We’ve all been there. Month after month, you invest in Google Ads, and it looks promising as the leads pour in, but then you realize they aren’t converting into move-ins. Instead, you’re left with a bunch of low-quality and unqualified leads.
So, what exactly is happening here? Fortunately, it’s not an unsolvable mystery, but it will require an analytical approach.
Let’s take a look at some of the most common culprits!
Misaligned Keywords
Imagine you’re running a Google ad campaign for a senior living community that emphasizes luxury amenities and vibrant social activities but the leads you’re attracting seem more interested in budget living options and basic care facilities. Time to look closely at your keywords. Do they reflect the message you are trying to get across? If not it could be a classic case of misaligned keywords, meaning you are attracting people who aren’t the right fit for your services.
- Double-check your keywords to ensure you’re bidding on the ones you want your ads to show for. A great way to generate relevant keywords is by reviewing your website’s landing pages. What keywords are you using there? These can form the basis of your keyword list. Additionally, make sure your ads and keywords point to the most relevant landing page. If your keyword is “Luxury Amenities” and your ad copy mentions luxury amenities, then make sure your ads direct visitors to the luxury amenities page on your website!
- Use phrase and exact match keywords to narrow your focus and gain more control over your keyword targeting. This ensures that your ads only appear for searches closely aligned with your services. Additionally, negative keywords are your best friend and help to filter out irrelevant traffic. For example, if you’re offering luxury senior living, exclude terms like ‘cheap’ or ‘affordable.’ It’s a simple tactic but one that goes a long way in weeding out poor quality leads and improving your ROI
- Regularly reviewing your search terms report can provide insights into what your specific audience is searching for when your ads are triggered. This helps you to refine your keyword list and add more negative keywords to weed out low-quality leads. You can find your Search Terms report under the ‘Insights and Reports’ section in your left-hand navigation. A good starting point is to filter this report to show a substantial time frame (like the past 180 days) and then filter your search terms to show those with less than one conversion – sort by cost highest to lowest – these are the really poor quality search terms!
Poorly Written Ad Copy
Your ads are like magnets for clicks, but once visitors arrive at your website, do you find that they bounce faster than a bouncy ball on a trampoline? This could suggest a misalignment between your ad copy and the website. Your ad copy might not be painting the correct picture of your community. Visitors may be attracted by your ads, but once they reach your site and learn more, they realize your services aren’t what they are looking for. Worse, they may go ahead and convert, becoming a lead, only to later be determined as a poor match.
Another thing your ad copy should do is deter the wrong type of visitors. Remember the example earlier about weeding out leads looking for budget options rather than a luxury community? This is where accurately communicating your services in the ad copy is vital. In fact, one of the best ways to address this is to ensure your ad copy mirrors the content and value proposition of the landing page it directs visitors to.
Bad Landing Pages
We won’t delve too deeply into landing page optimization, but your choice of landing page in your ads can significantly impact lead quality. Opting for landing pages that target the right audience and align with your chosen keywords is crucial for improving quality.
Consider this scenario:
Dorothy, a 60-year-old woman, is specifically searching for luxury independent living with an on-site salon and spa. You’re bidding on the keyword ‘independent living,’ but when Dorothy clicks on your ad, she’s taken to your homepage. While this page gives a comprehensive overview of your community and available living options, it doesn’t provide in-depth information specific to independent living—the option Dorothy is most interested in.
Despite this, Dorothy clicks the ‘Request More Information’ call to action and submits a form, becoming a lead. Later in the sales journey, she opts out of further communication and does not sign up for a tour, essentially becoming a low-quality lead. The reason she gives? You don’t offer an on-site salon and spa, which was a deal-breaker for her. The truth is, Dorothy was never going to become a good-quality lead.
Instead of assuming visitors will explore your website thoroughly, it’s essential to direct them straight to the most relevant area where they’ll find the most value. Choose the landing page that makes the best ‘elevator pitch’ based on the keywords your visitor has triggered. If Dorothy had been directed to your Independent Living page, detailing all the services and amenities offered, and saw that the amenity she needed wasn’t available, she would likely have self-screened herself out and not submitted a form, saving you time and resources in follow-ups.
Speaking of landing pages, take a quick look at your online forms. We’ve seen with our clients that tweaking form fields can significantly boost lead quality. It’s a delicate balance—you don’t want to overwhelm people with too many questions upfront, but adding fields for more specific information beyond the basics can weed out leads who aren’t a good fit or don’t meet minimum residency requirements, early on.
Targeting the Wrong Audience
Sometimes you get a lead that seems perfect—the ‘ready to sign the lease tomorrow’ kind of perfect. But then, halfway through, they realize your community isn’t in the area that they thought it was. It may not happen often to you, but it’s really disappointing when it does, right? Plus, it wastes a ton of time and effort nurturing a lead that was never going to move in.
To prevent this, double-check your audience targeting. If your ads target people outside your preferred location, you might attract leads who can’t or won’t move to your senior living community. This means you’ll get leads less likely to become residents.
Ensure you’re hitting the right geographic areas and consider using in-market and affinity audiences to target users interested in similar products or services. This way, you’ll attract leads who are genuinely interested and more likely to become residents.
These are just a few of the reasons behind low-quality leads.
In part two, we’ll dive deeper into additional strategies that can make a significant difference in improving lead quality and maximizing your return on investment.
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