I have been split testing microsys.dk vs micro-sys.dk microsys.dk vs microsys.eu The winner (with about consistent 20% difference in CTR) was microsys.dk. (details in my blog post) I originally tested this because I have for a long time been thinking about changing my domain address. I dislike having a "-" inside my domain name. I am still weighing the pros and cons of changing my primary domain address, but I am probably stuck with the "-" is my conclusion so far. However, if not having a "-" in general increases people's comfort level, well... Also, I have not yet measured if there is a higher "drop-out" rate from ads showing the non-dashed version. I.e. if people click away because I redirect to the domain with the "-" inside it. What do you think? Does anyone here have experience with above problem?
Well i think there would be readibilty issue with the - version, also people tend to like site which do not have any - in them, since they are easier to remember. All the big sites today like google, yahoo, msn, ebay, orkut, myspace etc.. no one has - in them, so people tend to prefer domains with no -.
In some cases you get good results putting the Keyword on display URL using the both formats below: www.MyURL.com/my-keyword www.MyKeyword.myurl.com <-- keyword in uppercase, url in low in your site you would get something like (using the keyword 'Custom Software' extracted from microsys.eu): www.microsys.eu/Custom-Software www.CustomSoftware.microsys.eu These methods do not imply better results for all cases, so perform a split test before implementing it for all of your ads.
Good points micro. I've always found the use of a subdomain with the keyword to be very effective... keyword.domain.com has out performed domain.com/keyword for me in the majority of my tests. Test test and then test again
so for your landing page you need to buy a domain name? If so whast the best deal on domain names like buy one get 5 free etc?
You don't need to if you use sub domains. You already own domain.com...just set up a keyword.domain.com and you'll be set.
Technically, you do not need to setup a keyword.domain.com on your landing site when using it on display URL. I just use it for a better look, also I got better results when adding a www before the keyword like: www.SearchEngine.google.com www.DesktopComputers.dell.com www.DesktopPrinters.hp.com www.PlasmaTVs.sony.com also you uppercase the keyword subdomain and lowercase the domain to give more focus for the keyword.
I've heard it both ways before and have had some ads rejected becuase of it in the past. I'd say for me it's been about 90% approval with the other 10% getting rejected. Maybe someone was just having a bad day
wait, lets say I buy a domain called electronicsdealer.com for example. Now I wanna sale ebooks on training dogs.... with a subdomain my address would look like electronicsdealer.com/dogtraining.com But is that right? It seems that would scare away people since they see I mainly deal in electronics probably and not dog training. Am I right?
The display URL is part of the copy. If you can use display url that utilises the keywords so much the better.
Thanks for the input everyone I will try split test using e.g. keyword.example.com in the future By the way, do you agree with the sentiment that I should use "microsys.dk" for PPC, but keep micro-sys.dk as my main domain address. Or do you think it will be worth the gamble to change? (i.e. instead of microsys.dk redirecting to micro-sys.dk I should switch them) Both domains are quite old (late 90'es)
You of course want to make sure your domain, if it's a word/phrase, makes sense to your target audience. You are correct in your example above...that domain imo would not be a good fit for dog training books.
I have been having good luck with sub domains as well (ie KeywordRichSubDomain.reviewsite.com). I haven't tried putting the www in front of it (didn't like the way it looked), but I will try it out. Bill
does the actual destination url have to be the same as the one displayed? For example if it displays "www.microsys.eu/Custom-Software" Is it legal to land them to "www.microsys.ed/landingpage.htm", without the sub directory or domain.
Yes. You can do it. For example if your landing page has an ugly display e.g. www.mydomainabc-noobie.com/blah/blah.com.biz You can dispplay it as www.mydomain.com Wether its legal or not.......I would say it is.