As a business owner, you need to determine how to reach your potential customers best. Let’s say you’ve spent the time, resources, and money on building a website. After all of your hard work, it can be tempting to sit back and let search engine optimization (SEO) take over.
However, while organic traffic can be beneficial to your business, you will have to wait around for results. The average SEO campaign can take anywhere between four and six months to start producing results. Even promoting your website on social media and spreading its news via word-of-mouth will only do so much for your business.
If you don’t want to sit on the sidelines, there is a way to produce quicker results. Taking advantage of Google Ads can help you more efficiently get in front of customers and stay ahead of your competition.
According to Google, businesses make about $2 in revenue for every $1 they spend on Google Ads. If you aren’t participating in Google Ads, you miss out on a cost-effective way to acquire more customers.
There is some stigma around Google Ads. Some people have doubts about the platform’s cost and how to use it successfully. Here, we will explore what the Google Ads platform is and how it works. We will also help you determine if it’s a worthwhile advertising strategy for your business.
What Is Google Ads?
Google Ads is a pay-per-click (PPC) advertising platform. It lets you place shopping or text ads for your website on a SERP, a search engine results page.
Any ad you make will be tied to specific keywords. Customers will discover your ads when they search for these keywords. You will pay Google any time someone clicks on them. This can be an effective way to drive more traffic to your website.
PPC ads show up right at the beginning of any Google search. However, a Google search doesn’t only show PPC ads. A search will also produce organic (also known as “natural”) search results. These spots belong to well-established websites with solid SEO in place.
It can take months to naturally appear on the first or second page of a search result. However, Google Ads lets you start generating new traffic within days of beginning your campaign.
Using Google Ads properly will take time to get used to. Read on to discover the pros and cons of this platform.
Pros of Google Ads
You Can Target Potential Customers When They Are Engaged
One of the easiest ways to understand Google Ads is to place yourself in the customer’s position. Pretend you are in the market for a new table for your dining room. To find some potential products, you go to Google and type in “buy dining room table online” into the search engine.
On the search engine results page, you will see several Google Ads links leading to furniture websites. Because the ads are well-made and look reputable, you don’t feel the need to scroll down to the organic results. You click on a couple of the ads to explore your options and begin shopping around.
When you are prompted to click on one of these results near the top, you are being persuaded by the power of Google Ads.
When it comes to your own business’s campaigns, you can similarly use the power of Google Ads to compel potential customers. You will capture their attention as they are motivated to make a purchase.
With a well-composed Google Ads campaign, you can catch customers at moments when they are attentive and most likely to interact with your brand.
As long as you bid on the best keywords for your particular industry, you can get in front of the right potential customers.
You Can Target Local or Niche Markets
If your local business has an online presence, you can use Google Ads to draw more customers.
According to Social Media Today, 4 in 5 consumers use search engines to find local businesses. When you use Google Ads, you can more easily get in front of these willing customers.
You can create your campaign to focus on a specific geographic range. This will limit competition with brands that have a more national focus. By confining your campaign to your physical area, you can better reach your local audience.
The same strategy applies to niche products or markets. For example, let’s suppose you have an Atlanta-based music business and you’re trying to market your snare drums.
If you bid on a general keyword like “musical instruments”, you will have very high advertising costs for two reasons:
- You’re competing with the sellers of all types of musical instruments
- You’re competing across all geographies
Your business will fare much better if you bid on a more specific term. For example, the keyword phrase “snare drums in Atlanta” will make your campaign cheaper to run because it’s less competitive. Plus, you will likely notice a higher conversion rate from Internet users who click on it.
Get Quick Results
As we’ve previously mentioned, generating organic traffic for your website can take months.
Once you set up a Google Ads campaign, you can start getting traffic within a couple of hours. Some business owners can even generate revenue from their campaign within the same day of launching it.
To get started, all you have to do is set up your campaign, determine your target keywords, and establish a daily budget. You’ll also have to create some compelling ad messaging.
You may not get it right the first time around. It often takes some trial and error to figure out how to convey your business’s message and goals to your audience. However, with the right experimentation, you can quickly start getting results from your campaigns.
Pay-per-Click Model
You don’t have to pay any money to set up your Google Ads campaigns. Set them up with your target keywords and geographic range for free. Once you make them public, you will only pay for what people click on.
To avoid overspending, you can set a daily budget on the platform. Some businesses run successful campaigns for as little as $5 or $10 per day.
Google may exceed your daily budget on occasion, but this is to maximise your campaign’s performance.
Track Results
Setting up a campaign is exciting and full of possibilities. However, what is it worth if you can’t track its progress?
Google Ads comes with Google Analytics, which is a tool you can use to optimize your campaigns. It can help you:
- Track visitor behavior
- Optimize your site and product descriptions
- Improve conversions
- Maximize ROI
When you use Google Ads to drive traffic to your website, you’ll never be left in the dark about your campaigns’ results.
Cons of Google Ads
There’s a Learning Curve Involved
Though anyone can learn how to run a Google Ads campaign, there is a bit of a learning curve involved. You will have to figure out how bidding works and which keywords to target. You will also need to monitor your campaigns and make adjustments when necessary.
Some business owners are intimidated by learning how to use Google Ads. They are scared of wasting time and money on a fruitless venture. This fear should not stop you from testing out the advertising platform. Thousands of online resources can teach you how to use it. Better yet, you can hire a marketing expert to run Google Ads campaigns for your company.
It May Take Some Time
Even though Google Ads are much more efficient than other methods of attracting new customers, a good campaign may take some time to produce reliable results. This is because of the tweaking and experimentation you’ll have to go through. However, you will target your ideal audience with the right mindset and reap the long-term benefits.
You’ll Need to Expand Your Current Budget
Even though it costs zero dollars to create your ad, you will pay for clicks over time. Hopefully, you’ll have a lot of engagement, as this is the point of you creating a Google Ad! Just prepare to expand your advertising budget so you can pay for your results.
If you’re on a tight budget, you can avoid using general, competitive keywords. Instead, focus on local and longtail keywords. This strategy will make it more affordable to get in front of potential customers. While these keywords aren’t as highly demanded, they will drive higher-converting web traffic to your site.
Final Thoughts
So, is Google Ads worth it for small businesses? This is a loaded question because the answer will vary from company to company.
The answer should boil down to factors like your company’s budget and dedication to learning how the advertising platform works.
Some of the most noteworthy benefits of Google Ads for small businesses are that it offers:
- An easy-to-track ROI
- The ability to reach specific audiences
- A pay-for-performance pricing model
Learning which Google Ads technique will work for your small business is a never-ending learning process. When your company dedicates the time and resources to perfecting its campaigns, you will earn your money back and gain valuable lifelong customers.
Are you interested in launching a Google Ads campaign for your B2B Business? Check out these 6 B2B Google Ads Tips, before starting to run ads.