There’s almost nothing worse than spending your entire Google Ads budget on traffic that doesn’t get you any money.
I know because I’ve been there with my own eCommerce stores.
Multiple times.
Spending money on poorly managed pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns is a sure-fire way to end up frustrated with empty pockets. However, when done right, Google Ads can also be a powerful marketing tool to get more clicks and sales while growing your brand to levels you’ve never been at.
Getting qualified conversions from Google Ads is easier said than done, and we’ve seen many businesses make mistakes. Though there is no perfect recipe for crafting the ideal Google Ads campaign, here are a few Google Ads mistakes you can avoid.
Avoid These 10 Google Ads Mistakes
Setting up a Google Ads campaign can be a straightforward process but you can fall into some common pitfalls if you don’t know any better. Here, we go over some of those common mistakes and how to avoid them so you can cause HAVOC with your Google Ads campaigns
Ignoring Important Account Settings
You need to keep in mind a few important things when setting up your Google Ads account. You can track how your campaigns are performing in terms of clicks and conversions, but you should also integrate Google Analytics. They will let you track your marketing efforts even more by following what people do when they land on your website.
Knowing this information can help you better understand whether your ads are showing in front of your target audience. It will also tell you which landing pages are relevant to those who click on your ads.
And it’s not just for the knowing part. Having Google Analytics connected to your Google Ads account supplies it the data it needs to optimize and become smarter at a faster rate.
Additionally, one of the worst mistakes that many business owners make is not measuring their marketing return on investment (ROI). When you set up Google Ads, you can set up conversion goals reasonably easily. Depending on your business, you can track specific actions like purchases, sign-ups, calls, or whatever steps your customers should take after clicking your ad. Setting up conversions the right way from the start can help you track campaign performance more effectively.
Choosing Keywords That Aren’t Aligned with Your Goals
Probably the most common mistake that we see when auditing ad accounts is that new advertisers are choosing keywords that aren’t really a good fit for their goals. Not all keywords that are relevant to your business are necessarily a good fit for your campaign, meaning that you need to get more selective than just “relevant.”
Remember to keep the intent of the person searching in mind. While you likely aren’t able to learn everything just from one keyword or search term, you can still look for indicators that will help you find a better match.
For example, if you’re primarily a store selling scarves, any terms about scarves will be relevant to your business. However, if you simply bid on the word “scarves,” you’ll likely spend a lot of money without seeing a lot of ROI.
A better keyword phrase might be “buy scarves online” or “online scarf store”, or even “red scarf. Furthermore, getting more specific with your product line with keywords like “blue wool infinity scarf” would be even better because the search term is more specific. It comes from a potential client who knows exactly what they need, meaning that if you provide what they need, they will more likely complete the purchase with you.
As you start to build out your list of possible keywords to target, try to put yourself in the shoes of the people searching. Consider what results or actions you’d be looking for if you used the terms in your list yourself. It’s in your best interest if you constantly look for ways to qualify terms better and make sure they align with your goals.
Using Irrelevant Landing Pages
If you’ve already created ads that generate clicks, that’s great! It means you have successfully created advertisements that drive traffic to your landing page. Unfortunately, however, we see many marketers and business owners missing the mark regarding the post-click landing page experience.
In a perfect world, your target audience sees your ad, clicks on it, gets to your landing page, and then automatically converts into paying customers. Are people landing on your page and then leaving? Maybe they aren’t seeing the solution to the problem they were seeing.
Now is the time to look at click-through rates and conversion rates to try to determine whether it’s your ad or landing page that is underperforming for you. If your ad has a decent CTR, then that is a good indicator that your ad is relevant and appealing to your buyers. However, if conversion rates are down, it is likely due to the fact that your landing page is not performing as well as it could.
Optimizing and updating your landing page will likely be the easiest fix to increase your conversion rate. Make sure it has clear calls to action that help your customers complete the funnel, has a fast site speed, and is mobile-optimized.
Missing the Mark on Ad Copy
If you’re here, you already know that writing ad copy is more complicated than it looks. It can be challenging to draft meaningful and compelling copy when it doesn’t use too many characters. Here are a few common Google Ads mistakes we see when it comes to writing ad copy:
- They write about things that prospects aren’t interested in
- The ad copy isn’t relevant to the keyword in the ad group
- They use too many words to say something that could have been simple and concise
- Their copy blends in with their competitors and lacks differentiators
- There is no strong call to action
Take the time to work on your ad copy and do not rush things. If you think of the campaign itself as a building, the ad copy would be the base and foundation of the building.
Ignoring Your Competitors
Ignoring your competitors is another item on our Google Ads mistakes to avoid, however, there are two sides to this coin; ignoring your competitors or trying to copy them directly. Just because your competitors are doing something doesn’t mean that they are doing the right thing or that their efforts are even working!
Keeping an eye on your competitors can be a good starting point for identifying gaps in your coverage and it can be helpful when you’re starting to strategize.
One thing you should do is monitor the keywords you already rank for and where your competitors stand. Look at their ads. Are you both saying the exact same thing? Who’s earning more clicks and conversions? Keeping an eye on your competitors can help you better understand what their offer is so that you can identify your own unique value propositions.
There are several tools you can use to help you locate gaps in keyword coverage and compare your current rankings against that of your competitors. Many online tools will show you competitor landing pages, ad copy, ad positions, and more.
Key Takeaways
Here are some things we hope we have made clear in this article. First things first,, set up tracking early on so you can monitor it. Next, set your goals as you’re planning your campaign. Finally, when you’re performing keyword research, make sure you’re choosing relevant words that also align with your goals. We also recommend identifying negative keywords.
Lastly, always be testing! It does no good to start and set your campaigns and leave them. Following some of these steps or reaching out to an expert can help you avoid Google Ads Mistakes. Do you need help? Yoru Marketing knows everything there is to know about Google Ads. Let us help you set your campaigns correctly and track them. Get started here.
