5 top PPC trends for 2024
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As we enter 2024, it is more vital than ever to anticipate and adapt to PPC trends that will shape this year’s online landscape. Keeping up with the ever-changing digital landscape is crucial to online marketers, and PPC is no exception.
Maintaining an edge over the competition and boosting your PPC results is the name of the game, but with so many updates & changes emerging it is difficult to know which ones you need to be paying attention to. Here at Embryo, we understand the importance of being aware of the latest PPC marketing trends, and how this will shape the way businesses advertise and connect with their audiences in 2024.
If you are looking for an agency that embraces change and keeps up-to-date on all trends and news surrounding online marketing, speak to one of our lovely team by emailing [email protected] or calling us at 0161 327 2635.
In this blog, we will be delving into the top trends in PPC you will need to know for 2024.
PPC Trend #1 – The Decline Of Third Party Cookies
As many of our browsers, such as Safari and Chrome, are removing cookies from their websites, we are faced with a cookie-less future. Google plans for 67% of third-party cookies to be phased out by the end of 2024. This makes marketing more difficult in order to see ROI and which marketing strategy is bringing in revenue and sales. This is furthered with Google’s new analytics platform, GA4, also seemingly vulnerable to ad-blockers and these browser restrictions.
It’s becoming increasingly important that marketers begin researching new ways to collect data to ensure your PPC campaigns continue to target audiences effectively. For example, by using Offline Conversion Tracking. The main takeaway is that this year, we are likely to see a further trend of businesses and agencies alike moving towards third-party analytical systems to see as much of the full picture as possible.
PPC Trend #2 – Using Automation & AI
Nowadays, it feels like you can’t go anywhere online without AI and automation being the talk of the town, PPC not being any different. As Google has begun showcasing AI-generated headlines, assets and more, it is clear AI-generated content is not going away anytime soon, and is inevitable to be a driving force in creating AI-powered PPC campaigns in 2024.
AI has the potential to craft and tailor ad copy to your campaign objectives, creating personalised content for your account. By applying experimentation and tracking user behaviour patterns, AI can create winning results for campaigns in real-time. However, the opposite has already been stated, with generated ad copy being seen as generic and unable to stand out from the crowd.
While automated-generated content may improve as the year goes on, automation is a clear winner for reducing the need for constant hands-on tweaking and amending such as bid management and automating keyword research. Simply, AI algorithms can process performance trends, detect patterns and derive insights faster than manual analysis.
Automating your campaigns frees up more time to focus on strategy and the creative side of PPC rather than the minute details within the campaigns themselves. Furthermore, automation allows for more human understanding with long-term strategy and forecasting to be at the forefront of agencies and in-house teams to improve performance month on month and year on year.
PPC Trend #3 – New Ways To Search
Voice searches are on the rise due to the widespread adoption of smart speakers, virtual assistants and voice searches on mobile phones. Google in 2023 reported around 27% of searches are now done via voice search within the Google app so PPC marketers will need to begin to adapt to this change. Voice queries and searches are often longer and more conversational, as they interact with spoken language rather than typing into a search bar.
Marketers in PPC must focus on optimising content for voice search, with long-tailed keyword targeting, creating content with a conversational tone as well as ensuring accurate business information for local searches to remain relevant and competitive in 2024.
Another new way to search that is on the rise is visual. Visual search such as Google Lens allows users to snap a photo to initiate search queries. This way of searching opens new opportunities to attract motivated customers ready to purchase based on visual imagery.
Advertisers will need to optimise their ads for visual searches by incorporating video and imagery into their content. For example, image-focused ads that align with what people may search for, such as product imagery and lifestyle photos designed with visual clarity in mind.
PPC Trend #4 – Mastering Keywords
Keywords are the foundation of any strong-performing PPC campaign, so when these are updated or amended this can change your overall strategy for your account.
Phrase match keywords are becoming more and more ‘loose’ in terms of what search terms they are targeting as Google expands what qualified under exact or phrase match keywords. While they will still be highly relevant search terms, they will include some broad terms, even with exact match keywords. It is likely in 2024 that phrase match keywords are to be phased out in favour of the automation of broad match keywords.
Furthermore, understanding user intent will become vital for marketers in 2024 as ads will need to go above and beyond in aligning with user needs and desires as search terms will trigger more varied keywords. This shift from general volume to value will improve conversion rates and ensure ads will continue to resonate with potential customers.
PPC Trend #5 – Microsoft Ads
While many PPC marketers focus predominantly on Google ads, 2024 is the year for Bing, (now Microsoft ads) which has been making further strides in the search engine space. As of February 2023, Bing.com had more than 1.1 billion visitors. While the reach is still not at the level of Google, this network shouldn’t be ignored. Microsoft ads reached 63 million searchers that aren’t reached with Google ads, making it a viable new marketing platform in 2024.
Businesses with older audiences should also favour Microsoft ads, as 40% of their user demographic ranges from 35-54 years old. It is also more favourable for those with lower ad budgets available, due to fewer competitors on the Microsoft network in comparison to Google ads.
While Google remains the front-runner when considering a PPC campaign, other potential networks such as Microsoft ads shouldn’t be overlooked and combining these two networks is sure to bring positive results for 2024.
Want to take advantage of these top PPC trends for 2024?
Staying on top of trends is incredibly important for any PPC marketer. Leveraging these trends to your advantage will not only aid in navigating the ever-evolving digital landscape efficiently but can also drive strong-performing campaigns that receive positive results.
While keeping up to date with the latest trends can seem overwhelming, at Embryo, it’s our bread and butter. If you are looking for an agency that strives to stay the latest trends and patterns, look no further and chat with our lovely team today by emailing [email protected] or calling us at 0161 327 2635.
