Table of Contents
Introduction and setting the scene
Whether you’re a seasoned marketer or new to the fintech space, this guide is designed to equip you with the knowledge and strategies you need to run profitable Pay-Per-Click (PPC) campaigns.
We’ve been working on PPC for fintech startups for a while, and decided to compile everything we’ve learned into an easy-to-read guide so marketers can get similar results for their teams, and executives can have better clarity into what goes into a successful PPC campaign.
Understanding the PPC Landscape for finance brands
Fintech startups operate in a dynamic and highly competitive environment.
That means incredibly tough competition, regulatory complexities, and huge incumbents with millions more marketing budget at their disposal than a fintech startup could hope to have.
Fintech startups also have to deal with severe limitations in ad targeting. Google takes a critical eye to finech brands “related to the management or investment of money and cryptocurrencies, including personalized advice.”
When promoting financial products and services, you need to comply with state and local regulations for any location that your ads target.
Benefits of PPC for fintech companies
Why should Fintech businesses invest in PPC marketing?
- Targeted Audience Reach: You can pinpoint your audience by targeting the exact keywords they search for, making sure your ads reach those most likely to convert.
- (Pretty) Immediate Results: Bidding on terms people are searching for lets you generate traffic and leads quickly. This lets PPC complement long-term SEO strategies.
- Measurable ROI: Unlike SEO or social media marketing, PPC is easier to track and optimize, which makes it easier to maximize your ROAS (return on ad spend – basically your ROI or return on marketing investment).
- Control Over Budget: You can manage your advertising spend with more precision and set daily or monthly limits. You can also schedule ads for optimal times so you have a better handle on cost control, and even volume control, so if you’re feeling overwhelmed with demand you can pause campaigns.
Key steps to launching and managing PPC campaigns
Launching and managing a successful PPC campaign involves several strategic steps. Here’s how to get started:
4.1. Set clear objectives before starting anything
Before launching any PPC campaign, define what you aim to achieve. Common objectives for fintech startups include:
- Lead Generation: Capture potential customer information for follow-up.
- Brand Awareness: Increase visibility and recognition in the market.
- Website Traffic: Drive more visitors to your site to explore your offerings.
- App Downloads: Promote your fintech app to grow your user base.
- Product Sales: Boost sales of your financial products or services.
Objectives guide your campaign strategy, keyword selection, and budget allocation.
4.2. Choose the Right Platforms
While Google Ads is a staple for many PPC campaigns, fintech startups should explore multiple platforms to maximize reach:
- Google Ads: Ideal for targeting high-intent search queries, but can be expensive for finance brands.
- LinkedIn Ads: Perfect for B2B fintech startups targeting professionals and businesses, but leads can be some of, if not the most expensive of all the platforms.
- Facebook Ads: Useful for affordable, but accurate audience targeting and retargeting campaigns. Ironically, Meta ads are great for affordable B2B ads when Linked In is too expensive.
- Twitter Ads: Great for real-time engagement and targeting niche communities, but hard to get launched, and may require a business profile before launching, which could be an expensive barrier to entry.
- Bing Ads: Often less competitive and can offer a good ROI. It’s also easy to port over Google ads to Bing via Bing’s native API integration.
4.3. Keyword research and campaign buildout
Why Keywords Matter: On Google’s ad platform, keywords determine when and where your ads appear. For fintech brands, focusing on keywords that potential customers are actively searching for is essential, but also can be expensive if not done right.
How to Choose the Right Keywords:
- Relevance: Ensure keywords are directly related to your fintech products, services, or customer problems you can solve.
- Search Volume: Target keywords with sufficient search volume can maximize visibility.
- Competition: You’ll want to balance highly-competitive keywords with long-tail keywords (keywords that are longer phrases, which tend to have less search volume but more likely to convert) to optimize your budget.
- Intent: Focus on keywords that indicate strong intent to engage or purchase, such as “best online investment platforms” or “secure mobile banking app.”
Some tools you can use for keyword research:
- Google Keyword Planner
- SEMrush
- Ahrefs
- Moz Keyword Explorer
- Spyfu
4.4. Craft Compelling Ad Copy
Your ad copy must capture attention and persuade users to click. Here’s how to make it effective:
- Clear Value Proposition: Highlight what sets your fintech solution apart. Is it security, ease of use, lower fees?
- Strong Call-to-Action (CTA): Encourage users to take the next step, whether it’s signing up, downloading an app, or learning more.
- Relevance to Keywords: Ensure your ad copy aligns with the keywords you’re targeting.
- Benefits Over Features: Focus on how your product benefits the user rather than just listing features.
Pro Tip: Don’t forget about your landing pages! Consistent and compelling landing pages are crucial for converting clicks into leads or sales. Ensure the messaging on your landing page matches your ad copy, and give your users a call to action on the top part of the landing page for a seamless user experience.
4.5. Campaign Set-Up
Once your objectives, platforms, and keywords are in place, you’ll want to set up your campaigns effectively:
- Organize Your Campaigns: Structure your campaigns based on your objectives and target audience. For example, separate campaigns for lead generation and brand awareness. You can also organize by topic, for example “branded” vs. “non-branded” keywords.
- Create Ad Groups: Group similar keywords into ad groups to ensure your ads are highly relevant to the search queries.
- Set Budgets: Allocate your budget based on campaign priorities and expected ROI. Start small, especially if you’re new to PPC.
4.6. Bidding and Cost Management
Effective budget management ensures your campaigns are sustainable and scalable:
- Research CPC: Understand the average cost per click for your target keywords and set realistic bids. Keep in mind that the more expensive the average CPC, the higher you may have to set your initial bid to make sure you’re getting visibility.
- Adjust Bids: Once you’ve set your initial bid, you’ll want to adjust your bids based on performance data. Increase bids for high-performing keywords and reduce for those that aren’t delivering results.
- Bid Strategies: If you’re starting from scratch, selecting “Maximize Clicks” can drive traffic, then switch to “Maximize Conversions” as you gather more data. Once you have enough conversions, consider “Target CPA” (Cost Per Acquisition) to optimize cost-effectively.
4.7. Optimize Ad Placement
Ad placement is determined through an auction based on factors like bid amount and ad quality. Optimize placement by:
- Enhancing Ad Quality: High-quality ads target relevant keywords, and have compelling copy with strong CTAs.
- Using Ad Extensions: Utilize ad extensions like site links, callouts, and structured snippets to provide additional information and improve ad visibility. As a bonus, these also take up more space on the search results, pushing other ads down.
- Geographic Targeting: Target specific locations where your ideal customers are based to increase relevance and reduce wasted spend.
4.8. Track Performance
After launching your ads, tracking performance is a necessity. Key metrics to monitor include:
- Clicks and Impressions: Measure the volume of traffic your ads are generating.
- Click-Through Rate (CTR): Indicates how compelling your ad is to users.
- Conversions: Track actions like form submissions, sign-ups, or sales.
- Cost Per Click (CPC) and Cost Per Acquisition (CPA): Assess the efficiency of your spend.
- Return on Ad Spend (ROAS): Calculate the revenue generated from your ads compared to the amount spent.
Common mistakes to avoid when launching a PPC campaign
Avoiding common pitfalls can save you time, money, and frustration. Here are some mistakes fintech marketers often make:
5.1. Targeting Too Many Keywords Per Ad Group
Fintech PPC often involves targeting very specific and niche keywords. Managing too many keywords within a single ad group dilutes your focus and makes it harder to identify what’s working. Keep your ad groups tight with 5-10 highly relevant keywords.
5.2. Picking Keywords That Are Not Buyer Intent Driven
Focus on keywords that indicate a strong intent to purchase or engage rather than informational keywords This ensures your budget is spent on attracting high-quality leads ready to convert.
Example: Avoid targeting “what is corporate expense management” if your goal is to acquire customers ready to use your service. Instead, target “corporate expense management software” or “best corporate expense solutions.”
5.3. Having Conversion Tracking Incorrectly Set Up
Without accurate conversion tracking, you can’t measure the success of your campaigns. Ensure your Google Ads and CRM systems are correctly integrated, use Google Tag Manager’s conversion linker for precise tracking, and implement URL parameters to track the source of your leads accurately.
Some common issues we’ve seen:
- Importing conversions from Google Analytics instead of using Google Tag Manager’s conversion linker.
- Incorrect setup of HubSpot’s “original source” tracking.
- Incomplete triggers and tags in Tag Manager leading to missed data.
- Not adding URL parameters to landing pages.
Just spend some time ensuring conversion tracking is correctly set up. Monitor your CRM to ensure the right kind of contacts are coming in and adjust your ads accordingly.
Advanced tips to maximize PPC success
Once you’ve established a strong foundation, these advanced strategies can take your PPC campaigns to the next level:
6.1. Leverage AI for Creative Assets
Generative AI allows advertisers to quickly generate personalized ad assets.
How to Use AI:
- Personalized Ad Assets: Create ads that resonate with different segments of your audience.
- Ideation and Visualization: Use AI to find new ways to visualize complex concepts solutions.
Benefits:
- Efficient creation of multiple ad iterations
- Enhanced engagement with dynamic and relevant content
6.2. Sync Paid and Organic Efforts to Navigate SGE
Google’s new AI search results (SGE) impact both paid and organic search results. For fintechs, this means a more integrated approach between PPC and SEO is necessary.
Strategies:
- Collaborate Between Teams: Ensure your paid and organic search strategies complement each other.
- Optimize for AI-Driven SERPs: Adjust your strategies based on how your content and ads appear in these new environments.
Benefits:
- Enhanced visibility across search results
- Improved user engagement and conversion rates
6.3. Utilize Value-Based Bidding
Value-based bidding focuses on maximizing the revenue and profit from your ad spend, rather than just clicks, traffic, or even search position. The name of the game is getting the highest ROAS possible.
Implementation:
- Track Multiple Actions: Assign different values to various customer actions based on their profitability.
- Optimize for Revenue: Ensure your bids are geared towards actions that generate the most value.
Benefits:
- Higher ROI by focusing on profitable actions
- Better alignment of bids with business goals
6.4. Test Broad Match Keywords Carefully
Broad match keywords can lead to irrelevant traffic but can also uncover new opportunities if used judiciously.
Guidelines:
- Limited Usage: Use broad match keywords to discover related topics and drive new leads.
- Monitor Closely: Keep an eye on performance to avoid wasting budget on low-quality traffic.
When to Use:
- After establishing a healthy ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) of 3x or more.
6.5. Lookalike audiences
Lookalike audiences s allow you to reach new potential customers who match closely with people who already love your product (or service).
Benefits:
- Comprehensive coverage of the buyer journey
- Enhanced brand recognition and trust
- More efficient ad spend
- Higher conversion rates
- More sales qualified leads
Additional Essential Elements
To ensure your PPC campaigns are comprehensive and effective, consider incorporating these additional elements:
7.1. Landing Page Optimization
Why It Matters: A high-converting PPC campaign doesn’t end with a click. The landing page experience is crucial for converting visitors into leads or customers.
Key Points:
- Consistent Messaging: Ensure landing page content aligns with your ad copy.
- Clear Call-to-Action (CTA): Make your CTA prominent and compelling.
- User Experience (UX): Optimize for fast loading times, mobile responsiveness, and easy navigation.
- Trust Signals: Include testimonials, security badges, and transparent information to build trust.
7.2. Advanced Tracking and Analytics
Why It Matters: Understanding the full impact of your PPC efforts requires more than just basic metrics.
Key Points:
- Attribution Models: Use advanced attribution models to understand the customer journey and which touchpoints are driving conversions.
- Enhanced Conversions: Implement enhanced conversion tracking to capture more accurate data on user interactions.
- Multi-Channel Integration: Integrate PPC data with other marketing channels (e.g., email, social media) for a holistic view of performance.
7.3. A/B Testing and Experimentation
Why It Matters: Continuous testing helps optimize your campaigns for better performance and higher ROI.
Key Points:
- Ad Copy Variations: Test different headlines, descriptions, and CTAs to identify what resonates best with your audience.
- Landing Page Elements: Experiment with different layouts, images, and forms to improve conversion rates.
- Bid Strategies: Test different bidding strategies (e.g., manual vs. automated) to find the most cost-effective approach.
7.4. Compliance and Privacy Considerations
Why It Matters: Fintech companies must adhere to strict regulations, and your PPC campaigns need to comply with these standards to avoid legal issues.
Key Points:
- Advertising Policies: Ensure your ads comply with platform-specific policies for financial services (e.g., Google Ads policies on financial products).
- Data Privacy: Adhere to data privacy laws like GDPR and CCPA by implementing proper data handling and consent mechanisms.
- Secure Data Handling: Use secure methods for capturing and storing customer data from PPC campaigns.
7.5. Remarketing Strategies
Why It Matters: Remarketing helps you re-engage users who have previously interacted with your brand but didn’t convert.
Key Points:
- Segmented Audiences: Create segmented remarketing lists based on user behavior (e.g., visited specific pages, abandoned carts).
- Personalized Ads: Tailor your remarketing ads to address the specific needs or objections of different audience segments.
- Frequency Capping: Limit the number of times your ads are shown to avoid ad fatigue and negative perceptions.
7.6. Ad Formats and Creative Strategies
Why It Matters: Different ad formats can reach your audience in various ways, enhancing engagement and conversions.
Key Points:
- Search Ads: Utilize highly targeted search ads for capturing high-intent users.
- Display Ads: Use visually appealing display ads to build brand awareness and retarget visitors.
- Video Ads: Leverage video ads on platforms like YouTube to explain complex fintech solutions and engage users.
- Responsive Ads: Implement responsive ads that automatically adjust size, appearance, and format to fit available ad spaces.
7.7. Competitive Analysis and Differentiation
Why It Matters: Understanding your competitors’ strategies allows you to identify opportunities and differentiate your offerings.
Key Points:
- Competitor Keyword Analysis: Identify the keywords your competitors are targeting and find gaps or opportunities for your campaigns.
- Unique Selling Proposition (USP): Clearly articulate what sets your fintech solution apart in your ad copy and landing pages.
- Ad Positioning: Analyze competitors’ ad placements and adjust your bids and strategies to gain a competitive edge.
Final tips for PPC management
To wrap up, here are some final tips to ensure your PPC campaigns are managed effectively:
- Respond quickly to what your data is showing you, but don’t be too quick to judge: Even if all the details aren’t available, acknowledge and address issues promptly, but don’t start acting reactively and emotionally. While PPC provides quick feedback, it still takes time to get statistical significance.
- Stay transparent and empathetic: Build trust through open communication and show genuine care for your audience’s needs. Customers can sense when an ad seems disingenuous.
- Continuously learn and evolve: Adapt your strategies based on performance reviews, market changes, and emerging trends to stay ahead. Remember – PPC is like a puzzle. It’s all about putting the pieces in the right spot.
