Like most marketing managers, you’re always looking for new and innovative ways to reach your audience. And if you’re considering buying digital ads, it’s essential to ask the right questions to make the most of your investment. Here is a brief digital advertising checklist of 10 crucial things to check to ensure you’re getting the most out of your digital marketing and to help alleviate some confusion when buying targeted digital advertising.
- Am I using the right tools?
Digital advertising is more than just Google AdWords and Facebook ads. Don’t just spend your money on the names you see popping up most often. There are three main factors to consider when determining if you’re on the right platform:
- Are you in the right place?
- Is the targeting right?
- Is it the right message?
- Am I tracking what matters?
Gut instincts can be great, but not for measuring your digital ads. You should KNOW if they’re working through accurate, real-time data you can see and understand.
Click-Thru-Rate can be a great metric to track but are you tracking Conversions, View-Thru or Geo-Conversions? Your advertising partner should explain how these metrics work and why they are beneficial to your business.
- Am I fully leveraging video?
Thanks to the rise of streaming and connected TV, digital video is now the #1 ad type in the world. Whether through OTT, Social Mirroring, Amazon Premium, Facebook & Instagram, Native Video, or a different platform, your advertising partner should be ready to assist you in all the ways your video content can find the right consumer.
- Is my reporting deep enough?
If the digital reports you’re receiving are only a page or two of large numbers, you need to look harder and reevaluate.
Some of the most common and meaningful metrics to look for are as follows:
- Impressions
- Clicks
- Click-Thru Rate
- Clicks and Impressions Graph
- Device Breakout
- Ad Creative Breakout
- Website/ App Breakout
- Video Completion %
- View Thru
- Conversions
- Keyword Breakout
- What’s my targeting on social?
Facebook is still the #1 social platform and an important place for your business. But in 2021, Facebook made targeting updates that upended several industries. These limitations are one of the reasons Conquest rolled out Social Mirror ads – a way to serve ads using multiple social platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, LinkedIn, and more, but with NONE of the restrictions commonly found in their targeting.
- Am I targeting individual households?
Suppose zip code or wider-level targeting for your ad campaigns makes sense, great! But if you’re hoping to use digital to reach a specific audience of names or households (think direct mail for the internet), then you’re in luck! Technology like Address Targeting allows us to serve your ads to the list of household addresses you’ve given us. Zero waste and super accurate!
- Are my ads following people across multiple devices?
We aren’t just on our smartphones all the time. We’re on our laptops or tablet and streaming on TV. If this is how your users engage, then you need to make sure your ads are in all those places to stand out.
- Does my website feature Live Chat?
People don’t always shop during your regular business hours. Live Chat goes a long way towards making your site more user-friendly 24/7. Artificial Intelligence is incredible, but if your site’s Live Chat is bot-based, the experience is probably very frustrating for your customers who want quality interactions with real people.
- Are my ads protected from fraud?
An estimated $1 out of every $3 spent on digital advertising is hijacked by bot traffic or other ad scams. Make sure your advertising partner has the availability to Double Verify against ad fraud and ensures ads only show in brand-safe spaces.
- Where does the targeting data come from?
The best part about digital advertising is the advanced targeting capabilities, so targeting data must be the best. Ask your advertising partner where their data comes from and how comprehensive, accurate, and specific targeting capabilities they have.
Buying targeted digital advertising shouldn’t be confusing, and with the right questions answered and the right advertising partner, you should be able to get the most from your investment.
Find more digital marketing resources and information from HFA here.
