Google Ads advertising: the magic bullet that makes a big bang when used properly

Google ads can appear on three main networks: the Google search network, the display network and YouTube. This trio is complemented by the Gmail interface and ads on Android apps.

Setting up ads is actually a guarantee that the right message reaches the right people. And if this happens, there's a good chance that the message will get through and the result will be conversions, such as an increase in visitors. The price of a Google Ads ad is determined by the auction system, more on this later.

With Google, there are three levels: the campaign, the ad group and the ad. At the campaign level you can specify the type of ad, the budget, the bidding method and the geographic targeting. At the ad groups level, you can set the keywords, and at the lowest level are the ads themselves.

SEO can help companies get to the top of the search results organically. The aim is for companies to rank as high as possible in Google's search rankings. Target audience members, potential customers and clients use keywords to search for topics of interest to them. Companies try to find these keywords during keyword research and to prepare their content and advertising accordingly. If this is successful, a website optimised for that keyword will appear at the top of the search results.

This is a safe, but time-consuming process. It is a must for today's businesses, as it is a marketing tool with long-term and predictable costs, but there are situations when faster results are needed. In such cases, Google advertising is useful, whereby we actually buy the top positions in the search results. Everyone will be familiar with the webpages with the words 'Advertise' at the top of the Google results page. These are placed at the top of the page by Google Ads.

Google Ads ads can be counted in several ways: there are PPC and CPM ads. PPC (pay per click) means that you only pay for the traffic that is directed to the page. If no one clicks, there is no cost to the company, so of course the ad doesn't achieve its goal. The more people click, the more you will have to pay, but the clicks will, of course, generate a profit for the company. There is also a so-called CPC (cost per click) solution, which falls under PPC.

The other large group is CPM, or cost per mille, where the company that places the ad pays for the views. So it doesn't matter whether the user clicks or not, the important thing is that the ad is displayed.

So we already know how ads can be ‘counted’, now let's find out what determines how much we will end up paying!

Google's auction system is a complex system designed to determine how much advertisers pay. As we've written, the keywords are the engines that drive Google's operation. So when a member of the target audience searches for a term, a keyword, Google will set up an Ad Rank, i.e. rank the advertisers who are targeting that keyword. When compiling the list, the system considers factors such as how much the advertiser is willing to pay for the ad, the ad text, the content, the quality of the landing page, the loading speed, the relevance, the ad scheduling and the relative click-through rate. So the higher an advertiser is ranked in Ad Rank, the more aspects they meet the expectations.

During the bidding process, different strategies can be followed, such as target CPA (cost per acquisition), target ROAS (return on ad spend), maximum conversion rate, or even maximising conversion value.

The keyword is what drives Google Ads. With the right keyword list, the sky's the limit. It's a good idea to gather keywords related to your business and also to see what keywords people might be using while searching for services and products like ours.

Keyword research can be done in a variety of ways, from technological keyword research to active involvement of the target audience, for example through interviews or surveys.

The research results in a list. Of course, it may not be possible to ‘advertise’ every keyword, and it may not always make sense. In such cases, it is necessary to select the most appropriate ones on the basis of some strategy, for example, which ones are more profitable, which ones have more potential. Testing keywords can also be a good solution, so the numbers speak for themselves.

• The content is protected by copyright
• The ad contains too many words in all capital letters
• Too much use of exclamation marks and symbols
• CTA is too general
• The URL of the landing page does not match the URL of the page being displayed
• The quality of the image or video is inadequate
• Content is not compatible with the guidelines

In terms of advertising, an important concept is conversion, which is the ‘action’ you want your target audience to take. This could be subscribing to a newsletter, making a purchase, etc. The higher the conversion rate, the more successful the ad.

Google Ads is the bastion of marketing today. It's a thousand-faced, flexible magic bullet that can be used to reach any internet user. But it requires skilled minds to conceptualise the ads, skilled hands to create the graphics and text, and also to set them up.

At Meraki, we help you get the exposure you need! Join us on a digital journey with a guaranteed happy ending!