At Imwave, Inc., we’ve been using SpeedPPC to help create more relevant, tightly structured PPC campaigns in less time than it takes to brew a strong cup of Italian espresso. In the two years we’ve been using SpeedPPC, we’ve seen our quality scores and conversions increase, our bids decrease, and the shortcuts in the Campaign Builder platform have taken the tedium out of building strong adgroups out of heaps of keywords and ads.  Dare we say, this software actually makes building campaigns FUN.  So when the folks at SpeedPPC asked us to test drive their new V5 Cloud version that’s being released on July 2nd, we were happy to take it for a spin and kick the tires.

If you currently don’t use SpeedPPC, then you are lucky: you get to start using this terrific time-saving tool in the updated V5 cloud version to completely revamp how you build your PPC campaigns in a fraction of the time it probably takes you now. V5 has a streamlined layout and a more user-friendly dashboard to help newbies jump in and start building campaigns without the orientation it took learn how to use the old version. But before you just go and download the software and begin poking around, realize that this will probably be a completely new way for you to think about PPC campaign building.  Watch the tutorial videos and read the orientation materials; it will help you utilize SpeedPPC to its maximum potential right from the get-go. Trust us; it’s time well-spent.

For current users of SpeedPPC, here’s a rundown of the improvements with V5:

• Hey MAC users: no more intermediate software plugs to run SpeedPPC! V5 is completely compatible with MAC systems.
• Three words: Cloud Campaign Storage. That’s right; V5 is online, which means all your files are accessible. I don’t know about you, but having V5 in the cloud is a big deal around here. Not only can we access our campaigns from any computer anywhere we are (nice), we can also access the campaigns created by other members of our team so we can pick up the ball without emailing files or putting it on a share drive (nicer).
• The new dashboard & look. We didn’t realize how outdated and ‘old’ V4.5.4 looked until we saw the ‘Extreme Makeover’ level facelift on V5. 

Now, instead of opening the software right to the campaign builder tool, you enter a summary dashboard that shows you your recent activity and an updated news ticker from SpeedPPC.  From the V5 dash, you can click into your recent campaigns, start a campaign, or jump into other tools available (more on those in a moment). 

And, fellow existing SpeedPPC users, you’ll notice the look is drastically different than our tried and true V4.5.4-in a good way. The lighter colors, expanded toolbar (which you can now minimize if you don’t want to use all the bells/whistles offered), and streamlined layout are more pleasant to work with than the previous version.

• Ad Setup: Okay, little things make us happy. Like having a preview window on the standard Ad Setup tab of the campaign builder so you know what the ad is going to look like before you output the whole campaign and find out you don’t like the structure.

• Research reports: There’s a new tab on V5 cloud edition’s toolbar that you’re going to want to check out, and that’s the Research tab.  Under here, you’ll find a selection of keyword research reports that you can help to flesh out your existing keywords, find under-utilized keywords for a specific URL, and also see what your competitors are bidding on related to your keyword/URL. Like most of you, we currently use a few different sources to data mine this info and incorporate in our PPC campaigns, so to have the ability to pull these reports and incorporate them right into the campaign builder with a push of a button is a big time-saver.  

We’ve played around with all the reports and have found them helpful, but beware; some of them cost credits for every keyword returned. You’ll notice in V5 that a message listing your Research Credits level is displayed in the upper right corner of the dashboard; credits will be deducted for each report that requires credits. Out of the 7 available reports, only 4 require credits.  Since all customers start with 500 credits and it can cost you 40-50 credits per keyword, you can burn through that pulling one report. Recharging credits is easy and relatively inexpensive ($15 for 200,000 credits) so don’t let the credit thing throw you. Definitely take that first 500 free credits and play around with the research reports to see if they can add value to your PPC campaign building.

• Another improvement in SpeedPPC V5 is what hasn’t changed from the old version. Unlike other software updates that throw the good out with the bad, SpeedPPC didn’t take away what worked from V4.5.4. All the tried and true tools that old-school SpeedPPC users have come to know and love like the dynamic keyword insertion tokens and the ability to incorporate Broad Match Modifier keywords into your campaigns are still in V5 and still work just as well.

Thanks to Jay Stockwell and the folks at SpeedPPC for letting us beta-test SpeedPPC V5 cloud edition. If our Campaign Managers have anything to say about it, you’re not getting it back. You’ll have to pry it from our cold, dead fingers. If you want your own, check out www.speedppc.com and download the new version on July 2nd.  Once you get it up and running, let us know what you think about it.

Written by Kelley Gibson, Marketing Manager @ Imwave.com