Google is the world’s largest search engine. In second place is YouTube, where more than one billion hours of video are watched every day. There are nearly 2 billion Gmail users.
It’s safe to say everybody uses Google.
If you’re a brand, you want to make sure those people can find you. Running a Google Ads campaign is a smart way to do that. But what are Google Ads, exactly, and how do you set them up? Read on as we explain.
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What are Google Ads?
Google Ads is the name for Google’s advertising platform. Google Ads operates on a pay-per-click (PPC) model, which means that you only pay when someone clicks on your ad. Google Ads can appear all over Google and Google’s properties, including Google Search, Gmail, YouTube, and Google Play Store. Some types of ads, such as display ads, can also appear on non-Google websites. These ads can appear anywhere within the Google Display network, which includes over 2 million websites and apps.
How to run Google Ads
Running Google Ads requires time, budget, and a strategy. The first thing you should know is that there are different types of Google ads, which Google calls campaign types. These include:
- Search ads, which are the text ads you see in the Google search results
- Display ads, which describe the banner ads you see on other websites
- Video ads, which are video ads that run in YouTube
- Shopping ads, which are the product listings you see in Google Search and Google Shopping
- App ads, which promote your app in Google Search, YouTube, and Google Play Store
- Local ads, which help bring people to your physical location through Google Search, Google Maps, and YouTube
Within each of these campaign types, there are a number of different ad formats, targeting options, and functionality you can choose from. For example, with Display ads, you can choose between uploaded or responsive ads. Uploaded ads are ads you manually create from start to finish. With responsive ads, all you need to do is upload a few assets, such as your logo and ad images and copy, and Google creates combinations for you, based on what will be most effective with the particular user viewing your ad at any moment. Pretty neat, right?
How to create Google Ads
To create a Google Ad, you’ll first need to set up your Google Ads account. You can do that here. All you need are an email address and a website you’ll be linking to from your ads. Once you have an account, complete the following steps to create your first Google ad.
- Sign in to Google Ads.
- Click Campaigns on the left.
- Click the + button and select New campaign.
- Choose an advertising objective, such as building awareness.
- Choose your conversion goals (you can choose more than one).
- Click Continue.
- Select a campaign type and subtype, if applicable.
- Click Continue.
In the following pages, you’ll take different steps to complete your ad setup, depending on the campaign type you chose. You’ll give your campaign a name and select your targeting and bidding options. You’ll set a daily budget for your campaign. And, of course, you’ll fill out the details for your ads, including creating headlines and descriptions that match your target keywords.
From start to finish, the process for creating your first Google ad only takes about 15 minutes.
The key to a successful Google Ads campaign
The benefits to advertising with Google Ads are plentiful. But, as you can probably tell, there is a huge learning curve. There are dozens of campaign types, ad formats, and targeting options to familiarize yourself with. And then there are all the optimization tips and tricks you can leverage to really supercharge the performance of your campaigns. It’s a lot.The smart option is to talk to an expert, like the advertising pros at Your Marketing People. Our team knows how to run Google Ad campaigns that drive clicks, conversions, and awareness, all while meeting your ROAS goals. Contact us today to learn more.
