Convert & Upload Google Campaigns into Yahoo

1. Open the Adwords Editor and download the newest version of your account

2. Export desired campaigns, if not all, to as .csv file

3. Open the exported csv file in Excel

4. Remove all negative keywords(without sorting)(

• Select All(Ctrl A)
• Turn on the “Filter”

• Filter the “Keyword Type” column to only include negative keywords

• Once only the Negative Keywords are showing select all rows(excluding row 1) and delete.
• Clear the filter

5. Save file as UNICODE TEXT and click YES on the warning screen that pops up after clicking save

6. Close the file in excel and DO NOT save changes

7. Login to your

8. Click the Campaigns Tab

9. Click on the “Import” link

10. Click on “Convert Third Party Campaigns”

11. Hit the browse button

12. Find the unicode txt file you saved and Click once to edit the file name.  Add .cvs to the end(VERY IMPORTANT).

13. Select the file and click “Open” to add the file into the converting box

14.  Once you receive the confirmation screen, click on return to import history

15.  Open the converted file and look at the error columns.  If there are no errors you are done, if you have errors see below.

POSSIBLE ERRORS

Error Message: The Short Description Is Too Long. Please Enter A Valid Short Description. This means that your 70 character ad in Google turned into a 71 character Ad in Yahoo, because Yahoo forces a period at the end of every ad. Play with your ad and get it to fit within the 70 character limit with a period. Yes, exclamation and questions marks are fine too.

Error Message: The Keyword ________ Was Not Added Because It Is Covered By An Existing Keyword In Your Ad Group.

This means that your keywords is already somewhere in the account, and Yahoo won’t allow duplicates. If you really want it in there twice, call your rep and ask to have your account switched to an umbrella account, with a new account opened as a child account (there will probably be small fee involved). Redo the campaign import with the new account instead of the original account. (Remember you’ll need to load conversion tracking for the new account)

Error Message: Cannot Determine Which Campaign/Ad Group Is The Parent

I really hate this one. It means that you probably tried sorting the columns when working on a project and didn’t put it back precisely the way it was. Unless you’re working with only one or two accounts, it’s usually fastest just to start over.
If you want to learn from mistakes when you create an AdWords account, try to avoid these top ten mistakes:

1. Neglecting to add negative keywords. It just kills me when I look into their analytics account, if they have one, and see all the irrelevant search phrases that are generating clicks. What a waste of advertising spend!
2. Cramming hundreds of keywords into one ad group. Although the Long Tail strategy is on its way out, so the industry experts say, breaking out keywords into specific ad groups is just plain good organization. In addition, tailoring text ads to just a few keywords more often than not increase CTR and quality score. Who wouldn’t want that?
3. No conversion tracking. This maybe the one that gets me the most riled up. How is anyone supposed to know which keywords are generating leads and/or sales?
4. For Ecomm websites, no revenue tracking. So what if a keyword generated 20 sales today at a $5 CPA if the revenue generated per product is $2? Without revenue tracking, you really don’t know the worth of a keyword and you could be over bidding on a keyword that generates revenue less than both hard costs and advertising costs.
5. Using just one match type. Although you will find PPC marketers that will swear that broad match is the way to go, then you will find others that will say phrase match is the winner, and then there are always those that are exact match fans. Well, in my opinion, it all depends on the account. Regardless of which match type works best in an account, all three types have their advantages and should be tested.
6. Every destination URL is going to the homepage. Searchers need to be directed to what they are looking for. Although the website designer and web savvy individuals may be able to navigate your website easily, there are many people out there that get overwhelmed with beefy navigation and too many options. In order to decrease drop off rate, it’s best to direct visitors to the product they want to buy, and maybe a few “suggested items” on the side for an up-sell opportunity.
7. Only one advertisement per ad group. In the world of SEM, we live by the motto “test, test, and test again”. Especially in newer account, I always set Ad serving to Rotate. This way the ads are served evenly I can give each ad I write a fighting chance. If the ad looses, just write another ad and test it against the winner. Rinse and Repeat.
8. Why is the Content Network a default? This may be a bold statement, but the content does not work for every account, especially when it is not refined. I would advise any new AdWords advertiser to turn the Content Network off until they know how to optimize the campaigns that will work in the Network.
9. Adding the wrong keywords. The keyword tool is great if used correctly. Sometimes people see so many great keywords and they add the whole list of search terms, even though some words are really not qualified.
10. Not taking advantage of Ad scheduling. B2B companies typically don’t advertise on weekends because of the unqualified traffic. Display your ads when your customers are most likely to convert.

After you correct these errors you need to re-download the Yahoo template and paste ONLY the corrected items. Then…

• In Excel, Click On “Save As” And Save The Template File As A .Csv File With A Different Name Than The Imported Campaign (Even If You Haven’T Saved The Imported Campaign)
• Again, Click Yes On The Warning Window That Says Formatting May Not Be Compatible With Unicode Text
• Close The File Without Saving Changes
• In The Yahoo Interface Click On The Browse Buttons On The Import Campaigns Tab
• Hit The Browse Button And Find The File To Upload
• Click Once And Add .csv To The End Of The File Name
• Give It Any Import Name (Can Be Identical To Your Conversion File Name) And Click Upload
• Once You Receive The Confirmation Screen, Click On Return To Import History
• You Will See The Status Be Labeled As “In Progress” For A While. Refresh Every 10-15 Seconds Until Completed

It’s possible that you get an additional error file, but it should be smaller than the original. Keep repeating the above steps until all errors are gone and you’ll be done! Congratulations!

Keep in mind some important issues:

• Bulk uploads are limited to 10mb/day/account.
• A day is defined by 24 hours, not a business or working day.
• If you are making account updates instead of 3rd party conversions, DO NOT try to upload anything that you don’t intend changing. Attempts can kick back error messages that will make things tedious.