Google Ads Guide – DIGI Conscious

In the digital era, advertising has evolved far beyond traditional methods. With the rise of the internet, businesses have shifted their focus to online platforms to reach their target audience more effectively. Among the plethora of online advertising options available, Google Ads stands out as one of the most powerful and versatile tools for businesses of all sizes. In this article I will share with you a ultimate guide on Google Ads. This Google Ads guide will help you learn PPC terms, bidding strategies, and best practices to create effective advertisements on Google Ads.

What is Google Ads?

Google Ads, formerly known as Google AdWords, is an online advertising platform developed by Google. It allows businesses to display their advertisements on Google’s search engine results pages (SERPs), websites within the Google Display Network, YouTube videos, and more. The platform operates on a pay-per-click (PPC) model, where advertisers bid on keywords relevant to their target audience, and pay for clicks on their ads.

Google Ads Terms to Know

Ad Extensions: Ad Extensions allow you to supplement your ad with additional information at no extra cost. These extensions fall under one of five categories: Sitelink, Call, Location, Offer, or App.
AdRank: A value assigned to your ad position in relation to other ads. Your AdRank determines your ad placement. The higher the value, the better you’ll rank. Your AdRank is determined by your maximum bid multiplied by your Quality Score.
Bidding: Google Ads is based on a bidding system, where you, as the advertiser, select a maximum bid amount you’re willing to pay for a click on your ad. The higher your bid, the better your placement. You have three options for bidding: CPC, CPM, or CPE.
Cost-per-click (CPC): CPC is the amount you pay for each click on your ad.
Cost-per-mile (CPM): CPM is the amount you pay for one thousand ad impressions when your ad is shown to a thousand people.
Cost-per-engagement (CPE): CPE is the amount you pay when someone takes a predetermined action with your ad.
Click-through rate (CTR): The number of clicks your ad receives divided by the ad impressions (number of times your ad is shown), as a percentage.
Conversion rate: The average number of conversions on your ad, as a percentage. A conversion is the action you want visitors to take after they’ve clicked the ad—a sale, call, signup, etc.
Keywords: Words or phrases describing your product or service that you choose to help determine when and where your ad can appear.
Pay-per-click (PPC): The general term for paid online advertising, in which you’re paying by the number of clicks on your ad.
Quality Score: Google’s assessment of the quality of your ads, keywords, and landing pages.
Search volume: The number of searches expected for a keyword within a certain time period.

Why to Choose Google Ads ?

Now the question must be coming in your mind that why to choose Google Ads. Well there are many advantages of choosing Google Ads to grow your business

Massive Reach

Google processes over 4.5 billion searches per day, making it the most widely used search engine globally. With Google Ads, businesses can tap into this massive audience and showcase their products or services to potential customers actively searching for them.

Targeted Advertising

Google Ads offers advanced targeting options that allow advertisers to reach specific demographics, locations, devices, and even interests. This precision targeting ensures that ads are shown to users who are most likely to be interested in the products or services being promoted.

Measurable Results

One of the key advantages of online advertising is its measurability. Google Ads provides comprehensive analytics and reporting tools that allow advertisers to track the performance of their campaigns in real-time. This includes metrics such as click-through rate (CTR), conversion rate, and return on investment (ROI), enabling advertisers to optimize their campaigns for better results.

Flexible Budgeting

Google Ads accommodates businesses of all sizes and budgets. Advertisers have full control over how much they want to spend on their campaigns, with options for both daily and campaign-level budgets. This flexibility ensures that businesses can allocate their advertising budget effectively and scale their campaigns as needed.

Quick and Easy Setup

Setting up a Google Ads campaign is relatively straightforward, even for beginners. The platform provides guided setup processes and intuitive tools that allow advertisers to create and launch their campaigns in a matter of minutes. Additionally, Google offers support resources and tutorials to help advertisers make the most of the platform.

Types of Google Ads

Google Ads offers a variety of ad formats to suit different advertising goals and preferences. Some of the most common types of Google Ads include:

Search Ads

Text-based ads that appear at the top of Google search results when users search for relevant keywords. These ads typically include a headline, description, and URL.

Display Ads

Visual ads that appear on websites within the Google Display Network, which includes millions of websites, blogs, and apps. Display ads can include images, videos, and interactive elements, and are highly customizable.

Video Ads

Ads that appear before, during, or after YouTube videos. Video ads can be skippable or non-skippable, and advertisers can target specific demographics, interests, and placements to reach their desired audience.

Shopping Ads

Product-based ads that appear at the top of Google search results when users search for specific products or product categories. Shopping ads include an image, title, price, and store name, and are linked directly to the advertiser’s website.

App Ads

Ads that promote mobile apps across various Google properties, including Google Search, Google Play, YouTube, and the Google Display Network. App ads can drive installs, engagements, or in-app actions, depending on the advertiser’s goals.

How does Google Ads work?

There are three players in the Google Ads process: the searcher, the advertiser, and the Google Ads platform. Here is how does Google Ads work:

Advertisers create ads and bid on Google Ads platform for specific keywords or phrases that they want their ads to show up for in google search results. Advertisers create campaigns that target specific demographics, interests, locations, etc. They will set a maximum bid for the keywords they want to target.
Searchers or users enters a search query on google for one of those keywords or phrases,
Google processes the request and runs an auction to determine the ads’ placement in the results. Google enters all relevant ads into the auction, only one per account.
After that hrough a complex algorithm Google determines which ads to show and in what order. The algorithm considers various factors, including bid amount and the ad’s relevance and quality.
The advertiser is then charged a fee each time a user clicks on their ad.

How does Google Choose Which Ad to Show?

As mentioned above the ad auction is how Google decides first which ads are eligible to show, and second how they’re ranked among eligible ads. Following factors are considered in the algorithm:

Quality Score

First of all, Google assigns each ad a Quality Score ased on three things:

Relevance: How relevant your ad is to the intent of the query.
Expected click-through rate: How likely your ad is to get clicked if shown, based on your historic performance in relation to competitors.
User experience: how relevant your landing page is to your ad and how useful the experience is.

Quality Score is an estimate of the quality of your ads, keywords, and landing pages. Higher quality ads can lead to lower prices and better ad positions.

Ad Rank

In each auction, your Ad Rank is calculated first to determine whether your ad is eligible to show, and a second time to determine where your ad is ranked relative to other eligible advertisers’ ads. Ad Rank scores are based on following factors:

Your bid: The maximum amount you’re willing to pay for a click on your ad.
Quality score: The quality of your ads and landing page as mentioned above
Ad Rank thresholds: An ad must achieve minimum thresholds before getting shows, which includes, ad quality, ad position, users location and device type, topic and nature of the search.
Competitiveness of an auction: If two ads competing for the same position have similar ad ranks, Cost Per Click (CPC) comes in to play.

How to Create a Google Ads Campaign?

I hope by now you have understood the basic fundamental of Google Ads. So, if you’re ready to get started with your Google Ads strategy, read on for a step-by-step guide on how to run Google ads.

Create a Google Ads account

First thing you’ll need to do is to visit the Google Ads website and sign up for an account. As you sign up for a Google Ads account, Google will automatically take you through the process of creating your first campaign, which includes setting up a payment method. Google charges fees on a per-click basis, so be prepared to share your banking/credit card information during the setup process. You won’t get charged for ad spend until you fully set up your first campaign and start getting clicks, and you can always turn it off once you get through the registration process.

First of all you will need to add your business information

When you click next, you will be asked to link accounts as shown below, which will save your time during Ad setup.

When you click next, it will take you to create your new ad campaign.

Create a New Google Ad Campaign

As a part of your ad campaign, you will need to perform following actions and provide information:

Choose a Goal

Google Ads will ask you to choose a goal for your campaign. Goals could be sales, leads, website traffic, product and brand consideration, brand awareness and reach, or app promotion. Select the one that aligns with your advertising objectives.

Define your Search Themes

Now it’s time to add your search themes. Tell google your targeted keywords i.e. what are some words or phrases people use when searching for your products or services. Specify the geographic locations where you want your ads to be shown. Choose the languages your target audience speaks.

Create Google Ad

Crate google ad and write your ad copy. Depending on the campaign type, you may need to create text ads, image ads, video ads, or responsive ads. You will have to add information accordgingly.

Set Bid Strategy

Now you have to decide about your bid strategy.

Set Budget

Set your daily budget. How much you would like to spend on your ad campaign.

Enter Payment Details

In next step you will have to enter your payment details and click on submit button.

Monitor Performance

Keep an eye on your campaign’s performance using Google Ads’ reporting tools. Monitor metrics such as clicks, impressions, click-through rate (CTR), conversions, and return on ad spend (ROAS).

Optimize Your Campaign

Continuously optimize your campaign by adjusting bids, refining ad copy, adding negative keywords, and testing different ad creatives to improve performance and achieve your advertising goals.

Tips for Success with Google Ads

While Google Ads offers tremendous potential for businesses, achieving success requires careful planning and execution. Here are some tips to help advertisers make the most of their Google Ads campaigns:

Keyword Research

Selecting the right keywords is crucial as they trigger your ads. Conduct thorough keyword research to identify relevant search terms that potential customers are using. Use tools like Google Keyword Planner to discover new keywords and estimate their search volume and competition.

Compelling Ad Copy

Write compelling ad copy that grabs attention, highlights unique selling points, and encourages users to click. Use strong calls-to-action and include relevant keywords to improve ad relevance and performance.

Targeting and Segmentation

Utilize Google Ads’ targeting options to reach specific audiences based on demographics, interests, and behaviors. Segment your campaigns and ad groups to tailor your messaging and bids to different audience segments.

Optimized Landing Pages

Ensure that your ads lead to relevant and user-friendly landing pages that provide a seamless experience for visitors. Optimize your landing pages for conversion by including clear CTAs, relevant content, and persuasive elements.

Continuous Optimization

Regularly monitor and analyze the performance of your Google Ads campaigns, and make adjustments based on insights and data. Test different ad creatives, targeting options, and bidding strategies to identify what works best for your business.