificial intelligence in your PPC strategies. We have seen a vast improvement in accounts since we are utilizing Google Machine Automation to set bids strategically. One company, a leading manufacturer of optical coatings, consistently struggled with budget constraints. We worked around this constraint by updating our bid strategy. This switch allowed us to stay in auctions for longer, enabling us to be more competitive.
   • Leverage automation tools. Trust your PPC specialist to take advantage of PPC management tools. This digital marketing strategy is continually evolving, and PPC specialists follow the trends and regularly utilize the most relevant tools. These tools can automate routine tasks like bidding, keyword optimization, and budget management, allowing the specialist to focus on high-level strategies.
   • Benefit from data analysis. New AI tools can analyze vast amounts of data quickly. This gives PPC specialists the necessary information to optimize the campaigns.

While PPC offers many advantages for B2B marketing, it is essential to consider it as part of a comprehensive marketing strategy that may include content marketing, email marketing, SEO, content pillars, video testimonials, and more. The effectiveness of PPC advertising can vary depending on the industry, target audience, and specific goals, so a well-rounded marketing approach is often the most successful way to reach and engage B2B customer