SEO
Maximizing Your SEO Investment: Tips For Outsourcing Effectively
![Maximizing Your SEO Investment: Tips For Outsourcing Effectively Maximizing Your SEO Investment: Tips For Outsourcing Effectively](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Maximizing-Your-SEO-Investment-Tips-For-Outsourcing-Effectively.jpg)
Outsourcing SEO to a team of experienced professionals is one of the most reliable ways to increase your digital footprint and drive meaningful traffic to your site.
But ensuring your SEO partner integrates seamlessly with your business and consistently meets your expectations is easier said than done.
To get the best returns on your SEO investment, you need to set clear goals, strategically choose the right partner, and, crucially, foster a collaborative working relationship that adapts to shifting business needs and market conditions.
In this post, we’ll explore various strategies for developing and maintaining a fruitful partnership with your outsourced SEO team.
Let’s dive straight in.
What Does It Mean To Outsource Your SEO?
Outsourcing SEO is the process of hiring a third-party SEO expert or agency to oversee some or all of your SEO activities. This includes keyword research, link building, local SEO, content strategy and marketing, and technical SEO.
Outsourcing your SEO can be trickier than the other aspects of your marketing (or business).
Why?
SEO is a multifaceted discipline that requires experience and a tactical approach to deliver real results. You’re more likely to find freelancers who are experts in specific areas of SEO, not all areas of SEO.
Also, you’re torn between two options:
- Hiring an expert to oversee the individual components you don’t want to do yourself.
- Hiring a managed SEO agency that handles everything from scratch to finish.
For instance, if you’re adept at creating content but struggle with technical SEO, hiring a technical SEO expert will be more cost-effective than hiring an SEO agency. But this also means you must oversee all other aspects of SEO yourself.
Why Should You Consider Outsourcing Your SEO?
Outsourcing your SEO can help you achieve your SEO goals and scale more rapidly.
Also, if you feel your competitors are outshining you on the search engine results pages (SERPs) despite all your efforts, outsourcing to experts can help you gain a competitive advantage and improve your overall performance.
How To Outsource Your SEO: 5 Tips To Make It Effective
1. Lay The Groundwork For SEO Before Outsourcing
Before engaging with an SEO provider, it’s essential to recognize that your SEO efforts should be geared toward supporting your broader business objectives.
For example, if your business priority is to expand into new geographic markets, your SEO strategy might focus on localizing content and optimizing for regional search terms.
Alternatively, if you want to increase online product sales, your strategy might focus on optimizing product pages, improving user experience, and targeting high-intent commercial keywords.
Establishing these objectives early on will not only guide your SEO strategy but will also allow you to select an SEO partner whose strengths and experience align with your business needs.
Once you’ve aligned your business goals with your SEO ambitions, you should evaluate the current state of your site. Setting these benchmarks will provide a good baseline for measuring progress and give your outsourced team a clear picture of where your website currently stands.
Remember, there’s no need to conduct a thorough website audit yourself. Instead, you can use readily available tools like Google Analytics and Google Search Console to quickly gather top-level data about organic traffic, keyword rankings, and conversion rates.
2. Choose The Right SEO Partnership Model
Once you’ve defined your SEO goals and understand how your site is currently performing, it’s time to search for a suitable SEO provider.
There are three types of providers to choose from. Each option offers different advantages depending on your specific needs.
- An independent contractor or freelancer: Ideal for small projects or companies with limited budgets. Working with an independent professional offers flexibility and a more personalized approach, but may lack the broader capabilities and manpower of multi-person agencies.
- A full-service digital marketing agency: These agencies provide SEO along with other services like social media management, PPC, and email marketing. This model is suitable for businesses looking for a complete digital marketing strategy that ensures all elements are integrated and aligned.
- A specialist SEO agency: These agencies are laser-focused on SEO and are usually on the cutting edge of trends and algorithm changes, offering a depth of knowledge and tactical proficiency that generalist agencies might not offer.
Whichever model suits your business best, there are a few common qualities to look for in any worthwhile SEO partner. When considering potential suitors, look for those that can satisfy the following criteria:
- Expertise: Look for an SEO company with a long track record of executing successful SEO campaigns. Review their case studies, client testimonials, and official credentials to gauge their level of technical expertise and project management abilities.
- Industry experience: Ideally, your SEO partner will have experience running campaigns for businesses within your industry. This familiarity will make it easier for them to develop strategies that are more likely to succeed in your specific context.
- Transparency and communication: Clear and consistent communication is vital for the success of any SEO project. Look for a provider that values transparency and offers regular (and honest!) updates on campaign progress.
- Flexibility: The organic search landscape is constantly changing. Any provider worth your time should be tuned in to what your competitors are doing and stay up to speed on the latest developments in the world of SEO. They should be ready to adapt to shifting circumstances and innovate as needed to keep your SEO efforts effective.
- Cultural fit: The relationship with your SEO provider should be collaborative and synergistic. Make sure their values and company culture align with yours, as this will enhance the working relationship and contribute to a smoother project flow.
- A focus on results: Ultimately, you want a provider who is focused on achieving your specific business outcomes. Ensure they understand your goals and are committed to driving the results you need, whether it’s increasing traffic, improving keyword rankings, or boosting conversions.
As a marketer/business owner, you don’t have the resources or time to invest in the wrong agency. So, how can you find the best fit for your business?
- Go beyond the search results. Ask for recommendations from industry peers, online communities, and forums (e.g., LinkedIn, Twitter, and Reddit are great platforms to start with).
![Maximizing Your SEO Investment: Tips For Outsourcing Effectively Tweet from Colin Gardiner](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/1722939962_149_Maximizing-Your-SEO-Investment-Tips-For-Outsourcing-Effectively.png)
![Maximizing Your SEO Investment: Tips For Outsourcing Effectively Tweet from Hesky Benneth](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/1722939962_543_Maximizing-Your-SEO-Investment-Tips-For-Outsourcing-Effectively.png)
- Check out your competitor pages on LinkedIn to see if they’re managing their SEO in-house or attributing success to a particular agency. Sometimes, these agencies refrain from taking on two similar clients simultaneously, but their profiles can give you a good head start in your search process.
- Attend SEO-related virtual events to connect with experts in the industry. And even if they can’t handle your SEO, they could give you quality referrals.
- Make a list (on a spreadsheet) of the agencies/contractors/freelancers you got from your search. Segment them according to their years of experience, service offered, portfolio, etc. Here’s some inspiration:
![Maximizing Your SEO Investment: Tips For Outsourcing Effectively seo agency checklist outsource](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/1722939962_136_Maximizing-Your-SEO-Investment-Tips-For-Outsourcing-Effectively.png)
3. Vet The Shortlisted Agencies/Freelancers:
Now that you have a list, it’s time to go deeper into each to find the perfect fit for you.
Before I get into the details, keep in mind that any agency that guarantees results like a #1 rankings boost in your conversion rate after the first month is most likely a scam. Overall, anything that sounds too good to be true probably is.
- Check out the agency/freelancer service offerings. Some agencies/freelancers focus exclusively on specific areas of SEO, e.g., technical SEO, while others offer full-scale SEO. Unless you need specialized services, opt for those offering comprehensive services.
- How long have they been in the SEO industry? How many projects have they worked on within the period? If they can’t provide straightforward answers with proofs, tick them off your list.
- Next, examine their case studies (or portfolio). Have they worked with businesses similar to yours? Prioritize those with prior experience in your industry. This will shorten the learning curve and allow them to adopt strategies tailored to your needs.
- Sometimes, written words aren’t enough because anyone can claim to be an expert. Contact the agency/consultant for a one-on-one interview to discuss how they intend to achieve your SEO goals.
Ask questions like: ‘How would you solve my SEO goal?’ ‘Can you provide examples of successful SEO campaigns you’ve worked on?’ ‘How do you approach keyword research and selection for my business?’
- Go over their testimonials, too. What are people saying about them? Honest feedback from previous clients can give you a clear picture of what to expect when working with them. It’s also okay if they have one or two negative reviews – no one is perfect. What really matters is how they respond to them. So, be sure to check this out during your research.
- Add an extra layer of credibility to your search by checking out for industry-relevant awards.
4. Enhance Collaboration With Your SEO Partner
Once you’ve signed on with your new SEO provider, it’s essential to establish clear lines of communication from the get-go.
This means agreeing on a structured communication framework that defines how often you’ll interact and through what modes (e.g., email, phone, video calls).
Creating a regular schedule for updates and meetings will ensure that both parties stay informed and are able to make proactive adjustments to the SEO strategy.
Consider implementing a collaborative project management tool where both your internal employees and your SEO partner can view, track, and update progress on tasks.
Tools like Trello, Slack, or Asana can facilitate real-time updates and smooth communication. Note that some SEO providers will set up a customized reporting dashboard as part of their service offering.
It’s helpful to think of your SEO partner as an extension of your team rather than a separate entity. Try to encourage an open exchange of ideas, involve them in relevant internal discussions, and make sure they have ready access to necessary tools and data within your organization.
Remember, the goal is to create the most collaborative environment possible with minimal points of friction. Doing so will ensure that your SEO team can continually tweak their strategy to better meet your business needs and avoid unnecessary hold-ups in the progress of your campaign.
5. Leverage Your SEO Partner’s Expertise
Another way to maximize returns on your outsourced SEO investment is to take full advantage of the specialized knowledge your SEO partner brings to the table.
Your service agreement should include comprehensive, scheduled reporting focusing on critical SEO metrics such as keyword performance, traffic trends, and backlink acquisition.
However, the purpose of these reports isn’t just to provide data. They should serve as a foundation for strategic discussions that, if necessary, lead to tactical campaign adjustments. If you have questions about specific metrics or trends, or if you don’t understand the rationale behind a given strategy, these review sessions are the ideal time to ask for clarity.
Remember, a good SEO partner will have no qualms explaining their methodologies. After all, challenging assumptions are a healthy feature of any collaborative project.
Moreover, the more you and your team learn about the dynamics of SEO from your service provider, the better equipped you’ll be to integrate SEO thinking into broader marketing and business strategies.
This knowledge transfer not only optimizes your current investment but also prepares your team for future digital marketing challenges.
How Much Does Outsourcing SEO Cost?
There’s no fixed cost for outsourcing SEO, as the value depends on the level of expertise of the agency or freelancer, the scope of the project, etc.
On average, SEO consultants in the US charge $144.68/hour. Agencies charge a higher rate—$147.93/hour—primarily because of their massive talent pool, expertise, and access to advanced SEO tools.
Read more about SEO pricing here.
When Should You Outsource SEO?
You should outsource your SEO when you notice or get any of these results:
- You (or your marketing team) have a lot on your plate and need an extra hand.
- Your growth is stagnant, and you need fresh ideas to revitalize your current strategy.
- You want to scale but lack the expertise and resources to do so.
- Your SEO efforts are undefined, and you’re not seeing any positive results.
- You want to target new markets.
- You’re an SEO professional or agency experiencing a surge in client demand that exceeds your current capacity.
- Your team is great but not experts in SEO.
Final Thoughts
Outsourcing SEO allows you to benefit from expert, data-driven search strategies while keeping your focus on core business activities.
But making the most of your outsourced SEO investment sometimes feels like a whole new challenge in and of itself.
Fortunately, by following the tips outlined in this post, you can streamline the process, ensuring the partnership remains productive and stress-free.
More resources:
Featured Image: Ink Drop/Shutterstock
In-article screenshots taken by author
SEO
Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084570_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
“Entity SEO”.
Sounds scary, doesn’t it? Not only does the word “entity” sound foreign, it feels like yet another thing to add to your never-ending SEO to-do list. You’re barely afloat when it comes to SEO, but ohgawd here comes one more new thing to dedicate your scarce resources.
I have good news for you though: You don’t have to do entity SEO.
Why? Because you’re probably already doing it.
Let’s start from the beginning.
In 2012, Google announced the Knowledge Graph. The Knowledge Graph is a knowledge base of entities and the relationships between them.
An entity is any object or concept that can be distinctly identified. This includes tangibles like people, places, and organizations, and intangibles like colors, concepts, and feelings.
For example, the footballer Federico Chiesa is an entity:
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO The footballer Federico Chiesa is an entity](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084566_835_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO The footballer Federico Chiesa is an entity](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084566_835_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
So is the famous British-Indian restaurant Dishoom:
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO The British-Indian restaurant Dishoom is an entity](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084566_985_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO The British-Indian restaurant Dishoom is an entity](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084566_985_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
Entities are connected by edges, which describe the relationships between them.
Introducing the Knowledge Graph helped improve Google’s search results because:
- Google could better understand search intent — People search for the same thing but describe it in different ways. Google can now understand this and serve the same results.
- It reduced reliance on keyword matching — Matching the number of keywords on a page doesn’t guarantee relevance; also it prevents crafty SEOs from keyword stuffing.
- It reduced Google’s computational load — The Internet is virtually infinite and Google simply cannot understand the meaning of every word, paragraph, webpage, and website. Entities provide a structure where Google can improve understanding while minimizing load.
For example, even though we didn’t mention the actor’s name, Google can understand we’re looking for Harrison Ford and therefore shows his filmography:
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Google understands Harrison Ford as an entity and can show us his filmography](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084566_633_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Google understands Harrison Ford as an entity and can show us his filmography](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084566_633_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
That’s because Hans Solo and Harrison Ford are closely connected entities in the Knowledge Graph. Google shows Knowledge Graph data in SERP features like Knowledge Panels and Knowledge Cards.
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Google shows a knowledge panel for Apple, the technology company](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084566_690_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Google shows a knowledge panel for Apple, the technology company](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084566_690_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
With this knowledge, we can then define entity SEO as optimizing your website or webpages for such entities.
If Google has moved to entity-oriented search, then entity SEO is just SEO. As my colleague Patrick Stox says, “The entity identification part is more on Google’s end than on our end.”
I mean, if you look at the ‘entity SEO’ tactics you find in blog posts, you’ll discover that they’re mostly just SEO tactics:
- Earn a Wikipedia page
- Create a Google Business Profile
- Add internal links
- Create all digital assets Google is representing on the page (e.g., videos, images, Twitter)
- Develop topical authority
- Include semantically related words on a page
- Add schema markup
Let’s be honest. If you’re serious about SEO and are investing in it, then it’s likely you’re already doing most of the above.
Regardless of entities, wouldn’t you want a Wikipedia page? After all, it confers benefits beyond “entity SEO”. Brand recognition, backlinks from one of the world’s most authoritative sites (albeit nofollow)—any company would want that.
If you’re a local business, you’ve probably created a Google Business Profile. Adding internal links is just SEO 101.
And billions of blistering barnacles, creating all digital assets Google wants to see, like images and videos, is practically marketing 101. If you’re a Korean recipe site and want to be associated with the kimchi jjigae entity, wouldn’t you already know you need to make a video and have photos of the cooking process?
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Google shows images in the knowledge panel for the entity kimchi jjigae](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084566_205_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Google shows images in the knowledge panel for the entity kimchi jjigae](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084566_205_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
When I started my breakdance site years ago, I knew nothing about SEO and content marketing but I still knew I needed to make YouTube videos. Because guess what? It’s hard to learn breakdancing from words. I don’t think I needed an entity SEO to tell me that.
Topical authority is an SEO concept where a website aims to become the go-to authority on one or more topics. Call me crazy, but it feels like blogging 101. Read most guides on how to start a blog and I’m sure you’ll find a subheading called “niche down”. And once you niche down, it’s inevitable you’ll create content surrounding that one topic.
If I start a breakdance site, what are the chances I’ll write about contemporary dance or pop art? Pretty low.
In fact, topical authority is similar to the Wiki Strategy, which Nat Eliason wrote about in 2017. There wasn’t a single mention of entities. It was just the right way to make content for the Internet.
I think the biggest problem here isn’t entities versus keywords or that topical authority is a brand-new strategy. It’s simply that many SEOs are driven by short-sightedness or the wrong incentives.
You can target a whole bunch of unrelated keywords that have high search volume, gain incredible amounts of search traffic, and brag about how successful you are as an SEO.
Some of the pages sending HubSpot the most search traffic has barely anything to do with their core product. A page on how to type the shrug emoji? The most famous quotes?
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO HubSpot's top pages that sends them the most search traffic](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.png)
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO HubSpot's top pages that sends them the most search traffic](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.png)
This is not to single out HubSpot—I’m sure they have their reasons, as explored by Ryan here—but to illustrate that many companies do the exact same thing. And when Google stops rewarding this behavior, all of a sudden companies realise they do need to write about their core competencies. They need to “build topical authority”.
I don’t want to throw the baby out with the bathwater because I do see value in the last two ‘entity SEO tactics’. But again, if you’re doing something similar to the Wiki Strategy for your site, chances are you would have naturally included entities or semantically relevant words without thinking too much about it. It’s difficult to create content about kimchi jjigae without mentioning kimchi, pork, or gochujang.
However, to prevent the curse of knowledge or simply to avoid blindspots, checking for important subtopics you might have missed is useful. At Ahrefs, we run a page-level content gap analysis and look out for subtopics:
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Open in Content gap feature in Keywords Explorer](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_16_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.png)
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Open in Content gap feature in Keywords Explorer](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_16_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.png)
For example, if we ran a content gap analysis on “inbound marketing” for the top three ranking pages, we see that we might need to include these subtopics:
- What is inbound marketing
- Inbound marketing strategy
- Inbound marketing examples
- Inbound marketing tools
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Content gap report for inbound marketing](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_26_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.png)
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Content gap report for inbound marketing](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_26_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.png)
Finally, adding schema markup makes the most sense because it’s how Google recognizes entities and better understands the content of web pages. But if it’s just one new tactic—which I believe is already part of ‘standard’ SEO and you might already be doing it—then there’s no need to create a category to define the “new era” (voice SEO, where art thou?)
Final thoughts
Two years ago, someone on Reddit asked for an SEO workflow that utilized super advanced SEO methodologies:
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO A question on Reddit](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_563_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO A question on Reddit](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_563_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
The top answer: None of the above.
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Comments on Reddit](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_464_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.png)
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Comments on Reddit](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_464_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.png)
When our Chief Marketing Officer Tim Soulo tweeted about this Reddit thread, he got similar replies too:
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Replies to Tim Soulo's tweet](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_436_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Replies to Tim Soulo's tweet](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_436_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.jpg)
And even though I don’t know him, this is a person after my own heart:
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO A tweet agreeing that entity SEO is a fad](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_555_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.png)
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO A tweet agreeing that entity SEO is a fad](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_555_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.png)
You don’t have to worry about entity SEO. If you have passion for a topic and are creating high-quality content that fulfills what people are looking for, then you’re likely already doing “entity SEO”.
Just follow this meme: Make stuff people like.
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Midwit meme showing you just need to make stuff people like](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_281_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.png)
![Stop Overcomplicating Things. Entity SEO is Just SEO Midwit meme showing you just need to make stuff people like](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/1726084567_281_Stop-Overcomplicating-Things-Entity-SEO-is-Just-SEO.png)
SEO
Assigning The Right Conversion Values To Make Value-Based Bidding Work For Lead Gen
![Assigning The Right Conversion Values To Make Value-Based Bidding Work For Lead Gen Assigning The Right Conversion Values To Make Value-Based Bidding Work For Lead Gen](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Assigning-The-Right-Conversion-Values-To-Make-Value-Based-Bidding-Work.png)
Last week, we tackled setting your data strategy for value-based bidding.
The next key is to assign the right values for the conversion actions that are important to your business.
We know this step is often seen as trickier for lead gen-focused businesses than, say, ecommerce businesses.
How much is a whitepaper download, newsletter signup, or online quote request worth to your business? While you may not have exact figures, that’s OK. What you do know is they aren’t all valued equally.
Check out the quick 2-minute video in our series below, and then keep reading as we dive deeper into assigning conversion values to optimize your value-based bidding strategy.
Understanding Conversion Values
First, let’s get on the same page about what “conversion value” means.
A conversion refers to a desired action taken by a user, such as filling out a lead form, making a purchase, or signing up for a newsletter.
Conversion value is simply a numerical representation of how much each of these conversions is worth to your business.
Estimating The Value Of Each Conversion
Ideally, you’d have a precise understanding of how much revenue each conversion generates.
However, we understand that this is not always feasible.
In such cases, it’s perfectly acceptable to use “proxy values” – estimations that align with your business priorities.
The important thing is to ensure that these proxy values reflect the relative importance of different conversions to your business.
For example, a whitepaper download may indicate less “value” than a product demo registration based on what you understand about your past customer acquisition efforts.
Establishing Proxy Values
Let’s explore some scenarios to illustrate how you might establish proxy values.
Take the event florist example mentioned in the video. You’ve seen that clients who provide larger guest counts or budgets in their online quote requests tend to result in more lucrative events.
Knowing this, you can assign higher proxy values to these leads compared to those with smaller guest counts or budgets.
Similarly, if you’re an auto insurance advertiser, you might leverage your existing lead scoring system as a basis for proxy values. Leads with higher scores, indicating a greater likelihood of a sale, would naturally be assigned higher values.
You don’t need to have exact value figures to make value-based bidding effective. Work with your sales and finance teams to help identify the key factors that influence lead quality and value.
This will help you understand which conversion actions indicate a higher likelihood of becoming a customer – and even which actions indicate the likelihood of becoming a higher-value customer for your business.
Sharing Conversion Values With Google Ads
Once you’ve determined the proxy values for your conversion actions, you’ll need to share that information with Google Ads. This enables the system to prioritize actions that drive the most value for your business.
To do this, go to the Summary tab on the Conversions page (under the Goals icon) in your account. From there, you can edit your conversion actions settings to input the value for each. More here.
As I noted in the last episode, strive for daily uploads of your conversion data, if possible, to ensure Google Ads has the most up-to-date information by connecting your sources via Google Ads Data Manager or the Google Ads API.
Fine-Tuning With Conversion Value Rules
To add another layer of precision, you can utilize conversion value rules.
Conversion value rules allow you to adjust the value assigned to a conversion based on specific attributes or conditions that aren’t already indicated in your account. For example, you may have different margins for different types of customers.
Instead of every lead form submission having the same static value you’ve assigned, you can tell Google Ads which leads are more valuable to your business based on three factors:
- Location: You might adjust conversion values based on the geographical location of the user. For example, if users in a particular region tend to convert at a higher rate or generate more revenue.
- Audience: You can tailor conversion values based on specific audience segments, such as first-party data or Google audience lists.
- Device: Consider adjusting conversion values based on the device the user is using. Perhaps users on mobile devices convert at a higher rate – you could increase their conversion value to reflect that.
When implementing these rules, your value-based bidding strategies (maximize conversion value with an optional target ROAS) will take them into account and optimize accordingly.
Conversion value rules can be set at the account or campaign levels. They are supported in Search, Shopping, Display, and Performance Max campaigns.
Google Ads will prioritize showing your ads to users predicted to be more likely to generate those leads you value more.
Conversion Value Rules And Reporting
These rules also impact how you report conversion value in your account.
For example, you may value a lead at $5, but know that these leads from Californian users are typically worth twice as much. With conversion value rules, you could specify this, and Google Ads would multiply values for users from California by two and report that accordingly in the conversion volume column in your account.
Additionally, you can segment your conversion value rules in Campaigns reporting to see the impact by selecting Conversions, then Value rule adjustment.
There are three segment options:
- Original value (rule applied): Total original value of conversions, which then had a value rule applied.
- Original value (no rule applied): Total recorded value of conversions that did not have a value rule applied.
- Audience, Location, Device, or No Condition: The net adjustment when value rules were applied.
You can add the conversion value rules column to your reporting as well. These columns are called “All value adjustment” and “Value adjustment.”
Also note that reporting for conversion value rules applies to all conversions, not just the ones in the ‘conversions’ column.
Conversion Value Rule Considerations
You can also create more complex rules by combining conditions.
For example, if you observe that users from Texas who have also subscribed to your newsletter are exceptionally valuable, you could create a rule that increases their conversion value even further.
When using conversion value rules, keep in mind:
- Start Simple: Begin by implementing a few basic conversion value rules based on your most critical lead attributes.
- Additive Nature of Rules: Conversion value rules are additive. If multiple rules apply to the same user, their effects will be combined.
- Impact on Reporting: The same adjusted value that’s determined at bidding time is also used for reporting.
- Regular Review for Adjustment: As your business evolves and you gather more data, revisit your conversion values and rules to ensure they remain aligned with your goals.
Putting The Pieces Together
Assigning the right values to your conversions is a crucial step in maximizing the effectiveness of your value-based bidding strategies.
By providing Google Ads with accurate and nuanced conversion data, you empower the system to make smarter decisions, optimize your bids, and ultimately drive more valuable outcomes for your business.
Up next, we’ll talk about determining which bid strategy is right for you. Stay tuned!
More resources:
Featured Image: BestForBest/Shutterstock
SEO
Expert Embedding Techniques for SEO Success
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