Questions to Ask Before Starting a Google Ads Campaign
Wouldn't it be great to sit back and wait for the customers to roll in your virtual door?
Google Ads can certainly work like that but there are a few things to consider to determine if Google Ads is right for your business.
Budget
Due to the increasing amount of competition online Google Ads has got increasingly expensive. There are many things to consider but basically it works on an auction system. So if one of your competitors is willing to pay more for a keyword or phrase your campaign is tied to then you will get outbid. For most businesses you’ll probably be looking to spend at least $200 per week on Google Ads to get results. Any less and it could be money wasted so make sure you set a realistic budget for your campaign. There are also a couple of other costs. You will also pay a company to set up your campaign and do keyword research to find the right keywords to target and there is an on-going monthly maintenance fee. The maintenance fee covers continually optimising your campaign for success as the online marketplace is forever changing. Perhaps, for example, a new Google Ads competitor comes online or an existing competitor decides to increase their spend to outbid you.
Time
Don't be surprised if it takes some months for your campaign to really gain momentum. This is because in the initial phase your Google Ads expert will be refining your campaign. This might mean eliminating keywords that aren’t performing, discovering what negative keywords to include in the campaign that they don’t want your ad to come up for and people to click on etc.
No Guarantees
Just like any marketing venture there are no guarantees when it comes to how your campaign will perform. Also some of the factors at play are trial and error because marketing is not a perfect science. For example I have done $300 worth of SEO work for a client (when an SEO/Google Ads company I rang estimated he’d have to spend $20,000 for his line of business to see result) and this was enough to generate him a little bit of extra work for years. Was I expecting that? No, and I told him as much before I started. But it was certainly a pleasant surprise.
ROI
This is a big one most people don’t track. It’s all very well to get clients from Google Ads but how much is it costing you to get that client versus how much they spend on your products or services? A Google Ads company will show you stats but they can’t track everything. Make sure you track how your campaign is performing at your end as well to know if it’s working for you. This might be as simple as asking every new client that arrives at your business how they found you.
Is Google Ads Right for YOUR Business?
Once again it depends on your business and who your clients are. If you are targeting very specific clients, i.e. developers that could use your earthmoving services, then that target market might be best approached direct as the money you’ll spend on Google Ads to find them (are they even looking online for your business?) will outweigh the result. Is the product or service you are offering at a high enough price point to justify using Google Ads to get work? For example if you have to spend $100 to get a client who spends $100 then you’d be better off not doing that job at all. In that case you might be best to look at other forms of marketing to get those clients.
Conclusion
Like any marketing make sure you do your homework first as there will be no shortage of companies making promises about Google Ads to you. That’s because even if your campaign fails they will still make money on the initial set up and on-going maintenance for a number of months. They will probably also find fault with your website (spoiler alert: any website can always be improved) and suggest you need a new one as part of the deal. By asking the right questions upfront you will really increase your success.
Google Ads can certainly work like that but there are a few things to consider to determine if Google Ads is right for your business.
Budget
Due to the increasing amount of competition online Google Ads has got increasingly expensive. There are many things to consider but basically it works on an auction system. So if one of your competitors is willing to pay more for a keyword or phrase your campaign is tied to then you will get outbid. For most businesses you’ll probably be looking to spend at least $200 per week on Google Ads to get results. Any less and it could be money wasted so make sure you set a realistic budget for your campaign. There are also a couple of other costs. You will also pay a company to set up your campaign and do keyword research to find the right keywords to target and there is an on-going monthly maintenance fee. The maintenance fee covers continually optimising your campaign for success as the online marketplace is forever changing. Perhaps, for example, a new Google Ads competitor comes online or an existing competitor decides to increase their spend to outbid you.
Time
Don't be surprised if it takes some months for your campaign to really gain momentum. This is because in the initial phase your Google Ads expert will be refining your campaign. This might mean eliminating keywords that aren’t performing, discovering what negative keywords to include in the campaign that they don’t want your ad to come up for and people to click on etc.
No Guarantees
Just like any marketing venture there are no guarantees when it comes to how your campaign will perform. Also some of the factors at play are trial and error because marketing is not a perfect science. For example I have done $300 worth of SEO work for a client (when an SEO/Google Ads company I rang estimated he’d have to spend $20,000 for his line of business to see result) and this was enough to generate him a little bit of extra work for years. Was I expecting that? No, and I told him as much before I started. But it was certainly a pleasant surprise.
ROI
This is a big one most people don’t track. It’s all very well to get clients from Google Ads but how much is it costing you to get that client versus how much they spend on your products or services? A Google Ads company will show you stats but they can’t track everything. Make sure you track how your campaign is performing at your end as well to know if it’s working for you. This might be as simple as asking every new client that arrives at your business how they found you.
Is Google Ads Right for YOUR Business?
Once again it depends on your business and who your clients are. If you are targeting very specific clients, i.e. developers that could use your earthmoving services, then that target market might be best approached direct as the money you’ll spend on Google Ads to find them (are they even looking online for your business?) will outweigh the result. Is the product or service you are offering at a high enough price point to justify using Google Ads to get work? For example if you have to spend $100 to get a client who spends $100 then you’d be better off not doing that job at all. In that case you might be best to look at other forms of marketing to get those clients.
Conclusion
Like any marketing make sure you do your homework first as there will be no shortage of companies making promises about Google Ads to you. That’s because even if your campaign fails they will still make money on the initial set up and on-going maintenance for a number of months. They will probably also find fault with your website (spoiler alert: any website can always be improved) and suggest you need a new one as part of the deal. By asking the right questions upfront you will really increase your success.