Google Ads, like Facebook Ads, is a part of Pay Per Click, a broad term used for an online marketing communication channel. Let’s begin with a bit of background to Google products.
What is Google Ads?
Google has its own advertising product called Google Ads, formerly named Google Adwords. It is an online advertising system that allows both manual and automatic bidding on keywords to create an ad. As these ads appear in Google search results, it means that the keywords related to a search query must be carefully planned and selected.
It is important for two reasons; First, to reach your target audience and increase brand coverage and exposure; Second, the right keywords can minimize online advertising costs. Therefore, you need to manage Google Ads professionally or you waste money.
Many online advertisers believe that Google has the highest standard of quality, and its system of advertising is the most rigorous. Google processes 40 K queries per second which means 1.2 trillion searches a month. Google claims that advertisers earn $8 for each $1 spent on Google Ads.
Perhaps, that’s why Google is, no doubt, the de facto leader in the online advertising category. You can also explore the Google AdSense service by Google.
Types of Google Ads in 2022
- Google Search Ads
- Google Display Ads
- Google Shopping Ads
- Google Video Ads
- Google Apps Ads
The Do’s of Google Ads
1: Do comprehensive keyword research. If you can afford it, use professional tools such as MOZ, SEMrush, and Ahrefs.
2: Use negative keywords
3: Do research about the demographics(age, income, interest, etc.) of your target customer. ( the type of people etc.)
4: Take care of the landing pages on your website. It should deliver conversion. A good web developer can help.
5: Integrate your Ads to track calls or leads coming from your campaign by using Ad extensions
6: Train and motivate your staff to convert leads into sales. Just pay your team better salaries, and half of your motivation problems are solved 🙂
7: Use a combination of Google Display Ads, Video Ads, and Search Ads.
8. Improve Click-through rate (CTR) and Conversion Rate because it will tell Google that your landing pages or sites are delivering a good user experience.
The Don’ts of Google Ads
1: Don’t quit after a few months. Stick to it until you become efficient at finding your target audience/customers. You can allow room for trial and error to test different ads.
2: Don’t ignore your campaign. Instead, watch and monitor it constantly.
3: Don’t stick to the same keywords all the time. Try different keywords and observe the changes.
4: Don’t do it yourself if you don’t have the time for it. Outsource or employ someone to take care of Google Ads.
Manage Google Ads without losing focus on your main business
I have noticed that a lot of small business owners cannot manage Google Ads campaigns on their own. They also can’t afford to hire a professional staff.
When they run an ad campaign, it is mostly unproductive, and it also takes away the focus from their main business. As they say, you need to work on your business, not in your business.
It is a classic issue that every owner or entrepreneur faces. It is difficult to let go of the processes in your business. Perhaps, you are too invested in the business emotionally that you find it hard to empower others. It can be a recipe for disaster in a business.
In order to grow your business, you have to realize that you cannot do everything. You are not an accountant, marketing, or human resource specialist, and that’s why you hire these people to work for you. Easier said than done 🙂
Similarly, you may not be a digital marketing expert so don’t try it because you cannot do it like a pro. If you want you can open a digital marketing or advertising agency. You can either close down the current business or start running it as a side business 🙂 Just go for it!
The point is that the business owner/entrepreneur’s focus must remain on the core service or product. A business that lacks focus cannot go very far.
Google Ads cannot solve all problems: Keep it Real
Google Ads can be just one element of your brand communication. There are other platforms such as SMS, Radio & Social Media, etc to spread the brand message. Only if you can afford to do so.
Many small business owners are still not convinced that Pay Per Click advertising can help them. Some of the entrepreneurs continue to use the traditional advertising channel.
Over the last three years, several reports have shown that traditional advertising is on the decline. On the other hand, Pay Per Click or Online Advertising is steadily on the rise.
Traditional advertising is on the decline because most of the target customers are found online today. The number of people who read print newspapers and watch TV is constantly shrinking.
Due to its cost advantage, online advertising creates special opportunities for small- and medium-sized businesses to reach their target audience. After the smartphone revolution, mobile users have outnumbered PC users now. Mobile phones have created unprecedented opportunities to reach an audience. With Google Mobile ads, you can reach anyone as long as they have a smartphone.
For example, mobile penetration is 78% in the UAE. This change has brought about a revolution in how a business must market and advertise in the country. However, the small business sector which is the major part of the economy does not use online advertising as much as it should.
Additionally, online advertising targets use advanced algorithms and you can easily measure the results of ad campaigns. Therefore, in order to increase profitability, it is useful to consider acquiring Pay Per Click marketing services as an alternative to the expensive traditional communication outlets. Having said that, you can still use a mix of traditional media as well as the new ones if it suits your business.
After using online advertising effectively, you will surely make it a regular part of your brand communication strategy.
