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Tips on using Google AdWords

What is Google AdWords?

Google AdWords provides an easy way to advertise on the Google search and content networks. You can create keyword targeted campaigns and site targeted campaigns. These campaigns can be very ineffective and costly if incorrectly setup and managed.

When you do a search on Google you will see that two types of results are returned. On the left hand side of the page are the normal search results, on the right hand side (and sometimes above the main search results) there are sponsored links which are the paid ads. This is where the keyword targeted campaigns ads are displayed. When someone enters a search term in Google an automated auction takes place with bids from each advertiser that wishes to target that particular search term. The higher the bid for the search term the higher up the rankings the ad appears. These are pay-per-click ads, you only pay if someone clicks on your ad. The goal is to pay the lowest cost-per-click possible whilst still appearing high enough up the rankings to be visible to your prospects and attract clicks.

For a site targeted campaign you can specify which websites in the Google content network you want your ads to appear on. A similar auction takes place as in the keyword targeted campaign but in this type of campaign you are paying each time your ad is viewed. Again your goal is to pay the lowest cost-per-thousand impressions possible while ensuring that your ad is high enough up the rankings to be displayed.

Keyword targeted campaigns are best for building well targeted traffic to your website, site targeted campaigns are best for building awareness of your brand. In this article I will focus only on tips for an effective keyword campaign.

Focus on your target audience

The first step in creating a campaign is to select the languages and countries that want as your targets. If you sell products or services globally it is tempting to target the whole world, however, you must also consider whether the languages you are targeting are widely spoken in every country in the world. Generally the more focused your target the better the return on your investment in Adwords. If you sell only to a local market it is strongly recommended that you use the facility to target only the market within a certain distance of your business.

Select your keywords

To get goods results with AdWords you need a great keyword list. Avoid general keywords as these are likely to attract high bids and go for more focused, targeted keywords and phrases which will have less competition and therefore a lower CPC. Google provides keyword matching options; [keyword]=exact match, "keyword"=phrase match and -keyword=negative match, use them with your keywords to make sure that you are only bidding on relevant search terms.

Write your ads

Google text ads consist of a 25 character title and two lines of description lines of 35 characters each. You don't have much space to sell your value proposition so you ads must be very carefully crafted. Here are a few tips :-

Cost-per-click bidding

You need to a set a maximum bid that you are willing to pay as a CPC. You don't want to be the highest bidder on a keyword, the goal is to pay the lowest cost-per-click possible whilst still appearing high enough up the rankings to be visible to your prospects and attract the most quality clicks for your daily budget. At the beginning of the campaign this will require constant tweaking to get right. Try starting with a medium bid and then start lowering or raising your bid depending on whether your daily budget is being consumed too quickly or if you are not getting enough clicks.

Conclusion

The key to a successful AdWords campaign is careful monitoring and tweaking especially at the start. You should always be monitoring the performance of your keywords, ads and bidding strategy.