In the last decade or so, Google has proven to be the most effective search engine offering numerous services that basically serve as the backbone of many people’s online experience. They’ve made it clear that the services they offer are here to stay. For many businesses, Google has been instrumental to their success and making it possible to reach their audiences online. Google Ads, in particular, is one of the most popular marketing tools being used by millions of businesses and users today.
While Google Ads just might be the platform you’re looking for to turn your business into a profitable venture, there’s still a lot to learn about it and how you can use it to your advantage. This guide covers just how crucial it is for businesses to fully utilize Google Ad’s features and use it to boost other marketing efforts like social media and content marketing.
The Origin of Google Ads
More than 20 years ago, Google launched a new type of service called Adwords, which would bring a new meaning to online advertising and marketing. Adwords was designed to connect businesses and customers through advertisements posted in Google’s own search engine. After taking the world by storm, Adwords was eventually rebranded into Google Ads in 2018. Since then, Google Ads has been the go-to platform for businesses that want to advertise online.
How Does Google Ads Work?
Through the years, Google Ads have evolved along with Google’s own search engine, which has perhaps the most expansive reach compared to its competitors. With millions of search queries coming through the search engine every minute, Google’s ad services offer the most value for businesses.
Those search queries are basically the bread and butter of the search engine and its ad services. Along with the results of the queries, users also receive a list of advertisements on their search results page. Those advertisements are generated through Google Ads, which then show up on every user’s search query results worldwide.
The way it works goes like this. Suppose a user looks up a place to have their car repaired. That person will then receive a list of discounts and promos from auto shops and mechanics in their city. Viewing these ads, they will be inclined towards choosing a service provider with the best reviews and good discounts. However, there’s more to it than meets the eye. With millions of businesses competing for each other, you need to make your ad so engaging that it can easily capture the audience’s eyes. That competitive nature is basically the lifeblood of Google Ads and how it works right now.
The PPC Model
Google Ads operates under a pay-per-click (PPC) model where marketers target a specific keyword on Google and post their bids on that particular keyword. Of course, other businesses and marketers will also probably bid on the same keyword, making it quite a competitive scene. Those bids you make are “maximum bids,” which is basically the limit of what you’re willing to pay for an ad.
To better understand how this works, here’s an example.
If your maximum bid for a particular ad is $4, and Google determines that your cost per click is at $2, then you get that ad placement. However, if the algorithm determines that your cost per click is much more than $4, you won’t get that ad placement.
Influencing Customers via Google Ads
On the user side of things, a typical person looking at those ads on the search results page will normally compare a few ads before making a decision. They make this comparison by looking at how good your ad looks and your company’s ratings and reputation online. By that logic, you need to be smart about how you can make your ads enticing to the user so you can influence their decisions.
There are a couple of ways of influencing your potential customers through your ads. First, you can use power phrases or words that will capture the user’s attention. If you’re showing an ad about food, using words like “scrumptious” would be good when describing a menu item. If you’re in the tourism industry, words like “luxurious” would be something you can use in your ad. Those words are considered strong adjectives that better describe a feeling instead of using simpler words like “tasty” or “comfortable.”
Another way to influence your audience to click your ads is to make ads that are targeted to a specific group of people. Every business has a target audience, which is a group of people with similar traits that are more likely to express interest in your product or service. Making an ad targeting those people will help you increase the number of viewers who are eventually interested in viewing your website.
Different Campaign Types
Before you can even start designing an advertisement for Google Ads, you need to know what type of campaign you’ll be using that would best serve your needs. Remember, not all campaign types will be effective for your business, so you need to choose only the most suitable one as it will affect your ad’s overall performance. The following are some of the main campaign types on Google Ad you can choose from:
1. Google Search Ads
Google search ads are the text ads that you see on Google search engine results pages. You’ll immediately know if the search result is an advertisement if it has the word “Ad” in bold letters placed just above the link. These ads typically appear at the top of the organic search results or at the very bottom of the page.
If your goal is to attract people looking for your products, then this type of ad would be the best fit for you. This means that people who are most likely to click on the ad already have an intent to purchase or buy your product. By targeting keywords with buyers’ intent, you can reach shoppers when they’re searching for the products and services that you offer.
2. Display Ads
This type of ad is more used to generate awareness for your brand. Display ads work a little differently than search ads since the latter uses text and targets specific keywords. On the other hand, display ads are image-based and allow you to target people who are likely to be interested in your products but are not looking to buy just yet. Display ads typically appear on websites or even your Gmail account or your Google applications.
3. Video Ads
Since Google owns YouTube, the video-sharing site acts more or less like a search engine but only shows videos as search results. With video ads, you can target your potential customers on the platform based on what they are watching. Currently, YouTube has billions of users worldwide, giving quite a big audience to target for your ads. Whenever a user watches a YouTube video, they’re likely to see ads before, during, or after the video they’re watching.
4. Shopping Ads
Shopping ads work similarly to search ads in the sense that they target people who have the intent to buy. Unlike regular search ads, however, shopping ads also utilize images to show what the product looks like along with its name, price, store name, and even a couple of reviews. It essentially gives users a glimpse of information about the product before they even visit the actual store online.
Conclusion
Google Ads remains to be one of the most popular and commonly used platforms by digital marketing agencies, businesses, and professionals to promote their products and services. The platform is ripe with many opportunities that will allow you to reach out to your customers and help them find what they are looking for, but often you need a Google Ads expert to make sure you are not wasting your Google Ads budget.
New Digital is focused on driving leads and clients for small to medium-sized businesses in measurable and repeatable ways. Expect game-changing results with our social media management, Local SEO, and Google Ads management services. If you’re looking for a digital marketing agency that will help you get results, New Digital is the one to call. Partner with us today, and let us help you achieve your goals!
