Introduction
There’s a lot of information out there about Google Ads. It can be overwhelming to figure out which tools are best and what steps you should take first. This guide is here to help! We’ll walk through the process of setting up your first Google Adwords campaign, choosing the right keywords, writing ads that people actually click on, and more.
What is Google Ads?
If you’re a business owner, Google Ads (formerly known as AdWords) is your tool for connecting with potential customers when they’re searching on Google or YouTube. When someone searches for products or services related to your business and finds one of your ads, you have the chance to show them that what you offer is exactly what they’re looking for—and then convince them to buy from you instead of the competition.
Google Ads can help you find new customers, grow your business and increase sales. It’s free to join AdWords and start advertising today!
Google Ads Best Practices
Now that you know the basics, it’s time to take your Google Ads game to the next level. Here are some best practices for getting more out of your ads:
- Use the right keywords. While you don’t want to go overboard with it, incorporate keywords into your ad copy whenever possible. They’ll help people find what they’re looking for when they search on Google (which is always a good thing), and can improve the quality score of your ads as well.
- Use the right image(s). Images should be relevant to the product or service being offered, which means that if you’re offering furniture services in Chicago, posting an image of someone sitting outside on a sunny day would not be appropriate! But if you sell furniture online and have no storefronts in Chicago itself? You might consider using something like this photo instead:
- Use a clear call-to-action (CTA). A clear CTA will let potential customers know exactly how they can buy whatever it is that you’re selling without having them go through any unnecessary steps in between seeing the ad and finalizing their purchase decision—which means less friction and more sales!
Google Ads Terms to Know
- AdWords: The name of Google’s advertising platform, which is used to buy and manage ads across Google’s products.
- AdGroup: A group of ads with the same targeting criteria, usually related to a single product or service.
- Keywords: The words and phrases that you choose to show your ad on search results pages in response to users’ queries.
- Bid: The amount you’re willing to pay each time a user clicks on your ad (the highest bid wins).
- Cost Per Click (CPC): The cost you pay each time someone clicks on your ad when it appears in response to their query – calculated by dividing total costs by total clicks.
- Cost Per Impression (CPM): The cost per 1,000 impressions served, calculated by dividing total costs by total Impressions Delivered.”
- Cost Per Action (CPA): The cost per user action, calculated by dividing total costs by the number of conversions. For example, if you pay $30 for a user to click on your ad and then make a purchase on your website within 30 days, that’s a Cost Per Action of $0.10
- Conversion: A conversion is any action that you want to happen on your site, like signing up for a newsletter or making a purchase.
- Return on investment (ROI): The amount of profit you make after deducting costs from the revenue generated by an ad campaign. For example, if your ad campaign generated $1,000 in revenue and cost $500 to run, your ROI would be 50%.
- Lead Attribution: Lead attribution allows you to determine which channels and tactics are working well for you and which need improvement.
Google Ads Retargeting
You can also use Google Ads retargeting to reach people who have visited your site. This is called remarketing and it uses an ad that shows up on the Display Network or YouTube, reminding those who saw it before to return to your website. These ads are often triggered by cookies, meaning they show up based on what people search for or click on when they’re browsing the web, rather than being targeted by demographic data.
There are several different types of remarketing, so you need to know which one is right for you:
- Search campaign remarketing (formerly known as Dynamic Search Ads) – these ads appear when someone searches for a keyword related to your product or service. They’re very effective because they get their message in front of someone already interested in what you offer!
- Display campaign remarketing (formerly known as Custom Audiences) – these ads appear on websites unrelated to yours thanks to cookies installed during someone’s initial visit. For example if someone visited [your website](https://www.website1/.com/) once but didn’t buy anything then later visited [another website](https://www.website2/.com/) where both sites have agreed with Google permission was given beforehand then Google knows who this person is without having any way of knowing specifically which site he/she came from! When visiting either domain again this person may see one of these “remind me” messages prompting them back over into purchasing mode again.”
Choosing the Right Keywords
Choosing the right keywords is extremely important. When you choose the wrong keywords, you won’t get any results. The first step is to choose relevant keywords. Your ad will show for searches that are relevant to your business, so it’s important that you select them carefully.
Next, you’ll want to choose keywords with high volume of searches and low competition (the number of other advertisers bidding on that keyword). This will help ensure that people see your ad when they search for your product or service and make purchases from your company.
Finally, think about conversion rate—that is, how many clickers actually buy something after clicking an ad? You’ll also want a high conversion rate so that people who see your ads end up buying what they’re looking for instead of just clicking around aimlessly or leaving Google completely empty handed!
It’s also important not to overlook long tail keywords like “pets” instead of just “dogs.” This increases relevancy while letting potential customers know exactly what kind of information they can expect from this particular result page before even visiting it–which could increase conversions significantly over time by attracting more qualified visitors who may otherwise have been unaware about certain products/services available online due “SEO” efforts taken place beforehand during initial stages before launching campaign (such as placing ads through alternative channels such as Facebook Ads).
How to Use Google Ads
When you’re ready to set up Google Ads, the first step is to sign up for an account. The good news is that this process is fairly simple and only takes a few minutes. You’ll need to provide some basic information about your business and then Google will walk you through the steps of setting up an ad campaign, ad group, and ad. Here’s what they look like:
Step 1: Sign up for an account. Step 2: Enter basic business information and click “Next Step.”
Step 3: Enter your billing information, click “Next Step.” Step 4: Fill out your ad details and click “Next Step.”
Step 5: Choose a campaign and ad group. Step 6: Enter your location and name your ad group. You can also specify if you want the ads to run on mobile devices only or not at all. Then click “Continue”.
Conclusion
There’s a lot to learn about Google Ads and it can be pretty overwhelming. The good news is that you don’t have to be an expert in order to get started with AdWords. Google does a great job of keeping their interface simple and easy-to-follow, but there are still some things you should know before jumping in feet first.
I hope this guide has helped clarify some of those initial questions or doubts that might have been holding back your decision on whether or not it’s worth investing in Google Ads as part of your marketing strategy.