Google AdWords are the text ads you see on the top and to the right of your Google search results.  Let's say you do a search for "Domains."  You'll see the search page come up with the results you requested, as well as links highlighted in blue on top and to the right of your requested search.  These are ads done through Google AdWords. Google AdWords are a fantastic way to reach your target market through searches consumers may be doing for one of your company's offerings. 

You have the ability to run multiple ads targeted with one or more search keywords and Google's step-by-step demos walk you through the process of creating a successful ad campaign.  The great part is that you have cost-per-click pricing, so you only pay the amount you've set for each click (from 1 cent USD+ per click) when qualified leads click on your ad and through to your site.  

In addition, AdWords give you 24/7 access to detailed performance reports that help you track the effectiveness of your ad campaigns and the control to update or change your ads as often as you like.  And if you have any questions, you can refer to Google's Help Center or contact their dedicated Customer Support team.

We have put together some tips below to help you maximise Google AdWords.  It’s probably easiest to start out by creating an account.   To help you better understand the process, we have based our suggestions on a hypothetical online golf shop.

You can have multiple campaigns in Google AdWords.  This is especially helpful if you have multiple brands and want to put them under the same account.  Otherwise you can just title your campaign the name of your company and add ad groups within for different products.

Within a campaign, you can have multiple ad groups based on different products or services, and within those ad groups, multiple ads that share the same keywords.

Google is strict about its advertising format and content.  Ads consist of 4 lines: a heading, 2 descriptive lines and 1 website address line-all with a maximum number of characters per line.  Your ads are reviewed by Google for acceptable use and to ensure that you’re not misleading the public by advertising a product/service you don’t offer on your website.

When writing your ad, you should attempt to include one of your keywords.  This will increase the effectiveness of your title as these terms will be highlighted in blue if matched with a searched key word.  Look at what your competitors are doing to see what approach they are using-some searches are very price driven, others are service focused.  You might list pricing, add exclamations or use the word ‘free’ to increase clicks.  Remember that every click costs, so you want to word your ads to target prospective customers and not random clicks.  Lastly, you’ll want to include the specific page containing the product/service advertised to ensure that prospects are taken directly to the item they’re searching for instead of having to find where it is on your homepage.

From these ads, Google with run the ad that receives the most clicks to give you the best performance.  In addition, the more often you update your ads, the better placement you’ll receive.  It’s a careful mix of ad content, new ads, and bidding that determine your position. 

Keywords are the words typed into a search engine to assist people in finding the information they’re looking for. 

You will need to develop a core list of targeted keywords and phrases that your consumers are likely to type in to find your company.  Write down the top 20 words or phrases that people might type into a search to find what you offer.  Google provides a ‘Search Suggestion Tool’ that allows you to enter a keyword and it will bring up a list of other similar keywords that you can use as well.  You can enter keywords as plain text or add quotations “golf balls,” parentheses (golf balls), and/or negative -balls punctuation to better target your market. The negative punctuation ensures that your ad will not show up on searches that aren’t targeted.

Using our golf ball group, you might include the following 20 keywords:

Lastly, you’ll be asked to enter a bid for your ad; basically the maximum amount you’re willing to pay when someone clicks on an ad.  The amount you bid will affect how your ad ranks (1,2,3…) when someone puts in one of your chosen keywords.  The minimum bid is $0.01, so if you wanted to start your bid at say $0.50 per click and see how your ad ranks and increase from there.  The number of competitors plays a role in how much you’ll need to bid to be ranked in the top spots.  You definitely want your ad to be shown on the first page of results, as most don’t click on the “More Sponsored Links” at the bottom. 

Once you’re Google AdWords account has begun, you’ll be able to view your campaign results on a tiered level.  Initially you’ll see the results of your campaigns on a general level and can view these by specifying a certain time period or day.  Results are then given by campaign name including your current daily budget, the number of clicks, impressions, click through rate (% of impressions that result in actual clicks), average cost per click, overall cost of campaign, % conversion rate, cost per conversion and number of conversions.

Next you can view your ad groups and the same information as above is listed for your ad groups.  Then you can click on an ad group to see how your keywords for that group are performing, and again how your different ads are doing. 

Google provides a number of free tools with your AdWords account.

Reports
You can create customised statistical, financial, and/or conversion reports to be delivered to you on an hourly, daily, weekly or monthly basis.  You’ll find helpful tutorials by clicking on the top ‘Reports’ tab.

Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a website reporting tool that reports on the activities of visitors to your site.  You can see the number of visitors, pageviews, time spent on site, new visits, a world map of where your traffic is coming from, content overview and more.

Cross-Channel Campaigns

As you can see, Google AdWords is massive and it will take some time to get your head around.  However, it is well worth the time.  Many users see 15%+ of overall revenue generated by Google AdWords.  That’s an incredible, immediate return on investment.  So set up an account, have a go and remember to regularly (we recommend weekly) review your account and update your ads to get the greatest return.