Members richardmac Posted May 10, 2011 Members Share Posted May 10, 2011 I can't remember where I was talking about Google Ads, but... I got $50 worth of free Google Ads. Since I do a show as a solo performer where I play covers (Elton John, Billy Joel, Beatles, some originals,) I figured "why not." I put together a cheesy little ad in 5 minutes and put up some basic key words. Got a phone call from Google asking if I'd like them to rewrite my ad to be more effective and mod my keyword list, for free. I said "sounds good." The early results so far - I have spent 12 dollars and scored one gig for a hundred bucks. Yes, that's not big money, but still, I got the gig due to advertising with Google. If things continue to go this well I will continue to advertise with them. If not, I won't. Just thought I'd share. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Poker99 Posted May 10, 2011 Members Share Posted May 10, 2011 Better than Facebook ads? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators daddymack Posted May 10, 2011 Moderators Share Posted May 10, 2011 very Rich...congrats..a $100 solo gig is worth a few minutes and $12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JonChorba Posted May 11, 2011 Members Share Posted May 11, 2011 Better than Facebook ads? I'm very wary of Facebook ads. I've done them a few times for my teaching site and the bounce rate is abnormally high. After some research, I've found that this is a common problem for quite a few facebook advertisers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members richardmac Posted May 11, 2011 Author Members Share Posted May 11, 2011 I think it depends on what you want to accomplish with your ad campaign. In my case, I'm pitching inexpensive live musical entertainment. That's not something that the average person would be interested in, but it's an easier pitch than, say, an original CD from an artist I've never heard of. Or even an all original band trying to get gigs. Google understands advertising. It IS their entire business, really. Here's some more info about Google Adwords. I was able to specify an area within 30 miles of my house... meaning my ad will only show up for people who are surfing the web in a location within 30 miles of my house. So my ad won't appear for someone living in Texas. Additionally, my ad won't appear on other people's sites... only when someone does a Google search for the key words and phrases that are part of my "campaign." And you don't pay for impressions - you only pay when someone clicks on your ad. So in my case, I am paying around 2 bucks per click. And I thought "Oh my God that's so high. Once I've burned through the free $50 I can't see continuing on with this." But after 5 clicks I got a gig. Again, this might have been luck, so I'll see what happens with the rest of the $50. But so far so good, as I said. If anyone out there is in a band or a solo act doing covers, you might consider trying this out for free. Can't hurt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members steeltropics1 Posted May 14, 2011 Members Share Posted May 14, 2011 congrats dude. I applaud your perseverance with music related items. Looks like it is worth it. Keep us posted on ho wit goes from here. I had thought about testing out the Google market a bit but been doing okay for free thus far. May give it a try and test the waters Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sergi Posted May 15, 2011 Members Share Posted May 15, 2011 This is the new start-up http://www.oxymusic.com/index.php offering exactly what we are looking for - find gigs and sell original music. Membership is free. They are just launched, but seems like they have chances become successful. Check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members richardmac Posted June 11, 2011 Author Members Share Posted June 11, 2011 Status update. After running Google Ads for a while now, here's what has happened. For $50, I got $250 worth of gigs - one for $100, and one for $150. So as a "small business," that means I'm spending 20% of my income on advertising. That's good or bad depending on how you look at it. These are gigs I definitely would not have gotten if I hadn't run the ad. Meaning I'd rather have 80% of $250 than 100% of nothing. Keep in mind that I am not advertising myself as an original artist - I'm advertising myself as a solo performer who plays covers and a few originals. If I advertised myself as an original artist wanting $50 per hour, I would not get any gigs and I'd be throwing my money away. Also, I don't have a big name or rep where I'm at. So the only way I'm getting gigs is if I rattle doorknobs, call people, or advertise. I am basically wanting about 4 gigs per month, or one a week. I don't want more gigs than that. If I can get to the point where I have 4 gigs per month all the time, I might not advertise. Regardless, I wanted to post my results. Might be of some benefit to other folks here, but I do believe that it's best for someone who does covers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators daddymack Posted June 12, 2011 Moderators Share Posted June 12, 2011 Richard, that is actually pretty good, considering the costs and support. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members richardmac Posted June 12, 2011 Author Members Share Posted June 12, 2011 Yeah, I thought so too. One more thing - if anyone decides to do this, when your free voucher runs out, switch your account from automatic to manual. Then you just put money in, however much you want, and when it's almost gone you put more money in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bdemon Posted June 15, 2011 Members Share Posted June 15, 2011 Yeah, it sounds like Adwords is working for you. Far out. I tried it a few years back when I was promoting my guitar lessons shirts and posters...way too expensive. Had a heck of a time trying to figure out which keywords would work versus which ones would be affordable. Couldn't let the ad run all day or I'd be giving up my house payment. Then I would specify a window of time, say, in the evening. And that window would be spent in an hour or two. Gave up pretty quick... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators daddymack Posted June 15, 2011 Moderators Share Posted June 15, 2011 free trial=winning Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members richardmac Posted June 15, 2011 Author Members Share Posted June 15, 2011 Yeah, it sounds like Adwords is working for you. Far out.I tried it a few years back when I was promoting my guitar lessons shirts and posters...way too expensive. Had a heck of a time trying to figure out which keywords would work versus which ones would be affordable. Couldn't let the ad run all day or I'd be giving up my house payment. Then I would specify a window of time, say, in the evening. And that window would be spent in an hour or two. Gave up pretty quick... You should try it now. Google will literally write your ad, complete with key words, FOR you, and you can start with $50 or $100 free credit. You need to set the amount you're willing to pay for an ad low - I'm paying a little over a buck a click with a $5 per day max, and I keep a close eye on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ASoRelle Posted June 17, 2011 Members Share Posted June 17, 2011 are those gigs you booked recurring or just one shot deals? that matters too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SBF3000 Posted June 18, 2011 Members Share Posted June 18, 2011 I'm very wary of Facebook ads. I've done them a few times for my teaching site and the bounce rate is abnormally high. After some research, I've found that this is a common problem for quite a few facebook advertisers I was looking into doing this on Facebook, could anyone expound on "bounce rate" please? Thanks EDIT: Googled Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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