financial spread bet

Competitor Analysis:Spread Betting Google Ads By Karim Gargum, October 18th, 2010

© Karim Gargum 2010 www.KarimGargum.com email [email protected]

http://www.KarimGargum.com


mailto:[email protected]


Summary

In this document I’ll be reviewing the google ads and associated landing pages for the top financial spread betting providers. I’ll outline strengths and weaknesses as well as outline any changes I’d make.






CMC MarketsNo mention of the new ‘pricing engine’ from the ad. A clear ‘find out about our new pricing engine’ headline or link would do the trick. Also, the ad lacks a clear ‘apply now’ type of call to action.

Clear page with easily identifiable call to action buttons for users who just want to get on and open an account

Further information for newbies and those wishing to find out more about CMC’s service.






IG IndexClear ad with no-nonsense call to action.

Nicely designed page, however what’s missing from this page is a clear, prominent ‘apply now’ button. The ‘how to apply’ section is good but it’s just not prominent or clear enough.

They could also better organise this page by creating a better division between information for spread betting novices and more experienced users who want to find out more about IG’s particular service.






City IndexClear enough ad, good closing call to action and ties in nicely with the landing page headline.

Very clear, uncluttered landing page. Nice prominent ‘apply’ button. Includes link for user to visit main website for more information.

This page is very well suited for users that are far along the buying cycle, i.e. ready to apply for an account. For users in the research phase it’s not as useful. However one could argue that it’s better to focus on the former group when advertising using Google Ads.






GFT

At least this ad sounds a bit different from the rest, what’s this surprise then eh?

They do have a link for a practice account but a clear ‘apply now’ button would be useful, instead of a live chat button. Also there’s no tie into the promise of ‘being surprised’ made in the ad.

This could be more clearly alluded to in the main headline. Perhaps with a link to find out more about the GFT service.






SpreadEXAttractive offer and good call to action. I’d suggest putting the £400 offer in the ad headline however.

Clear page with very prominent apply button. the ‘1,2,3’ buttons are useful too for outlining the process potential clients need to go through to claim the £400 account bonus.

I would look at making the £400 more prominent on this page too but putting it in the main headline. After all, this will be a main motivator for potential clients.






WorldSpreadsBold ad to go with a bold marketing tactic. Could be strengthened with a clear call to action.

Clear page, however, with two competing promotions for different target groups it would be better to split these into two separate landing pages each with their own specific set of google ads.






Saxo Bank

Ad promotes a demo account but this isn’t very prominent on the landing page.

Very prominent and scannable ‘apply now’ button. Nicely organised links for users to find additional information to support their purchase decision.






Conclusion

Obviously this isn’t an exhaustive study and only focuses on one particular keyword. Hopefully it will be useful to those wishing to get a quick over-view of how the various financial spread betting providers are conducting their Google advertising. As well as provide some useful tips for anyone managing the search marketing for these or other spread betting brokers. If you have any questions about this document or want more information feel free to email me at [email protected].








About the Author

I’m a London-based online marketing specialist with over eight years experience marketing retail financial services. This includes financial spread betting, foreign exchange trading and Contracts For Difference. I focus on helping companies generate more flow from their online marketing with a special focus on search marketing and social media. My key details are as follows:

Website - www.KarimGargum.comLinkedIn - http://uk.linkedin.com/in/karimgargumTwitter - http://twitter.com/Kazimor




http://uk.linkedin.com/in/karimgargum

http://uk.linkedin.com/in/karimgargum

http://twitter.com/Kazimor

http://twitter.com/Kazimor





financial spread bet

Technology