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Mistakes to Avoid in Google Ads

Contrary to popular belief, Search Engine Optimization and Pay-Per-Click aren’t on opposite sides of the Marketing spectrum. There are plenty of ways the two disciplines can work hand in hand, especially when it comes to the optimization of your Google Ads. In this blog, we will go into detail with regards to explaining why your PPC/SEO is not performing as well as it should be.

1. Too many keywords

The main thing that we see happening too often almost daily is the implementation of too many keywords. Most of the time business owners get into the Google platform with too much excitement and put together keywords that have the same sort of general theme.

However, your theme can be really specific or it can be somewhat vague. Consider the following example where the keyword examples all pertained to lawyer themes, so “defense lawyer,” “criminal lawyer,””dui lawyer,” “assault lawyer,” “sexual assault lawyer.” Technically, they all have the same theme of “lawyer,”but that is way too vague for it to be all in one single ad group, because what kind of ad are you going to show?

“We are lawyers. Call us.” This is not specific enough. Take for example, “dui lawyer,”which is an EXTREMELY competitive niche, and then you can do [dui lawyer], [dui lawyer toronto], and then “dui lawyer” and +dui+lawyer+toronto spelled out in a few variations. By taking this one idea and then breaking it down into a much more specific ad group, you then have access to much more control.

2. Picking the right match type

The next thing is picking the right match type, there are four to choose from.

Broad match

Broad match is just you writing out the keyword, and then Google displays your ad for whatever it feels like generally relates to the keyword. This type of matching is seen as the most problematic as your ad can be shown in response to keywords that may not specifically relate to your brand/service. Do not use broad match.

Broad match modifier (BMM)

An upgrade from using broad matching is called broad match modifier or BMM. From our past example, these are the words dui, lawyer, and toronto in any order, but they all have to exist in the keyword phrase. You would then show up for searches like “I need a DUI lawyer in Toronto.” “I live in Toronto. I need a DUI lawyer.”

Phrase match

The next type of matching is phrase which places the keyword(s) in quotations. Referring to the “dui lawyer” example, you can have any words before it or any words after it, but you aren’t allowed to  have a phrase or words in between it. It couldn’t be written “dui who is really great at being a lawyer” for example. This is a weak example, but you get the idea. You can’t just shove words in the middle of a phrase match and expect it to work, which is why this type of matching requires a considerable amount of trial and error.

Exact match

Exact matching considers only words that are within brackets, and just those words and nothing else. If we have [dui lawyer], this keyword would not trigger your ad whenever someone searches for [dui lawyer toronto]. Exact matching will only show your ad when the EXACT specified keyword is typed into the Search Console. This matching is as specific as possible. As a business you really want to try this type of matching when working with extremely competitive keywords.

This is considered to be the most expensive form of matching because you do not want to waste one single penny on anything that is irrelevant to the particular search that you have created. Cost-per-click prices are usually considerably high when there is a large amount of competition in specific keyword placements.

3. Only one ad per group

Have at least 3 ads per group

This is not a tip, but a criticism. The thing is that maybe, again, you think it’s easy for management, but in order to effectively see what type of ads work the best, you must conduct a trial and error stage. Make sure to have at least three ads per group.

Make sure to have a call to action

The next thing is making sure to have a call to action, which seems basic because you think it’s an ad. If you click it, that’s the call to action. All you want to say is, “You know what? Just call me or email me or we’re open 24 hours.”

It is important to be really specific on what you want the person to do when they look at the ad. Spell it out for them as simply as you possibly can. It may seem tedious or silly, but it is extremely important to just tell them what you want them to do. That’s all you need to do.

We hope that these tips helped you distinguish the similarities between creating successful Ad campaigns and successfully optimizing your site’s backend, as well as the main mistakes to avoid on the Google Ad network. If you believe you need more help, contact us today!