Introduction to Google Ads

Your customers are online right now, and you can capture their attention with Google advertising. And yes, a significant number do click on ads. Studies show that often around one third of users click on the ads Google displays, rather than the non-paid results.

Fierce competition for visibility in Google’s results

It is becoming increasingly difficult to be found in an organic Google search. When a user searches for a product, you ideally need to be at the top. Ranking in the top 3 delivers significantly more traffic – that’s where users click and visit.

With Google Ads, you get an extra chance to be found.

Google’s extensive ad universe boosts your online visibility, allowing you to tailor your message to reach exactly the customer group you want.

– Which geographical areas do you want to sell to?

– Which age groups would you most like to attract?

– Which gender? (Different message?)

You can be extremely specific in your advertising. This delivers excellent results, as your ads become more relevant and appealing. The image below shows just how much space Google Ads now occupies. Notice how much the ads resemble the “organic” search results further down – it’s no accident. That’s precisely why so many people click on the ads.

Your customers are not always ready to buy

If your customer is not ready to buy, even the best price won’t persuade them to purchase…

Sometimes your customer is simply gathering information, trying to get an overview of what’s available on the market.

You can tailor your advertising to accommodate this – both in terms of content (the offer/message) and which of Google’s ad platforms you choose. We help you understand what your customers’ buying process looks like and how you can most effectively (and affordably) encourage them towards a purchase.

Google offers you many advertising options

Google has several platforms allowing you to reach both existing and potential customers:

– Google Ads

– Google Shopping (PLA)

– YouTube advertising (pre-rolls)

– Display advertising on Google’s ad network (other people’s websites)

Each has its own strengths, and we can help you find the smartest approach to deliver the best return for your investment.

What is Google Ads

Google Ads are the advertisements that appear above the search results when you search on Google.
With Google Ads, you can target your message and offers very precisely to your customers.

Be visible just when a customer is searching for a product like yours

The advantage of Ads is that your ad is shown when customers search for products like yours. Your ad becomes relevant, and potential customers are more likely to be interested in your message.

The combination of appearing in both the organic results and in Google Ads is highly effective, and users often click on the ads as they are so prominently positioned.
In the image below, you can see AUBO Kitchens appearing in both Google Ads and the organic results – AUBO has done an excellent job with both Google Ads and SEO optimisation.

Different behaviour on different devices

Your customers can find you in many ways. Most people have a mobile, tablet, and computer, and their behaviour can vary greatly depending on the device they are using.
Mobile search is becoming increasingly important and now accounts for over half of all searches. Showing Google Ads on mobile, however, comes with its own challenges and strengths – the screen simply isn’t large.

Your ad at the right time

When set up correctly, you can deliver the right message depending on whether a potential customer is searching for general information or is actually ready to buy right now. If you are unsure about the best approach, get in touch and learn how to advertise most effectively and affordably.

Clear insight into the impact of your advertising

You can manage your advertising very precisely and receive clear information about how your ads are performing for your business. You get statistics on how many times your ad is shown, how many people click on it, or even how many call you.

Which words should you be found for?

In principle, Ads is quite straightforward: users click your ad, which leads to your site, and you pay for that click. You can specify how much a click is worth to you, and that becomes your bid compared to others – a bit like an auction.
When bidding on well-known brand names, however, you cannot always simply outbid others to rank top. Competing with large brands can be tough and very costly. It often pays to focus on your niche and your unique offering – for example, your “product + geographical area/colour/customer group”, also known as long-tail.

What is Google Shopping (PLA)

Sometimes online shoppers just need an extra nudge to visit your website. With Google Shopping, you can showcase your offers even better and more attractively. Shopping ads allow your products to appear with images when users search for your type of product.

The visual element attracts extra attention, especially as the price can be displayed alongside. In the image below, you can see how prominent these ads become with images (note that regular Google Ads are not shown here). Notice, too, that Dansk Outlet ranks right at the top of the organic results; the images capture attention and the text below explains more – this is a very strong display that drives substantial traffic to the site.

A little technical, but highly effective

Google Shopping ads work differently to standard Google Ads and are a little more technical to set up. However, they are easier to manage afterwards, as you do not need to spend time optimising the keywords you want to be found for.

Both types of ads at the same time

With these two approaches, it is possible to display both standard Google Ads and Shopping image ads at the same time. This synergy makes your advertising significantly stronger and is definitely worth pursuing.

More visible than your competitors

Image ads clearly outshine standard Google Ads, so you can significantly strengthen your advertising compared to competitors who do not use this method. You may even find that several of your Shopping ads are displayed in the same search – something that is not possible with regular Google Ads.

The right audience – words are helpful, but price…

Quality is a broad concept, and it can be very difficult to judge quality from a Google Ads text. With Shopping ads, the price of your product is shown, giving you another way to reach the right customers. You can signal high quality with a certain price level, or target the highly price-conscious with lower prices. This way, you immediately reach your ideal audience, while filtering out those who are not a good fit.

Advertising on YouTube (pre-rolls)

Video is a fantastic medium for delivering a message, and customers often prefer to watch a video about a product rather than read about it. YouTube is the major platform where you can find videos on almost anything.

Your customers are here

In fact, YouTube is the second largest search engine after Google. That’s where your customers are, and that’s where you can reach them with your messages. There’s more than just cat videos; YouTube is widely used to research products before deciding to buy.

In-stream advertising – relevance!

Your video can be shown before the user’s chosen video starts – they will be exposed to your video, as you usually have to wait 5 seconds before you can skip it. So you have the viewer’s full attention for at least 5 seconds.
Just like Google Ads, your video is shown when it is relevant to what the user has searched for.

Relevance, relevance, relevance

Since users actively choose to watch a specific video, your video is an interruption. It is crucial to be sharp and clear in your message right from the start. A common mistake is to spend the first few seconds showing the company logo. Unless your aim is branding, you are wasting valuable time.

What do you want the viewer to do?

Your video’s success improves significantly when you clarify its purpose:
– should it tell a story on its own
– should it link to your website
– should it link to a campaign page on your site

This helps you create a clear message that resonates with viewers.

Keep the viewer engaged

Now you have the viewer’s attention, you should work to keep it.
You can, for example, drive people to a campaign site. Often, a simple and concise video message is very effective for encouraging viewers to discover more on your own site.

Plan your YouTube advertising

Let’s have a chat about how you can optimise your campaign to target your audience and message as precisely as possible.

Display advertising on Google’s ad network

There are plenty of websites that could be highly relevant for your product and advertising. You can probably identify many sites or blogs where it would be interesting to advertise – and on many of them, it is possible.

Advertise on relevant sites

Many of these pages are part of Google’s display network, and here you can display your ads, banners, and videos.
This offers several advantages, as visitors to relevant sites are already thinking along your lines and may be researching similar products. These impressions are often cheaper than those on Google’s search results. However, it does require the right set-up and targeting for the right groups.

Strengthen your branding value

The visual format means you can make more of your branding, so even impressions without clicks have value. This makes your advertising much more flexible and potentially more profitable. You can choose to pay per click or per impression (or both).

Extra effective segmentation – sharp messaging

Your ads will be shown on relevant sites, but you can make your advertising even more precise by segmenting by gender, age, interests, topic, and geographic area. By making the most of this sharp segmentation, you can also fine-tune your message to the target groups you are aiming for. You can even select which types of media you want your display ad to appear on – including apps or on YouTube. Likewise, you can choose to target narrowly on niche sites or go broad on large nationwide sites.

How much does Google Ads cost?

In principle, you decide how much you want to pay for each click on your Google Ads to bring visitors to your site. Ad display works according to a kind of auction-based bidding.

However, it’s important to understand that you can’t simply buy all the attention by massively increasing your bid – especially if your campaign is not set up for it. Google will show relevant ads, so you need to do your homework. Both your ad and landing page are assessed, which gives a quality score (QS).

Your ad placement – AdRank

Google uses the concept of AdRank, which takes both factors into account:

AdRank = QS x Maximum bid

The better you set up your campaign (and landing page), the less you will have to pay for a click.

What do you actually pay?

Often, you won’t even pay your maximum bid, especially if the next highest bid has a lower quality score (QS):

Example:
Your bid: £9 – Your QS: 8 – AdRank = 72
Competitor bid: £10 – Competitor QS: 6 – AdRank = 60

You pay: 60/8 = £7.50 and not the full £9!

So, it really pays to work on your campaign and landing page to improve your QS. You are essentially rewarded by Google for doing a good job.

Advertising on a low budget?

It is possible to drive good traffic even with a modest budget.
A good tip is to start with the keywords you know generate a lot of traffic and convert well. It is always wise to set a maximum daily budget, so you avoid clicks spiralling out of control. Google will automatically stop showing your ad once you hit your limit.

Are your keywords expensive?

You don’t necessarily have to be number 1 with your ad. If your competitor ranks above you and pays heavily for their clicks, you may not be able to compete.

In that case, it is smarter to work on your QS:
– Write a more compelling headline
– Optimise your landing page for SEO
– Make your landing page even more relevant; write good content focused on your keyword
– Make your keywords more specific; for example, instead of “car”, optimise for “family car”

Mobile advertising prices

It can be harder to get clicks when advertising on mobile devices (though not always). If that’s the case, it may be wise to lower your bids specifically for mobile.
Analysing your site’s traffic can show whether it pays to adjust your bids up or down. But you need to be even sharper and more persuasive to get your message across when your users are on mobile.