One very popular search term in Google at the moment is the following:
“Is Google AdWords worth it?”
Speaking with IFAs across the country, I’ve found this same question coming up. Indeed, some financial advisors are suspicious of AdWords.
This is understandable. After all, it’s still a relatively new form of marketing, and it’s unfamiliar to many IFAs. And as most of us do when we find something unfamiliar, it’s often easier to just rely on the kind of marketing approaches we’re used to – like email blasts, direct mailing and cold calling.
That may be the easier thing to do, but is really it more profitable?
Before you write AdWords off as a means of marketing your IFA business, consider the following:
1. AdWords can be cheaper than other forms of marketing
If you employ one or more telesales reps, that can cost your IFA business thousands of pounds a month just in salary costs. Getting an advert into a magazine can also get pricey very quickly.
Moreover, when it comes to cold calling, how do you know that you’re actually reaching people who are looking for financial advice? You could refine your prospects through market research, but that’s even more time and resources.
AdWords, on the other hand, can be as cheap or as expensive as you like, since you set your daily budget – as well as the bid you’re willing to pay for someone to see/click your ads.
It is possible for an IFA to run a decent AdWords campaign with a budget as little as £3-5 per day. However, you will first need to check how much your competitors are paying to show their ads over yours.
You can check this using the AdWords Keyword Planner. (Note: you’ll need to set up an AdWords account first to use the Keyword Planner. Don’t worry, it’s free to set up!).
2. You can clearly measure your ROI
It’s incredibly difficult to measure some forms of marketing, such as an IFA magazine article or advert. Even if you do suddenly get a surge of brand engagement after you publish them, how can you be sure it wasn’t just a coincidence?
With AdWords, however, you can track how many people are seeing your ads; as well as the percentage of them who then click on your ads (i.e. your “Click Through Rate” – CTR). You can then track how many of these users “convert” on your website (i.e. your “Conversion Rate”). For instance, maybe they fill out your contact form after clicking on your ad to your site, or maybe they download an ebook.
If these “converted” users eventually become clients, then you will clearly be able to see how they started as an AdWords-acquired prospect, and later finished as a new client.
By comparing the monetary value of your new client with the costs of your AdWords campaign, you will be able to measure your AdWords ROI, and make appropriate adjustments to your budget and bidding.
3. It is highly targeted
The problem with telesales and direct mail marketing is that, often, when it comes to finding the right prospects, you’re “shooting in the dark.”
With AdWords, on the other hand, users’ search terms are matched with the keywords in your ads. This means that you’re not having to sift through the crowds to find people who need financial advice.
Rather, they’re already out there looking for IFAs like you, and with a good AdWords campaign they’ll find you.
4. AdWords works more quickly than SEO
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is the process of making your webpages more prominent in the search engines. As such, for IFAs, SEO is a worthwhile endeavour since their business success hinges heavily upon their ability to be found by potential new clients.
SEO, however, does take some time to gain traction. So you may be waiting a few months before you see your new website climb higher in search engine results.
With AdWords, however, you don’t have to wait to get your ads into a prominent position in search engine results. In fact, with some carefully-crafted ads with strategically-chosen keywords and bids, you can get near the top pretty much straight away.
As the Marketing Coordinator at CreativeAdviser, Phil is responsible for devising marketing strategies for his clients, generating engaging and informative content, and ensuring brand consistency across all of CreativeAdviser’s communications. Phil has a passion for digital marketing and a borderline-unhealthy addiction to Google analytics.
In his spare time, Phil can be found powerlifting at his local gym, watching action movies, or playing acoustic guitar at open mic nights.
