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Firstly . It ’ s important to note that there is some flexibility in terms of bidding on trademark or brand terms where the term itself is not feature in the body of the advert .
Technically this means you should be able to bid on terms like “ Russia World Cup ” with ad copy that simply offers ( for example ) football betting or tips with no specific reference to the tournament .
Even so , there ’ s evidence to suggest that Google is more stringent than usually about brand term bidding during major sporting events like the World Cup .
It all comes down to who pays who .
Official brand partners complain to FIFA , who pay them for exclusive use of trademark terms , while FIFA complains to Google who rely on being able to enforce trademark protections to continue as a leading platform .
Due to the restrictions on trademarks associated with the World Cup , we predict a lot of headaches for companies that have not done their research , and an AdWords landscape dominated by official partners who , like McDonalds , really don ’ t have a strong and direct relationship to the sport .
For marketers in betting and gaming , it ’ s not enough to rely on Google to fairly enforce its normal policies . During the World Cup , the official brands get the run of things and gaming brands need to be more creative .
For gambling , the terms with the highest propensity to convert are always ones using “ bet ” and “ betting ” prefixes . They will naturally be more competitive , so it then comes down to how strong an offer you have and your brand . Brand loyalty is not as strong for events like this , so a strong offer can make the difference - if the company can afford it .
AdWords During Major Football Tournaments
Opportunities - increase audience , new FTDs
Unlike many other industries , sportsbook marketers have a variety of very specific challenges when it comes to AdWords . For a start , betting-related sites need to be approved by Google , in addition to abiding by all the other usual regulations around licensing and audience-targeting . Google policy for betting sites means that personalisation of ads based on customer data is to be avoided , which limits the segmentation and offers that can be made .
While we ’ d all like to ensure that returning customers click through at a lower cost than wholly new customers , again this isn ’ t possible at the bid level due to this being seen as a form of personalisation .
What sportsbook marketers can do is ensure that ad copy is explicit and guides the search engine user about whether it ’ s something they should click or not . For example , specifying in the ad copy that certain odds are only open to new customers ( or indeed focused on existing customer with a login link ) will shape the traffic generated .
When focusing in on the best possible customers , the potential lifetime value should be considered but it ’ s a balancing act - a term like ‘ football bets ’ may cost more to bid on than ‘ free bets ’ but your data may tell you that customers using the first keyword will be of a higher value , rather than bonus-hunters .
As we can see , there ’ s a certain amount of complexity in sportsbook PPC purely in terms of regulations - adding in the drama and intensity of the World Cup only makes things more challenging - but there ’ s plenty of information to inform a profitable strategy .
World Cup PPC Strategies Blueclaw Report 2018