Google Ads helps expand marketing reach and increase sales for small and big businesses. However, not everyone is taking advantage of this platform because it doesn’t seem user-friendly to beginners.
Signing up is simple, though. The essential requirement is a Google account. The tricky step, however, is managing your advertising campaigns. With the steps below, running your search engine ads becomes manageable.
Categorize Your Offers
Unless your brand is a household name, search engine users aren’t likely to look for your company. Instead, they’re after products or services. It’s only fitting that you focus on your offers first when you plan your search ads.
If you have multiple offers, it’s best to pinpoint your main categories. Afterward, sort your products and services into suitable groups.
Categories are vital in structuring your ads later on. In Google Ads, you have two ad structures to choose from: campaigns and ad groups.
- Campaigns are for broad categories of your offers.
- Ad groups are for specific products or services.
Determine Your Advertising Budget
Marketing aims to boost your revenue. However, that ceases to be the case when you spend so much on ads but get very little in return. So, before you dive into paid search advertising, you should set a budget.
On your first advertising attempt, distribute your budget evenly among your ad campaigns. Later, you can adjust the amount you allocate depending on your campaigns’ performances.
One advantage of using Google Ads is its cost-effectiveness, especially its pay-per-click scheme. If you’re concerned about clicks from bots, Google has an Ad Traffic Quality Team that detects such fraudulent activities.
The cost of each click depends on several factors, such as your bid and quality score.
- The bid is the price you’re willing to pay.
- The quality score measures your keywords’ relevance to your ad and site.
Choose Your Keywords
A keyword is a word or phrase that someone uses to search online for information, a product, or a service. Digital Authority Partners said that keyword research is the foundation of a successful search ad campaign.
Keyword research lets you know the most commonly used terms when searching for a product like yours. It also shows you which keywords have potential but don’t have a high bidding price for paid search advertising.
Keyword selection is a complex step because you need to pick something that is neither too broad nor too specific. Footwear is an example of a keyword that’s too broad.
If you’re selling sports shoes, choose “running sneakers” or “sports shoes” instead. You can also use “blue sports shoes” or “sports shoes for women.” However, “size eight brand new red US-made running shoes” is already too specific.
Overly specific keywords lead to problems like:
- Low organic traffic
- High bounce rates
- Low conversion rates.
Through keyword research, you can avoid such problems. Use Google Ads’ Keyword Planner for this task.
Optimize Ads for Localized Campaigns
It’s hard to rank high in search results if you’re also competing with sites worldwide. It’s also more expensive in the long run. Imagine if your site visitors were from other countries who aren’t likely to visit your establishment.
Limiting your ad’s reach to the people within or near the area makes sense if you manage a clinic, restaurant, or another type of local establishment. Take advantage of geotargeting and location-related keywords for localized PPC campaigns.
For example, target keywords like “bookstores near me” or “bookstore Chicago IL” for search engines to show you in searches done in your area.
Write Your Copy
Keywords alone aren’t going to put your ad in Google search results. It would help if you came up with a sales copy that will convince the search engine algorithms that you have a quality offer. More importantly, your copy should persuade your target market to take your suggestions.
Here are some copywriting tips:
- Highlight product features and benefits.
- Include relevant statistics.
- Add a clear call to action. (Examples: Buy now or Contact us.)
- Ask for feedback.
- Don’t stuff it with keywords.
Link a Suitable Landing Page
Your website should be ready before you sign up for Google Ads. Your site should have a sales page where customers can buy products, or an online form where they can book a service or an appointment.
Then, your ad copy should include a link to your website where you want users to sign up, call, buy, or set up an appointment. That part of your site is called the landing page.
Pick Your Key Performance Indicators
Based on your marketing goals, decide on your key performance indicators (KPIs), which help you determine if your campaigns are doing well. For example, if your main objective is to increase site visits, your KPIs should include click-through rate, organic traffic, and paid traffic.
Other examples of KPIs are as follows:
- Ranking on search engine results pages
- Average engagement time
- Number of backlinks
- Bounce rate
Google Analytics sums up the statistics for your ads. You may measure your KPIs based on the collected data.
If your KPIs show positive results, you can sustain your campaigns. If the results are poor, you may stop your ads to avoid further losses.
Assess and Update Your Campaign Accordingly
As much as possible, do an assessment once every two weeks. Examine your campaigns’ success based on your chosen KPIs. Also, review feedback from customers who see your ads.
After assessing your ads, gradually reduce or tweak your marketing campaigns. You can also consider adjusting your bidding price for specific keywords.
Aside from your ads, evaluate your website as well. Check your site’s accessibility. Go over your links too.
From here, make the necessary changes to your website. These may involve removing dead links or updating contact information.
Summing Up
For a first-timer, using Google Ads may prove intimidating. However, you can carry out the steps discussed above to simplify the management of your search engine ads.
It’s worth noting that your Google Ads campaigns may not yield significant results right away. If you need further guidance on how to run your search engine ads, consider hiring a PPC consultant.
