Google Ads during Covid19 Case Study
Goal: Optimizing for lead generation at the lowest cost per lead while reducing ad spend to a more manageable amount during a pandemic.
Overview: We will be walking through a couple of campaigns to share our insights on managing campaigns during global shifts in behavior such as the recent Covid19 pandemic. Having many years of experience and understanding both human behavior and the market, we helped guide our clients through this difficult time. Many businesses were pausing their marketing, however, we urged our client to remain open and to continue to offer his goods online. It was a decision that we felt strongly about and our client trusted our advice.
Background
The client has been working with us since early 2018. We manage the advertising for both physical and digital locations. The business was deemed essential and was allowed to operate during the time of the closures. We adjusted budgets and maintained ad spend to keep their business running.
The pandemic presented a very complicated situation. Businesses needed to make decisions if they were going to be able to make it through the pandemic. Would they be able to find a way to continue doing business, even at a reduced rate? Many businesses took their first steps to go digital during this time. Some re-evaluated and updated their online presence. This pandemic has laid the groundwork for change in how we do business and interact with these businesses. And it has been exciting to be at the forefront, witnessing this change as it has been happening.
Situation
The pandemic changed the way the world did business. More people were staying at home by choice or they were ordered to do so by their government officials. Businesses that were deemed non-essential and had no digital presence closed down. But those who remained open with essential goods and services and those who would do their business online continued to function even if at a reduced pace.
After explaining to the client our predictions in behavior, they trusted us but still wanted to lower ad spend. That was fine as we did not feel we needed to run at the same level we were before. Once things return to normal we can re-evaluate our budget versus conversion velocity.
We made some adjustments to the campaign in terms of budget, but otherwise, let it run and waited for the data.
Observations
We noticed that as states started mandating that everyone stay home, those impressions grew higher across the board. This was in part due to the change in lifestyle brought upon by the pandemic.
We started to see the cost per click fall as competitors reduced their spending or paused. This makes the auction for ad placements far less competitive. The result being the cost per click fell and because of that, the cost per conversion fell. This made our reduced budget go a lot further than it previously would have been able to.
Both of these factors together gave a lift to the total amount of conversions generated.
Stimulus
The recent stimulus program was put in place to help stimulate the economy. Money was given to every individual who fit within a predefined set of guidelines. This money was there to soften the blow of the economic slowdown, to aid those who had lost their jobs and were working through the unemployment system, and to encourage spending to support businesses.
What this has done is given our audience some spending money. They may have been previously on the wall about making a purchase, but now some may be willing to take those next steps in making a purchase.
The Results
Lets put all these pieces together and look at some data.
- We have more people at home and thus increased search volume.
- We have other advertisers pulling back due to the uncertain economy and reducing competition.
- We have most people receiving a stimulus check which infused money into the economy.
More searches, less competition, and increased potential customers? Yes, please!
For some businesses, it might make sense to pause and close down due to the nature of their business. But for many businesses who can do transactions safely or online. This became a fantastic opportunity for those who stuck it out.
In time, all of this is going to normalize again as competitors return to the market, and customers return to work and go on about their daily lives. We can already see some of that normalizing happening in the data. What we want to point out is that just because there is a crisis, does not mean you should stop everything. The economy relies on businesses to go about their every day to keep our country thriving even in the more difficult times. For essential businesses, ensuring that people receive goods and services is critical. It also will give you an opportunity to establish yourself as dependable.
If you are looking for a marketing firm that understands the digital advertising landscape and knows how to make the right decisions for your business during times of uncertainty. Give us a call or email at Mass Division. With our team’s combined experience, we can help you stand out against the masses.
