Hello and welcome to this google ad optimization guide. In this article, I am going to tell you exactly how you can optimize your google ad campaign to get the desired result and complete your defined goal. This article will cover the 12 steps that you can perform to optimize the campaign. I have worked using these steps for some of my clients and I have seen a good result. I believe you can too see a good outcome once you optimize your campaign with the steps I am going to discuss below.
As you know google ads are the best marketing platform in terms of ROI. But it can also turn out to be the worst marketing channel if not done correctly. When you start your campaign without giving it much of optimization you might end up spending a lot of marketing budget without getting the desired result.
Let’s admit nobody gets it right in the first attempt. We all learn from our mistakes. Let’s understand some of the mistakes first before moving to the actual part of this article.
Common Mistakes in the Google Ads Campaign
- Not using the negative keywords
- Not or minimal use of extensions
- Having only one ad variation in an ad group
- Not optimizing once the ad campaign starts
- Not using or taking advantage of search term report.
- Using the 100% broad match keywords
Now let’s dive into the topic.
Steps to Optimize Google Ads Campaign for More Conversions
Let’s understand the 12 ways you should optimize your campaign to get the results.
1. Optimize Your Keywords
Remove underperforming keywords: You need to be very clear when you are using your keywords. If a keyword having less than 2% CTR (Click Through Rate) then you can remove that keyword. You need to focus on keywords that are bringing more CTR.
Keep an eye on negative keywords: You don’t want to rank for a keyword or service that you don’t provide. Keep adding negative keywords. You can look for more negative keywords in the search term report.
Find new keywords to go with: You can always keep on search the new keywords for your campaign. A search term report can help with this. Use google trends, google keyword planner to explore new keywords. Also, you can find new keywords in the discussion forum and places like Quora and Reddit. Understand what people are discussing about your product or services.
Check your keywords eligibility: Now this might sound something new. Try changing the match types and bids to make the keywords more eligible for your campaign.
Use your brand name as a keyword: If you are a brand then it is adviced that you should bid on your brand name. Use the power of your brand to attract the more CTR and leads.
2. Optimize Your Campaign Structure
Optimize ad groups and campaign structure: As you know a well-structured ad account target your very specific audience for all your services more effectively. You can divide the campaigns based on Daily budget, language, location targeting, starts and end dates, distribution preferences, etc.
Split the ad groups: It is always a good practice that you make plenty of ad groups within a single campaign targeting and focusing on different goals. This practice can help you get a high Quality Score, High CTR, Lower CPC, and ultimately high conversion rates.
3. Keep Reviewing Your Ads
Keep testing new ads: You should always be testing new possibilities within your ads. If an ad is not performing well you can tweak around and keep using some different ad copies based on your new keywords or best performing keywords. Constantly aim at improving ads CTR.
Dynamic keywords insertion: Dynamic keywords insertion helps you insert the customer’s search term into your ad copy. It can give you a better CTR and Quality score.
Message Match: It means your ad copy and your landing page should match. Whatever you are expressing in your ad it should be in align with your landing page. This way you can get good quality score and conversions.
Display URL: Keep the display URL readable. When you have the keywords or search terms in your URL then the chances of clicking on the ad by the user are increased.
Don’t copy: stand out from the crowd and never copy your competitors’ ads. Be unique. It is not always ranking in the first place it is all about relevancy. Highlight your USP in an ad that will help you stand out from the competition.
Capitalize: Also have a practie of Capitalizing the first letter in the ad title. But make sure you don’t use entire sentence capital. Capitalizing first letter emasizes more and brings the readers attention.
CTA in the ad: Yes you have to use Call to action in your ad. A clear call to action. Keep in mind we are advertising to bring in the conversions and CTA in ad can help us achieve that in very little time.
Headline: Grab the attention with the catchy ad headline because it is the first thing user will notice. In the ad heading don’t use the question like “Are you looking for an SEO? ” rather state the end result in the user is looking for like “Hire the best SEO that brings the result and help you sell more”
4. Website and Landing Page Optimization
Test new landing pages: You should always be testing new landing pages. Constantly optimizing the landing page means constant testing new pages or using completely different pages or some part on the pages. You can always split the traffic of your website/ Landing page between two versions and the one with higher conversions is the winner.
Don’t ask much: Never put too many input fields in a form. People don’t like filling up long forms also asking for more makes them feel insecure. A name, phone, and email are enough or the user will bounce back from the landing page.
User more imagery and less text: People tend to respond well for visual elements than reading lengthy product features. Clearly specify your USP and why they should buy your service or product in a very interesting way.
Message match again: Your landing page should give to the user what he/she was expecting before clicking on your ad. This will help you in good quality score from google and also good conversions.
Funnel landing pages: Design your landing page in a manner that it should trigger the user to take the action. Desing the psychic landing pages for better conversions. Have a practice of designing the separate landing page for each ad group.
5. Optimizing The Ad Extensions
Use it where appropriate: Ad extensions give the user more information about your business such as phone numbers, location, reviews, product types, and services.
Schedule call extensions: consider scheduling the call extensions if you are unable to answer the calls outside of the office hours because a missed call will a bad reputation for you.
Measure the ad extension performance: You can use the automated extensions report to check the performance of your ad extensions. Keep improving the performance by looking at which extension works well.
7. Optimize Your Reach Settings
Location settings: Review your location setting. You can use location targeting to show up your ads in specific and relevant locations only.
Location-specific landing pages: You should have a different landing page for different ad groups. Similarly, you should use a dedicated landing page for specific location targeting. People respond well to personalized ads and landing pages.
8. Schedule The Campaign For Lower CPC
Schedule during business hours: If you are a business working in a specific time you should schedule your campaign to show up during your business hours. This way you will spend less on CPC. For instance, an electrician that works on weekdays should not advertise his services during the weekends. Don’t advertise a product or service when it is not available.
Adjust the bid: Look for the pattern when you get max conversions or CTR. Schedule the bid only during that time.
9. Work On Increasing The Quality Score
Increase the CTR: An increased click through rate (CTR) helps increase in google ads quality score. You should always give time to creating compelling and highly relevant ads so that users can’t resist clicking on your ads.
Ad text and landing page text optimization: Google bots will check your ad text and your landing page text and compare it to check if they relate. Optimize the keywords on the landing page and in ad text as well. Your landing page should serve the purpose of an individual’s search query.
Test SKAG: Single keywords Adgroups or SKGS are more specific and relevant, try them.
10. Work For Increasing The Conversion Rates
Remarketing: You should engage in remarketing as remarketing has much lower CPC and you are targeting the people who have already visited your website and are highly relevant. Remarketing will help you stay in the eye line of the user.
Know your customers: Understand and use a customer-focused approach. Such an approach will help you understand the pain points of customers. Buyer personas can be of great help here.
A/B Test: A/B test everything. There is always room for improvement. You should constantly be testing ads, landing pages, CTA, and any other element that can bring some improvement towards conversions.
Improve your sales funnel: You need to analyze your sales funnel constantly. Where people actually exiting the sales funnel, why they are not taking a required action, what makes them stop. These little things can bring a bigger impact on your overall conversion rate.
Make it easy to convert: Don’t make the conversion cycle difficult to navigate. Tell the prospect what to do next, don’t confuse them with too many options or too many fields in a form. Offer some free services like a free e-book, free trials, etc. Also, add incentive to act quickly like “Only a few left, sales ends tomorrow, free deliver this week only” etc.
Conversion tracking: Tracking will help you understand the winner in your A/B test.
Biding for mobile users: You can set bid modifiers for mobile users. If mobile devices users are converting better than desktop then you can adjust the bid accordingly
11. Lower The CPC
High Quality Score: Always aim for High Quality Score, that will help you spend less on CPC.
Don’t always aim for 1st ad rank: 1st Ad rank doesn’t guarantee you the more CTR. There are many campaign mangers that believe that the 2nd and 3rd rank also gets more CTR with less CPC. You should focus on relevancy.
Remove budget from underperforming campaigns: Reallocate that budget to the ones that are performing good and bringing conversions.
Search term report: To stop wasting budget on negative keywords keep an eye on search term report.
12. Review Your Competitors:
Bid on their names: It is a good practice to allocate an Adgroup for your competitors’ names and use their name as a keyword. This way you are targeting a very qualified audience and it would be less competitive than the keywords.
Do competitor analysis: Analyse your competitor’s strategy using some tools like spyfu or similarweb. You can get the insights on the keywords they are targeting. Don’t copy but this information can help you develop or optimize your campaign strategy.
Conclusion
So these were my observation about how you can actually optimize and google ads campaigns. It is all about relevancy. Relevancy will bring good CTR and if your landing page is the optimized user can take action which will result in increased conversion rates. All the steps discussed are interdependent on each other.
Let me know if your thoughts in the comments below. How do you optimize your Google Ads campaign? If you feel this article helped you in any way please do share it with your friends.
Thank you! 🙂