With the global markets in turmoil, you may be wondering how this will affect your marketing efforts. It is advisable not to lose the momentum of your business and to keep people aware of your continuing business efforts while every business deals with the fallout. Those who market will hit the ground running when business returns to normal. This will be essential for longevity. Those who don't, may not live through the lead time for a sale that they are sure to run into.

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Global Google Ads stats

Global Google Ads stats show a year-on-year decline of 20 points. People who are using coronavirus or covid-19 keywords are going to find themselves in a pickle as Google penalizes accounts with these. It is also not a wise move, since a great deal of irrelevant traffic may be searching these keywords. This move can also see your future ads impacted, with your site being marked down for relevancy and content quality. (Source: Ezoic, 23 March 2020)

Furthermore, ads are seeing massive fluctuations in ad rates and costs per click during a single day. Certain niches can expect a steep incline of traffic while others experience large traffic losses. Those with traffic losses will be the ones in direct contact industries such as hospitality and travel, service-based business such as hairdressers and dentists, and non-essential services such as entertainment, cinema and theatres.

Sectors where we are currently seeing a traffic increase are Jobs and Education, Hobbies and Leisure, and Arts and Entertainment that can be accessed online such as museums and galleries with virtual tours.

Local Google Ads stats

With our New Zealand data we can see that there is a big impact on our clients from the Google Ads statistics. Across all industries there has been a decline of 47% in impressions. The good news is this has only lead to a decrease in clicks of 7%. Another positive is that ad costs has declined overall by 0.03c. This may seem insignificant, but this is an average and may impact some businesses more than others. This translates into a cost saving of around 13% across the entire spectrum of our clients. 

Mobile traffic has increased with more than 41% across all clients. This means that now, more than ever, your website needs to be mobile responsive. If your website is more than 4 years old, you will likely need an update. 

What this means for you

Effectively, it appears that ads are still doing their job. They are targeting customers, and working for you even when you can't work. You may be asking yourself: Should I stop my Google Ads during the Covid-19 shutdown? The answer is not a clear yes or no. If you are in any luxury or tourism related industry, then yes. Hold off until there is certainty as to when things will get back to a sort of normal. If you are in essential services like food, cleaning supplies or medical equipment, you should continue as normal. You may need to look at refocusing your targeting or remarketing in a different way. Other businesses may need to be strategic about the type of communications that they do, such as changing their messaging to say "delivery when business resumes" or "date to be confirmed". 

The key to communications, on Google Ads or any other marketing platform, is to be sensitive to the current global circumstances and to adapt your messaging and marketing accordingly. Look at things from a new angle. Look for new opportunities that may arise because of this current global situation. Keep marketing to keep momentum flowing and capitalize on long sales lead times where you can. Be top-of-mind. Be present where your customers are. Remember that this shutdown will not last forever. It will end and you will have to be ready to move. Agility is cardinal.

In conclusion

Now is the time to review each ad in your Google Ads arsenal. Adjust your campaigns. Turn off ads that aren't going to perform in this time. Rewrite copy. Refocus on services or goods that are appropriate to the market. You cannot afford to market what you want people to buy. You need to sell only what people can and will buy now. If you aren't sure how to get started, do get in touch with DMM. We are here to help.