Get to Know Your Client's Website and Landing Pages Quickly

There is a series of steps you need to complete to quickly review your new client’s landing pages and website. The purpose of this review is to make sure that all of the lead/sales tracking measurements are in place and that data is being tracked correctly.

Review analytics tracking code: You would be surprised at how many companies are not running analytics on their websites. Or maybe you wouldn’t. Checking all of the analytics code on the site should be your first step. Make sure the code is on every page and that it is tracking properly. If there are no analytics tied to the site, you should open a Google Analytics account and assist the client in successfully placing this code throughout the site.

Review the website for all conversion points: You need to take note of every conversion point within your client’s website. Websites commonly have more than one conversion point, and you need to make sure that all of them are tracked properly. This means that for every contact form, request for information, newsletter sign-up, etc., a user action is noted properly and attributed correctly.

Review PPC conversion code: Once you know all of the conversion points on the site, you need to submit test conversions for each one. This will allow you to learn the process for each conversion point. You want to make sure that every point of conversion is served by a confirmation page that contains your PPC lead-tracking code.

Review call tracking: Does your client have their phone number listed on their website and/or landing page? If so, how are they tracking the calls that come from the website? Even more granular, how are they tracking calls that are generated by users who click-through a PPC ad? If a phone number is on the site, you need to determine how this works. If there is no process for tracking calls, you need to help the client create one.

If your client is tracking calls generated from the website, that’s great and you can move on to the next section. However, if you need to help your client create system for tracking calls, you have your work cut out for you. First, you need to convince the client why they need to track their calls in the first place.

Call tracking allows you to attribute the leads that are generated by the site. If calls are not being tracked, how does the client know how well their PPC is performing? By tracking the source of phone calls, your client will gain better visibility in regards to their lead generation, allocate more funds to the initiatives that are driving phone calls (online or offline), and increase their revenue. It’s a win-win-win situation.

Here is a short list of companies that provide call tracking for websites:

http://www.callsource.com
http://www.atg.com
http://www.callbutton.com

Review site for optimal landing pages for PPC: There may be a few pages within your client’s website that would make relevant PPC landing pages. Are the current ads within the account utilizing the best and most relevant pages on the site? You should review your ad groups and ad texts, and determine if there is room for optimization. You should look for more specific pages that you can use within your PPC ads. Remember, relevancy is the name of the game.