Google Adwords Rules and Regulations
Adwords' rules and regulations can and do change. Google provides a free guide to help you get started, along with information online and the Adwords Blog. When it comes to landing pages, Google Adwords expects a link that works. (Seems like a no-brainer but they obviously had to put it in writing.) Once a viewer clicks on your ad, the promoted product should not be more than 3 clicks away. The landing page cannot contain pop-ups or pop-unders. Clicking on the back arrow at any time must return the user to Google. The landing page is a vital part of pay-per-click marketing. If you send viewers directly to the Clickbank merchant's page, you're required to show yourself as an affiliate. Google allows two affiliate links per merchant per page. Two. If you aren't one of the top two producing pay per click affiliate marketers for the product, don't bother writing ads.
URL's featuring affiliate links or long URLs do not look professional and this can reduce clickability. Example: Promoting the tattoo site with the Clickbank link would look something like this - http://tattoo·hop·clickbank·com/7634. Some merchant affiliate links are quite lengthy. Example: http://greattattoo·com/angel/user/bebop/site2/3658720-90.
These are fictional examples but they illustrate the problem. One solution to affiliate links? Go to www·tinyurl·com and shorten the link. This is a popular solution. So popular that the words tiny URL look almost generic. Tinyurl.com also offers what they call the preview version, meant to instill more customer confidence. This version just adds the world 'preview' to the newly created URL.
You can also download profit protector and use it to create redirects. Since this does require FTP experience, you might prefer to use URL freeze. It's free and doesn't involve any uploading of files. You'll find it at www·URLfreeze·com.
The best solution to the URL issue is to get your own domain name.
Use your keywords. Example:
We'll pretend that qualitytattoo.com is available and use it for the exercises we're doing.
You cannot set up an actual Google Adwords campaign until you have a URL to direct ads to. When you type your ad into the Google Adwords ad setup, you'll be required to provide the URL. Google will follow the URL, making sure it works and that your landing page contains the same keywords. To register a domain name, you cannot go wrong with Hostgator. Hostgator has great prices and the best customer service to help you set up your site and DNS namespaces. Since you're going to need a 2 page website, it will be easier to get both name and web address at the same place. While it is possible to point domain names to any location, it takes time.
Landing Page Hosting
To promote affiliate products with pay per click marketing, a lot of bandwidth or server space is not required. You don't have to purchase a big, expensive hosting plan. There's a good chance that the simplest plan will do nicely.
If you're new to website design, it helps if your website host has built in website creator software. It isn't necessary. There are a wide variety of free and low cost website templates available online. They come with directions for altering the template and uploading it to the server at your web host address.
Creating a Landing Page
Once you have a name and an address, it's time to create a landing page that results in sales. Keep it simple. Many marketers state that a simple two column page is all you need. For a header at the top of your page, consider downloading a banner from the affiliate program.
If our example site qualitytattoo.com provided free banners for affiliates, getting one would be a simple matter of going to the page where affiliate tools and links are provided.
Page one should be where the customer arrives when clicking on the pay per click ad. The second page is the About page. That's it. Two pages. Google expects to find a home page, an about page and contact information.
Three key features of a good landing page:
. Easy to Read
. Attractive and Professional
. Directly Represent What Ad Promotes
The landing page should match the ad - it should contain the same keywords. Write a short review or article about the product you are promoting. Put text links inside the article to the merchant page.