There’s an old saying — complicate for profit, simplify for results. Meaning, if you want to sell something, make it seem super-complicated. Focus on all the moving parts, all the “what ifs?”, future-pace some worst-case scenarios, and convince everyone that only you know how to avoid the deadly quicksand.
However, if you want to achieve something, strip all of that away and focus on the few things that matter.
I call this 5/95 thinking.
In my experience, insiders know that there are a critical few factors that really matter (in any endeavor) — the 5% — and those critical few are responsible for the overwhelming share of results — the 95%. (Don’t worry about the actual math — it’s irrelevant. What matters is the underlying idea.)
We have covered some 5/95 thinking already. Near the top of that list is understanding active intent vs. passive potential interest. Do that right and everything is easier.
Another 5/95 idea for paid traffic is to focus on quality first, quantity (a distant) second.
For example, here’s one of the most common mistakes I see. I call it the “throw a bunch of ideas as the wall to see what sticks” method.
For paid search, it usually looks like 1-3 not so great ads, 50-100 keyword phrases, and a random budget (which is always too low).
What happens? The budget is spent in hours to support so many keywords, which means there’s no opportunity to see a strong signal within the noise. The low-quality keywords are mixed in with the high-quality keywords, but that’s not obvious in the reporting because all are served equally and none can get real traction. The ad copy isn’t specific to any particular set of keywords so conversion is low. Cash is wasted and, weeks/months later the conclusion is “paid search didn’t work for my business.”
My reply — “the way you did paid search didn’t work for your business.”
Here’s an alternative. Identify one (and only one) very specific keyword phrase that’s perfect for your business. If you sell red widgets online and offer free shipping, start with “buy red widgets online free shipping”. (For all the Google Ads geeks out there, it should be +buy +red +widgets +online +free +shipping.)
Then write one (and only one) really great ad that speaks to someone who wants to buy red widgets online with free shipping. Take the time to speak to his/her needs.
Spend your entire daily budget on that one search term. Study your results daily. If that phrase/ad doesn’t work, then you know where to focus. If you can’t make it work, then yes, paid search didn’t work for your business. And, let’s be honest, if you can’t make a perfect search phrase work with a well-written ad, there are probably bigger problems to solve.
The “see what sticks” mentality isn’t limited to search. I see it on Facebook all the time too. Identify an audience, throw together a few ads (usually with curiosity and a big promise), and then wonder why results are terrible. Cue the “Facebook doesn’t work for my business” refrain.
Here’s an alternative. Write one really good ad. Imagine your ideal prospect sitting in front of you:
- What keeps her up at night?
- What problem does she have that you’re uniquely qualified to solve?
- What does she want most that you know how to help her achieve?
Write to her — from the heart. Speak to those felt needs, make it clear you understand the problem(s) and desire(s) deeply, and that you have a solution. If that solution isn’t right for everyone, be honest about that. If there are hurdles (like opt-ins and webinars), mention that too. Treat your prospects like good friends.
Some of the best performing Facebook ads I’ve ever seen (from the perspective of generating customers) have been written by business owners with no formal Facebook or copywriting training. How is that possible? Because the copy was authentic, showed deep knowledge of and empathy for the prospect, and demonstrated credibility and authority. Contrary to popular marketing “best practices”, sometimes it’s the steak, not the sizzle, that sells.
You’re going to learn how to write an ad like that — one that has the potential to transform your business — next.
Finally, let’s agree for now to forget about “scaling”. What that usually means is pouring money into a campaign at the first signs of mediocre performance, and I don’t think any of us want to be in the business of adding mediocrity to the world.
Instead, let’s do one thing exceptionally well — just one — and celebrate that success before moving on to the next thing we can do exceptionally well. Before you know it, we’re going to be doing many things exceptionally well (which sounds a lot like scaling intelligently to me).
Make sure you’ve completed your homework. You’re going to need those ingredients for what’s next.
NEXT: Ads Should Provide Standalone Value — Especially Facebook