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Call Tracking and the Future of Mobile Ads

Call Tracking

When your business is receiving more calls, you may assume that your marketing is effective, but you don’t know whether callers may have received a mailer from you or whether they are responding to a different type of advertising. With call tracking, you can determine the path customers took from initial search to actually speaking with someone from your business. If you are using Google AdWords to find new customers, it is important to examine the successfulness of your ad in terms of conversions.

You know that you can target customers based on their searches, which initiate AdWords auctions involving advertisers with keyword matches. The next step is to gain a better understanding of the relationship between keywords, phone calls, and conversions.

Most search-related conversions still occur over the phone, and call tracking provides you with valuable information about calls you receive after someone clicks on your ad.

In the past, it was more complicated to determine whether someone calling your business was responding to an ad, particularly if the phone number appearing on the ad was the same as the one already listed on your website. Through the more recent call tracking feature, Google will insert a forwarding number on your website for up to 90 days once someone clicks on your ad. The feature is free, and the formatting can be set to look seamless so that your website design is not compromised.

As with all digital marketing strategies, ads require measurement and evaluation so that they can be optimized. Particularly for small businesses, marketing budgets can be limited, and measurable results can illuminate what is truly working. Call tracking allows you to determine the specific ads and keywords that prompted a caller to reach out to your business. Combine this knowledge with call volume, length, and originating area code, and you can aim to bid on specific locations and times of day to target the combinations most likely to result in conversions.

When planning your digital marketing approach, keep in mind that you need to think beyond the desktop and plan broadly for the devices used by consumers. Research has shown that 70% of smartphone users who engage in mobile search a few times a week use click to call, particularly for businesses related to restaurants, auto, local services, technology, travel, retail, and finance. Consider the mindset of a mobile searcher, who likely is multi-tasking or in a rush for information. Keywords are likely to be short and to the point, focused locally, and perhaps misspelled. Also remember that the options for pay-per-click (PPC) spots are more limited than for desktop. As your bids will be more expensive for these ads, understanding which calls are more likely to convert is even more critical.

What about the future of mobile ads? If we are considering mobile users, we need to remember that content that is interactive and even game-like encourages even higher levels of engagement. New ads get users to twist and tilt them to discover content and point them to coupons and other offers. You may not be in a position to launch such an ad, and it may not even apply to your specific business, but there are takeaways for everyone. Call tracking may allow you to better understand your conversions, but your ads themselves increasingly will need to get the attention of customers attuned to the most creative and engaging content. To learn more about call tracking, reach out to us at Premiere Creative or give us a call at (973) 346-8100.