What Is The Most Expensive Keyword To Bid On?

By Logan Schmidt

Think you’re getting bamboozled by the high cost per click you’re paying? It might just be your industry and the keywords you’re bidding on. We’ve found that the price of the keyword really depends on the industry you’re bidding on, and how competitive that industry is. There are also a number of other factors tied in, such as the location you are targeting and the volume of the search terms related to your keywords. However, the most important factor in the bid price on a keyword is the lifetime value of a customer in that industry. The most expensive keywords come from industries that can afford to spend the most on acquiring a new customer. Basically, if you’re in an industry with notoriously high products or services, with high competition, and in a prime location, your cost per click is going to be high. Think of it this way: if you could potentially earn tens, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars over your customer’s lifetime, wouldn’t you be willing to bid over $40 a click? With that being said, be prepared to whip out the checkbook if you’re in an industry that deals with insurance, lawsuits, mortgages, loans, education, and B2B software applications. We use a number of different software applications that assist us with our keyword research, such as SEMrush. Here are a few examples with their cost per click:

Fortunately for all you financiers, lawyers, and insurance agents, there is hope! This is where working with an accomplished digital marketing agency  can really help. There are a number of strategies we can take advantage of that can greatly benefit companies in these expensive industries.

One of the most important things to do is to eliminate clicks that most likely will not lead to any conversions. We can do this by choosing very descriptive keywords that relate specifically to your business. If you’re a criminal defense attorney in Naperville, IL, you may want to add your location and an adjective to your keywords, such as “DUI attorney in Naperville.” That way, you wouldn’t have to lose $36.38 a click for “criminal defense attorney” when someone is really looking for a defense attorney in Evanston, IL.

Landing pages are especially important in these industries. Even if you are a great criminal defense attorney in Naperville, you still need an awesome PPC landing page that describes exactly what you do and how you can help the searcher. Searchers might still bounce your page if they can’t navigate it or don’t immediately find what they are searching for, which will leave you paying a lot of money for unconverted clicks.

Another PPC aspect you definitely can’t afford to overlook, especially if you’re in these industries, is your quality score. If your quality score is low, then you will be paying a lot more to have your ad in one of the top spots on Google. It is especially important in these industries to have a high-quality score because the higher it is, the less you will pay for those top spots.

There you have it- the most expensive keywords to bid on and a few strategies to help if your business is in these industries. Always remember that every strategy should be measured and tested over time in order to achieve the greatest results.

For businesses in the industries mentioned above, using negative keywords can help decrease your cost-per-click when used correctly. Learn more by downloading our free e-book!