IMHO, Canadian businesses are at a disadvantage compared to Americans. It’s the little things that complicate life, especially for small firms that don’t have the time or resources to properly deal with it.
Today, I discovered a new trap for Canadians who advertise on Google AdWords to Americans like we do. We advertise heavily outside of Canada, especially for print-bingo.com since the vast vast majority of it’s customers are from outside of Canada*.
The hidden trap? Competitors who don’t buy ad placements for Canadians searching on Google. Let me clarify.
Like every good marketer, I check my ad placements for a key search terms. Google is smart and knows that I’m searching from Canada. So it only shows me ads for businesses (i.e. competitors) that have explicitly enabled their campaigns to play in Canada. Many American firms won’t do this, so I never see their ads.
Long story short, I just realized that when people in America (and elsewhere) search Google for terms that we bid on, our advertising placement is lower than what I see when I make the search!
To test this, find a way to browse the web from an American IP address. I used a (private) proxy server. If you’re not that technically inclined? Ask an American friend. Or maybe find a free proxy based in the US? Or maybe hire us, Perceptus Solutions Inc., for a consult.
So, watch out Canadians. If you’re not checking, your web advertising placements in the USA might not be what you think they are!
Someday I’ll blog about a few other Canadian issues we’ve had, especially how we reduced our currency exchange fees last year. Hint: Google gives really fair exchange rates.
* Yay! I guess we’re an “exporter”!