Should you pay to advertise your own brand name?

In this episode of Digital Marketing for Contractors, hosts Janet and Jack from Fat Cat Strategies discuss the benefits and strategies of running branded ad campaigns for home improvement contractors. They break down the purpose of branded campaigns—pay-per-click (PPC) ads that target a business's own name. Jack explains that branded campaigns act as a "defensive play" by helping contractors secure their own brand name in search results, preventing competitors from intercepting potential customers. They also explore scenarios like when a competitor has a similar name or when a business wants to boost visibility and trust through a combined presence of organic search results, Google Business Profile, and paid ads.

Janet and Jack discuss metrics to watch, such as cost-per-click and search impression share, and emphasize that branded campaigns should be highly cost-effective since they target people already looking for the business. They touch briefly on competitor campaigns, where businesses target competitor names in ads, although they note restrictions on directly using competitors’ names in ad text. They conclude by advising that while branded campaigns are best for established businesses, new companies should focus first on non-branded campaigns to build awareness.

Want to find out how we can create a custom digital marketing game plan for your contractor business? Schedule a call with us at fatcatstrategies.com.

Transcript

00:00:05 [INTRO] Welcome to Digital Marketing for Contractors, a podcast for home improvement contractors to help you reach your lead goals and take your business to the next level. Join us each episode as we give you powerful insights and practical tips on the best digital marketing strategies to help you grow your home improvement business. Let’s get started.

00:00:31 [JANET] Hello, and welcome to Digital Marketing for Contractors. This podcast is brought to you by Fat Cat Strategies. We are a full-service digital marketing agency based in Raleigh, North Carolina, and we love working with home improvement contractors like you to grow your business, generate leads, boost sales, and create sustainable growth through digital marketing strategies. My name is Janet, and I am the founder and managing partner here at Fat Cat. Today, I’m happy to be joined by our in-house PPC specialist, Jack. Jack, say hello to everybody.

00:01:02 [JACK] Hey, everyone! I’m Jack. As Janet said, I’m the PPC specialist here at Fat Cat Strategies. So, what do we have going on today, Janet?

00:01:10 [JANET] Today, we’re talking about something I’ve had some pretty interesting conversations with clients about: whether or not you should advertise your own company name. For instance, let’s say your business is “Bob’s Siding” or “Top Dog Roofing.” Should you run ads on your own company name? What’s your take on that, Jack?

00:01:38 [JACK] My short answer is yes—with some caveats, which we’ll get into.

00:01:41 [JANET] So, a basic yes or no?

00:01:42 [JACK] I’m a big proponent of running branded campaigns.

00:01:45 [JANET] So, you call it a branded campaign. I’ve had some funny conversations with clients where they ask, “Why should I have to pay for my own name?” And that’s a fair question, I think. It’s almost a philosophical debate about the role Google plays in all our lives. But setting that aside, why do you think clients should run branded campaigns?

00:02:11 [JACK] Whenever this question comes up, there are two main reasons. First, if you think of all your non-branded search campaigns as playing offense, then think of a branded campaign as playing defense. The audience for a branded campaign already knows about you and is looking for you specifically, but that doesn’t mean they’ll automatically end up on your site. Competitors may be running ads that show up when users search for your business name, even if they’re not directly targeting it. With Google’s keyword match types, competitors could be bidding on “roofing companies near me,” which might show up when someone searches “American Roofing,” even though they were specifically looking for American Roofing.

00:03:20 [JANET] But if someone is searching “American Roofing” and that’s your business name, shouldn’t they find you?

00:03:24 [JACK] Yes, but a competitor’s ad could still show up, even if they weren’t specifically targeting your name. They could just be targeting broader terms like “roofers near me.”

00:03:34 [JANET] So, just to clarify for our listeners: let’s say my company is “Top Dog Roofing,” and you’re my biggest competitor, “Red Truck Roofing.” Can you actually run an ad targeting “Top Dog Roofing,” which is my company name?

00:04:00 [JACK] Yes, absolutely.

00:04:01 [JANET] This is where my clients are often shocked and then frustrated when they learn this. I’ve even had clients talk about suing competitors over this. It’s like, you’ve invested a lot in your brand name, and someone else can intercept your traffic just by targeting it as a keyword. That’s what you mean by a defensive play?

00:04:27 [JACK] Exactly. They don’t even have to directly target your brand name; they could just be targeting broader terms, and it could still bring up their ads in response to someone searching for your brand.

00:04:54 [JANET] Got it. What are some other reasons? You mentioned offense versus defense, and that you’re a proponent of branded campaigns. Any other reasons you’d recommend them?

00:05:09 [JACK] Another reason is when there’s a competitor in your area with a similar name. Say there’s “Top Dog Roofing” and then “Top Dog Gutters and Roofing.” If someone searches for “Top Dog Roofing,” it might not be clear which business they’re looking for.

00:05:40 [JANET] We actually encountered this with a client recently. They’re a roofing company in Ohio with a unique name. Our SEO specialist noticed that there was a similar-sounding company about 300 miles away, also in Ohio, that was coming up in searches because the names were similar. Is that a good example of when to run a branded campaign to clarify things?

00:06:34 [JACK] Yes, definitely. In that case, even though our client had a unique name, the competitor had a more generic one, which led to some confusion in search results.

00:07:06 [JANET] Right. So, in that instance, a brand campaign helps by making sure people find the right business.

00:07:35 [JACK] Exactly.

00:07:36 [JANET] Any other reasons you’d recommend brand campaigns or other things to consider?

00:07:46 [JACK] Besides defense and name similarity, brand campaigns help maximize visibility on a search page. This builds trust. If someone searches your company and sees an organic result, a Google Business Profile, and a paid ad, it reinforces legitimacy.

00:08:48 [JANET] So, in this example, if someone Googles your company name because they saw your truck, the brand campaign can make sure that paid ad shows up along with your organic and profile listings, creating a more trustworthy impression.

00:09:16 [JACK] Yep. You can also use the paid ad to control the message more than organic search allows. You can highlight key things about your business, like years in business or family-owned status.

00:09:39 [JANET] Would you put a promo on that branded campaign landing page?

00:10:02 [JACK] For branded campaigns, I prioritize reviews and testimonials over promos, as they’re already looking for you. Promos are better for non-branded campaigns where people may be comparing multiple options.

00:10:26 [JANET] Just to clarify, by “branded campaign,” we mean paid search ads on Google triggered by someone typing in your exact company name.

00:10:56 [JACK] Yes, exactly.

00:11:01 [JANET] Good. I like to make things clear. What else should someone consider if they’re interested in a branded campaign?

00:12:10 [JACK] Set clear expectations for metrics like cost per conversion, cost per click, and conversion rates. Since they’re looking for you, brand campaigns should be your most cost-effective campaigns.

00:12:41 [JANET] Got it.

00:12:55 [JACK] For instance, you should have high click-through rates and low cost per click. People already searching for you should easily convert.

00:13:25 [JANET] Exactly. Is there ever a reason not to run a branded campaign, like if you’re brand new and no one knows your name yet?

00:14:10 [JACK] If you’re brand new, focus on non-branded terms to build awareness and get some business first. You can introduce branded campaigns later once you have more recognition.

00:15:02 [JANET] We’ll cover competitor campaigns in a future episode, but would you briefly explain them?

00:15:20 [JACK] Competitor campaigns target specific competitor names, which makes it more of an offensive play. They can work well if you have a strong offer or promo to stand out.

00:16:16 [JANET] Got it. But you can’t put your competitor’s name directly in the ad copy.

00:16:23 [JACK] Correct. That’s against Google’s policies.

00:16:37 [JANET] Anything else on branded campaigns before we wrap up?

00:16:47 [JACK] One last thing: monitor your Search Impression Share, which shows how often your ad appears. Aim for a high percentage, so you’re consistently visible when people search for you.

00:17:52 [JANET] Right. Even if they don’t click on the ad, just seeing your name multiple times reinforces your presence.

00:17:56 [JACK] Exactly.

00:18:10 [JANET] All right! This wraps up another educational episode of Digital Marketing for Contractors. You can find us at Fat Cat Strategies in Raleigh, North Carolina, or online at fatcatstrategies.com. We’d be happy to discuss how we can help with your branded campaigns or overall digital marketing needs. Thanks for joining us, and have a great day!