How To Use The Placement Performance Report To Profit From The Content Network

After you read this short article, you will have learned how to find out the inner most secrets about the performance of your ads on the Content Network and what you must then do to improve your campaigns to make them more profitable.

Most people back away from the Content Network, thinking that it is not for them. And that is certainly good advice if you are new to AdWords, advertising on a small budget or starting a new campaign in an unfamiliar niche.

But one could also say that the Content Network represents a vast market place within which you can advertise your products or services. And if you run your campaigns in the right way, it can be a valuable source of new business as well as a means of establishing your brand throughout the world.

Unquestionably, if you are going to be successful on the Content Network, then you need to monitor the performance of your ads very carefully and adjust your campaigns regularly so that your ads appear only on those websites that are going to bring you true value.

The problem is, how do you know which websites are working for you and which are just lining the pockets of Google and the website owner?

Fortunately Google have provided you with the "Placement Performance" Report that tells you everything you need to know about your ads performance on the Content Network.

Here are our top five tips to getting the most from your report:)

1. Think Conversions Not Clicks

If you think of AdWords as a popularity contest where the winner is the contestant that attracts the most traffic to their website, then you're in for a very expensive shock.

The most important statistic in any AdWords campaign is conversions. When advertising on the Content Network you must therefore have some kind of conversion tracking software installed.

2. Sort Your Data To Give It More Meaning

The huge amounts of information that the Placement Performance Report can provide you about your ads campaigns can sometimes seem overwhelming. It's therefore very important that you sort your data so that you can focus on the information that is most important to you.

For instance, if it's the most popular websites on which your ads are appearing you want to focus on, then order your report by number of clicks or to focus on your spending, order the report by the costs field.

3. Don't Take Action Based On Insufficient Data

In the beginning, your ads are going to be shown on many different websites within the Content Network and your advertising costs are likely to be high.

It is important not to panic and start to make decisions based on insufficient data. Sites that at first produce few clicks can sometimes appear not very useful, but later can start to convert profitably once more clicks have accumulated.

4. Prepare For Lower Click-Through Rates

Don't make the mistake of thinking your ads are performing badly just because your click-through rates seem very low. Google understands that ads on the Content Network don't get clicked on as often as those on the search network.

5. Optimise Your Campaigns

The real power of the Placement Performance report is in the way that it can help you to optimise your ads campaign and make advertising on the Content Network much more profitable.

If you notice in the report that your ads are appearing on websites or pages that are not relevant then take action to remove them by adding negative keywords, excluding the entire domain or even excluding an entire category. You can do this easily using the Site and Category Exclusion tool.

Final thoughts

When you start using the Content Network, it is very likely that you'll loose money in the initial stages of your advertising campaign. But, act every day on the information provided in your Placement Performance report and you'll soon have your campaigns running at a profit.