Black Friday Countdown #6: Make your ads stand out

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Black Friday is becoming a bigger event each year, with more and more people scrambling to make sure they get the best possible deals on their Christmas shopping. It’s been an important date in the shopping calendar for a long time in the US, but has only taken off in the UK in recent years.

With more advertisers offering sales each year, it becomes increasingly difficult to stand out in a sea of offers and promotions. Below we have outlined some of the ways in which you can optimise your ads so that you stand out from the crowd.

Ad Copy

First things first, make sure your ad copy promotes your biggest discount in the headline. Not only is it important to make sure you catch the searcher’s eye with a big offer, tricks like including numbers and characters (such as pound signs and percentages) can increase click-through rate.

The next step is to create urgency. Make sure the searcher knows that this is a Black Friday-only deal and use countdowns in your ads to show how much time is remaining on the offer.

Next, use a call to action on your second description line, so the searcher understands exactly what you need them to do when they land on your site.

It’s also good practice to mention Black Friday in your display URL so the searcher knows they will be taken to a page with exclusive offers.

black friday URL

More shoppers are using their phones than ever before, with 52% of people using their device to price check – even when in store – so it’s always best to run a mobile-specific version of your ad. Make sure your mobile ad copy is concise and to the point, so you get your most important messages across in the limited space.

black friday mobile

Assets

Utilising a full range of relevant assets will ensure that you hold more real estate in the search results page, whilst also helping to boost your click-through rates and quality scores. Below we have outlined the key assets to use on Black Friday.

Site link extensions

If your ad is promoting a sale on TVs, use your site links to take users directly to a page for a particular brand/size/percentage discount, so they land straight on the most relevant page. In order to increase conversion rates, you have to reduce the number of times a user has to click. By giving the user the opportunity to land on the page most relevant to them, you increase the chances of them buying that product.

Call out extensions

Call out extensions are a brilliant way to extend your ad with key USPs that your business offers. On Black Friday you can update your assets to highlight the promotions you are running, as well as offers on any products related to the user’s search query. For example, if the user has searched for TVs, consider showing them Blu Ray players.

Structured snippet extensions

Structured snippets are new to AdWords and allow you to shout about the brands that you are offering. This can be a great way to show the full range that you can offer the searcher, so they know that they’ll be able to browse a wide selection of goods on your site.

Location extensions

Finally, make sure you have set your location extensions so that searchers who are not at home can find a local store, where they can visit to make a purchase in person.

Others in the series

Black Friday Countdown #5: How to optimise your shopping campaigns

Black Friday countdown #7: Google’s new Customer Match feature

Black Friday countdown #8: Get promoting on social

Black Friday countdown #9: Target your audience early through PPC

Need some help in the run up to Black Friday?

If you’re running behind schedule, we have a whole team of PPC experts here who can get you on track. Simply call us on 023 9283 0281 or learn more about our acclaimed PPC service.

Carl Wood profile picture
Carl Wood

After joining Vertical Leap in May 2019, Carl has managed SEO for small business clients, helping them achieve rapid business growth. He has also contributed to a wide range of Enterprise level SEO campaigns. In his spare time he enjoys chess, acting with a local drama group, and watching Doctor Who with his young son.

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