e PPC marketing trends you should be following in 2023

It’s a great time to reflect on last year’s macro-level trends as we enter 2023.

These are some trends I believe will be around for the foreseeable future and you should consider them when planning your 2023 search marketing strategy.

1. Slow economy and increased efficiency

In case you didn’t know, the economy has been in trouble (that’s a joke). Although I received a degree from the University of Michigan in Economics, I don’t know how long this downturn is going to last.

Nevertheless, I believe many digital marketers already feel the benefits.

• Budgets are getting tighter.
• Teams are becoming more efficient.
• These questions, such as “What is the ROI?” and “What’s a CPA?” are more common.

These environments can be difficult to navigate, and I don’t know all the answers.

But, I always recommend that you start by looking into your data. You should have a good understanding of the top-performing strategies so that you can maximize your investment.

A metaphor I frequently use is that of a team playing in the playoffs. A coach will always try to get their best players into the game when it is crunch time. The bench will be occupied by players in their development stages.

This same mentality should be applied to your search strategies. Prioritize the strategies that will bring you the highest return if your budget is tight.

Many of you are probably thinking, “Yeah! Thanks for stating the obvious.” However, when I say this, it’s not about consolidating to a brand keywords strategy. Instead, you should:

• Examine the performance of different segments in your campaigns.
• Know what devices, audiences and geos drive the best performance. Invest in those segments first.
• To more effectively skew spending toward the best-performing combinations, you might consider creating a more detailed campaign delineation.

2. Automation vs. autonomy

This debate began well before 2022. But, I think the heat was raised a little last year with:

• Performance Max is on the rise
• The overhauled broad match.
• The removal of Expanded text ads to make way for responsive search ads.
• Automated performance and creative suggestions can be integrated.

Machine learning is becoming stronger and will continue being integrated into campaign management platforms.

To be successful in 2023 you must balance the power and autonomy of automation with your stakeholder’s goals.

Consider how you set up an automated bid strategy . The process includes providing the algorithm with specific business guardrails. It should work between -and toward. Your results will be more aligned with your goals if you provide high quality inputs.

This mindset should also be applied to AI applications in campaign management platforms.

Automation makes it possible to reduce the amount of resources needed for foundational tasks. However, it is still necessary to direct the automation to achieve our business goals.

Think more tactically about the datasets that you can include. These algorithms will use the data you provide to make recommendations and optimize your inputs.

Also, consider what levers are important to control and where you can let go of your grip by relying upon machine learning to optimize for you.

Finally, you should consider how your accounts are structured to enable the automation to work best.

The complexity of your strategy will determine the balance between autonomy and automation.

Advertisers with a good understanding of this balance for their business will reap the benefits.

3. Microsoft is on the rise

An article such as this would not be complete without at least one opinion that is “edgy.” Get ready, people!

Microsoft’s updates last year have been very impressive to me. They have expanded not only their advertising offerings, but also their geographical reach to about 70 new markets.

Microsoft Advertising has always been proud of their lower prices and similar features to Google. But, we are beginning to see some innovation, i.e. Multimedia Ads, that is unique to the platform.

Let’s be honest, I don’t expect a major shakeup of search engine market share. If you haven’t yet looked into Microsoft Advertising innovation opportunities, this might be the right time.

It is a good environment for testing and many of their innovations can improve conversion rates.

In budget-constrained settings, it is worth looking for ways to improve conversion rates and cheap CPCs.

This recommendation is especially relevant to B2B advertisers as Microsoft Bing has been an engine where we have observed particularly strong engagement. This could be due to work-related research.

The staying power of search marketing in 2023

It’s a great time to be involved in search marketing. It’s difficult to keep up with the many updates from search marketing platforms.

Search marketing is one the most powerful tools in digital marketing. There are very few other places where users can express their interest as clearly as search.

While I have highlighted some of the trends I am following, you should consider many more in this fast-paced industry as you plan your 2023 strategy.

The post 3 PPC Marketing Trends to Keep a Pulse on in 2023 appeared originally on Search Engine Land.