Category: Google Ads
Every summer, Salisbury fills up. Visitors come for the cathedral, for Stonehenge a few miles up the road, for Old Sarum, for walks along the rivers and days out in the villages. For cafés, restaurants, pubs, shops, B&Bs and attractions, the summer months can make a big difference to the whole year.
Plenty of those visitors will be searching on Google before and during their trip. “Places to eat near Salisbury Cathedral.” “Pub with a garden near Stonehenge.” “B&B Salisbury.” “Things to do in Salisbury when it rains.” If your business is the answer to one of those searches, Google Ads can put you in front of them at exactly the right moment.
But visitors behave differently from local customers, and an account set up for locals won’t necessarily reach them. Here’s what to think about.
Visitors search before they arrive
A local customer searches for a plumber when they need a plumber. A visitor often searches days or weeks before their trip, from home, wherever home happens to be.
That matters because of how Google Ads decides who sees your adverts. If your campaign is set to show only to people physically in Salisbury, you’ll miss everyone planning their visit from elsewhere. For a hotel, a B&B, a wedding venue or an attraction, those planners are some of your most valuable customers.
Google Ads has a location setting that covers this. The option called “Presence or interest” lets your adverts show to people in your area and to people elsewhere who have shown an interest in it, for example by searching for “hotels in Salisbury”. For businesses that rely on visitors, that’s usually the right choice. For a business that only serves locals, it can waste money, which is why it’s worth checking the setting rather than assuming.
And they search again when they’re here
Once visitors arrive, their searches change. They’re on their phones, often walking around the city, looking for somewhere to eat, a coffee, a gift shop, somewhere to park or something to do this afternoon.
These searches are often very close to a decision. Someone searching “lunch near me” while standing in the Market Place is going to choose somewhere in the next ten minutes. For cafés, restaurants and shops, this is where Google Ads can be most useful, as long as your adverts show your location, your opening hours and how to get there.
Linking your Google Business Profile to your Google Ads account helps here. It lets your adverts show your address, how far away you are and a link to directions, which is exactly what a visitor on foot needs.
Think about timing
Visitor searches follow a pattern. Planning searches build up in the weeks before school holidays and bank holiday weekends. On-the-day searches peak around mealtimes, late mornings and early afternoons, and on weekends.
Your ad schedule should match. There’s no point paying for clicks at times when you’re closed, or when your kitchen has stopped serving. Equally, if your busiest searches come at lunchtime on a Saturday, make sure your budget isn’t running out by mid-morning.
Look at your previous summer’s data if you have it. Google Ads will show you which days and times brought the most clicks and calls, which is a much better guide than guessing.
Budget for the season
If summer is your busiest time, it’s worth planning your budget for it rather than running the same amount all year. Many seasonal businesses put more into their adverts in the run-up to and during the summer, then reduce it in the quieter months.
Remember that Google sets your budget as a daily average. If you increase it for the summer, do it a little ahead of time so you’re already visible when people start planning, and keep an eye on it through the season.
Write adverts for visitors
A visitor doesn’t know your business and doesn’t know Salisbury as well as a local does. Your adverts should give them a reason to choose you over the other places that come up.
Mention what makes you right for a visitor. Walking distance from the cathedral. Dog friendly. A garden. Open every day in August. Free parking. Children welcome. Local produce. Whatever is true and useful, say it, because it’s often the thing that decides where someone goes.
And make sure the page your advert links to does the same. A visitor looking for lunch wants to see your menu, your opening hours and where you are, not a page about your history.
Don’t forget the locals
Summer visitors are valuable, but they’re only part of the picture. Your local customers are the ones who keep you going for the rest of the year, and some of them avoid the city centre when it’s busy.
If you run campaigns for both, keep them separate. A campaign aimed at visitors can use broader location settings and focus on the summer months. A campaign aimed at locals can stay tightly focused on Salisbury and the towns around it all year round. That way each one can be judged on its own results.
Get ready now
The best time to set up summer campaigns is before the summer arrives. If you’re reading this in July, it’s not too late, but the sooner the better. Check your location settings, your ad schedule and your budget, link your Google Business Profile, and make sure your adverts speak to visitors.
As we said in our post on getting the most out of your PPC, being seen isn’t enough on its own. You have to be seen by the right people, at the right time, for the right searches.
If you’d like help getting your Google Ads ready for the summer, the friendly, experienced team at Spire Digital manage pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns for businesses in Salisbury and the surrounding area. Give us a call on 01722 320 500.