As we all know, one of the challenges of running a business is determining the best way to inform people about your products and services.
You may have the most professionally designed website. And it may provide excellent sales and/or purchase conversions. However, if you can't get people to visit your website, you won't make any money.
This is where Google Ads comes into the equation.
Google Ads is a powerful digital advertising tool that can put your brand in front of the right people. Plus, using Google Ads can drive more traffic to your site and increase your conversions.
An introduction to Google Ads
Google Ads is a paid advertising service offered by Google. According to 2020 data, nearly 90% of all online searches are conducted on Google. And if you're only looking at mobile data, Google has a market share of over 90%!
In other words, most people use Google to find what they're looking for. And this is Google's value for your business: there are plenty of people who can search for what your business offers.
Wouldn't it be great to take advantage of this and be at the top of search results? Well, you can use Google Ads.
Search ads
Google Ads allows you to prominently place search ads in search results based on the words (i.e., keywords) that people have typed into the search field.
These ads appeared at the top of the page, giving these advertisers prominence over the "organic" search results below. And, depending on the keywords and relevance of your ad (see "Getting Started" below), people are very likely to click on your ad, as it's offering them something they were looking for.
Paid advertising returns €2 for every €1 spent, an ROI of 200%.
Display ads
Google Ads also offers display ads, which are a good complement to search ads. Display ads are image-based ads that appear on websites, like the following example. Let's do our best to place display ads on quality pages and not spam ads; this is another reason to have a professional maintain your campaign. Nothing worse than scrolling through an article full of ads and pop-ups; these ads typically appear in clickstreams.
Display ads are especially great for retargeting. For example, someone clicks on your search ad and goes to your website. You can then place a display ad in front of them when they visit another website after leaving yours. This means more impressions for your business, keeping you ahead of the curve when they're ready to make a purchase.
Using Google Ads for display ads is a powerful way to leverage retargeting strategies in your campaigns.
Other types of ads
Google also offers YouTube video ads and shopping ads that showcase your product among similar products, allowing users to make a purchase directly from your ad.
If your target audience uses Google to search for products and services similar to your company's offerings, using Google Ads can be a powerful tool. Let's look at three main reasons why you might want to invest in this advertising strategy, beyond what we've already discussed.
1. Budget control
When using Google Ads, you have complete control over your budget. Basically, you give Google a daily (or monthly) budget, and once you set your budget, Google won't spend any more of your money. Importantly, you can change the budget, pause the campaign, and make other changes to your ads to ensure you always get a good return on ad spend (ROAS).
2. High conversion rate
Since you're advertising to people who are actively searching for what your business offers, you're reaching people who are ready to make a purchase or are about to make one.
As a result, Google Ads has the highest average conversion rate among all online advertising platforms.
3. Success tracking
Google Ads also makes it easy for you to track the results of your campaigns. By nature, all online advertising includes a large number of metrics you can use to track success. Google Ads is no different, but perhaps better, as it integrates seamlessly with Google Analytics, among other built-in features that give you real-time access to your number of clicks, conversions, impressions, and many other data points. Using Google Analytics may require a trained eye to decipher all the information received; it holds a wealth of essential information for running a successful campaign.
We create custom Google Analytics dashboards for our clients so they can see the most important metrics at a glance instead of wading through the weeds to get the information they need. This is another reason why hiring a digital advertising agency like ours is a better option than doing it yourself.
Either way, you constantly have the information to make the necessary changes and important decisions regarding your campaigns.
Getting started
To start using Google Ads, you only need a Google account. Once you have a Google account, you can start using Google Ads. We don't recommend choosing the automated option offered by Google because there are many considerations to keep in mind when defining your business and advertising campaign. You should also audit your campaign weekly to see what's working and what's not.
If you haven't worked with Google Ads
While it's not impossible to learn Google Ads, it can be daunting if you don't know what you're doing. You can also end up investing a lot of time and money into a campaign that isn't as successful as it could be.
From finding the right keywords and keyword match types to using the right bid adjustments and relevant ad copy to achieve a high ad rank, it's important to know the pros and cons. It's equally important to know the right negative keywords to program so that your ads don't show to the wrong group of people. For example, if you're a plumbing company, you might not want your ads to show to someone searching for DIY plumbing. You want people who are ready to call because they need a product or service you offer. You don't want to waste money on useless clicks.
Therefore, if you're unfamiliar with Google Ads, we recommend working with an agency (like ours!) that can dedicate the time and resources necessary to maximize conversions for your budget. All of our digital advertising specialists are top-level and have the experience to achieve the best ROI for your campaign.
And if you'd like to try it yourself, here are our "Basics for a Great Google Ads Campaign." As you'll see, there are many steps to creating a successful Google Ads campaign. We're always here to help if you find the process too daunting.
Conclusion
Google Ads can be a powerful tool for business owners. This advertising platform can help you put your products and services in front of people who are actively searching for what you offer. And, of course, it helps Google account for approximately 90% of all online search traffic!
In this post, we've looked at three key reasons why you should consider using Google Ads for your business:
Budget control: You can set your own budget and easily control it.
High conversion rate: Using Google Ads has the highest average conversion rate among online advertising platforms.
Success Tracking: Real-time metrics are available whenever you need them, so you can track the success of your campaigns and make changes as needed.
