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How to Improve your Google Ads Campaigns: The Basics


Google Ads accounts connected


Let's get into the Basics of Google Ads


Google Ads, often referred to as PPC, is a powerful tool for extending your company's influence. It allows you to reach potential customers who are searching for your products or services, or who are browsing websites related to your industry. However, Google Ads is also very competitive and complex, and it can be challenging to optimize your campaigns and get the best return on investment.


That's why we have compiled this list of three top tactics that you can use to improve your Google Ads performance and achieve your marketing goals. These tactics are based on our experience and expertise and they have proven to work for many of our clients across different industries and markets.


TL/DR Shortcuts:


Use Responsive Search Ads


Responsive search ads are a type of ad format that allows you to create multiple headlines and descriptions for your ads, and then let Google automatically test and show the best combinations to your target audience. This way, you can increase your chances of showing relevant and engaging ads that match the user's search intent and query.


Responsive search ads also have some other benefits, such as:

  • They can show up to three headlines and two descriptions, which gives you more space to convey your value proposition and call to action.

  • They can adapt to different devices and screen sizes, which improves the user experience and accessibility of your ads.

  • They can help you improve your quality score and ad rank, which can lower your cost per click and increase your click-through rate.


To create responsive search ads, you need to follow these steps:

  1. In your Google Ads account, go to the Ads & extensions tab and click on the blue plus button.

  2. Select Responsive search ad as the ad type and choose the campaign and ad group where you want to add it.

  3. Enter up to 15 headlines and four descriptions for your ad. Make sure that each headline and description is unique, relevant, and compelling. You can also use keywords, dynamic keyword insertion, and countdown timers to make your ads more personalized and urgent.

  4. Preview how your ad might look on different devices and check the ad strength indicator to see how well your ad can perform.

  5. Save your ad and wait for Google to approve it.


Use Smart Bidding Strategies


Smart bidding is a feature that uses machine learning and artificial intelligence to automatically optimize your bids based on various signals and factors, such as device, location, time of day, audience, and more. Smart bidding can help you achieve different objectives, such as maximizing conversions, maximizing conversion value, or targeting a specific return on ad spend (ROAS).


Smart bidding has some advantages over manual bidding, such as:

  • It can save you time and effort by eliminating the need for constant bid adjustments and monitoring.

  • It can leverage Google's massive data and advanced algorithms to make more accurate and efficient bidding decisions.

  • It can adapt to changing market conditions and user behavior faster than human intervention.


To use smart bidding strategies, you need to follow these steps:

  1. In your Google Ads account, go to the Campaigns tab and select the campaign where you want to apply smart bidding.

  2. Click on the Settings icon and then on Bidding.

  3. Choose one of the smart bidding strategies that suits your goal. For example, if you want to get as many conversions as possible within your budget, you can choose Maximize conversions. If you want to get a certain amount of revenue for every dollar you spend on ads, you can choose Target ROAS.

  4. Enter the relevant parameters for your chosen strategy. For example, if you choose Target ROAS, you need to enter the percentage of revenue that you want to get for every dollar spent on ads.

  5. Save your changes and monitor your campaign performance.


Use Remarketing Lists for Search Ads


Remarketing lists for search ads (RLSA) are a way of targeting your past website visitors who are searching for your products or services on Google. RLSA can help you reconnect with these users and persuade them to take action, such as completing a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or requesting a quote.


RLSA have some benefits over standard search ads, such as:

  • They can increase your conversion rate and customer loyalty by showing more relevant and personalized ads to users who are already familiar with your brand.

  • They can reduce your cost per acquisition and improve your ROAS by focusing on users who are more likely to convert.

  • They can help you reach new audiences and expand your market share by bidding on broader or more competitive keywords that you normally wouldn't target.


To use RLSA, you need to follow these steps:

  1. In your Google Ads account, go to the Audience manager section under Tools & settings.

  2. Click on the Audience sources tab and make sure that you have linked your Google Analytics account with your Google Ads account.

  3. Click on the Remarketing tab and create a new audience list based on your website visitors. You can choose from different criteria, such as pages visited, time spent, or events triggered.

  4. Name your audience list and set the membership duration, which is how long you want to keep users in your list after they visit your website.

  5. Save your audience list and wait for it to populate with users.

  6. Go to the Campaigns tab and select the campaign where you want to use RLSA.

  7. Click on the Audiences tab and then on the blue pencil icon.

  8. Choose Edit ad groups and select the ad groups where you want to add your audience list.

  9. Choose Targeting as the setting, which means that you only want to show ads to users who are in your audience list and who are searching for your keywords.

  10. Select your audience list from the available options and save your changes.


Ready to Get Started with Google Ads?


These are just some of the tactics that you can use to improve your Google Ads performance and achieve your marketing goals. However, there are many more factors and best practices that you need to consider when creating and managing your Google Ads campaigns, such as keyword research, ad copywriting, landing page optimization, tracking and reporting, and more.


That's why we recommend that you work with a professional Google Ads agency that can help you design and execute a successful Google Ads strategy that fits your business needs and budget. At WolfeDen Marketing, we have a team of certified Google Ads experts who have the skills and experience to help you get the most out of your online advertising efforts. Contact us today for a free consultation and quote!


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