Overview

Search Prospecting Campaigns target users who are searching for products or solutions in your category but may not be familiar with your brand yet.

These campaigns focus on capturing new customers through non-branded search terms.

And this is where we’ve seen many ecommerce brands fail. Most agencies you work with use ROAS as the primary metric of consideration.

But behind that number oftentimes you’ll get a mix of branded and non-branded traffic. Go even deeper and you’ll find 90% of you spend is likely going to branded terms. Terms that are attracting existing customers. Customers who would have bought from you anyway. If this is your set-up you’re turning Google into a glorified remarketing platform instead of a platform for true scale.

Strategic rationale

Search prospecting campaigns capitalize on what marketing psychologists call the "moment of active consideration.”

When people search for products like yours but don't mention your brand name, they're telling you they have a problem they want to solve.

They're actively looking for help right now…

… and that's the perfect time to introduce your brand.

That’s why you have prospecting campaigns:

• Acquire new customers who haven't heard of your brand
• Expand your reach beyond your existing customer base
• Target users with high purchase intent based on their search queries
• Drive incremental growth and scale your business

So, let’s break down how to set this up:

Bidding Strategy:

• Start with Manual CPC to gather data and control spending
• Consider Maximize Clicks with a bid cap for new campaigns
• Transition to Target ROAS or Target CPA once you have sufficient conversion data (30+ conversions)

Ad Copy Strategy:

• Highlight your product's unique value proposition. Less about your brand name here and more about outcompeting your search term rivals on value.
• Address pain points and benefits relevant to the search query
• Include specific numbers, stats, or social proof
• Add compelling CTAs that align with the user's intent
• Test multiple ad variations (at least 3 per ad group)

Keyword Strategy:

• Focus on product-related and category keywords
• Include informational keywords for top-of-funnel content
• Use a mix of match types with emphasis on phrase match
• All keywords you’re targeting should have HIGH search volume. Don’t target keywords that won’t get you the traffic.
• Start with high-intent, bottom-of-funnel keywords (higher conversion potential). Then, gradually expand to mid and top-of-funnel keywords

Landing Page Strategy:

• Create dedicated, keyword-specific landing pages
  • If you’re looking for a swipe file go here: Swipe file of the top 10
• Develop pages tailored to specific buyer personas
• Focus on relevance to the search query. Whatever angle or promotion you use SHOULD match in the landing page they land on.

Key Metrics to Monitor