With over 4 billion users, using Google as a channel to advertise is one of the best opportunities to increase traffic, awareness, and conversions. Not only does Google have a reach unmatched anywhere else on the internet, but their paid ads enable you to target the exact type of person your business aims to serve from location and interests to past behavior. Google Ads can be transformative. However, it’s not always that simple. Utilizing your budget to run a successful campaign takes diligence. Follow these six tips to ensure you’re making the most of the money you spend on Google Ads.
Define your goals
Setting clear objectives is a crucial starting point when using Google Ads. Doing so will bring clarity to your decision making, the type of campaign you carry out, and the structure of your ad visuals and copy. Google has a number of campaign goal options to choose from including web traffic, sales, leads, and brand awareness or reach.Once you’ve set your objective, also outline a few key performance indicators to help you measure your success. The total number of clicks is a good starting point. It will indicate how effective your keywords are and whether your campaign is reaching the right audience. The click through rate (CTR) is the percentage of your impressions that click on the ad. Comparing the CTR across campaigns will help yield the most effective ones and show you the strategies that are working.For ad campaigns oriented towards conversions, track your cost per conversion. This will be the overarching measure of whether your budget is being used in the right way. Many factors outlined in this guide contribute to a quality cost per conversion rate—appealing copy, quality landing pages, and more.
Increase your campaign optimization score
Pay close attention to your campaign optimization score and follow Google’s advice to increase it as much as possible. The campaign optimization score is rated from 0 to 100% and estimates how well your ads will perform. Whether you want to maximize conversions or get a large number of impressions, the “Recommendations” tab on Google will give you suggestions to optimize your ads based on the score you have.Recommendations can include adding extensions to your ads, finding an effective bid strategy, and automating your campaigns to perform better. Treat your optimization score as a high priority and your Google Ads account will be well on its way to reaching full potential.
Refine your ad copy
Vigorously editing and refining your ad copy will ensure your Google Ads perform at an optimal level. When it comes to headlines and descriptions, there’s little room to ramble on. Be concise and get to the heart of what you offer. Use specific numbers whenever possible, as they will make your call to action more enticing.Make sure your ad copy is done in a similar style to your landing page and the rest of your website. Google Ads will often be someone’s first impression of your business. Let your brand’s voice shine through, but don’t go overboard or get too fancy. Most importantly, scan your copy and make sure the right keywords appear in the headline and description of the ad.
Utilize video ads
Your ad campaigns can go beyond photos and written descriptions. Videos are a great way to add another dimension to your ads and capture viewers’ attention. This will be especially useful if you have an audience that uses YouTube.There are a number of video ad formats available through Google on YouTube. Bumper videos are ads that viewers don’t have the ability to skip, but must be six seconds or shorter. Skippable in-stream videos are ones that users can skip after five seconds, and lastly, non-skippable in-stream ads are ones which must be watched all the way through.
Optimize landing pages
You can spend months refining your Google Ads to be visually appealing, well-written, and displayed to the right audience. However, if your landing page isn’t equally impressive, you still aren’t making the most of your opportunity.The messages and keywords in your Google Ads should be aligned with the landing page they send users to. Once a user makes the choice to click on your advertisement, make sure they aren’t disappointed with what they see next. Landing pages are often the final destination before making a conversion. Poorly executed calls to action and irrelevant content will put your Google Ads efforts to waste.
Hire professionals
Running a successful Google Ads campaign is a daunting task for beginners. Hiring an agency with paid ads experience will be the best way to make sure you’re getting the most of your investment. Consider teams that have worked in your industry before and have proven results and case studies to show you.Just like any other aspect of working with a marketing team, clear communication is important when working on Google Ads. Make sure your partners are aware of your goals and regularly check in with you on how the ads perform. Campaigns can be planned out well in advance—set clear budgets and expectations on what you want to get from them.
Key takeaways
Creating effective Google Ads can bring awareness to your business, drive conversions, and enhance your presence online. By setting clear expectations, following best quality practices when creating ads, and working with an experienced team, you can make your Google Ads spending worth every penny.
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