When we first started working with Making It to the Finish Line (MITTFL), I wondered how they would work out with a Google AdWords grant. MITTFL is a non-profit focused on empowering young women in Metro Detroit. In my experience teaching AdWords, it works best when you can describe concrete benefits that fill concrete needs. Empowerment just did not sound very concrete in either direction.

I underestimated both MITTFL and the student team. MITTFL had numerous concrete programs and product offerings. As outlined in the presentation linked at the start of this post, three of the most prominent were:

• Special Moments, a Free Prom Dress Program: Contestants write an essay on a topic like career goals to become eligible to win a prom dress. In 2009, there were over 100 winners.
• The Cotillion Button: This trinket, worn at cotillions, costs under $10 making a perfect inexpensive gift opportunity that has the added benefit of supporting a worthy cause.
• Resume Writing Workshops

Students targeted AdWords campaigns for the first two at a national audience and the last at Metro Detroit. Their key learnings include:

• Highly targeted, specific campaigns work best (somewhat of a mantra for the class, but it's nice to see it reaffirmed in practice).
• Using keywords in the title and domain name significantly increased the likelihood that searchers would click.
• Spelling and grammatical mistakes in an ad are lethal.
• Landing pages for the AdWords ads will likely also work best when they adhere to these principles and present all their information in one clear screenful of information.
  

The good thing in these observations is not that their novel but that students put them to such good use in creating effective campaigns. The student team for Fall 2009 included:

• Eric Wortman
• Darius Smith
• Zach Howell
  
• Rendell Bailey