Paid advertising with Google is necessary if you’re in a competitive market, but learning how to manage campaigns is essential to success.
Online advertising allows you to reach potential customers every time they use a search engine to look for a solution to a problem. (Hint: That problem could be as sophisticated as needing new accounting software or as simple as wanting to order tonight’s pizza.)
With Google Ads reaching 80 per cent of global internet users, they have the potential to drive returns for your business. If you want to be competitive in your market, they’re vital to building awareness and reaching new audiences.
Google estimates businesses receive $8 in profit for every $1 they spend on Google Ads, making them a smart bet. Getting started means getting familiar with Google Adwords, a powerful platform that can deliver your ads to precisely targeted audiences.
Whatever you sell, your digital marketing strategy should likely include paid advertising on Google Adwords (also known as pay-per-click, or PPC, advertising). And, unless you have a robust marketing team to manage all the components of an effective Google Adwords strategy, you’re likely going to want to find a reliable expert to partner with for the best success.
How do Google Ads work?
Google Ads is an online advertising platform where businesses can create and show ads to people searching for products or services. You choose keywords related to your business and your ads can appear when someone searches for those keywords.
You’ll need to bid on specific keywords and compete with other businesses vying for the same potential audiences. Tapping into professional expertise for this step is a gamechanger for most businesses. Without a solid keyword strategy and insights into the bidding process, you may struggle to gain traction.
Google will show your ad to different users based on your bid amount, its relevance to their search and other factors most users find murky. (Google deliberately doesn’t tell companies exactly how to be successful, so some trial and error is involved.)
When you have the right strategy, and the right partner helping to execute it, Google Adwords will drive traffic to your website and give you a good chance of converting these new visitors into customers.
Making it work: Advantages and challenges of Google Ads
Navigating the benefits and drawbacks of using Google Adwords will help you understand how much is involved in creating impactful ad campaigns and what resources you may need to invest for the best results.
Advantages of using Google Ads for your business
There’s no denying the powerful impact of being able to advertise to targeted audiences within a huge group of users. Some of the advantages of working with Google Ads are:
- Precise targeting
Using specific keywords, demographics and other factors will help you reach searchers likely to become customers, using your ad budgets to the best effect. - Massive reach
There’s no denying Google’s capacity to reach huge audiences. You’ll still need to target the right people, but the chances they’re using Google to search is very high. - Ability to set budgets for campaigns
If you’re worried about affordability, you’ll be happy to know you can set budgets for each of your campaigns to cap the costs. - Metrics and analytics
Much of the value of Google Adwords is the depth of insights available from the built-in analytics. - Wide variety of ad formats
Showcasing your products or services in the best manner is imperative. Google Ads has many ways to make your ads stand out, from different ad formats to extensions that expand visibility. - Remarketing
You can reinforce brand awareness with potential customers by running remarketing campaigns that show your ads to people who have previously interacted with your website or app.
Challenges faced by businesses using Google Ads
Even with the enormous potential of Google Ads, many businesses aren’t getting what they can from it. Some of the common challenges businesses face when using Google Ads are:
- Lack of certainty
Building and implementing a strategy before you start spending money is imperative to ensure you aren’t spending on ads that aren’t performing. - Limited resources for campaigns
Ad campaigns take time and money to craft properly, especially when you don’t have systems in place to efficiently produce ad copy and visuals. - Complexity of the platform for new users
A lack of expertise can make ad campaigns feel like a heavy lift for business owners who don’t have a well-developed marketing team to smoothly execute a strategy. - Lack of time to manage
Consistent monitoring can help you adapt struggling campaigns before you’ve spent your allotted budget, so your ad campaigns deliver more value. - Difficulty measuring ROI
You need to understand how to analyze the metrics involved with Google Adwords so you can repeat the types of campaigns that perform well for you. - Competition from other businesses
You’ll need a strategy that helps you target the most valuable keywords you can afford. If there’s a lot of competition in your market from companies with larger budgets, you have to get creative.
5 ways the right partner can help you be successful with Google Ads
With a solid PPC advertising strategy and consistent follow-through to monitor performance, your Google Ad campaigns can deliver high-value web traffic to your website. The right partner will have the expertise and resources to manage each of the following steps in crafting compelling ads and powerful Google Ads campaigns that perform.
1. Set clear goals for your ad campaigns
Start by figuring out what you want to achieve with your ads. Do you want more people to visit your website, more leads or more sales? A clear goal will help you focus your efforts and measure your success.
2. Use targeting to reach the right people
Make good use of the targeting capabilities of Google Adwords. Choose keywords and targeting options matching the interests and location of your customers. This will increase the chances of getting in front of people likely to be interested in your business.
3. Create eye-catching ads
Once you figure out keywords and targeting, you’ll need to create ads that grab attention and make people want to click on them. Write ad copy that explains what makes your business special and include a clear message to encourage people to take action. Don’t forget to test different versions of your ads to see what works best.
4. Direct people to relevant content on your site
Be sure people find what they need once they click on your ad. If you’re advertising a special promotion, a landing page with clear details can encourage them to click. If you’re promoting a new product, set up your ads to deliver people to the product page for that item, not your home page.
5. Track your results while your campaign is running
Regularly check how your ads are doing and use the data to improve their performance. Look at the numbers to see what’s working and what’s not. Adjust your bids, try new keywords or change your ad copy if necessary.
Many businesses don’t have marketing teams (or bandwidth) big enough to effectively plan, implement and analyze their Google ad campaigns. Your ads may not deliver the return you’re hoping for if you lack expertise in working with Google Ads. You may even been uncertain about how to tell when you’re off track.
Partnering with the right team can help you unlock insights that will drive better performance and make the most of your advertising budget. They’ll help you build a strategy, plan and monitor each campaign, and make improvements as needed.
Postmedia is a recognized Google Partner, backed by a team of seasoned professionals who have consistently delivered exceptional results in generating leads for businesses of all sizes. Want to be sure your Google Ads strategy has all the elements to succeed? Book a consultation with a Postmedia expert or download our SEM guide to learn more.
