Google ads can be a daunting prospect. On the one hand, you’ve likely heard how Google’s AdWords service is a market leader in online advertising and you want a piece of that action. On the other hand, there seem to be so many variables and options when setting up new google ads just to get your ad campaign up and running that you wonder where you should start.
We’re here to help, with our guide to everything you always wanted to know about Google Ads (but were afraid to ask).
What are Google ads?
At their most basic, Google ads are the sponsored listings that you find at the top of any given Google search. New Google ads are created through Google AdWords, the company’s own advertising platform, and are built around keywords. If a search matches those keywords (as well as certain other parameters, such as location) then the advert will be displayed to the user. Google ads are promoted on a Pay-Per-Click (or PPC) basis. This means that the advertiser only incurs a fee if a user clicks on their sponsored post as a result of their search. You’re not limited to a single advert as part of your campaign. New Google ads are posted all the time, either as one-off promotions, or part of an ongoing campaign.
The fundamentals of Google ads
Google ads are the most popular PPC marketing method in the world, and with good reason. Quite aside from Google’s impressive market share in terms of search engine usage, the Google AdWords model has proven most effective for all sizes of business. However, there are some key areas of the process that you should familiarise yourself with before churning out reams of new Google ads for your business.
Bidding strategies
When a suitable search is run on Google that matches your keywords, your new Google ads are placed into an auction to determine whether they will be shown to the potential customer. You get to choose what your budget is for these auctions and need to develop a bidding strategy that matches your overall objective. For instance, you might want to focus on impressions (how often your new Google ads appear in search results), clicks (how often traffic is redirected to your site), or acquisitions (how much of that new traffic is converted to sales).
Quality score
This is all down to you. Your Google ads will link to a landing page on your website, either for the product in question, or a specific promotion. Google monitors these landing pages carefully and determines whether they provide a good user experience to the customer. Relevant and professional websites will score well in this department, with the respective Google ads placing higher in search results, even if you’re not the highest bidder. That makes this a crucial area to get right, prior to any advertising campaign.
Ad rank
This determines where your Google ads fall in terms of their positioning on the search results. The higher your ad rank, the more prominently your new Google ads are displayed. While many of Google’s algorithms are complex devices, this is one of the simplest, being your quality score multiplied by your bid. As you will see, even a modest bidding budget can generate high conversion rates when coupled with a good site, with relevant content.
Benefits of using Google Ads
Google AdWords boasts many benefits for its user, from multinational corporations to sole trading entrepreneurs.
Flexibility
With dozens of customisable options available, both for the search algorithms and the adverts display, Google ads are easily one of the most flexible marketing solutions on offer. Not only can your ads be targeted to specific regions and demographics, but they can be amended in real-time if they are failing to perform.
Speed
Standard search engine optimisation (SEO) techniques can take months to build momentum and show verifiable results. Not so with Google AdWords, which can start displaying your new Google ads almost instantaneously. With its various measurement and tracking tools on offer, you can start to see how effective your ad campaign is almost immediately.
Reach
Compared to most other advertising media, Google’s reach is unprecedented. As the most popular search engine on the planet, it is used by over two-thirds of internet users as their primary search engine. Is that the kind of market share you can afford to miss out on?
Relevance
An often forgotten benefit of Google AdWords is its relevance. Every Google ad is displayed in direct response to a search term. In other words, somebody seeing your advert is likely to be already interested in your product and service. This kind of automatic targeting yields considerably higher results than most other advertising strategies.
Creating new Google ads that work
Google AdWords is a powerful tool, but your success depends a lot on how you structure your campaign. Here are some tips to maximise the results of your new Google ads.
Keyword selection
By far the most important factor is choosing keywords that are truly relevant. Google AdWords includes a number of tools that can help you determine which keywords are most likely to bear positive results, but sometimes a bit of old-fashioned market research among your existing customers can be beneficial here.
Target your audience
When entering your keywords, don’t just be thinking of the product. Think also of the audience to whom your product is targeted. If you sell products aimed at women, for instance, then you will want to include that in your campaign, to prevent your adverts appearing in the results of the wrong demographic and wasting an auction bid.
Quality copy
The keywords only determine whether or not your advert is displayed. You still have to entice your potential customer to click on the link with arresting and compelling sales copy.
Remember your USPs
Every business has their Unique Selling Proposition – something they can provide that rival companies cannot. Google ads are all about setting yourself apart from the crowd and this can be achieved by putting your USP front and centre.
At anova, we have been helping clients maximise their results from Google ads for years. Get in touch today if you need assistance with your own digital marketing strategy.
