Earlier this year Google started offering a really cool feature for AdWords users, letting them insert automated countdowns in their ads. Using the same types of parameters that allow dynamic keyword insertion, advertisers can now include a real-time countdown clock in an ad to highlight an upcoming event or mark the end of a current event to create urgency with shoppers. This urgency is great at generating sales, which means that infusing your ads with countdowns can be an incredibly effective PPC strategy!
So how can you use AdWords countdowns this holiday season? Here are some creative ideas:
So how can you use AdWords countdowns this holiday season? Here are some creative ideas:
New Product Releases
Every year there are hot products that are released just in time for the holiday shopping season. If your company is selling one of these highly coveted items, you can create a countdown to remind searchers of when the product will be released. But just telling shoppers to wait a few more weeks or days isn’t much of a business strategy. Instead, send traffic from your ads to a page that allows consumers to pre-order products or sign up for updates regarding the product’s release. This way you can bring in sales, or at least leads, prior to a product launch.
Black Friday Sales
The big Black Friday sales that this season is known for can vary a lot in duration. Some are one-day only sales on the day after Thanksgiving, while others run from Friday until Sunday and still others go through Cyber Monday. Using a countdown clock lets shoppers know how long they have to make their purchases, encouraging them to get their orders in while Black Friday promo codes are still valid.
Guaranteed Delivery by Christmas
Getting gifts in time for Christmas is important for many shoppers, which is why so much is made of the last day for guaranteed delivery by Christmas. Counting down to this all important day reminds shoppers that time is running out for them to get gifts for the Christmas holiday. In recent years this day has come to be known as “Free Shipping Day” because many large retailers, like Amazon, typically offer free shipping on this day to incentivize procrastinators to do their shopping before it’s too late. This year, December 18th will be Free Shipping Day.
Christmas Day
Simply telling people how quickly Christmas is approaching is typically enough to scare shoppers into making their purchases. A Christmas Day countdown may not seem like a creative use of the countdown clock feature, but very few online retailers take this approach. This means that a Christmas Day countdown will likely set your ads apart from the competition!
Daily Deals
If you’re implementing a daily deal strategy this holiday season, using a countdown for each day’s offer is a good way to reiterate the crucial message that it’s only going to be available for a short-time. Of course, manually setting up a countdown for each product every day is really tedious. Thankfully, Google offers a way to organize discounts in a spreadsheet for bulk uploading.
For more information on how to create countdowns in your ads, visit Google’s help tutorial.
Kate Pierce is the owner of LionShark Digital Marketing LLC, a West Michigan internet marketing company. Her areas of expertise include Paid Search, Search Engine Optimization, Social Media, Web Consulting for small businesses, Copywriting and Local Online Marketing. She lives in the Grand Rapids area with her husband and enjoys cooking, watching sports and spending time outdoors. Like a true digital marketing expert (i.e. geek), she loves talking about marketing theory and SEM trends… so don’t say you weren’t warned!
Every year there are hot products that are released just in time for the holiday shopping season. If your company is selling one of these highly coveted items, you can create a countdown to remind searchers of when the product will be released. But just telling shoppers to wait a few more weeks or days isn’t much of a business strategy. Instead, send traffic from your ads to a page that allows consumers to pre-order products or sign up for updates regarding the product’s release. This way you can bring in sales, or at least leads, prior to a product launch.
Black Friday Sales
The big Black Friday sales that this season is known for can vary a lot in duration. Some are one-day only sales on the day after Thanksgiving, while others run from Friday until Sunday and still others go through Cyber Monday. Using a countdown clock lets shoppers know how long they have to make their purchases, encouraging them to get their orders in while Black Friday promo codes are still valid.
Guaranteed Delivery by Christmas
Getting gifts in time for Christmas is important for many shoppers, which is why so much is made of the last day for guaranteed delivery by Christmas. Counting down to this all important day reminds shoppers that time is running out for them to get gifts for the Christmas holiday. In recent years this day has come to be known as “Free Shipping Day” because many large retailers, like Amazon, typically offer free shipping on this day to incentivize procrastinators to do their shopping before it’s too late. This year, December 18th will be Free Shipping Day.
Christmas Day
Simply telling people how quickly Christmas is approaching is typically enough to scare shoppers into making their purchases. A Christmas Day countdown may not seem like a creative use of the countdown clock feature, but very few online retailers take this approach. This means that a Christmas Day countdown will likely set your ads apart from the competition!
Daily Deals
If you’re implementing a daily deal strategy this holiday season, using a countdown for each day’s offer is a good way to reiterate the crucial message that it’s only going to be available for a short-time. Of course, manually setting up a countdown for each product every day is really tedious. Thankfully, Google offers a way to organize discounts in a spreadsheet for bulk uploading.
For more information on how to create countdowns in your ads, visit Google’s help tutorial.
Kate Pierce is the owner of LionShark Digital Marketing LLC, a West Michigan internet marketing company. Her areas of expertise include Paid Search, Search Engine Optimization, Social Media, Web Consulting for small businesses, Copywriting and Local Online Marketing. She lives in the Grand Rapids area with her husband and enjoys cooking, watching sports and spending time outdoors. Like a true digital marketing expert (i.e. geek), she loves talking about marketing theory and SEM trends… so don’t say you weren’t warned!
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