Google advertising (Adwords) is one of the most popular online advertising tools in the market, having transformed into a “marketing go-to” for most any business that wants to boost their traffic and sales. The multifamily industry has proven no different. Google ads, when done right, hold the power to increase property leads substantially over a short period of time through increased website traffic, targeted users, and brand recognition.
If you haven’t jumped aboard the Google ad train just yet, or if you’ve already dabbled, here’s a few quick tips on what you need to know before tapping into the potential of this prevalent tool—both the good and ugly truth.
The Good: You can target who, what, when and where.
Google’s search engine algorithms are already designed on a base level to present all web users with the most relevant content available based upon the nature of their search. Through Google ads’ targeting capabilities, you, as a property manager or owner, can drastically increase the chances of your most qualified prospects seeing and clicking on your ad. Some of Google’s audience targeting options include demographics, in-market, interests, and content targeting, just to name a few. By tapping into these additional targeting features, you’ll ultimately be able to refine your search strategy to maximize your return on investment and snip costs–what’s better than that?
The Ugly Truth: Targeting, when done right, can be a time investment. To ensure the most effective campaign that produces the highest return on investment, you’ll need to leverage negative keywords and define your target just right to take advantage of all the perks, like increased web traffic. Additionally, before you can begin your targeting efforts, you’ll need to ensure that your website is welcoming, informative, and has a great call-to-action that will ultimately result in conversions. You’ll easily be able to tell if your website is ineffective if your ad and site reporting are showing that your users are clicking through to the site and quickly dropping off. If you’re unsure about the effectiveness of your site, you can always contact Rentbot, and we’d be glad to help.
The Good: You’ll experience immediate, measurable results
Another top benefit for Google ads is that, like many digital platforms, it’s highly measurable; thus, taking all the guesswork out of your advertising. I mean, in the multifamily world, who has the time or patience to guess anyway? The good news is that within a matter of minutes of going live, you’ll be able to quickly see how your ad is performing throughout every facet of your journey. Through Google’s robust reporting, you can also peep how many people your ads are being shown to, who’s visiting your website and who’s calling you. Then, you can further tweak your campaign to your rental heart’s desire.
The Ugly Truth: You need to know what your results mean. Google’s reports are pretty simple to understand for most newbies; however, you will need to know what the implications from your results are and how to develop an action plan. You will also need to be knowledgeable in establishing goals so that you can ultimately determine the effectiveness of your campaign/ad, which simply entails a little research on your part. If preferred, you may also opt to consult the services of a dedicated firm that specializes in Google ads and can handle this legwork for you.
The Good: You only pay for what users click on
Google ads are known to be cost effective for many marketers, especially when compared to other advertising channels. The beauty with Google ads is that you’re only paying for the ads users are clicking on. The tricky part with this concept is it may take a few tweaks to your campaign to determine the most effective strategy to ensure the highest click-through rates. But, once you land on the perfect customization, you’ll ultimately experience a high return on investment and will be able to quickly eliminate the ads that aren’t producing.
The Ugly Truth: Again, you only pay for what users click on. While you can score big with the pay-per-click aspect of Google ads, if you’re located in a competitive rental market, your keywords or cost-per-clicks could get a little pricey, particularly if your competitors have already taken heed. Additionally, you’ll need to keep in mind, again, that you are responsible for paying up on every click to your ad—this includes those who may not have the greatest interest in your property. The good news, though, is that both of these concerns can be seemingly addressed with a little keyword research and campaign tweaking to find the perfect, yet effective low cost mix.
Rentbot can help.
First things first—before you embark on your Google advertising journey, you’ll need a good website. Rentbot has a proven track record of exceeding its clients leasing, conversion and retention goals through each of our customer sites. We credit this all to our careful search engine optimization, responsive and tailored designs, popular online features and fast and friendly support. Let us take care of the legwork so you can focus on exceeding your Google ad conversion goals. Take part in a free website trial today.
About the Author
Jonsette Calloway joined the Rentbot team in 2015. With a background in public relations, advertising and copywriting, she has helped a multitude of clients achieve their marketing and communications goals within various fields, but she particularly enjoys working with the apartment industry.