What Is Google Search Advertising?

Google will automatically generate an Ad with a combination of these aspects based on what it thinks a person will react “best” to. i.e. the combination that will make a potential customer most likely to click on the Ad. Google will learn the best combinations over time and show them more often as more data is gathered.

The 'Google Ads' Process

How does the Ad end up in front of your customers?

1. Search: A customer searches for a product or service your business offers. Google looks at all the Ads that might be relevant to that search.
2. Auction: Ads that are eligible to show on Google compete in an auction to determine if they show, and where they show on the page.
3. Ranking: An Ad’s position on the page is based on its 'Bid' and its 'Quality Score'. Ads that rank higher are more likely to be seen by customers, so those Ads receive more clicks than lower-ranking Ads. The higher you rank, the less you pay per click -- because you've convinced Google that your Ad is more relevant to that keyword search, and thus more effective.
4. Click: Your Ad is seen by the customer, and they click on it. The site directs them to your product or service purchase page.
5. Sales: The customers buy product/service from your website

Where, How Much, Which & What of Google Ads

Where do you want your adverts to be seen?

• Placements: With Google Ads, your Ads will appear at the top of Google Searches, and depending on the competitive bidding of your Ad, it can even appear at the bottom of the page too! When coupled with your Google My Business listing, you’ll also be able to run Display Ads on local pages within Google Maps, bringing you a totally unique local edge over your competitors.
• Locations: Do you want a locally targeted campaign or a nationwide one? Again, with Google Ads you can use different wording for different locations. This can be really effective in giving your Google Search Ads a local feel or appealing to potential clients nationwide. Different results and data should be expected advertising locally compared to nationwide though.
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How much do you want to invest?

• PPC Marketing: You only pay when someone clicks your Ad.
• Budgets: It's completely up to you how much you want to spend, and you can change it at any time. Budget Controls allow you to only spend what you want and can afford on a daily and monthly basis.
• Bidding: This is how your Cost-Per-Click (CPC) is determined. You, your competitors, and other businesses bid on the Cost-Per-Click. For each keyword, you set a maximum bid, and you won't pay more than that for that keyword.
• Free Ad Spend: New Google Ad Accounts get free advertising credit!

Which Keywords will match your Customers Searches?

Any time you’ve searched for a company, product, or service on Google, you've experienced how essential it is to have a strong presence in search engine results. This is where you may need to test multiple keywords and keyword match types to see what works best for your business – there is no one-size-fits-all solution.

Understanding the different types of keywords and their match types will help you achieve that. Here are a few things to think about:

• Broad match covers all variations of your keyword, including synonyms and related searches. It also covers implied words not included in your keyword terms, but which may be helpful in reaching more potential customers.

• Phrase match targets customers searching for your exact keyword phrase, as well as close variations of it (e.g., “red shoes” is a close variation of [shoes red]).

• Exact match targets customers searching for your exact keyword phrase only, excluding any close variations (e.g., [pizza] would exclude searches like “pizza delivery”).

• Negative Keywords prevent your Ad from appearing when someone searches using words or phrases that aren’t relevant to your campaign or business. 

Remember:

• Be specific: If your audience is searching for a specific product or service, use the exact phrase they would search for.
• Use modifiers: Include words that give more context to your keyword, like “best”, “cheap” or “discount”.
• Include location: Adding location information to your keywords can help you connect with customers in specific areas.
• Research Long-Tail keywords: These are longer, less common variations of keywords that are usually easier to rank for.
• Use Negative Keywords: These are similar to keywords that you do not want your business to show up for.

What do you want to share in your Google Ads?

• Ad Copy: Different audiences need different advertising copy/text. You should include Keywords within your Headlines and Descriptions to increase your Ad Relevance.
• Locally Focused: Locally targeted wording can make your Google Ad more appealing. Having a “local feel” with Google Ads can increase click-through-rate
• Unique Selling Point: Make sure these are shown within your headlines and descriptions!
• Encourage Action: Calls-to-Action can be effective if placed right within your Google Ad. Offers can also be effective (ideal within Headlines to grab attention)
• Ad Extensions: The right ones can be huge!

Understanding the Auction

5 Factors Affecting Ad Rank:

1. Bid: Needs to be enough to rank
2. Ad Rank Threshold: minimum quality thresholds that an ad must meet to be shown in certain positions
3. Context of query: e.g., time, location, device etc
4. Ad Extensions Impact: Google estimates their contribution to the Ad.
5. Auction-Time & Quality: how relevant is your Ad and website to the person searching? Quality Score is an estimate by Google for the quality of your Ads.

Quality Score components:

• Expected CTR (Click Through Rate): Estimated % Number of people who will see the ad who will click it.
• Ad Landing Page Experience: Needs to be easy to navigate, transparent in terms of business nature and use of data etc.
• Ad Relevance: how well your Ad matches your users search? Prevents businesses “paying way to the top”

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