Ask A PPC Live 2022 With Navah Hopkins [Podcast]

Getting to know PPC takes time and effort.

Can’t seem to find the answer you’re looking for? Search Engine Journal can help!

Our industry is constantly evolving, and PPC is no exception. So, to provide answers to your burning questions about PPC best practices and strategies, we asked our resident expert.

PPC expert Navah Hopkins joined me on the SEJ Show to answer all your PPC questions in 2022.

The era of PPC professionals being able to do account management is dead. You’re not going to be able to get away with that anymore. We are truly responsible for understanding the profitability of a given product or service and understanding if a given channel will serve it well. We are also responsible for understanding that user behavior component. – Navah Hopkins, 2:15

Keep it simple; keep it clean. Let your paid traffic be a paid experience, let your organic traffic be an organic experience, and make everyone happy. – Navah Hopkins, 34:32

Yes, there’s a lot of really interesting tools. Yes, there’s a lot of great automation. Yes, we are no longer pulling all the levers all the time. That means that we have our time freed up to think about strategic CRO initiatives, strategic creative initiatives, and solving business problems. – Navah Hopkins, 53:33

[00:00] – About Navah
[05:27] – What does the user journey look like?
[06:44] – UA sunsetting: tips for GA4.
[12:13] – What is Google Studio?
[15:25] – Smart bidding: is it worthwhile to set a manual PPC on particular keyword ad groups?
[19:35] – Is it worth keeping a budget and bidding software?
[21:52] – Does Navah use Performance Max?
[26:07] – Tips for building successful Google Map ad campaigns.
[27:55] – How important is Google Guarantee to Google Local Services ad campaigns?
[29:30] – Do Facebook pixels harm a website’s performance?
[34:38] – What ad solutions overlap with Google Shopping?
[39:34] – How important are custom audiences when targeting higher-quality leads?
[43:09] – How impactful are Microsoft ads?
[47:22] – Can you advertise on LinkedIn through Microsoft Advertising?
[50:03] – Can you target game consoles and gameplay through Microsoft Ads?
[54:27] – Other platforms people can look into.

Resources mentioned:

Navah’s PPC Automation Course at Semrush: https://www.semrush.com/academy/courses/ppc-automation-course-with-navah-hopkins
Microsoft Clarity: https://clarity.microsoft.com/
Google Data Studio: https://datastudio.google.com/
Navah’s site: https://www.navahhopkins.com/
Keyword Tool io: https://keywordtool.io/
Keywords Everywhere: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/keywords-everywhere-keywo/hbapdpeemoojbophdfndmlgdhppljgmp?hl=en
Keyword Planner: https://ads.google.com/home/tools/keyword-planner/

Set aside maybe two to three hours every week to play in GA4. Get a domain that you like. You care about, Nothing to be scared of. It’s very easy to get into the habit. – Navah Hopkins, 8:56

You do not just want to think about the messaging to the audience. You also want to think about the timing and which channel is best suited to that ad being served. – Navah Hopkins, 41:30

My most extensive advice is that everyone has access to that merchant center, and there’s complete transparency on any changes made there. Not having the categories line up within the merchant center can be death for a campaign. – Navah Hopkins, 36:35

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Connect with Navah Hopkins:

Navah Hopkins is a seasoned marketing professional who began her career as an SEO in 2008, transitioning to PPC several years later.

During this time, she has made it a point to share valuable insights with others, speak at local universities, and teach on the international circuit. In addition, her contributions to SEMrush, WordStream, and SEJ have continued.

As a member of the Paid Search Association, she intends to make tomorrow’s PPC practitioners better and serve as a resource for anyone looking to learn more.

​​Connect with Navah on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/navahhopkins/
Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/navahf

Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal:

Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker
Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker