It’s no secret that Google Ads can be a powerful tool in your digital marketing arsenal. However, it’s not just about throwing together some ad copy and hoping for the best. To truly succeed with Google Ads, you need a well-thought-out strategy that focuses on your customer’s journey, ad copy, and landing pages. In this blog, we’ll explore the importance of strategy and how to make the most of your Google Ads campaigns.
The importance of strategy
In digital marketing, the strategy is all about who you are selling what to. Getting this proposition right is essential for evolving your Google Ads campaign to more more strategic, have a relevant focus, the right messaging, and the right journey for your business and customers.
Get a crystal clear idea of your target audience and how to target them:
- Who: Clearly defined target audience groups (the more and more specific the better).
- What: What value are you providing to them, what are they ‘hiring’ you to do?
Keyword research from your target audience’s perspective
To fully engage with your target audience, you must first understand what they’re searching for. This requires in-depth keyword research, a crucial aspect of your Google Ads strategy.
Keyword research is more than just identifying a few buzzwords. It involves diving deep into every single possible topic that your target audience could be searching for. This gives us the search volume, which is basically an indication of how many people are actually searching for these topics.
High-quality, in-depth keyword research analysis will take anywhere between 10-20 hours.
Focus on the most profitable keywords first
- Create Themes: Format your list of keywords into a few common topics and themes
- Prioritise keywords based on priority: high-intent people that are going to convert better, and that we have a strong competitive advantage on, versus the low priority longer term.
By focusing on your competitive advantage and the core USPs, you can create keyword sets that will give you the highest results.
Creating a customer-centric Google Ads strategy
Once you’ve laid the foundation of understanding your target audience and have conducted comprehensive keyword research, it’s time to craft a customer-centric Google Ads strategy. Think about what’s going to help you stand out, grab the attention of your target audience and communicate that you are their perfect match.
Here are some tips to get you started:
Write ad copy with purpose
Your ad copy is the first touchpoint between your potential customers and your brand. This isn’t about just writing anything; it’s about writing copy that your target audience will resonate with and want to click on.
To create ad copy that resonates, consider:
- Segmented messaging: Tailor your ad copy to each audience segment. Speak to their specific needs and desires.
- Clarity is key: Ensure your ad copy clearly conveys what you’re offering and why it’s valuable.
- Compelling Calls to Action: Encourage desired actions with strong, relevant and clear calls to action (CTAs).
- Include keywords strategically: This improves your ad relevance by indicating to users and Google that your ad is relevant to the search.
Create landing pages that convert
Landing pages play a pivotal role in your Google Ads strategy. They are what hold a user’s attention and stop them from clicking away and continuing their search.
So, they should be designed for conversion:
- Keep them clear and focused: Remove distractions and keep the landing page focused on the intended action with clear messaging.
- Mobile Optimisation: Many people search on their phones now so it’s important to ensure your landing page is fully functional and visually appealing on mobile devices.
- A/B Testing: Continuously test and optimise your landing pages for improved performance and results.
Map out your customer’s journey from the initial search query to the final conversion and continually optimise each step along the way for:
- Relevance: Make sure your landing page directly addresses and answers the search query and ad copy.
- Consistency: Maintain a consistent message from the ad to the landing page to avoid confusing or losing potential customers.
- Quality Content: Provide valuable, informative content that provides answers to the user’s search query and guides them toward the desired action.
Drive results with a customer-centric ad strategy
Google Ads success hinges on your strategy. By understanding your target audience, conducting thorough keyword research, creating customer-centric ad copy, optimising the customer journey, and designing landing pages for conversion, you’re on your way to generating significant returns from your Google Ads campaigns. It’s about making your strategy work for you and putting you on the path to achieving your business goals.
Optimise the Customer Journey