Which of the following two ads gives you the most useful information?

"Women's Water Shoes
Go Stylish! Ultra-Light. Anti-Slip.
Lady Form-Fit. Funky fabrics. Save."

or...

"Women's Water Shoes
Go Stylish! Ultra-Light. Anti-Slip.
Lady Form-Fit. Funky fabrics $17.87"

The second ad pulled significantly more buyers than the first. The only difference is the inclusion of price in the second ad.

Because of its greater attractiveness, and the way that Google rewards ads with a greater Quality Score, the average per-click cost was 17% less for the second ad. That's a huge saving in a market where you need every advantage you can grab.

The second ad resulted in a campaign that brought increasing numbers of buyers. Buyers who knew a great deal about the client's product (women's water shoes) before they had even clicked on the ad. What's more, there are other great benefits of putting price in your ad text. What are they?

- Potential buyers are less likely to click on your ad if they're unwilling to pay the price you're asking. This is actually to your advantage, as it saves you money; you avoid expensive clicks from time-wasters.

- Your ad is likely to attract significantly more attention than competing ads which aren't providing price information.

But what if you've a number of products or varieties on a single web-page, and it's impossible to create one ad covering them all? Break your ads down into more targeted groups. And mention the item's price in each ad. This is an under-used strategy that costs you absolutely nothing.

After you've decided to include price in your ad text, the next question to ask yourself is this; what price should I display?

Here's the interesting result of a study by legendary marketer and copywriter Ted Nicholas, who has tested pricing extensively;

Ted reports that prices ending in the number 7 work better than any other number. For example, instead of $8.99, try $8.97 (or even better - $8.87).

Rather than $179, try $187.

You're likely to find your response improves by using this simple technique alone. Who else knows this? Go down to your local Wal-Mart (you'd expect them to know a thing or two about prices that work).

Take a look at their prices. How many end in the number 7?

There's a reason the number 7 is considered lucky by most people. Try it yourself - you might be pleasantly surprised. See if 7's a winning digit for you, in your quest for that ever-critical Google advertising edge.