Advertising on Google Search with Google Ads for a pest control company is a challenging endeavor. Selecting the right keywords at the right hour of the day makes the difference for a limited budget, and, converting the right visitors at the right time.
As a Google Ads certified specialist, part of my job is optimizing ads to run during the time of day when conversions are likely, making your website your best sales person.
A conversion is when a searcher types in a targeted keyword that you are bidding on in Google Ads, and Google populates an ad on the SERPs page and the searcher clicks the ad. This ad will lead to a landing page with a form to fill out or phone number to call. If the visitor completes your call-to-action, completing the form or calling the number, then this is counted as a conversion.
But what are the best times to advertise for a pest control company on Google Search?
Pest control industry averages for time of day across the US
In 2018, the average conversion rate for companies in the consumer services sector was 6.64%. Our conversion rate for our pest control clients was 13.49%. That's a big difference.
In the same time period, the average cost-per-conversion was $90.70. Our cost-per-conversion was $19.46.
These numbers will vary by the market you are advertising in. Just because a cost-per-click in Charlotte, NC is $8.00 doesn't mean that every market costs the same. The specific competition in your market determines the cost-per-click for that market.
Higher competition = Higher cost-per-click which increases your cost-per-conversion.
Tracking these metics is vital for proper optimization to decrease the cost of your pest control client's advertising spend and make your company a champion.
Over the past three years, we have advertised for pest control companies in the southeast, specifically in North Carolina. The data produced in this article is derived from August, 2016 to April, 2019. Counting conversions when a visitor completed a form hosted on the website, when a visitor clicks a click-to-call CTA on the website, or a click-to-call on a Google Ad.
We focused on the following KPI's (Key Points of Interest):
- Conversion rate by hour of day
- Conversions by hour of day
- Cost per conversion by hour of day
Optimizing your Google Ads for higher conversion rate
Google Ads allows advertisers to run their ads at certain hours of the day. Finding the right time of the day to advertise takes months, even years, of data to optimize your ads for a higher conversion rate.
Optimizing your ads for a higher conversion rate in Google Ads will ultimately lead to a lower cost-per-conversion and an increase in sales qualified leads, costing you less to generate leads.
If you need assistance with your Google Ads campaigns, schedule a time to speak with me about your Google Ads.
Measuring your advertising campaigns is important for optimizing your ads for the best hours of the day. Make sure you are segmenting your data by total conversion, conversion rate and cost-per-conversion by the hour of day. You can do this in your Google Ads reporting dashboard.
Conversions by hour of day
The data below was pulled from Google Ads reporting. The chart shows the total amount of conversions by the hour of the day. Over this time period, we advertised 24 hours a day - 7 days a week.
The data shows that the vast majority of conversions were produced at 8:00 am and slowed down as the day goes on.
It is important to note that your budget plays a key role here. If you have high clicks early in the day, your budget could become limited and your ads will not run during peak times for searches.
Conversion rate by hour of day
Shown above is the total amount of conversions by hour of day. We note that the data shows that 8:00 am is the optimal time for conversions to be likely. Below, we show the conversion rate at 8:00 am is the second highest during the same time.
Cost-per-converison by hour of day
As a marketer in the B2B arena, producing leads at the lowest cost should be your ultimate goal when advertising on Google Ads. If you are running ads during peak hours, the cost-per-conversion will more than likely be more expensive.
So, maybe advertising during non-peak hours, hours of the day when searches are down, could increase your conversion rate and decrease your cost-per-conversion.
Below, we note that the lowest cost-per-conversion is at 3:00 am. The catch is that only two (2) conversions happened at that time.
Once again, the second lowest cost-per-conversion is at 8:00 am at $14.94. The most expensive time to advertise on Google Search was at 5:00 am and 6:00 pm. These are your peak times of the day for searches for pest control services and other related keywords.
Conclusion
As the data shows, the best hour of the day to schedule your Google Ads for your pest control company is at 8:00 am.
Our years of experience advertising for pest control companies has helped us provide a high-level of service with Google Ads. Optimizing campaigns by the hour of day is essential for increasing total leads and decreasing the cost-per-acquisition.
If you are targeting the right keywords at the right time, you can see exponential growth in your lead generation and ultimately increase your organization's revenue.
As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, running and optimizing Google Ads campaigns can be a challenge for business owners and marketers. We help your pest control organization save time and money by running your Google Ads campaigns with one of our certified Google Ads partners.
If you would like to speak about your Google Ads campaigns, schedule a time to speak with me about your campaigns.
