SEO News

Why this research?

The original research came from Bunnyfoot’s work for a car insurance client who were investigating the effectiveness of Google Adwords.

During the research, the team found that 81% of users clicked on PPC ads rather than organic results. 

Further investigation found that 41 of the 100 individuals tested did not know that Adwords were paid-for adverts, instead believing them to be the most authoritative links.

Since that last research Google, as is its prerogative, has changed the way its presents ad listings, possibly as a result of EU anti-trust measures. 

This, in theory, should have made it easier for users to tell the difference between ads and organic results, though the issue is muddied by the fact that Google has removed the grey shading behind the ads. 

That said, the word ‘ad’ with a bright yellow background is a bit of a clue…

Current PPC ad format:

Old ad format:

So how has this change affected users’ perception of search results pages?  

Research methodology

The user testing was carried out in multiple locations across London. 103 participants with a range of internet abilities were tested, all of whom used Google as their primary search engine.

The participants covered a wide range of demographics and were aged between 18 – 65 years.

An eyetracker was used throughout the sessions in order to record where the participants were looking, and this generated aggregated heatmaps (Bunnyfoot looked at other factors of search result understanding and only report a subset here).

All participants were then asked a series of post-test interview questions to gather further insight as to their understanding of Google’s results pages. 

The results:

• When asked, 36% of users did not realise Google adwords were ads (a small change from 40% in 2012)

• When asked, 27% of users did not realise that Google had any advertising. 

Note for the stats gurus amongst you: we of course realise that we have used a relatively small sample size (albeit a large one for user testing and eyetracking studies) and whilst the figures above have considerable sampling error it does not detract from their impact and surprise.

Have the changes to Google adwords made any difference?

The research suggests that the changes have made little difference to users’ ability to distinguish between paid and organic results. 

Despite what I would assume was a clearer labelling of ads in the new formats, a significant portion of users still aren’t seeing the difference. 

If I was a Google sceptic, I would suggest that the big G itself may have carried out similar tests to find the format that would satisfy the EU, yet still attract the most clicks. If clarity was the main factor, why remove the shading? 

It also highlights the propensity for web users to miss what might seem obvious to those designing and working on websites. 

The fact that 27% of those in the study when questioned did not realise that Google were doing any form of advertising in their results, further supports this, as well as being jaw-droppingly surprising in its own right.

What are the implications of this?

Pay-per-click is a very effective way of advertising your brand and reaching your target audience. It looks like about a third of people unknowingly click on ads and assume that ‘this is the best match’.

For the rest of those ‘in the know’ then the ads and the brands that pay for them still receive prominence, but the user can make an informed choice about whether to click a promoted link or not, depending on the context of the search.

Also, web designers and others ‘in the know’ should be wary of assuming ‘common’ knowledge on behalf of our customers.

According to Bunnyfoot CEO and co-founder Jon Dodd:

As our hundreds of user tests over the last decade have shown, it is very difficult to predict what customers’ knowledge or understanding is. When you do the tests, you are often humbled and surprised with how far off your assumptions are.

Posted by danatanseo

This post was originally in YouMoz, and was promoted to the main blog because it provides great value and interest to our community. The author’s views are entirely his or her own and may not reflect the views of Moz, Inc.

Working as an in-house SEO Strategist for a small business forces me to get “scrappy” every day with tools and techniques. I’m constantly on the lookout for an opportunity that can help my company market to broader audiences for less money. In the past I’ve written on how you can add video overlays to your YouTube videos using Google AdWords and generate traffic back to your site without spending a dime. (P.S. This is still working, so if you haven’t done it, read this post then get on over to AdWords and get your video overlays rockin’).

Learn how to add Lead Generation Cards or LGCs to your Tweets!

What is a LGC?  LGC = Lead Generation Card (specifically in Twitter)

A LGC in Twitter is a form that can be attached to your Tweet that allows your followers to directly send you their contact information with the click of a single button in Twitter. Here is an example of what a LGC looks like:

Here is a Tweet containing the LGC:

Here is what appears when an end user clicks “View details:”

Notice how the box is pre-populated with
your recipient’s email address, enabling them to click the Call to Action button and beam their contact information to you in a single click. Ooohh, Aaahhh…Très Nifty! 

“But wait!” you say, “I don’t have any budget to pay for Promoted Tweets!”

Great! Neither do I! We have that in common!

The beauty of Twitter LGCs is that
you can add a LGC to a regular non-promoted Tweet and it doesn’t cost you a single solitary penny.

It’s Free…that’s right….I said the F-word.

Caveat – You can’t compose and publish the Tweet from your regular Twitter admin home page. You have to compose and send the Tweet from inside Twitter Ads. Here’s how you do it:

1. Log in to Twitter
2. Click the Setting Icon and select “Twitter Ads” from the drop down menu [Screenshot below]

3.  Click on the “Creatives” Tab in the top Nav Menu in Twitter Ads and Select “Cards”

4.  Click “Create your first Lead Generation Cards” – Bonus: You Can have an unlimited number of cards! 

Here’s what the form looks like:

You’ll need to make sure you have the link to your Website’s privacy policy handy. Plus you’ll need to have an alternative URL where end-users can visit a page to find out more about you and/or your offer. Other than that, all the dimensions you need or right there on the page. Very easy.

5.  Once your card is set up, click the “Tweets” tab, just to the left of the “Cards” tab. [Screenshot below] You can also get there by selecting “Tweets” in the “Creatives” drop down menu in the Top Nav.

6.  Click the blue “Compose Tweet” button located in the upper right corner.

7.  Leave the default delivery setting set to Standard. Compose your tweet & Click the last icon on the right just below your “Tweet” box (when you scroll over it, it says “Attach a Card to This Tweet”) 

8.  Select the card you would like to attach to your Tweet.

9.  Send your Tweet!

That’s it. Now you can grab your favorite beverage, sit back in your chair and just watch the cash roll in. Okay, maybe not, but you did just manage to attach a lead generation mechanism to your Tweet without spending one red cent!

Now, once you have cards set up in your Twitter Ads account, the steps are even easier. All you will have to do in that case is log in to Twitter. Click “Twitter Ads” from your settings menu. Click “Tweets” under the “Creatives” drop down in the top Nav. Click the blue “Compose Tweet” button. Write your Tweet, select the card and voila!

But wait, there’s more!

So, you might be thinking, “Great! But how do I get notified that someone filled out a Twitter LGC? What do I do with that info?”

Along with getting free LGCs, you also get access to some pretty nice analytic data for Tweets sent from your Twitter Ads account. So, here’s how you track and download your leads:

1. Navigate back to the “Card” Tab under “Creatives.”
2. Next to the card corresponding to the leads you want to access, mouse over the white area right below the card’s URL [Screenshot]

3.  Upload these into your favorite email program (we love Mailchimp!) or CRM and have at it!

For those of you who are visual learners, I’ve created a step by step video that walks you through the whole process:

There you have it. You’ve just successfully set up your Twitter Lead Generation Card and are ready to start raking in free leads from Twitter! Now I want to hear what your creative ideas are for implementing this and using it for your business. How do you think using Twitter Lead Generation cards along with your Tweets can augment your marketing program? I’d love to see them in the comments!

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