Top 7 tips
1. Match the ad's title with the search phrase.
You can choose exactly which search phrases your ad is shown for, as described. Matching the title of the ad with this phrase will register recognition in the mind of the searcher and make them more disposed to click on your ad.
2. Don't target general phrases.
Someone selling cars might be tempted to go after people searching for [cars], but this will attract an enormous number of searches by people who aren't in the market to buy cars, so a better search phrase here would be [buy cars], or even better [buy red cars in London].
3. Increase your Click Through Rate.
Google's positioning system for AdWords is based on how much you are prepared to pay, as well as how popular (i.e. "good") your Ad is. Thus an ad that gets a high click through rate will rise in the positioning on the page - thus getting more click throughs etc. etc. The easiest way to achieve a higher click through rate is to target very specific phrases and match the content of the ad with the content of the search phrase.
4. Don't target too many words with the same ad.
It's almost impossible for a Pay Per Click ad - given the constraints of space imposed - to be relevant for more than a few search phrases. Thus you should tailor specific ads for specific phrases. If you have the time, 1 phrase per ad is definitely the best way to go, though you can get away with 3-5 phrases in most cases.
5. Stress a benefit to the visitor in the ad copy.
Devise your ads so the Description Line 1 states a benefit of the service you offer - i.e. "Attract thousands of customers" - and the Description Line 2 states what they can expect when they get to your site - i.e. "London's top marketing agency".
6. Monitor each ad's effectiveness - and adjust accordingly.
It's too easy to set up your Pay Per Click ad campaign and sit back waiting for the results. The best method of improving your ads' performance is to compare the click through rates compared to number of people searching (impressions) and continually adjust factors such as those mentioned above until you get a decent click through rate and ROI.
7. Use Overture's Search Term Suggestion Tool
http://inventory.uk.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion/ - is a great method of finding out popular, relevant search phrases; as well as helping you to think more laterally about the keywords you're targeting.
There are lots more factors that go into the mix for a successful Pay Per Click campaign, but if you base your methods on the 7 tips outlined here, you'll certainly be getting off to a good start.
You can switch your PPC adverts on and off at will, whilst setting a maximum limit on how much you spend, thus keeping complete control over the whole process.
