Copywriting Posts from the Internet Marketing Blog
Win of the Week: Getting Back to the Basics of Benefits & Specifics Produces 225% Gain
Take a look at the two ads below. If you were an avid collector of luxury watches, which ad do you think you'd click on? PPC Ad #1PPC Ad #2 The ads are fairly unique. The URLs are the same, but everything else is different. Which ad do you think generated more than three times as many clicks?Made your decision?The winning ad is ad number one.
It was written by BoostCTR writer "brescia33," and it increased CTR by 225%. Where the original ad was getting 1 click, the new ad is getting 3.25 clicks, more than TRIPLE the original ad's performance.So why did the new ad win? And why did it win by so much? Let's take a look...The Original AdThe original ad is somewhat vague. After reading it, I'm not really sure why I should click the ad or what's going to happen when I do.If the only ben... > Read more
Win of the Week: The Power of Unspoken Benefits
Take a look at the two ads below. Imagine you've got a job interview lined up. Maybe it's the first job interview you've had in years. You want to brush up on your skills -- maybe even get a "sneak peek" of the questions you'll be asked. So you start looking for job interview questions and answers. Which ad do you click on? PPC Ad #1PPC Ad #2 The ads are fairly unique.
The URLs are the same, but everything else is different. Which ad do you think generated more than twice as many clicks?Made your decision?The winning ad is ad number two. It was written by BoostCTR writer "WordWizard," and it increased CTR by 164%. Where the original ad was getting 1 click, the new ad is getting 2.6 clicks, more than DOUBLE the original ad's performance.So why did the new ad win? And why did it wi... > Read more
Win of the Week: Are You Showing or Telling?
Take a look at the two ads below. Imagine your current business logo is feeling a bit dated. Or imagine you've started a new company and you want a sharp logo to represent your new business. So you start looking for a logo designer. Which ad do you click on? PPC Ad #1PPC Ad #2 Notice that the ads have much in common.
The title text is identical. The URLs are almost identical. The primary difference between the two ads is found in the body copy. Which ad do you think generated more than twice as many clicks?Made your decision?The winning ad is ad number one. It was written by BoostCTR writer "cartmetrix," and it increased CTR by 111%. Where the original ad was getting 1 click, the new ad is getting 2.1 clicks, more than DOUBLE the original ad's performance.So why did the new ad wi... > Read more
Win of the Week: Simple Tweaks Boost CTR by Triple Digits
Take a look at the two ads below. Imagine your once-fast PC has become painfully slow. You keep getting warnings that say your virtual memory is low. So you go to Google and type in "increase virtual memory." Which ad do you click on? PPC Ad #1PPC Ad #2 Notice that the ads have much in common.
The only differences are in the title text and the first line of body copy. Yet one of these ads outperformed the other by a large margin. Which ad do you think generated more than twice as many clicks?Made your decision?The winning ad is ad number two. It was written by BoostCTR writer "wordisborn," and it increased CTR by 150%. Where the original ad was getting 1 click, the new ad is getting 2.5 clicks, more than DOUBLE the original ad's performance.So why did the new ad win? And why did ... > Read more
Win of the Week: Keywords vs. Mental Imagery, Science vs. Emotion
Take a look at the two ads below. Imagine you're a middle-aged man or woman who's interested in sharpening your memory and increasing your brain power. You go to Google and type in "brain games." Which ad do you click on?PPC Ad #1PPC Ad #2Of course, the ad YOU click on may not be the same ad the majority of people click on.
So perhaps a better question is: Which ad do you think would generate almost twice as many clicks?And THAT is not an easy question to answer. On the one hand, you've got a matter-of-fact keyword-rich ad. On the other, you've got an ad using mental imagery and emotion. Two distinctly different approaches.Alright, made your decision?The winning ad is ad number two. It was written by BoostCTR writer "Cult Classic," and it increased CTR by 95%. Where the original ad was get... > Read more
Win of the Week: Are You Accidentally Targeting the Wrong Person?
Take a look at the two ads below. Imagine you are a business owner who is looking for signs that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). You know you've got to buy ADA signs to comply with the law. You're not deciding whether or not to get these signs – only who to buy them from.
With that in mind, which ad would you click on? Which one would be more likely to earn your business? PPC Ad #1PPC Ad #2 This is not an easy contest to call. The ad that lost was the control ad for months. It beat quite a few challenger ads. Even though it lost badly in this contest, it's a REALLY good ad.Surprisingly, there is no difference in the title or URL. The only differences are in the body copy of the ad. It's unusual to see such a large difference in CTR between ads that h... > Read more
Win of the Week: Strong Offer + Verb = 89% Increase in CTR?
Take a look at the two ads below. If you were looking for CRM software ("CRM" stands for "Customer Relationship Management"), which ad would you click on? Which one jumps out to you? (If you've been following the Win of the Week column for very long, I'm willing to bet you can pick the winner.) PPC Ad #1PPC Ad #2 There is no difference in the URL.
The only differences are in the title and body copy of the ad. Made your decision?The winning ad is ad number one. It was written by BoostCTR writer "kbc5019," and it increased CTR by 89%. Where the original ad was getting 1 click, the new ad is getting 1.89 clicks.Why did the new ad win? Let's take a look...1. The phrase "On-Demand" in the original ad seems unnecessary. The question I ask myself is this: Isn't all software available to... > Read more
Win of the Week: Holiday-Appropriate Language Boosts CTR by 66%
With Halloween right around the corner, I thought it would be fun to feature a Halloween contest for the Win of the Week.With that in mind, which ad would you click on if you were looking to get some Halloween cookies for a party ... or as a substitute for trick-or-treat candy? PPC Ad #1PPC Ad #2 There is no difference in the title text or in the URL.
The only differences are in the body of the ad. Made your decision?The winning ad is ad number two. It was written by "wordisborn," and it increased CTR by 66%. Where the original ad was getting 1 click, the new ad is getting 1.66 clicks.Why did the new ad win? Let's take a look...1. The original ad wastes space by using the word "Smiley." Indeed, the cookies do have a "smiley face," but that detail is somewhat irrelevant for a pers... > Read more
Win of the Week: Thinking Like a Parent Boosts CTR by 63%
Whether you have kids or not, it's time to think like a parent. If you were a parent, and you were looking for online games for your preschool-aged child to play, what would you be looking for? And which of the two ads below would you have clicked on? Make your decision, then scroll down to discover which ad won.
PPC Ad #1PPC Ad #2 Take your time. I'll wait. Okay, made your decision? The winning ad is ad number one. It was written by "WordWizard," and it increased CTR by 63%. Where the original ad was getting 1 click, the new ad is getting 1.63 clicks.Why did the new ad win? Let's take a look...1. Many parents are financially stretched, so the winning ad emphasizes that the games are FREE. In fact, the winning ad says "free" in the title, the body copy, and the URL -- three times... > Read more
Win of the Week: Focus on What Searchers Really Want
Imagine for a moment that you are a business owner who is hiring a new secretary. You want to make sure you've got a good secretary before you hire him (or her).What kind of information would you like to know? Which ad would get your attention and earn your click? Make your decision, then scroll down to discover the answer.
PPC Ad #1PPC Ad #2 In this case, ad number two is the winner. It was written by "jeffbaum71," and it increased CTR by 162%. Where the original ad was getting 1 click, the new ad is getting 2.62 clicks.I find this week's contest interesting because it highlights a key principle of good ad writing. Here are a few reasons why the new ad won...1. The title of the winning ad is more descriptive. A "Secretary Skills Test" is much more precise and descriptive than a ... > Read more
