Whoever has a business obviously wants to see it succeed and attract a large, loyal customer base. But, how, is often the question. One may argue that in today’s world of the internet and digital media, it has gotten increasingly easy to propagate a business, establish identity and recognition among consumers, and get good traffic.
But it has also gotten tough since every business needs to think carefully before choosing any particular medium or tool for marketing, as to whether it is relevant and useful for them or not. Now, enter Google Ads- known as Google Ads simply.
How does Google Ads work?
The concept behind Google Ads is to show certain ads at the very top of Google search results when the target customer types related keywords in the search box. The keywords trigger the appearance of the ad based on how relevant it is, and it is this ad appearance you pay Google for. However, in order to use Google Ads services, you have to enter an auction held by Google and bid for the number of clicks you want on your ads. To that end, whether or not you win the bid is determined by the quality of your ad, combined with the actual price you’re bidding. Here’s how the whole process works-
- You need to start by choosing the keywords you want your ads to appear against. That means, that you need to select the words your customers will be typing in the search bar so that they make your ad appear. You will be paying Google for each click made on your ad, and for each time someone searched the relevant keyword and your ad appeared.
- You can lower this cost by choosing keywords very carefully- pick some that your competitors are less likely to use, and if they don’t bid as much for these words, Google will still show your ad and you end up paying less than what you bid. Google also prioritizes the relevance of the keywords used, so even if you pay less and your keywords are very relevant, it will show your ads.
- You need to ensure that the landing page for your website, the first thing the audiences see when they click on your ad and are brought to your site, has a clean interface and is appealing. If it doesn’t grab their attention, they will leave within seconds and Google Ads will give you a negative score. You need to keep this score high to keep ranking high in ads as well.
- Based on what kind of results you want from your campaign on Google Ads, Google Ads will then help optimize it here and there. You can then pick whether you want to advertise locally or worldwide. Then you may design customized banners to attract your audience’s attention or simply describe your business- whatever gets the message across to the people who will be seeing your ad.
- Google Ads lets you set your monthly budget to spend on ads, and you can pause or stop this anytime. Just keep an eye on the general expenditure and you’ll be fine.
- Post-this, all you have to do is let Google Ads do its job, and wait for your target customers to click on your ad. Over time, you will organically get better at understanding which ads are working, what your customer engagement rate is like, and how you can make it better.
Benefits of using Google Ads
- Competitive edge– The world of digital marketing is highly competitive today, thanks to the number of options and avenues that have opened up of late. One doesn’t just have to be fast in pursuit of their audience base, you need to think smart and creative too. Google Ads is one of the smartest ways to reach your target audience faster than your competitors since you’re basically paying for your company website to be advertised at the top of search results.
- Increased visibility– No matter how much you promote your brand on social media and interact with your target audience, none of it is going to be optimally fruitful unless you take the help of Google Ads. When you pay for Google Ads, your ad, and hence your brand, becomes more visible to your targeted customer segment. This will lead to increased traffic on your website, a boost in sales and consumer engagement, as well as a higher number of direct phone calls or even store visits to your business (if you have stores).
- Helpful algorithm– While you will be figuring out yourself how to improve your ads and their reach, Google Ads algorithm is also constantly analysing the same and will give you regular reports and analytical info based on which you can work on your ads.
Key points to remember when using Google Ads
- One of the most important points to remember is you don’t have to pay a lot for something that isn’t bringing in results. Choose your bid smartly, and start off small so that even if the initial results aren’t that great, you haven’t lost a lot of money.
- On that note, much of the Google Ads process is a waiting game. You may or may not see visible and huge results immediately. Most likely, you will have to wait a good amount of time for significant results, because by default, there are large brands out there that are more well-known and can pay much more than you for ads. Wait for the tide to shift a bit in your favour, and be patient.
- Keep your focus on increasing conversion by making sales and ensuring that consumers linger on your site awhile at least, regularly. This way you are earning back much of the money you spend on Google Ads.
So that was a basic rundown on Google Ads, how it works, what it can do for you, and how you should use it. How do you plan to integrate Google Ads with your marketing plan next?
