Are Google Ads Suitable for My Business?

Google search is the #1 way to find businesses online. It’s sparked endless search engine optimisation (SEO) companies, each promising to get you to the top of the rankings. But there is another way to generate traffic through Google: Google Ads.

However, not all businesses are sure if Google Ads is suitable for them. Is it cost-effective? How many keywords should I use? Can local businesses benefit from Google Ads? These are just some of the questions companies are asking.

In this article, I’ll explain what Google Ads is, how it works, and what you need to do to make the most of this powerful search tool.

What are Google Ads?

Google Ads are a pay-per-click (PPC) search marketing tactic to generate traffic by jumping to the top of the search results. To use Google Ads, you select relevant keywords and then write high-quality ad copy containing these keywords.

When people search for that keyword, you’ll then appear in the search results. However, you also pay per click of your ad. So, balancing your ad being seen with not spending too much is the primary way you’ll use Google Ads.

What are the benefits of Google Ads?

Small and local businesses often rightfully question the benefit of Google Ads. After all, they’ve got a limited ad budget. Can’t they simply attract new clients via word-of-mouth or an ad in the local paper?

Not if you want to be successful. Here are a few incredible Google Ads benefits:

1. Quick and cost-effective. Everyone searches through Google these days – even for local or niche businesses. Ranking high is therefore critical. SEO campaigns takes time and investment. PPC will get you ranked higher often for less money – nor do you need to churn out content week after week. Use Google Ads features to tweak your spending. You could see a major business boost for a relatively small investment.
2. Builds brand awareness. Think about all the customers you lose merely because they’ve never heard of you. By promoting your business through Search, Display, Video (YouTube) and Shopping Google Ads campaigns, you can get in front of people after your product or service. Who knows? Maybe they’ll tell their friends and family.
3. Lockdown your brand name. Nobody wants a case of mistaken identity. Even worse if customers search for your brand name and find your competitor’s site. If you’re not bidding on your brand name, someone else might. Securing your #1 advertising spot is like guaranteeing a front-page ad in the phone book.
4. Measurable and scalable. Because Google supplies near endless metrics to explore and appraise, you always know if your campaign is working. There’s no confusion about wasted ad spending. You can measure and monitor every pnny spent. Plus, when your business starts to grow, your Google Ads presence can too. Start with a targeted campaign, then expand to include more services and keywords.

Will your business do well with Google Ads?

When you’re starting, Google Ads seems confusing and complex. Do I really have to do all this? How do I know it will even work? I’ve put together a few key factors that help determine if a business is ready for Google Ads to alleviate any concerns.

Websites are the shopfront of the online world. But it’s more than just making them look pretty. Before you embark on a Google Ad campaign, it must perform well. That means it’s well-designed, easy-to-navigate, and overall user-friendly. Oh, and it should load smoothly and rapidly. No customer is waiting around for a lagging site that looks straight out of 1997.

What’s your budget? Determining how much you want to spend is critical. Minimum budgets for clicks tend to be at least £300 to £500 per month. If that’s something you can’t afford, you’ll need to review your marketing budget. But don’t be afraid to spend.

Loss aversion theory describes people’s tendency to avoid loss rather than acquire equivalent gains. That’s a zero-sum mentality. Remember, you’ve got to spend money to make money.

Do you have the skills or time? Managing Google Ads is a full-time job … (literally, that’s my job!). From selecting keywords to tweaking your Google Ad match types, you need the relevant expertise to ensure you maximise every penny. If you don’t have such skills – nor the time to learn – outsourcing Google Ads to a specialist (like moi!) is definitely the way to go.

What are your goals?

Google Ads work best when you know your aim. Do you want more product sales? How about lead generation? Is it about funneling more traffic through your site?

Your Google Ads campaign should be tailored around this objective – whatever the goal. It should guide your keyword selection. Are you going after a high-value keyword cluster with a high cost per click, but spending on nothing else? Or do you prefer to spread your ad spend over some high-volume keywords as well as medium volume words too?

There’s also the choice of what type of ad campaign you’re running. Search, Display, Video, Shopping, and App are the five campaign types:

• Search campaigns show text ads in search results. So, you’ll attract people searching for your products and services.
• Display campaigns show visually engaging ads as they browse millions of websites, apps, and Google-owned properties.
• Video campaigns show video ads on YouTube and other websites.
• Shopping campaigns show your product listings at the top of the search results and in the Google Shopping Tab. Store owners can also show local inventory ads, promoting products available at their shop.
• App campaigns use information from your app to automatically optimise your ads across Search, Play, YouTube, Discover, and more than 3 million sites and apps.

Which type of campaign you choose will depend wholly on your goals. Then, there are also match types and more to consider.

So what are you waiting for?

It’s most likely that your business would be a great fit for Google Ads. If you want to arrange a call to discuss how Google Ads could help your business grow, then click here to learn more about my Google Ad services or get in touch directly.