Advertising

How to Create the Perfect Google Ad

Google AdWords is an easy program that anyone can use (seriously). Even if you consider yourself a Luddite, Google has made the creation of ads simple with no tricks that seemingly better techies can use that you can’t. It’s a must for improving your SEO game to offer a better experience to your visitors, and future customers/clients, so you can grow your business. Google AdWords creates a level playing field for online marketing while ensuring that potential customers don’t get annoyed by gaudy tactics. However, even though it’s easy, there are still some tips to keep in mind.

Google ads are the grayed ads that appear on the right when you Google something. You may have noticed these ads and wondered how they got there. First, you need to decide which key words and phrases your customers are searching. Keyword and key phrase strategies for SEO best practices are ever-evolving, and at the moment long-tailed key words are king, but it’s not always intuitive to you (or your webmaster) what exactly your best customers might be Googling.

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That’s where AdWords comes into play with Keyword Planner.

AdSense + SEO

Different Google ads appear depending on what words are being searched. For example, if you own a nursery in Miami and someone types in “buy lily bulbs in Miami,” your ad will likely appear. This is part of search engine optimization (SEO) and the first step to creating a great ad. Make a list of the top key words your customers will likely search, but keep in mind that the most searched words and phrases can shift quickly, sometimes within seconds. There’s no such thing as a static list of your site’s best key words.

Also keep in mind that you only have about 100 characters (not words) to make your pitch. Cut out any fluff and focus solely on search words, similar to creating meta tags. However, it still needs to read as a full, correct sentence and not a list of key words. Pare it down as much as you can.

Go Hyper Local

If you’re largely a local business, you can ensure that only local people see your ad. This is a great way to ensure that your exposure is being used wisely. You can also include your address in your ad so that it’s very easy to find your business, which is a must for a mom and pop style brick and mortar depending on that local appeal to grow. Some businesses serve local customers but also ship nationally or internationally, in which case an address is still useful—but not quite as much as a 100 percent brick and mortar without shipping.

A good rule of thumb is that if 80 percent of your customers are local, choose a local ad. Google’s contextual targeting technology can also allow you to hand pick sites that are connected to your ad. However, this should only be used if you know that you share customers with specific sites. You can get to that stage by analyzing your ad clicks with placement performance results.

Understanding Where Your Money Goes

You’re not paying for zero results. You will only be charged per ad clicked, not by how many times the ad appears. You also have complete control over how much you spend daily or per click and there is no minimum. Set a daily limit or a per-click limit and Google can automatically bill you.

It’s best to set a low limit when you first start out. You can change your ad or include new details at any time for no cost. Play around with different key words if you have many and see what surfers are attracted to. Using both the Google AdWords Keyword Search Tool and your own experimentation will lead to the best results.

If you have any questions, please ask below!