Episode Summary
This podcast episode provides an in-depth look at the differences between search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising for insurance agents. It features an interview with an expert from a PPC management agency catering to the insurance industry.
The expert first explains what SEO and PPC are at a high level. SEO refers to organic techniques to improve search engine rankings, like content creation and site optimization. The goal is to rank highly and get traffic from unpaid search results.
PPC is paid advertising where you bid on keywords and pay a fee when someone clicks your ad. The ads often appear above organic results. When clicked, PPC ads send visitors to targeted landing pages rather than a website's homepage.
A key difference is that SEO aims to optimize public pages people find through search. PPC sends traffic to specialized landing pages that align with a specific ad and conversion goal.
The discussion moves on to discuss common PPC mistakes insurance agents make. One is sending PPC traffic to their general website homepage instead of a focused landing page. Homepage visitors may get distracted and leave instead of converting.
Another mistake is having unfocused landing page content that doesn't lead visitors to the desired action. Effective landing pages remove navigation and focus solely on the ad's purpose.
Next, they explore how independent agents can compete with the large PPC budgets of big insurance companies. The key is to be extremely targeted with your niche, location, and ad keywords. Match this with landing pages personalized to your agency.
The expert outlines the full-service PPC campaign management they provide. This includes:
- Custom ad and landing page creation
- Call tracking and recording
- Fraud detection to protect ad spend
- Google and Microsoft ad platform support
- Performance monitoring and optimization
- Monthly reporting and ROI analysis
New campaigns can launch in about 1 week. You control the budget while they handle the rest.
In summary, PPC works best when tightly focused on a specific audience and managed by experts. With the right strategy, independent insurance agents can compete with far larger competitors.
Timestamps
(0:00:03) - Broker link: Understanding the difference between search engine optimization and pay-per-click advertising
(0:00:50) - What's the difference between SEO and pay-per-click advertising
(0:07:47) - One out of $3 spent by online advertisers is wasted due to ad fraud
(0:12:26) - So does your cost include the ad spend? Is that all lumped in
(0:13:17) - How long should you run Google Ads for? It depends on your budget
(0:15:36) - Texas Medicare and ACA brokers are invited to our annual kickoff
(0:16:43) - How many leads should you expect from your pay-per-click Google Ads campaign
(0:18:48) - How does an agent know that Brightfire is working
(0:20:09) - Gillan: Pay-per-click is something many business owners have tried
(0:20:57) - We empower insurance agents to sell more, earn more, and stay independent