Although it can be a useful advertising tool, Google Ads is more complex than many business owners may initially understand. Like anything new, there will be a steep learning curve as you must be ready to make mistakes and learn from them - especially if you have never used Google Ads in the past.
Unfortunately, many companies struggle for months or even years before they manage to make their accounts optimally effective and that’s if they’re lucky! It's a challenging task and some companies are never able to get their ad account to become effective on their own. "Set it and forget it" is not the strategy you want to have as there’s no such thing as “passive income” when running and managing Google Ads campaigns.
Rather than playing PPC trial and error, here is a list of reasons you should hire a professional to run your Google Ads account.
1. Complexity
While it may seem as though you can simply sign up, begin running your Google ads account and get tons of new customers, that is often not the case. This is due to the fact that properly setting up your account is more complex than it seems. To do so, you must do things such as:
Ensure your account is properly connected to analytics
Create landing pages with CTA's (calls to action) and conversion tools
Properly setup tracking code for conversions
Bid on the right keywords
Use the right ad structure
Write compelling copy for the ads with messaging that resonates
Target the right audience
Track phone calls
2. The Landscape is ever-changing
Another reason you should hire a specialist to run your Google Ads account is that the ads landscape is constantly changing. Not only are new competitors coming and going, but features change often. There is little to no stability. Just because your ad is in a great position one month, doesn’t mean it will stay that way the following month. Your ads can also fluctuate in position on the page. For example, they may be at the top of the page one day, at the bottom of the page the next, or on page two the following. Doing a monthly review of your search keywords and reviewing your click through rate is necessary to optimize your campaigns and efficiently use every cent of your budget.
3. Bidding strategies
Moreover, bidding strategies can vary depending on what your goals are. Rather than just one method of bidding, Google Ads offers a variety of bidding methods that vary depending on the type of campaign you are running. Variables such as the networks you are targeting and whether you wish to focus on conversions, impressions, or getting clicks or views, are what determine the type of bidding strategy you should be using. Either way, if you don’t pick the right digital marketing strategy, you will not see results.
4. Match type
Lastly, you must also be able to choose the right match type. Whether you’re looking for a broad, exact, modified broad, phrase, or exact match, if you choose the wrong type, you will be wasting time and money.
5. Ongoing Management: Refine Your Audience and Keyword Targeting
Reviewing performance metrics should be executed frequently and consistently to make sure your ads are optimized and performing at their best. Here are a few items that should be part of any management strategy:
Status: This shows if your ads are running properly. For example, an "Eligible" status means your ads may be served, restricted ads may be limited due to policy restrictions on certain medical terms
Review campaign data including: CTR, Avg. CPC, Clicks, Impressions, Calls and Search history data
Review all new features and implement optimization suggestions that match your account goals
Review all keyword data, make adjustments and remove low performing keywords.
Review Ads and Extensions: Extensions expand your ad with additional information, giving people more reasons to choose your business. These may increase an ad's clickthrough rate by several percentage points. Extension formats include call buttons, location information, links to specific parts of your website, additional text, and more.
And most important, review your conversion data! How many people are converting into customers via your web form or via phone call?
6. Results + Adjustments
If you're ads aren't performing the way you had expected, you'll want to carefully review the three C's: Copy, Conversions and Click-Through Rate (CTR).
Copy and ad targeting: Clicks are the bread and butter of a Google ads specialist. Everyone wants more clicks! A click happens when someone sees your ad and then clicks it. Ideally, you want as many clicks as possible, but if your ad isn’t getting clicks, you may want to rethink your copy or ad targeting.
Conversions: If you get a lot of impressions or clicks, but little conversions, it could mean your ad copy is good but the product or service you’re selling doesn’t align with the ad or your landing page needs work. Optimizing your landing page requires you to take a look at the overall offer, the headline, structure of the page, CTA (call to action), and placement of buttons and calls to action.
Click-Through Rate (CTR): Your CTR is the best way for Google to measure the relevance of your ad. CTR is a percentage based on the number of clicks and impressions. It allows you to determine if the ad is resonating with the audience you’ve chosen. A high click-through rate means that a lot of people are seeing the ad, clicking it, and converting. That’s a high-performing ad.
Takeaways
Google Ads can be a useful advertising tool for companies of all kinds.
Failing to hire a professional to run your account may result in a waste of time and resources. This is because successfully using the platform is complex, and depends on the ability to master various aspects of the platform.
Managing Google Ads yourself may work for you if you have prior experience or have a small budget, but it’s certainly not the approach adopted by well-established businesses.
And finally, you don’t diagnose your disease by yourself when you are ill or participate in legal proceedings without the help of a trained legal professional, so why wouldn't you hire an expert when it comes to advertising your business?
Hire Google Ads Experts at Sound Moves Marketing
If you are looking for help with Google Ad campaign management, our team of experts here at Sound Moves Marketing is ready to help you reach more patients. Rather than going it alone, taking the initiative to hire a Google Ads expert is one of the best ways to ensure that you are utilizing the platform effectively. If you are in need of premium quality Google Ads marketing services, contact us today for a consultation and we will help you achieve Google Ads success.