3 Tips for Google Ads Success

Why is Google Ads Important?

Google Ads, a standard go-to in any marketing program, has the power to drive results no matter your budget, industry or business goal. Success in this program is what you define it to be and how you get there is up to you. Sure, there are best practices and recommendations (as this article will show) but ultimately what matters is your goal and how you achieve that within your budget. This article will provide you with three tips that can help advertisers in any business achieve success. 

Tip #1: Implementing Broad Match Keywords

Broad match keywords used to be, and for some people still is, a very hard pill to swallow. Whether it was before or after the major updates in the last few years, the utilization of broad match and other similar tactics means the acceptance of a certain loss of control. That can be scary for some that have seen how wrong a Google campaign can go with even the slightest missed step, or those who have had new strategies proposed to them by a Google representative only to have it not pan out.

As I mentioned in the opening of this blog, Google Ads is an incredibly subjective platform which could be extended to pretty much all of digital marketing (really all of marketing, for that matter). Success is what you determine it to be, and how you get there is unique to you. It’s the reason why this blog is entitled “3 Tips” and not “3 Steps” – it’s not up to me to tell you what works in your marketing program, but rather, it’s up to you to decide it for yourself based on your goals.

The perfect example of this is the utilization of broad match keywords. I am a huge proponent of this match type and its ability to drive results for advertisers, but only if it is used properly. According to this article from Think with Google, due to the improvements of AI and its ability to better understand intent and context with a user’s search, matching has become far more accurate than it has been in the past. However, as with almost any AI fueled marketing tactic, the human touch can’t be avoided. For example, If you have a phrase such as “Free Checking Accounts” that you’re running as a broad match keyword, your algorithm might know that “low cost bank accounts” matches even though it only shares one word with the original keyword. At the same time, it could also consider “Checking Account for Bad Credit” as relevant, even though you don’t want to show it to users who might have bad credit. It’s that human touch that will correct this and guide the algorithm to a place toward searches that trigger your ad. It is at that point where you will see lead costs and click costs drop because, especially with a smart bidding strategy, broad match keywords have the biggest potential pool of searches to pull from and, in return, get leads in a way that hasn’t been possible in the past. 

Tip #2: Utilizing Performance Max Alongside Search Ads

Performance Max, released in 2022, is Google’s latest major innovation in AI marketing technology. This campaign type encompasses all six of Google’s owned properties (Search, Display, YouTube, Gmail, Maps and Discover) and is meant to drive conversions by mixing and matching creatives across all of those properties. All the advertiser has to do is give the campaign pictures, videos and text as well as the ideal target audience and Google will do the rest. 

This ad type, understandably, has led to skepticism from some advertisers, given the loss of control and lack of visibility into where and how these ads run. At Google Marketing Live in 2023, it was announced that improved search terms insights were coming to the tool but visibility is still limited. 

To me, as with Broad Match keywords, this lack of visibility isn’t a concern as long as conversion goals are being accomplished. I have run this campaign type for revenue generating and form fill lead generation clients and in both cases have had shocking success. Performance Max showed the capability to not only outperform search in lead costs but also, in the case of revenue generation, maintain a positive return on investment. Another unexpected benefit of this ad type is its ability to improve the performance of standard search marketing campaigns running in the same geographic area. According to Google, Performance Max will defer to the standard search ad if they are eligible to show up in the same ad auction. Because of this, not only do the campaigns not compete with one another, but the brand awareness lifting effects of the Performance Max campaigns will drive more converting traffic down the funnel towards your search ad.

If you’re considering Performance Max, there are really only two things to keep in mind. First: Patience. As with any Google marketing campaign, it is essential to remember that you won’t be raking in conversions on day one. Typically, I always tell my marketing partners to give any campaign 30-60 days to see performance begin to improve. The algorithm needs time to learn, and that is no different for Performance Max. Start with a lower budget than you ultimately intend to use and ramp it up as you begin to see results. Google has some great tools to use while doing this to get data-based predictions on where your budgeting “sweet spot” will ultimately be. Second: Well established conversions are key to success. It’s not impossible to see success with a brand new conversion, but it will be faster if it is a conversion you’ve been seeing success with for a while. This is because your account will have extensive historical data for your Performance Max campaign to use when driving conversions. 

Tip #3: Patience

Finally, but perhaps most importantly, my third tip to digital marketing success is patience. Along with explaining the time campaigns can take to ramp up, something else I discuss with my partners is that no digital marketing proposal will look the same on day 30, 60, 90 – or even day 365 – as it did on day 1. Digital marketing is something that takes active management, careful planning and patience. Your campaigns will succeed! These major platforms wouldn’t exist, let alone be as big as they are, without the proven ability to help advertisers reach their business goals. When starting a new digital campaign, as stressful as it might be, it is key to have patience and know that you’re not wasting your money – you’re investing for your future success. 

Conclusion

As we spoke about earlier, there is no perfect formula for success in Google Ads, Facebook ads or any other marketing channel. Budgets, customer demographics, business goals and market conditions make each program distinctive. These three tips are meant to be suggestions based on what has brought me success in the past. Ultimately, whether or not you use them or how much you use them is up to you.

If you’re looking for more information about Google, Google Ads or Digital Marketing, click the link below to visit our page. And if you’re a small business owner, SpearPoint Digital offers free consultations for new and existing accounts to get you started on your road to success!