A well-executed pay-per-click (PPC) campaign can yield valuable benefits for your business, such as generating leads and driving sales. However, the rising costs and growing competition in online advertising may lead you to question whether you can effectively utilize platforms like Google Ads or Bing Ads with a limited budget. The answer is yes, but it requires clever strategizing.

Opt for long-tail keywords

If you have a limited budget, targeting short-tail, high-volume, competitive keywords won’t provide much benefit. Longer-tail keywords, such as “personal injury lawyers Milton Keynes” instead of “personal injury lawyers,” can reduce your cost-per-click (CPC) and increase the likelihood of conversions.

Pay attention to your campaign structure

The structure of your Google Ads account is crucial. Effective structuring helps maintain high-quality scores, leading to lower CPCs and improved ad positions. Ensure that your campaigns, ad groups, and keywords are closely themed and relevant to their landing pages.

Create a brand campaign

Creating a brand campaign involves more than simply bidding on your brand name as an exact match keyword. If you offer products or services, consider targeting keywords in the format of [your brand] + [product/service]. This strategy helps counter competitor ads targeting relevant products/services and ensures visibility for searches like “Gocompare car insurance.”

Utilize negative keywords

Don’t underestimate the power of negative keywords. Before launching your campaigns, incorporate initial negative keywords. Identify irrelevant query themes from the Search Terms report and add them to your negative keyword lists. This optimization minimizes wasted budget on irrelevant searches.

Leverage ad scheduling

Google Ads enables you to schedule when your ads appear. Take advantage of this feature to display your ads during specific days or hours. If you’re primarily interested in advertising during business hours, schedule your ads from Monday to Friday, 08:00 to 18:00. Adjust bids to be more aggressive during periods that yield better results.

Implement location targeting

For small businesses serving specific areas, use location targeting to focus your advertising efforts. If your solicitor’s firm is located in Chester, targeting users in Cornwall won’t provide much value. Determine where your clients or customers are located and tailor your targeting accordingly.

Avoid fixation on position 1

While many assume that the top ad position is the most desirable, it may not always be the most profitable, especially for high-volume keywords. Position 2 or 3 often yield better results at a lower cost. Users who click on ads in lower positions tend to be more qualified, so don’t overly prioritize position when evaluating your campaign’s success.

These tips are applicable to most Google Ads accounts, regardless of budget size. Remember that even with limited funds, you can make the most of your advertising efforts. For further information or to discuss PPC and digital marketing, feel free to contact me or leave a comment below!

One of the most common inquiries we receive at WordStream is about structuring Google Ads accounts. Today, we’re here to provide you with the ultimate guide to account structure that you’ll ever need!

Creating a successful Google Ads account is similar to constructing a house. You can either start from scratch, building it from the ground up, or renovate an existing account that needs improvement. In some cases, you may even need to demolish a poorly performing campaign and start fresh.

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll walk you through the process of building an effective Google Ads account structure, divided into five key parts:

1. The Campaign Level: Establishing a Solid Foundation
2. The Ad Group Level: Constructing Your Account
3. Keyword Selection: Fine-tuning Your Strategy
4. Ad Copy: Enhancing Your Campaign
5. Ad Extensions: Expanding Your Reach

By following these steps, you’ll be able to create a well-organized and successful Google Ads campaign structure that will maximize your advertising efforts and that looks something like this:

Google Ads Campaign Structure: Laying the Foundation

Campaign Type & Settings

To establish a strong foundation for your Google Ads account, it’s important to choose the right campaign type based on your advertising goals. Start by considering the primary objective of your advertising efforts. For most businesses, a search campaign is a suitable choice. However, if your goal is to generate phone calls, such as in the case of an emergency plumber, a call-only campaign would be more appropriate. For generating brand awareness, display campaigns can be highly effective. You can even create multiple campaign types to cater to different objectives.

Once you’ve determined the campaign type, it’s time to plan your blueprint based on the structure of your business.

Once you have made those decisions, it is important to carefully consider your campaign settings:

• Location Targeting
• Language Targeting – Any language customers speak
• Bid Strategy – Automatic vs. Manual
• Budget

Setting Up Your Budget

Determining your campaign budget involves careful consideration of your daily budget and estimated cost per click (CPC). Here’s how you can approach it:

1. Start with your monthly budget: Decide how much you are willing to spend on your Google Ads campaign per month.
2. Calculate your daily budget: Divide your monthly budget by 30.4 (the average number of days in a month) to get your daily budget. This ensures an even distribution of your budget throughout the month.
3. Estimate your cost per click (CPC): Research and analyze keywords relevant to your campaign to get an idea of the average CPC for those keywords. This can vary depending on factors such as competitiveness and industry.
4. Determine the number of clicks per day: Divide your daily budget by the estimated CPC to calculate the approximate number of clicks your budget can support each day.
5. Adjust your budget and bidding strategy: Based on your estimated clicks per day, assess if it aligns with your campaign goals and expectations. You may need to adjust your budget or bidding strategy (e.g., increase or decrease bids) to optimize your campaign’s performance and ensure your budget is being allocated effectively.

Remember to regularly monitor and adjust your budget based on the performance and results of your campaigns. It’s important to stay flexible and make necessary changes to achieve your advertising goals within your budget constraints.

The Ad Group Level: Building Your Structure

What you can accomplish with ad groups

Ad groups play a crucial role in the structure of your Google Ads account. Here’s what you need to know about ad groups:

1. Structure within each campaign: Ad groups provide a way to organize your keywords, ads, and targeting settings within each campaign. They help you group related elements together for better management and optimization.
2. Organized by theme: Ad groups are typically organized around a specific theme or topic related to your products or services. This allows you to create targeted ads and choose relevant keywords for each group.
3. Control keyword/ad association: Within an ad group, you can associate specific keywords with corresponding ads. This ensures that your ads are highly relevant to the keywords triggering them, resulting in better ad performance and user experience.

By carefully organizing your ad groups and aligning them with your campaign goals and target audience, you can achieve better control over your advertising efforts and improve the overall effectiveness of your Google Ads campaigns.

The golden ratios of ad groups

Determining the size of your ad groups is an important aspect of campaign management. While there may be exceptions, here are some general guidelines to follow:

1. Number of ad groups per campaign: It’s recommended to have a maximum of 7-10 ad groups per campaign. This allows for better organization and easier management of your advertising efforts.
2. Number of keywords per ad group: Aim for a maximum of around 20 keywords per ad group. This helps ensure that your ad groups remain focused and relevant to specific themes or topics.
3. Number of ads per ad group: Include 2-3 ads per ad group to test different messaging and variations. This allows you to gather data on ad performance and optimize your campaigns accordingly.

Following these guidelines helps prevent ad groups from becoming overly complex or difficult to manage. By maintaining a manageable size for your ad groups, you can effectively track performance, make adjustments, and improve the overall success of your Google Ads campaigns.

Keywords Selection

Now it’s time to define your keywords, the level under your ad groups.

Instead of relying solely on your instincts, it’s recommended to use keyword research tools to ensure you’re bidding on keywords with sufficient search volume. Google Ads provides the Keyword Planner tool within your account, which can help you discover relevant keywords and estimate their search volume.

The key to effective keyword research lies in understanding user intent. It’s crucial to select keywords that demonstrate clear commercial intent, indicating that users are actively seeking to make a purchase. Keywords with strong intent often include:

-Qualifying terms like specific product details, brand names, or the word “cost”

-Location-specific terms, such as “used cars Seattle” In general, broad terms without specific intent tend to yield low click-through and conversion rates, resulting in higher costs per acquisition (CPA).

By focusing on keywords that indicate clear intent, you can optimize your Google Ads campaigns for better performance and improved ROI.

Keyword match types

Keyword match types play a crucial role in determining how your keywords match with user search queries on Google. There are four match types available, listed below from least to most restrictive:

1. Broad match: Allows your ad to appear for searches that are generally related to your keyword, including synonyms. For example, if you use broad match for “laptop case,” your ad may show up for searches like “computer bags.”
2. Modified broad match: This match type is more restrictive than broad match. It requires the inclusion of specific words designated by a plus sign (+) in the search term, but the words can appear in any order. Learn more about modified broad match here.
3. Phrase match: The keyword must include the terms you’re bidding on in the same order, but it can also include other words before or after. For instance, if you have a phrase match for “laptop case,” your ad may appear for searches like “buy laptop case” or “laptop case reviews.”
4. Exact match: This match type is the most specific. It requires an exact match between the keyword and the search query, without any additional words or variations.

Google recently introduced changes to the functionality of exact match keywords. The update means that exact match keywords are no longer strictly limited to the exact search term. Instead, your ad may be shown when the order of the terms in your keyword is rearranged or when there are changes to certain “function words.” Here are some examples to illustrate this change:

What’s the impact of this change?

• Better for low-volume terms/niche industries
• Not so good for Branded campaigns

As an example: the brand term HomeRate Mortgage now matches the non-branded search “home mortgage rates.”

So what’s the best match type?

The optimal match type to use depends on your specific account goals, but in our personal opinion, modified broad match is highly effective:

• It captures a broad range of related searches, regardless of the order or use of additional terms.
• It maintains relevance by being more restrictive compared to broad match.
• Consider using 2-3 term keywords for better precision. It’s advisable to avoid single-term keywords for more targeted results.

Max CPC bids

Setting maximum cost-per-click (CPC) bids is an important aspect of keyword optimization. This bid determines the maximum amount you are willing to pay for a click on your ad. Your ad position and cost-per-click are influenced by your maximum CPC bid and your Quality Score, resulting in your Ad Rank.

Similar to setting your budget, determining the initial Max CPC bids for a new campaign can be a question of where to begin. There are a few effective approaches to help you determine the appropriate starting point for your Max CPC bids.

There are two main options to consider when determining your Max CPC bids for a new campaign: Automatic Bidding and Manual CPC.

Option 1: Automatic Bidding

Although Manual bidding provides more control, starting with Automatic bidding can be beneficial for a new campaign. By allowing Google to determine your Max CPC bids initially, you can gather data and gain insights into the cost of clicks. Once you have sufficient data, you can switch back to Manual bidding.

Here are some guidelines for using Automatic bidding:

• Choose the “Maximize Clicks” bid strategy, which aims to maximize the number of clicks within your daily budget.
• Set a Max CPC bid limit to prevent Google from exceeding a certain bid threshold for a single click.

Option 2: Manual CPC

If you prefer complete control over your bids, you can opt for the Manual CPC bidding strategy from the start. To determine your initial Max CPC bids, you can rely on two metrics provided by Google: Page #1 CPC and Top of Page CPC. These estimations indicate the approximate cost of ranking on the first page of search results and at the top of that page. Setting your Max CPC bids between these numbers is often a good starting point when using Manual bidding.

Ad Copy

Now we arrive at the fourth part of this guide, which involves writing your ad copy. This is the aspect of your account that will be most visible to people.

First and foremost, it’s important to note that we are now in an era of Expanded Text Ads (ETAs). These have become the default ad type, and they offer approximately double the size of the traditional Google text ads we were accustomed to.

Ensure that you adhere to the best practices for Expanded Text Ads (ETAs) and take note of these dos and don’ts to maximize the effectiveness of your ETAs.

Ad copy A/B testing

In your ad variations, try one version that features straightforward, keyword-centric ad copy and another version that takes a more creative and attention-grabbing approach. Don’t assume you know how your audience will respond – instead, run a test and gather conclusive data to determine the most effective ad copy for your campaign.

Test Price vs No Price

Another thing to test: including a pricing information in your ad.

Using specific numbers in your ad copy can be effective in driving clicks and capturing the attention of your audience. Additionally, it can help you qualify your audience by filtering out individuals who may not be genuinely interested in your market, such as those seeking luxury products.

Crafting ad copy that is optimized for conversions

Ensure your ad copy is designed to drive conversions. Here are a few tips:

Utilize self-selecting ad copy: Including pricing information can help attract your target audience and discourage clicks from those who are not interested in making a purchase.

Align your call to action (CTA) with your landing page: When your ad and landing page feature the same CTA, it creates a cohesive experience and increases the likelihood of conversions even before users click on your ad. Take a look at the example below, where the ad and landing page have excellent “message match”:

Now look at the landing page:

Ad Extensions

Ad extensions are a reliable way to enhance the appeal of your ad, increasing click-through rates without incurring additional costs (unfortunately, they won’t add a pool to your account).

Now, which extensions should you use? With numerous extensions available and new ones being introduced regularly, not all of them will be suitable for your account. However, here are my top four favorite extensions:

1. Sitelinks: These are versatile and can be used in various contexts. Sitelinks provide clickable links to different pages on your website, giving searchers more options beyond a single landing page. However, if you primarily use static lead capture landing pages, it may be best to avoid using sitelinks.
2. Callout extensions: These allow you to add extra snippets of text that appear as an additional line of copy in your ad. Although they are not clickable, callout extensions provide an opportunity to highlight key features or benefits.
3. Call extensions: If driving phone calls is an essential goal for your business, call extensions enable searchers to call your business directly from the ad, making it convenient for users to connect with you.
4. Location extensions: Particularly useful for businesses with physical locations, location extensions display your business address, making it easier for potential customers to find and visit your establishment.

By strategically utilizing these extensions, you can enhance the effectiveness of your ads and provide additional information to potential customers.

Call extensions and location extensions are not always applicable, but they can be highly beneficial in certain scenarios. Call extensions are particularly useful for mobile users as they allow them to directly call your business from the search engine results page (SERP), bypassing the need to visit a landing page. On the other hand, location extensions provide valuable information about your physical business, making them a valuable addition for local businesses looking to attract customers who are specifically searching for nearby options.

Consider exploring other extensions based on your specific business type. These extensions offer several advantages, including:

• Facilitating a more streamlined path to conversion
• Occupying additional space on the search engine results page
• Enhancing your Quality Score by increasing your click-through rate

Make sure to include these extensions in your ad campaign for optimal results.

Google Ads Account Structure (Simplified Summary)

Whether you’re starting a new Google Ads account or revamping an existing one, here are the key takeaways to keep in mind:

1. Build a strong foundation: Pay attention to your campaign structure and settings to ensure a solid starting point.
2. Harness the power of ad groups: Use them to control the association between keywords and ads effectively.
3. Optimize your keyword selection: Start with modified broad match keywords that demonstrate clear intent and include 2-3 relevant terms.
4. Craft conversion-focused ad copy: Create compelling ads that lead to higher conversions and continuously test different variations.
5. Embrace ad extensions: Choose the right extensions for your campaigns to enhance visibility, improve click-through rates, and drive better results.

Remember, these strategies will help you establish a solid Google Ads account and optimize its performance.

We have created a comprehensive “Beginner’s Guide to Setting Up a Google Ads Account” to assist those new to PPC advertising. Google Ads is often the recommended platform for beginners. The guide provides step-by-step instructions for account setup, including campaign structures, settings, payment options, and tracking. Additionally, it offers valuable insights on keyword research, creative tips, and tricks to optimize your campaigns.

Are you ready to launch successful campaigns?

As highlighted earlier, there are several crucial factors to consider for achieving success on the Google Ads platform. Take a moment to review the checklist below to ensure you have addressed these important elements:

1. User-friendly website: Make sure your website is designed in a way that guides visitors towards your desired conversions.
2. Clear PPC strategy and goals: Define your PPC strategy and set specific goals. For guidance in this area, you can refer to the helpful resource “How should you formulate your PPC Strategy” by Diane Anselmo.
3. Allocate a budget and timeline: Determine a budget and timeline for your testing phase. We recommend setting aside a minimum of $500 per month for a duration of 3 months.

By addressing these key elements, you’ll be well-prepared to launch successful campaigns on Google Ads.

Essential Steps for Account Set Up

After reaching that point, you will receive a prompt to create a campaign. While it is possible to proceed with campaign creation, I suggest skipping this step until you become more acquainted with the interface.

Following that, you will be prompted to verify your business information. It is crucial to ensure the accuracy of this information as it cannot be modified in the future.

After reaching that point, you can begin exploring your newly created account!

However, it’s important to note that the previous interface provided some essential elements to consider, including:

• Selecting your budget
• Creating compelling ads
• Choosing relevant keywords to target potential customers
• Providing your billing information

However, with the new user interface, you will be directed straight to the main account page. Although you still need to complete all of the aforementioned tasks, they may not be prompted in the same format as before. Therefore, it’s important to proactively navigate to the relevant sections and complete the necessary steps for setting up your budget, creating ads, selecting keywords, and entering your billing information

Before diving into creating your first campaign, it’s important to do some upfront work to avoid having to backtrack in the setup process. The initial focus should be on keyword selection and account structure. By addressing these areas first, you can lay a solid foundation for your campaigns and streamline the setup process.

Creating An Initial PPC Keyword List

Keyword research is the foundation of a pay-per-click campaign.

Beginner’s tip: Keywords are the specific words or phrases that your potential customers use when searching for your product or service. By bidding on these keywords, your ad can appear when customers search using those keywords.

There are several important areas to consider when building your keyword portfolio:

1. Company website: Review your website to identify core words and phrases that accurately describe your business. This will help shape the structure of your campaigns and provide a starting point for keyword selection.
2. Keyword research tools: Utilize keyword research tools to expand your keyword list beyond the core terms from your website. These tools provide valuable insights into search volume, competition, and suggested bids. They can also help you discover keyword variations and synonyms. There are various tools available for research, and you can find a comprehensive list in our PPC Hero post, “You’re bidding on all the wrong keywords” by Jacob Baadsgaard.
3. Think like your customer: Put yourself in your customers’ shoes and consider what they would search for when looking for your product or service. Think about the problems they are trying to solve, and identify keywords that align with their search intent.
4. Don’t overlook brand terms: It’s important to include your brand terms in your keyword strategy. Showing up in both paid and organic results for branded keywords can provide additional visibility and reinforce your brand presence.

By considering these areas, you can build a comprehensive and effective keyword portfolio for your Google Ads campaigns.

Keyword research is a continuous process, but having a solid list of initial keywords is crucial to achieving success in PPC advertising.

Building a Solid Campaign Structure: Essential Tips for Success

Organize for Success: Tips and Best Practices for Campaign Structure

The organization of your campaigns plays a crucial role in determining the success of your Google Ads account. A well-structured account can positively impact your quality score and overall performance. Here are some essential tips and best practices for creating a solid campaign structure:

1. Segment by Relevant Themes: Divide your campaigns into logical segments based on higher-level ideas. This could be based on the products or services you offer, geographical location, performance and bidding, brand names vs. generic names, seasonality, or keyword match types. This segmentation allows for more targeted ad groups and keywords within each campaign.
2. Maintain Relevance: Ensure that your ad groups are closely related to the campaigns they belong to. Avoid mixing unrelated products or services within the same campaign, as it can hinder performance tracking and compromise ad copy and landing page relevance.

Example:

Campaign: shoe_Brands

• Ad Group: shoes_nike
• Ad Group: shoes_adidas

Campaign: shoe_Types

• Ad Group: shoe_athletic
• Ad Group: shoe_boots
• Ad Group: shoe_sandals

3. Align Ad and Landing Page Experience: Your ad groups dictate the ad and landing page experience delivered to searchers. Aim to create a structure where campaigns, ad groups, keywords, and ads are all relevant to each other. This alignment enhances the user experience and boosts the chances of conversions.

Remember, a well-organized campaign structure sets the foundation for effective ad delivery, performance tracking, and optimization. By implementing these tips, you can optimize your campaigns for success.

Ad Creation & Landing Page Mapping

One important aspect of campaign creation is crafting effective ads and mapping landing pages for each ad group. The success of your keyword portfolio and campaign structure relies heavily on the ad and landing page experience. Relevant ads and landing pages not only drive click-through rates, cost per lead, and ROI, but they also impact your Quality Score.

Google assigns a keyword-level Quality Score to each of your keywords, with click-through rate being a significant factor in the calculation. A higher Quality Score can lead to better ad positions and lower cost per clicks, allowing you to maximize your budget.

Before writing your ads, consider your target audience and how you want to appeal to them. Take into account your brand, products or services, and the desired action you want your audience to take on the landing page.

Here are some tips for writing effective ad text:

1. Brand: Maintain consistency with other marketing efforts and align your ad text with your brand message.
2. Products/Services: Highlight the specific product or service you offer and emphasize any unique advantages or features.
3. Goal: Clearly outline the desired action you want your audience to take, such as making a purchase, signing up, or learning more.

By carefully crafting your ad text, you can increase the likelihood of attracting relevant clicks and achieving your campaign goals. Remember to continually monitor and optimize your ads to improve performance over time.

Expanded Text Ad

You have a total of 300 characters available in your ad to entice users to click. This includes three headlines, two descriptions, and the URL path.

Character Limits

• Headline 1: 30
• Headline 2: 30
• Headline 3: 30
• Description 1: 90
• Description 2: 90
• Path 1: 15
• Path 2: 15

Beginner Tip: Utilize the Excel LEN function to count the number of characters in each line of your ad copy.

Ad Extensions

In addition to the ad itself, ad extensions offer advertisers the opportunity to enhance their ads and provide additional information to potential customers. There are various types of ad extensions available, including:

• Sitelink Extensions: Direct customers to specific pages on your website.
• Callout Extensions: Highlight key benefits or features of your products or services.
• Location Extensions: Encourage customers to visit your physical store or business location.
• Call Extensions: Allow customers to directly call your business from the ad.
• Price Extensions: Display the prices of your products or services.
• Promotion Extensions: Showcase special promotions or offers available on your website.

These ad extensions can help increase the visibility and effectiveness of your ads by providing more relevant information to users. Be sure to explore the full list of available extensions on the Google Ads Support site to find the ones that best suit your advertising goals.

Landing Page Mapping

When crafting your ads, aim to provide a seamless path to conversion for your customers. If a customer is searching for Gucci Handbags, it’s important to direct them to a specific page on your website that showcases the Gucci bags you offer. Nowadays, customers have limited patience and prefer to find their desired outcome with just one click.

With the preparation work done, you’re now ready to dive into the interface and set up your first campaign. Ensure that you have your keywords organized into campaigns and ad groups. Each ad group should have multiple ad variations prepared and aligned with relevant landing pages. This will help maximize the effectiveness of your ads and drive conversions

Campaign Setup and Configuration

Once you have logged into ads.google.com, you can start creating your campaign by following these steps:

1. Click on “Campaign” on the left-hand side of the page and then select “+New Campaign.”
2. On the next page, you will be prompted to choose your campaign goal. You can either select a specific goal or choose “Create a campaign without a goal’s guidance.”
3. Next, you will need to configure several settings for your campaign:

• Type: The Google network offers various campaign options, such as Search Network with Display Select, Search Network Only, Display Network Only, Shopping, Video, and Universal App Campaign. For testing purposes, the most common setting would be “Search Network Only.”
• Network: You can choose from three network options: Google Search Network, Google Search Network including search partners, and Google Display Network. In the testing phase, “Search Network Only” is often the preferred choice. However, depending on your budget and desired impressions, you may consider including search partners, although the traffic may be less qualified.
• Devices: By default, ads are set to show on all devices. If you want to exclude certain devices, you can use bid modifiers. For more information on this topic, you can refer to our PPC Hero blog post by Stephanie White titled “Why You Need to Apply Negative Bid Modifiers.”
• Locations/Languages: In this setting, you can choose the geographic region where you want your ads to appear. If you have a local business, you can select specific cities, regions, or use radius targeting. Additionally, you can select the appropriate language for your target audience.

By carefully configuring these settings, you can ensure that your campaign is optimized for your specific goals and target audience.

Bid Strategy – The choice of bid strategy is crucial for your campaign. It is essential to carefully consider your daily budget allocation to avoid overspending. Setting the budget too high could exhaust your monthly budget quickly. It is recommended to start with a realistic budget for each campaign and adjust it based on actual spend levels as you gather insights and learn from the campaign’s performance. By closely monitoring and optimizing your bid strategy, you can ensure efficient spending and maximize the results of your campaign.

Bid Strategy – In this setting, you have the option to choose a bid strategy that aligns with your campaign goals. Google Ads provides detailed explanations of various automated bid strategies that can enhance performance on their support site. As a general recommendation, it is advisable to start with manual bidding and set a cost per click (CPC) that you are comfortable with for each campaign. Manual bidding allows you to have more control over your bids and budget. Once you gain more experience and data, you can explore and experiment with automated bid strategies to optimize your campaign performance further.

Finalizing Your New Google Ads Account

When you choose the “create new campaign” feature in Google Ads, you will go through four steps to set up your account. Since you have already completed your research and prepared all the necessary settings, this process will be relatively straightforward.

Step One: Campaign Creation and Settings – ✔️ Completed

Step Two: Ad Group & Keyword Creation – ✔️

Completed Step Three: Create your first Ad – ✔️

Completed Step Four: Finish and Save – ✔️ Completed

Once you have completed the previous steps of campaign creation and settings, ad group and keyword creation, creating your first ad, and finishing and saving the campaign, the next step is to add your billing information. This is an essential step to ensure that your ads can start running.

Review Advanced Settings After Set Up

After completing the account setup and implementing basic campaign settings, you can explore the advanced campaign settings. During the setup phase, you may want to consider modifying your ad delivery option. We recommend initially setting your ads to rotate evenly. This approach provides more control over ad copy tests and allows your campaign to gather data before relying on machine learning algorithms.

Tracking Considerations

Conversion tracking in Google Ads is a free and powerful tool that enables you to utilize smart features like smart bidding and optimize your campaigns for conversions. It allows you to track various metrics, including:

• Website actions
• Phone calls
• App installs and in-app actions
• Import from offline conversion metrics

To start tracking conversions, you need to implement the Google Ads conversion tracking tag into your website’s code. Detailed instructions for implementation can be found on the Google Ads support site.

Linking your Google Analytics account with Google Ads is a highly recommended tracking option. By linking the accounts, you can gain valuable insights and access additional data to enhance your advertising campaigns. Detailed instructions on how to link your accounts can be found in the help section of the Google Analytics site.

A Word For Success

The above steps cover the basics of launching a Google Ads account. However, the work doesn’t end there. It’s crucial to regularly review your account’s performance, optimize your campaigns, and make data-driven adjustments. One common misconception about pay-per-click advertising is that you can simply set it up and forget about it. To achieve the best results, ongoing monitoring and optimization are necessary.

While Google has provided advertisers with control over keyword match types and negative keywords to improve ad targeting, it can still be challenging to align user intent with their search queries. Advertisers often invest significant time in keyword research and analysis, but it’s important to remember that their audience consists of real people with diverse needs and preferences.

For instance, individuals of different ages, genders, and socioeconomic backgrounds may have distinct motivations when searching for products or services. A 19-year-old and a 70-year-old searching for “hair extensions” are likely seeking different outcomes, just as a man and a woman searching for “leather boots” may have specific preferences. Acknowledging user intent involves considering the characteristics and motivations of the users behind the search queries.

To address this, various online advertising platforms like Facebook and Bing have offered demographic targeting options. Now, Google AdWords has introduced the ability for advertisers to target specific age and gender demographics within their search campaigns.

These new demographic targeting options can be accessed at the ad group level in Google AdWords. The “Audiences” tab includes a new subtab called “Demographics,” which provides performance data for different age and gender segments within the ad group. Advertisers can leverage this information to adjust bids for specific demographics or exclude certain age groups or genders from seeing their ads on the search engine results page (SERP).

Similar to utilizing demographic targeting for display campaigns, advertisers now have the opportunity to gain deeper insights into the performance of layered demographic options within their search campaigns. By selecting “View demographic combinations,” advertisers can examine the performance of specific segments, such as women aged 25-34, to better understand their impact.

It’s worth noting that unlike the display network, search advertisers currently do not have the ability to directly target users based on their parental status. However, leveraging demographic combinations can still provide valuable data and insights to optimize search campaigns effectively.

Demographic Targeting for Search: Case Studies

While demographic targeting for search was in beta, a select group of Wordstream customers had the opportunity to test this feature in advance. The success stories from these early adopters highlight the effectiveness and versatility of search demographic targeting.

One notable example involves a plastic surgeon client who faced challenges with men’s interest in their search ads for breast enlargement treatments. Despite the majority of individuals searching for “larger breasts” being male, the target audience for such procedures tends to be women. With the introduction of AdWords’ demographic targeting, the plastic surgeon was able to exclude men from viewing their ads on the search engine results page (SERP). This simple adjustment resulted in a significant reduction in search costs and cost-per-acquisition (CPA), without compromising lead generation. In fact, the client was able to maintain their lead volume while achieving a 50% reduction in costs and CPAs.

One of our clients, a local florist, made an interesting observation about their website traffic. While the percentage of male visitors to their site was relatively small, they found that male visitors had a higher likelihood of converting and tended to spend more compared to female visitors. Recognizing this valuable insight, the florist created a bid adjustment specifically targeting men in their search campaigns. By increasing their bids for this demographic, they were able to attract more male visitors to their site and capitalize on their higher conversion rates and spending habits. As a result, the florist experienced improved campaign performance and increased revenue from their male audience.

Were these men true gentlemen? Did their partners stumble upon their browsing history and discover their interest in plastic surgery? We may never know. However, the florist was thrilled with the increased business they received from male customers. After noticing the higher conversion rate among men, the florist decided to implement a bid adjustment to specifically target men searching for flowers. This strategic move paid off as it led to a significant increase in male visitors to the florist’s website, ultimately resulting in men becoming the primary contributors to online sales through their search campaigns.

It’s fascinating to see how different generations approach retirement planning. While my mother takes a diligent and conservative approach, relying on a well-managed 401k and low-risk domestic bonds, my own perspective as a millennial leans more towards relying on unexpected windfalls of fortune. Needless to say, our online searches for “retirement planning” reflect our contrasting mindsets.

One of our clients, a retirement planner, faced a similar challenge. Previously, their generic keywords attracted a wide range of users, regardless of age. While conversions were decent across all age groups, the client specifically wanted to target older users who were more inclined to invest significantly in retirement planning.

By utilizing the new demographic targeting options for search campaigns, they were able to exclusively focus on users aged 45 and above. This strategic adjustment not only resulted in significant cost savings for their advertising efforts but also improved the overall quality of leads generated through their AdWords campaigns.

Best Practices for Using Search Demographic Targeting

Relying solely on gut instincts when it comes to demographic targeting in your search campaigns may not yield optimal results. While you or your team may have some assumptions about your customer demographics, it’s important to back those assumptions with data before making any exclusions or targeting decisions.

Utilize the performance data available in the demographics tab to analyze how different demographics actually convert on your website. This data-driven approach will provide you with valuable insights on which demographics are more likely to engage with your ads and ultimately convert.

Remember, user intent is more important than identity. Don’t make hasty decisions based solely on demographics. Even if a certain demographic doesn’t constitute the majority of your market, there may still be a significant number of individuals within that group who are interested in your products or services. For example, excluding young people who enjoy knitting from your yarn campaign may limit your potential reach and hinder your success.

Additionally, it’s worth considering that preconceived notions about demographic targeting may inadvertently exclude a substantial portion of your potential customers. Research, such as the ThinkWithGoogle study, highlights the importance of being open-minded and willing to explore broader targeting options to capture the full spectrum of your target audience.

It’s crucial to remember that your customer may not always be the end consumer of your products or services. For instance, when you come across a 40-year-old man searching for “luxury handbags” on Google, or find him bewildered in a local Victoria’s Secret store, it’s evident that he’s likely shopping for someone else.

Tailoring your ad and offer to different demographics can significantly improve the effectiveness of your campaigns. For example, when targeting users searching for “leather boots,” creating separate ad groups for men and women allows you to serve tailored ads that promote relevant brands and types of shoes. By directing users to landing pages featuring men’s and women’s boots, you can provide a more personalized experience that resonates with their specific preferences.

It’s important not to overlook the “Unknown” demographics category. When Google is unable to determine a user’s gender or age, their data is grouped under the “Unknown” demographic. This category may also include gender non-binary users or users under the age of 18. Instead of excluding this audience, consider the potential value they can bring to your campaigns. Removing the “Unknown” audience may result in a reduction in clicks and conversions, limiting your campaign’s reach and potential.

Google’s demographic targeting options have the potential to be game-changers for search campaigns, especially in industries with unique demographic profiles. We’ve witnessed these targeting strategies work successfully for some of our clients. Have you noticed any interesting demographic trends within your own accounts? It’s worth exploring how demographic targeting can enhance your campaign performance.

In the past couple of years, Google Ads has been implementing changes to its platform that encourage advertisers to utilize its automated features. However, advertisers have mixed feelings about this direction.

One of the prominent features is automated bidding, which has evolved over time but remains a complex aspect of Google Ads. There are multiple types of automated bidding strategies, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. So, should you embrace automated bidding? And if so, which strategy should you choose?

If you find yourself pondering these questions, you’ve come to the right place! This guide will provide you with insights on:

1. The distinctions between manual, automated, and Smart bidding in Google Ads.
2. How each of the nine bidding strategies in Google Ads operates.
3. The appropriate scenarios for using each strategy, along with precautions to consider.

But before we dive into the details, let’s establish a solid understanding of the fundamentals.

Google Automated bidding: What is it?

When setting up a Google Ads campaign, you need to specify the amount you’re willing to pay for your ad to be displayed. This is known as your bid, and you have two options for setting your bids: manual or automated.

With manual bidding, you manually set the maximum amount you’re willing to pay per click on your ad (CPC). You have the flexibility to adjust your bid based on your ad’s performance using the available metrics in your reports.

On the other hand, automated bidding relies on Google’s automated rules to adjust your bids. These adjustments are based on factors such as the likelihood of your ad getting clicks or conversions. Automated bidding may incorporate additional data points that are not included in the standard reporting metrics.

Google Ads offers eight types of automated bidding options:

1. Enhanced cost per click (ECPC)
2. Maximize Clicks
3. Maximize Conversions
4. Maximize Conversion Value
5. Target Cost Per Action (tCPA)
6. Target Return on Ad Spend (tROAS)
7. Viewable CPM (vCPM)
8. Cost Per View (CPV)

Is Smart bidding the same as automated bidding?

Smart Bidding and automated bidding are terms that are sometimes used interchangeably, but they have distinct differences. Smart Bidding specifically refers to Google’s automated bidding strategies that utilize “auction-time bidding.” This means that Smart Bidding strategies optimize for conversions or conversion value in every individual auction. The Smart Bidding strategies offered by Google include:

1. Enhanced CPC
2. Maximize Conversions
3. Maximize Conversion Value
4. Target CPA
5. Target ROAS

It’s important to note that while all Smart Bidding strategies are automated, not all automated bidding strategies fall under the category of Smart Bidding strategies.

How do I choose my bid strategy? What options do I have?

When setting up your campaign, Google will automatically assign an automated bidding strategy based on your campaign goals. However, it’s important to note that you are not obligated to use this strategy. You have the flexibility to choose any other automated bidding strategy or even opt for manual bidding.

To select a different bidding strategy, simply click on the blue text at the bottom that says “Select a bid strategy directly (not recommended).”

Now, let’s explore the various bidding options available in Google Ads:

1. Manual Cost Per Click (CPC):

Manual CPC bidding is the simplest bid strategy to understand in Google Ads. Advertisers manually set their bids at the keyword level, and these bids remain unchanged unless the advertiser decides to adjust them.

Regardless of the friendly warning from Google, starting with manual CPC is highly recommended for individuals who are new to PPC or have limited time to manage their accounts.

Despite the friendly warning from Google, this is an ideal starting point for beginners in PPC or for those who have limited time available to manage their accounts.

Cautions with Manual CPC:

Manual bidding comes with two notable drawbacks:

Time investment required: Managing manual bidding involves dedicating time to regularly assess performance, determine if keyword bids need adjustments, decide on the appropriate changes, and implement them.

Limited information: When relying on manual bidding, the performance metrics available are determined by Google, which means there may be data points that we are unaware of. In contrast, automated bidding strategies can leverage additional data points that may not be visible to us.

While these downsides don’t imply that all automation is superior or that manual bidding is unsuitable for everyone, they should be taken into consideration when selecting bid strategies.

2. Enhanced CPC

Enhanced CPC (ECPC) bidding is closely aligned with manual bidding, but with the added benefit of Google Ads algorithm making bid adjustments based on performance.

For those whose accounts are already performing well, ECPC serves as a suitable initial transition into automation. Enabling ECPC is straightforward; it can be done by selecting the checkbox below the manual bidding setting or choosing ECPC from the bidding type dropdown.

Enhanced CPC (ECPC) allows Google Ads to adjust keyword bids in individual auctions based on the probability of a click leading to a sale.

Previously, the bid adjustment range was limited to 30%, but now there is no cap, allowing Google Ads to adjust bids by any percentage. Additionally, ECPC offers the flexibility to optimize for either conversions or conversion value, depending on your goals.

Successful utilization of ECPC often leads to improved click-through rate (CTR) and conversion rate (CVR), which are common positive outcomes.

Cautions with Enhanced CPC

With the removal of the 30% adjustment cap in Enhanced CPC (ECPC), it becomes crucial to closely monitor your metrics.

Pay attention to CPC and CPA

As ECPC can adjust keyword bids without limitations, there is a possibility that bids and resulting CPCs could exceed what is profitable for your account.

While the goal of this bid type is to increase the likelihood of conversions, it may not always align with your target cost per conversion (CPA). It’s worth noting that the algorithm tends to increase bids more frequently than it decreases them.

Therefore, it’s important to keep a close watch on your click-through rate (CTR) and conversion rate (CVR) to ensure that the bidding strategy is performing as expected (both should show improvement). Additionally, track CPC and CPA to ensure that the results remain profitable for your campaign.

3. Maximizing Conversions

Maximize Conversions is a fully automated bidding strategy, in contrast to Enhanced CPC which is semi-automated. With Maximize Conversions, advertisers do not set individual keyword bids that Google considers. Instead, Google independently determines the CPC bid based on the objective of the bidding strategy.

The Maximum Conversions bid strategy aims to maximize the number of conversions while utilizing your daily budget. Starting from April 2021, Max Conversions also offers the ability to include a target CPA, which assists in guiding its bidding decisions.

Cautions for Maximize Conversions

Caution should be exercised when implementing the Maximize Conversions bid strategy, as there are important considerations to keep in mind.

Allocate separate daily budgets for each campaign

It is crucial to assign a dedicated daily budget to each campaign utilizing the Maximize Conversions strategy. This ensures that the strategy focuses on spending the full daily budget allocated to that specific campaign. If multiple campaigns are part of a shared budget, Maximize Conversions may utilize the entire shared budget, exceeding the intended allocation for individual campaigns.

Ensure conversion tracking is enabled

It is imperative to have conversion tracking properly set up before utilizing the Maximize Conversions bid strategy. This strategy aims to maximize the number of tracked conversions. Without accurate conversion tracking, the algorithm may make suboptimal decisions in its bid optimization process, leading to ineffective results in finding potential converters.

Monitor your CPC closely

It is important to be vigilant about your CPC (cost per click) when utilizing the Maximize Conversions bid strategy. Google’s algorithm will bid aggressively to maximize conversions, which may result in increased spend or higher average CPC. However, the potential increase in conversion rate can help offset these higher costs. Although your spend or average CPC may be higher, the influx of conversions will lead to a lower overall CPA (cost per acquisition) and a higher return on investment (ROI). Additionally, with the option to set a target CPA, you have more control over managing these risks.

In summary, if your objective is to acquire more leads at a lower cost, Maximize Conversions could be a suitable strategy for you. However, if you have budget constraints, consider using a target CPA with Maximize Conversions or explore alternative bidding strategies.

4. Maximizing Clicks

This bidding strategy, known as Maximize Clicks, shares similarities with Maximize Conversions but places emphasis on generating clicks. When utilizing Maximize Clicks, Google’s objective is to obtain the maximum number of clicks while adhering to your daily budget.

This strategy can be highly effective when aiming to increase website traffic for branding purposes, building email lists, or if you already have a strong conversion performance and are seeking additional volume.

To maintain control over cost-per-click (CPC), advertisers have the option to set a maximum CPC limit. This ensures that CPCs stay within the desired range while Google works towards utilizing the entire daily budget.

Cautions with Maximize Clicks

It is essential to establish a maximum cost-per-click (CPC) and monitor the average max CPC closely when using this bid strategy. While Google aims to maximize clicks for your campaign, similar to Maximize Conversions, it also strives to exhaust your daily budget each day, even if it means higher-than-usual click costs.

Regularly assess the CPC performance and other relevant goal metrics associated with this bidding strategy to ensure it aligns with your objectives. If it falls short, consider adjusting your settings or exploring alternative bid strategies.

5. Maximize Conversion Value

Max Conversion Value can be considered the older sibling of the Max Conversions strategy, as it offers a slightly more advanced approach.

Although the two strategies share a fundamental similarity, Max Conversion Value aims to prioritize conversions that yield the highest return for your campaign.

Cautions with Max Conversion Value

There are two important considerations to keep in mind when using the Max Conversion Value bidding strategy.

Conversion tracking: As with Max Conversions, it is crucial to set up conversion tracking correctly for this strategy to be effective. Ensuring that conversions are accurately tracked will provide the necessary data for the algorithm to optimize bidding.

Assigning values: It is essential to assign values to each conversion action. By assigning values, the algorithm can prioritize and adjust bids based on the value of each conversion. For example, a conversion with a higher value should receive a higher bid compared to a conversion with a lower value. Properly setting up value-based bidding is necessary for the strategy to work effectively.

6. Target CPA (tCPA)

Target CPA, which stands for target cost per action or conversion, is a bidding strategy that allows you to set a specific cost goal for each conversion. Previously available as a separate bidding strategy, it is now offered as an option within the Max Conversions strategy.

When using target CPA (tCPA), you define the desired cost per action or conversion, and Google adjusts the bids to maximize the number of conversions achieved at that specific cost. This strategy aims to optimize your campaign to generate conversions efficiently and within your specified cost range.

Advertisers have the ability to set bid limits to prevent Google from excessively adjusting bids either too low or too high. However, it’s important to note that these bid limits can only be applied at the portfolio level. If you are targeting individual campaigns, bid caps are not available for implementation.

Cautions for Target CPA

There are three important considerations when it comes to Target CPA (tCPA) bidding.

Conversion tracking is essential: Similar to other bidding strategies like Max Conversions and Max Conversion Value, tCPA bidding relies on having conversion tracking properly set up in your account. Without accurate conversion tracking, this bidding strategy will not be effective in driving desired results.

Sufficient conversion data is required: In order for the algorithm to make informed decisions and optimize for conversions, a certain volume of conversion data is necessary. Google recommends a minimum of 15 conversions within the last 30 days at the campaign level, but it is advisable to aim for at least 30 to 50 conversions for more reliable results. If your campaigns do not meet this threshold individually, consider evaluating their performance at a portfolio level. If the conversion volume is still insufficient, tCPA bidding may not be suitable for your campaigns.

Set realistic target CPAs: When starting with tCPA bidding, it is important to set realistic initial goals. If your campaign has consistently achieved an average CPA of $40 over the past six months, it would not be wise to set a target CPA of $20 right from the start. Setting an overly ambitious target CPA may limit Google’s ability to participate in relevant auctions and learn effectively. It is recommended to start with a slightly higher target CPA, allowing Google to optimize and gradually reduce it over time towards your desired CPA.

When implementing tCPA bidding, keep in mind that the initial period (approximately two weeks to a month) is a learning phase. Use this time to let Google adapt and find its optimal bidding strategy. By gradually adjusting your target CPA based on performance, you can work towards achieving your desired cost per action.

7. Target ROAS (tROAS)

Spin text: Target ROAS (tROAS) is a bidding strategy that shares similarities with Target CPA, but focuses on maximizing return on ad spend (ROAS). Similar to tCPA, tROAS has been incorporated into the Max Conversion Value strategy (learn more here).

With tROAS, Google Ads utilizes historical data to forecast conversion and conversion value performance, enabling it to participate in relevant auctions and adjust bids in real time. The primary objective is to maximize conversion value while striving to achieve the target ROAS goal defined at the ad group, campaign, or portfolio level.

Like tCPA, the ROAS of individual conversions may vary, either exceeding or falling short of your desired target. Google employs strategies to strike a balance over time and reach the specified ROAS goal.

While using tROAS, advertisers have the option to set bid limits (minimums and maximums) at the campaign or portfolio level. However, Google advises caution when implementing these limits, as they can restrict the algorithm’s decision-making process.

Cautions for Targeting ROAS

The same considerations that apply to tCPA also apply to tROAS. It is crucial to have precise conversion tracking with assigned conversion values and an adequate history of conversion performance to effectively utilize this strategy.

Additionally, it’s important not to set an excessively high target ROAS right from the start. It is advisable to begin with a slightly lower goal than your recent performance and gradually increase the target over time to achieve a more profitable ROAS.

8. Target Impression Share

Target Impression Share is a relatively new bidding strategy that emerged from beta testing in 2018.

In this strategy, advertisers establish a desired impression share percentage, similar to how they would set a target CPA in other bidding strategies.

Target Impression Share offers three placement options to bid for:

1. Absolute Top of Page
2. Top of Page
3. Anywhere on the Page

Each option communicates different preferences to the Google algorithm, which then adjusts bids accordingly.

To avoid overspending, advertisers can set a maximum CPC bid in Target Impression Share bidding. However, Google advises against setting it too low, as it may limit performance.

Cautions for Target Impression Share

As with any bidding strategy, it’s important to exercise caution to avoid bids that exceed profitability levels. While Target Impression Share focuses on awareness and reach, it’s crucial to consider the monetary feasibility of your campaigns.

Monitor CPC

Set a maximum CPC bid to prevent overpaying for individual clicks. Initially, don’t worry about setting it too low. Start with a 20%-50% increase over your current bid. If it yields satisfactory results, maintain that cap. If you desire more volume, consider increasing the maximum CPC.

Keep in mind that achieving 100% coverage in auctions is rare. Don’t be surprised or discouraged if your actual coverage is closer to 95%.

Continuously assess CPCs and performance outcomes to ensure that this bidding strategy aligns with your goals before committing to it further.

9. Viewable CPM

vCPM (Viewable CPM) is a metric that represents the cost per thousand viewable impressions. In the context of Google Ads, an ad is considered viewable when it is visible on the screen for a minimum duration of one second (for Display ads) or two seconds (for video ads), with at least 50% of the ad being in view.

Viewable CPM is a bidding strategy specifically tailored for Display ads, allowing advertisers to bid for impressions when their ads are displayed in viewable spaces.

vCPM bidding is an excellent choice when you aim to increase your brand exposure and reach a wide audience with your message.

Cautions for Viewable CPM

There are a few considerations to keep in mind when using vCPM bidding: frequency and placements.

Frequency: When utilizing vCPM bidding, Google aims to maximize the number of viewable impressions your ad receives. However, it’s essential to strike a balance and avoid bombarding a small audience with excessive ad frequency. While the goal is to increase ad views, it’s crucial to ensure that your brand doesn’t overwhelm users with a high frequency count.

Placements: Not all viewable impressions carry the same value. It’s important to regularly review your placements report to ensure that your ads are not appearing on undesired websites. Monitoring your ad placements helps maintain brand safety and ensures that your message is being displayed in relevant and appropriate contexts.

10. Cost Per View (CPV)

With Cost Per View (CPV) bidding, you have the option to bid on individual views, specifically for video ads. This bidding strategy allows you to set a campaign-level bid limit, indicating the maximum amount you’re willing to pay for each view or interaction with your video, whichever occurs first.

Under CPV bidding, you will only be charged for a view if a viewer watches your video for more than 30 seconds, or for the entire duration if the video is shorter than 30 seconds. However, if the viewer engages with other call-to-action elements such as clicking on a shared link or participating in actions like app downloads, you will be charged for those interactions instead.

An advantage of CPV bidding is that it enables you to “bid up” when your ads are displayed alongside popular YouTube videos, which increases the likelihood of generating a higher return for your advertising efforts

Cautions with CPV

Be cautious if your video campaigns have loose targeting. If you’re attracting a large number of views at a lower cost, CPV bidding may not be the most suitable option for you.

Since CPV bidding focuses on individual views, it’s important to spend when it truly matters. Loose targeting can make it challenging to assess the effectiveness of your bids. Moreover, video views and average costs per view tend to be relatively inexpensive.

As a result, CPV is an excellent strategy for a highly targeted video campaign in a competitive environment. However, it may not be the most suitable choice for beginners in video advertising.

Which automated bidding strategy should I choose?

Now that we’ve explored all the automated bidding strategies, it’s important to understand that we don’t have to choose just one strategy for the entire account. The beauty of automated bidding and bid management is that we can customize and select different strategies for different parts of our account based on their specific goals.

In Google Ads, you have the flexibility to set automated bidding strategies at the ad group, campaign, or portfolio level, depending on the strategy you opt for. This means you can allocate different bid strategies to different components of your account based on their unique objectives.

When selecting a bid strategy, it’s crucial to evaluate it at the campaign level to determine if it aligns with your goals and if you have sufficient data to support its effectiveness (for example, enough conversion volume for Target CPA to work effectively). If the chosen strategy doesn’t meet your requirements, you might consider exploring alternative bid strategies, implementing a portfolio level strategy, or even adjusting your account structure to maximize its benefits in the future.

If you Set It, Don’t Forget It

Automated bid strategies in Google Ads offer a valuable time-saving solution by harnessing algorithmic optimization for your account. However, it is crucial to carefully evaluate and select the right strategies.

While automated bidding reduces the need for constant manual adjustments, it’s important to avoid the mindset of “set it and forget it.” Regular monitoring is essential to ensure that these strategies continue to align with your objectives. Set reminders to periodically assess their performance and make any necessary adjustments. Embrace the power of automation, but remain proactive in managing your campaigns for optimal result

Get ready to dive deep into the intricacies of managing your Google Ads account. In this article, we explore the challenges faced by digital marketers, such as collecting and analyzing data, optimizing campaigns, and meeting time constraints. Thankfully, Google offers a range of time-saving options fueled by their vast data resources. But do these options truly enhance campaign performance? Join us as we share real-life experiences from working with different Google Ad accounts and uncover the truth behind these tools. Together, we’ll examine their effectiveness and determine their impact on campaign success.

Targeting Tools

Crafting effective targeting strategies is essential for maximizing the success of your Google Ads campaigns. When it comes to search campaigns, you have the power to fine-tune your targeting by carefully selecting keywords and utilizing different match types. On the other hand, display campaigns rely on building audiences or leveraging the available audience options within the Google Ads platform. In the following sections, we will delve deeper into these targeting methods and explore their potential impact on your campaign performance.

Expanding your targeting reach is made possible through various options offered by Google for different campaign types. In the case of search campaigns, you can opt to display your ads on Google search partners, which significantly broadens the scope of your Google search ads to numerous non-Google websites. This reach can even extend to popular platforms like YouTube and other Google sites. It’s important to note that when selecting this option, you will receive a notification stating that “most advertisers include their ads on Google search partner sites.”

After auditing an account, we found a client of ours did indeed decide to include search partners and saw the following results:

We have observed a significant increase in conversion volume from search partners; however, the cost-per-conversion also tends to be higher in these cases. Furthermore, Google search still holds a 90.25% impression share, indicating that there is ample opportunity to display ads on Google search. By allocating a larger portion of the budget to Google search and slightly reducing the investment in search partners, this client could have achieved conversions at a lower cost and ultimately reduced the overall cost-per-conversion in the campaign.

When it comes to setting up a display campaign, you can enhance your reach by leveraging automated targeting options.

Impressive, isn’t it? One of our clients implemented the mentioned settings for a remarketing campaign, and here’s how it performed overall:

Something seems amiss here!

You would expect a higher conversion rate than 0.25% when targeting users who are already familiar with your brand, right? So, what went wrong? Upon analyzing the performance of site visitors, we observed the following:

And in comparison, this is how the set of conservative automation performed:

We observe a significant disparity in performance here. Despite being set to a “conservative” automation level, 82% of the budget was allocated to automation, which resulted in much worse performance. It’s crucial to prioritize proper targeting as the cornerstone of your campaign’s success. Keep this in mind at all times.

If your goal is lead generation, it’s advisable to avoid opting for automated targeting unless you feel you have exhausted other options. Even then, don’t set it and forget it; you could end up wasting ad spend on audiences you have no control over.

On the other hand, if your goal is to increase brand awareness, these options can be an excellent way to expand your reach, gain more exposure, and drive increased traffic to your website.

Bid Builder

Managing a large number of keywords in your account can be a cumbersome task when it comes to manual bidding. However, Google’s smart bidding options offer a solution by automating the process of tracking and adjusting keyword bids. With multiple options available, you can choose the one that best aligns with your campaign goals and objectives. This not only saves time but also ensures that your bids are optimized for maximum performance.

• Target CPA: Adjusts bids to achieve the maximum number of conversions while maintaining the average cost-per-acquisition (CPA) goal.
• Target ROAS: Optimizes bids to maximize conversion value while ensuring the desired return on ad spend (ROAS) is maintained.
• Maximize Clicks: Adjusts bids to maximize the number of clicks your ads receive within the specified budget.
• Target Search Page Location: Adjusts bids to increase the likelihood of your ads appearing at the top of the search page or on the first page of search results.
• Target Outranking Share: Modifies bids to surpass competing ads from another domain.
• Enhanced CPC: Automatically adjusts manual bids to optimize conversions.
• Target Impression Share: Sets bids automatically to increase the chances of your ads appearing in the selected search page area.

These options can be highly advantageous depending on the specific goals of your campaign. We had the opportunity to work with a client who had a well-established campaign with a substantial amount of conversion data, averaging approximately 200 conversions per month. It’s worth noting that the more conversion data available, the more effective Google’s algorithm becomes at quickly adapting and generating optimal results within a shorter timeframe. In order to further explore the effectiveness of different bidding strategies, we conducted an experiment comparing the performance of maximizing conversions against a manual bidding strategy. The results we obtained were quite intriguing.

Despite monitoring the campaign for a few weeks, we did not observe significant disparities in terms of volume or conversion rate. However, the notable distinction lied in the costs associated with each bidding strategy:

After implementing the automated bidding strategy, we experienced a staggering 63% increase in CPC. Although the conversion volume remained stagnant, our CPA skyrocketed. Consequently, we decided to terminate the experiment and revert to manual bidding.

However, it is crucial to note that automated strategies are not always wasteful. In fact, we have witnessed remarkable results with this approach in one of our client’s campaigns, boasting the highest volume and lowest CPA ever achieved.

The Target CPA strategy proved effective in enhancing performance and improving account-level CPA. Additionally, the Target Impression Share feature helped us achieve the goal of displaying high-value keywords 100% of the time.

The key takeaway is to conduct thorough experimentation before making any switches. Results can vary depending on factors such as industry, offer, and the distinction between branded and non-branded keywords. Personally, I have found these strategies to be most effective after running a campaign for a substantial duration and optimizing it extensively. Once the campaign is established, experimenting with Smart Bidding can propel it to the next level of success.

Creative Collaboration

So far, we have primarily focused on the backend aspects of Google Ads, but what about the creatives that your customers see? Google has a solution for that too, known as responsive search and display ads.

With responsive search ads, you can input multiple headlines and descriptions, and Google will automatically test different combinations to find the most effective one. This feature eliminates the need to create numerous ad variants manually in order to identify the winning copy. Let’s examine an example:

Although the click-through rate appears impressive, the cost-per-acquisition (CPA) is not as desirable. What’s even more concerning is the lack of visibility into what specifically is causing the wasted spend. If you click on the “view asset details” as highlighted above, you will encounter the following information:

The available data on responsive search ads only provides information about the different combinations and their respective impression numbers. Unfortunately, it lacks crucial metrics such as conversion numbers, conversion rates, and cost-per-conversions associated with each combination. This limitation prevents us from effectively identifying successful ad variations and pausing underperforming ones. While responsive search ads have the potential to revolutionize advertising, the absence of comprehensive statistics hinders our ability to analyze and optimize copy performance. For instance, a combination that generates a high number of clicks may not resonate well with the landing page compared to another combination with fewer clicks. Without the necessary data, it’s challenging to make informed decisions. On the display side, responsive display ads streamline the process by allowing you to upload an image and accompanying copy, which Google can then adapt to fit different ad placements, similar to responsive search ads.

We conducted a test comparing one of these responsive display ads against our standard banner ads, and the results were impressive. The top row displays the metrics for the entire ad group, while the bottom row specifically highlights the metrics for the responsive display ad:

The responsive display ad proved to be highly effective, generating more than half of the ad group’s conversions while accounting for less than a quarter of the total spend. Automation showed promising results in this case. However, similar to responsive search ads, the lack of detailed insights makes it challenging to determine what aspects are driving success. To gain a better understanding, we paused the manually built display ads and conducted further tests between different variations of responsive ads. Although responsive ads can save significant time in the creative process, the absence of comprehensive insights hinders our ability to identify the messaging that seamlessly guides users from the ad to the landing page and towards the desired conversion. Nevertheless, it is advisable to include responsive ads in your arsenal and experiment with them alongside your existing ads to evaluate their performance for your specific campaigns.

Overview and Recommendations Refresh

If you have a large Google Ads account and are unsure where to begin, these tabs provide you with overall insights into your campaigns, ad groups, and keywords. They offer a convenient way to review and analyze the performance of your advertising efforts.

This tool enables you to obtain a broad understanding of trends and anomalies within your Google Ads account. The Overview section, for instance, provides insights into the triggering keywords for your ads, saving you the hassle of manually searching through individual search terms. It allows you to quickly identify relevant information without extensive digging.

If you notice a significant number of irrelevant terms in this section, it serves as a clear indication that you need to optimize your search terms and incorporate negative keywords. In the given example, we have identified a word that triggered our ad but is unrelated to our services. Adding this word as a negative keyword ensures that our ads are not displayed for irrelevant searches. Removing such keywords is vital for minimizing wasteful spending and ensuring that your ads are targeted towards relevant searches.

Moving on to the Recommendations tab, it provides suggestions on areas where you can increase your ad spend or expand your campaigns. However, it is important to approach these recommendations with caution as they may not always align with your campaign goals.

As an example, during our video campaign, we received the following recommendation:

Seems pretty straightforward, right? Just increasing our daily budget should result in more video views. But what about the engagement metrics? Are these viewers actually visiting our website? If they do, how long do they stay? And if they don’t, how many pages do they explore?

The purpose of this campaign was to raise awareness for our client’s product and determine if video ads successfully drove users to the site. We were more interested in evaluating audience behavior and whether they took action after watching a teaser clip, rather than simply reaching a wide audience with the video.

Unfortunately, the above recommendation doesn’t provide these insights; it only focuses on increasing costs and views. Click-through rate, bounce rate, and pages per session are more meaningful metrics to assess your goals, and they should be considered before allocating more budget for additional views.

Remember, these recommendations are just suggestions. Use them as a guide to identify areas for further exploration within your account. However, always investigate and analyze the data before blindly increasing your budget.

More spending for visibility alone doesn’t guarantee improved account performance.

Final Focus

Setting up a Google Ads account with the aim of optimizing your paid search strategy can be a time-consuming process that requires careful planning and research.

Given the multitude of tasks within the account, it’s tempting to rely on Google’s automation features and let the system run on autopilot. However, taking shortcuts early on can lead to underwhelming performance and wasted ad spend in your PPC campaigns.

But isn’t automation designed to learn, adapt, and enhance our search marketing efforts? Well, as the frequently heard phrase in Directive’s pay-per-click department goes, “it depends.”

While automation options are available to simplify your workload, they don’t come with guaranteed success. Should you give them a try? Absolutely. Optimize your campaigns first, then test out automation, but closely monitor the performance within your account. Be diligent and ensure there are no vulnerabilities in your search marketing campaigns that could allow automation to deplete your paid search budget.