In an age where your business’ online presence is one of your most important assets, it’s important to market your business online the right way, especially when you’re spending money on it.

Google Ads are a great way to reach both new and existing customers while they’re searching for products or services similar to the ones you offer. But, Google Ads can be a tricky tool to learn and get correct. Here are 5 do’s and don’ts when it comes to Google Ads.

Keyword Research

DON’T pick random keywords that you think are relevant to your business. You need to do your research to ensure that you are matching the intent of your target audience. This requires looking into keyword’s popularity, search volume, and general intent to most effectively reach your target audience.

DO:  Have keywords that match the intent of your target audience. Google displays your ad based on the keywords you’ve chosen, so it is important that you use the correct keywords for your business. This requires research. Good keyword research will ensure that your ads are displayed to the correct audience and that your ads are not going to be too expensive, and it will also expose you to ad opportunities you never thought of before. If you would like to learn more about keyword research, join us for our upcoming WECafé | How to Do Keyword Research for SEO: A Step-by-Step Guide on March 11.

Keyword Choice

DON’T use broad terms! If you own a coffee shop, terms like “coffee” or “tea store” are likely to be very expensive, and chances are, they won’t warrant much click-thru because you’re not targeting a specific enough audience. Broad keywords lead to fewer clicks and higher ad spending.

DO: Use specific keywords that are going to put your ads in front of the right audience! For that coffee shop, try terms like “downtown Kelowna coffee” or “best Kelowna tea store”. It is important to remember though that these keywords must relate to your ad copy and your landing pages. More on that below.

Ad Relevance

DON’T run irrelevant ads. Your ads must match the searcher’s intent, otherwise you won’t get enough clicks to justify your ad spend. Your ad headline, copy, and landing page must match the keywords you’re bidding on. If your ad uses keywords for dog training, but your ad headlines and copy only mention your dog grooming service, you’re not going to get many click-thrus and you’re going to waste some of your marketing dollars.

DO: Ensure that your ad headline, copy, and landing page are all relevant and communicating the same message. If your ad uses keywords for dog training, your headlines and copy should also mention dog training, and your landing page should lead the searcher to the dog training services page on your website. Make sure your keywords are integrated into everything you do with your ad!

Landing Pages

DON’T have your landing page be irrelevant to your ad! If your ad mentions a specific service or product that you offer, the ad landing page should be the page on your website that discusses that specific service or product. If the ad leads the searcher to an irrelevant page (sometimes this includes your home page), there’s a good chance that they will leave your website.

DO: Make your ad landing page relevant to your ad! If your ad speaks broadly about your company, link the ad to your homepage. If your ad only mentions one service you offer, the ad should link directly to that one service. The landing page should also be clear, and clearly communicate a call to action relevant to the ad. Relevant landing pages will lead to higher conversions, and make your marketing dollars worth it!

Ad Monitoring

DON’T implement ads and fail to frequently update and review them. Some of your ads may be getting plenty of views, but those same ads may not create any conversions; therefore, they are drying up your budget. Test your ads and watch for ads and keywords that are not working out so that you can produce relevant, up-to-date, effective ads to attract your audience.

DO: Continue to monitor and update your ads! It’s important to remember that you won’t always get the right mix of keywords, content, or targeting the first time. It is important that you continuously add, remove, and tweak your ads until you find the most effective strategy for your business.