8 Google Ads Best Practices to Maximize Return on Ad Spend

Google Ads is simply a selling and advertizing staple for a wide scope of online and brick-and-mortar businesses. But a batch of Google Ads advertizing walk goes to discarded owed to poorly managed campaigns, suboptimal ads, and assorted different issues you tin easy avoid.

In this guide, we spell implicit the apical Google Ads champion practices you should travel to guarantee you get a affirmative instrumentality connected your advertisement spend.

1. Install Conversion Tracking

How volition you cognize if your advertisement campaigns are turning a nett if you don’t way conversions? Installing Google Ads conversion tracking helps you get a amended knowing of your instrumentality connected advertisement walk (ROAS) and allows you to further optimize your campaigns.

Here’s however to acceptable up conversion tracking:

First, you request to make a conversion enactment (e.g., a purchase, signifier submission, oregon telephone call). From your Google Ads account, spell to “Goals” > “Conversions” > “Summary.”

Click the bluish “New conversion action” fastener successful the mediate of the screen.

On the adjacent screen, prime the “Website” option.

Enter your website’s URL and click “Scan.”

Next, click “Add a conversion enactment manually.”

Here, you’ll request to participate immoderate further details and customize a fewer settings:

• Goal and enactment optimization: The extremity class for your conversion enactment (e.g., purchase, adhd to cart, subscribe, taxable pb form, etc.)
• Conversion name: A descriptive sanction for your conversion action
• Value: The worth of the conversion action. You tin usage the aforesaid worth for each conversion oregon acceptable up dynamic conversion values.
• Count: How galore conversions Google Ads should way per click oregon interaction
• Click-through conversion window: Visitors volition sometimes person respective days aft interacting with your ad. Here, you tin prime the maximum fig of days that tin walk betwixt an enactment and a conversion for Google Ads to subordinate the conversion with your ad. Note that the champion fig to usage present volition beryllium connected your circumstantial concern and industry.
• Engaged-view conversion window: How galore days aft a idiosyncratic interacts with your video advertisement should their conversion beryllium attributed to the ad?
• View-through conversion window: Visitors tin besides spot your advertisement but not interact with it (called an impression), and past person later. This is known arsenic a view-through conversion. Here, you tin acceptable the maximum fig of days that tin walk betwixt a idiosyncratic viewing your advertisement and their conversion for it to number arsenic a view-through conversion.
• Attribution: The attribution exemplary you’d similar Google Ads to usage for conversion tracking. The 2 disposable options see data-driven and last-click attribution.

Then, click “Done” astatine the bottommost of this window. Finally, click connected “Agree and continue” connected the adjacent screen.

You’ll past request to adhd a Google tag truthful you tin commencement measuring conversions.

To bash this, click “Set up” connected the adjacent screen.

You’ll past get a snippet of codification that you’ll request to adhd to your website. (You whitethorn besides get an enactment to usage a Google tag detected connected your website, meaning you won’t request to marque changes to your site’s code.)

Once you adhd the codification to your website, spell backmost and click the “Test installation” button.

If Google Ads detects the codification connected your website, you’ve successfully acceptable up conversion tracking.

2. Organize Your Google Ads Account

To negociate and optimize your advertisement campaigns efficiently, you request to support your Google Ads relationship organized.

Follow these guidelines erstwhile structuring your account:

• Campaigns: Organize your campaigns by concern goals, merchandise oregon work lines, oregon location. Add a descriptive sanction for each your campaigns and usage a accordant naming structure.
• Ad groups: Create advertisement groups based connected themes (e.g., circumstantial keywords, assemblage segments, intent, oregon promotions). Try not to spell implicit 10 advertisement groups per run to support things tidy.
• Ads: Use astatine slightest 3 ads per advertisement radical truthful you tin trial retired antithetic variations of advertisement copy

Structuring your relationship utilizing the tips supra volition let you to reappraisal your Google Ads show astatine a glance. It volition besides assistance you find circumstantial advertisement groups and ads rapidly truthful you tin modify them for improved performance.

3. Analyze the Competition

Analyzing your competitors’ ads and landing pages tin springiness you inspiration for your ain advertisement campaigns. It tin besides assistance you recognize what benignant of ads enactment champion for your people audience.

Here’s however to bash a speedy investigation of your competitors’ Google Ads:

Identify Competitors

The archetypal measurement is to place your main Google Ads competitors.

Start by listing each your known competitors—you tin astir apt sanction 5 to 10 competitors yourself. Then, benignant successful a fewer of your main keywords into Google and cheque retired the advertisement sections to spot which companies are advertizing there.

You tin usage Semrush’s Advertising Research instrumentality to find and larn much astir your Google Ads competitors. Simply benignant successful your domain and click “Search.”

Then, click connected the “Competitors” tab connected the adjacent screen.

Scroll down to the “Paid Competitors” section. Here, you’ll beryllium capable to see:

• The websites you’re competing with for Google Ads placements
• How overmuch they’re spending connected paid ads
• What benignant of postulation they make from paid advertising

Stay connected this page. We’ll usage it successful the adjacent step.

Find Out Which Keywords Your Competitors Are Bidding on

Next, you’ll privation to find retired which keywords your competitors are bidding on. If they’re bidding connected circumstantial keywords consistently, it’s apt that those keywords are resulting successful profitable advertisement campaigns.

The Advertising Research instrumentality tin besides amusement you precisely which keywords your contention is bidding on. From the “Paid Competitors” section, click connected the domain sanction of a competitor.

Next, scroll down to the “Paid Search Positions” conception (staying connected the “Positions” tab).

Here, you’ll beryllium capable to spot each the keywords they’re bidding connected and the mean cost per click (CPC) for each keyword.

From here, you tin export each the keywords by clicking the “Export” button.

Review Ad Copy and Landing Pages

Apart from analyzing the keywords competitors are bidding on, you’ll besides privation to person a look astatine their advertisement transcript and landing pages. This tin supply insights you tin usage to amended your ain ads and landing pages (which we’ll screen successful the adjacent 2 sections).

The Advertising Research instrumentality tin assistance present arsenic well. After clicking connected a competing domain from the “Paid Competitors section,” spell to the “Ads Copies” tab.

Here, you’ll beryllium capable to spot the advertisement transcript that a circumstantial rival uses for their ads. It’ll besides amusement you the fig of keywords that trigger those ads successful hunt results.

You tin besides export the transcript for each their ads by clicking the “Export” button.

If you’d similar to instrumentality a look astatine the landing pages for the ads, simply click connected the “Pages” tab.

Here, you’ll spot a database of each the landing pages they usage for their ads. Along with estimated traffic, the fig of keywords each 1 ranks for successful paid hunt results, and more. 

You tin past analyse these 1 by 1 oregon export them arsenic a database of URLs.

Your ad copy tin person a immense interaction connected however your ads volition perform. Follow these Google advertisement transcript champion practices to get amended results from your ads:

Be Specific

Your advertisement transcript should beryllium specific to the hunt query.

For example, let’s accidental you tally an online covering store. And, you privation to make an advertisement targeting women looking to bargain summertime dresses.

In this case, you privation your advertisement transcript to absorption connected summertime dresses specifically. Don’t usage generic transcript that says you merchantability a assortment of women’s covering oregon notation different types of products you besides merchantability (e.g., accessories).

This volition assistance to amusement shoppers that you merchantability precisely what they’re looking for, making it much apt that they volition click connected your ad.

Include Keywords

Include keywords searchers are apt utilizing wrong your advertisement copy. This volition marque your ads look much applicable to searchers and volition summation the chances of your ads getting clicks. Like the Upwork advertisement below, which is intelligibly targeting those looking to prosecute freelancers:

Image Source: Google Ads Transparency

Make definite not to overdo it, though. Adding 1 to 2 keywords to the advertisement transcript should beryllium much than enough. 

The extremity present is to amusement prospective customers that your advertisement is relevant. Don’t worldly keywords into your transcript successful an unnatural way.

Add a Clear Call to Action

Remember to adhd a call to action (CTA) to your advertisement transcript to entice users to instrumentality action.

Your CTA should archer searchers what you’d similar them to bash aft seeing your advertisement (like marque a purchase, commencement a escaped trial, oregon publication a consultation).

Image Source: Google Ads Transparency Center

Here are a fewer examples of CTAs you tin usage successful your advertisement copy:

• Buy now
• Sign up
• Call now
• Learn more
• Get a quote

This 1 whitethorn look obvious, but it’s worthy stating:

You request to marque definite your advertisement is escaped of grammatical and spelling errors.

Seems casual enough, but you’d beryllium amazed by however galore ads retired determination neglect to travel 1 of the simplest Google Ads champion practices.

Ads with grammatical and spelling errors tin look spammy to searchers and marque them consciousness uneasy astir clicking connected them. Avoid this by double-checking your advertisement transcript for immoderate errors.

5. Optimize Your Landing Pages

You tin person the champion ads successful the world, but you won’t make immoderate conversions if your landing pages are of mediocre quality.

Also, providing a mediocre landing leafage acquisition tin trim your ad’s Quality Score. This, successful turn, tin effect successful poorer advertisement show and higher costs.

Here are a fewer tips you tin usage to optimize your landing pages for conversions:

Match Your Landing Pages to Your Ads

Perhaps the astir important happening you request to bash to amended your landing pages is marque definite they lucifer your ads.

The connection and the messaging you usage request to beryllium accordant crossed your ads and landing pages. If you committedness thing successful your advertisement (like a discount), you indispensable present connected that promise connected the landing page.

Otherwise, you’ll get radical clicking connected your ads, but they’ll apt ne'er convert.

Focus Your CTAs connected a Single Goal

Do you person aggregate CTAs connected your landing page?

Don’t worry—that’s fine. 

But you request to marque definite they each inquire visitors to bash the aforesaid thing.

Imagine seeing aggregate CTAs connected a page, with 1 asking you to bargain a product, different 1 asking you to motion up for a newsletter, and a 3rd 1 requesting that you telephone to get successful touch.

You’d beryllium confused. And you wouldn’t cognize wherever to absorption your attention. Right?

The aforesaid is existent for your website visitors.

So, if you privation to person aggregate CTAs connected your landing page, archetypal determine connected the main happening you’d similar visitors to bash (e.g., marque a acquisition oregon publication a call). Then, marque definite each your CTAs are focused connected pushing visitors toward that goal.

Here’s a bully example, showing the consistency of CTAs arsenic you scroll down the landing page:

Use Trust Signals

A deficiency of spot is 1 of the main reasons radical don’t person connected a landing page.

If it’s their archetypal clip visiting your website, they mightiness consciousness uneasy astir entering their idiosyncratic accusation oregon trusting you with their recognition paper details.

Here are a fewer antithetic types of spot signals you tin see adding to your landing page:

• Reviews and testimonials: Seeing satisfied customers station astir however blessed they are with your institution tin marque visitors consciousness overmuch much assured astir making a purchase
• Guarantees: Offering a restitution oregon money-back warrant tin besides assistance marque visitors consciousness astatine easiness erstwhile entering their idiosyncratic oregon outgo details connected your landing page
• Membership logos: Is your institution a subordinate of a reputable organization, specified arsenic the Better Business Bureau (BBB)? Try displaying the organization’s logo connected your landing leafage to awesome to visitors that your institution tin beryllium trusted.

Improve Page Speed

People typically won’t hold much than a mates of seconds for a website to load. The longer it takes, the higher the chances of them leaving without engaging with your contented (known arsenic a bounce).

If you privation your landing pages to convert, you request to marque definite they load fast.

Here are a fewer things you tin bash to velocity up your landing pages:

• Upgrade your web hosting: Are you inactive utilizing shared hosting? Upgrade to dedicated server hosting oregon usage a amended hosting supplier to assistance velocity up your website.
• Use a CDN: With a content transportation network (CDN), your website contented is served to visitors from the servers that are physically closest to them. This tin effect successful important increases successful leafage load speed.
• Compress images: Images tin beryllium dilatory to load, particularly if they person a precocious solution (and precocious record size). Use a web-friendly representation format similar WebP to get images to load faster, and you tin compress your JPEG and PNG images with tools similar Optimizilla oregon Kraken.
• Minify JavaScript and CSS files: JavaScript and CSS files tin beryllium bloated with comments, enactment breaks, and unnecessary spaces, which increases their size. You tin usage a instrumentality similar Minifier to optimize your JavaScript and CSS files.
• Remove immoderate unnecessary scripts: Check if you person immoderate unnecessary scripts moving connected your website (e.g., an unused tracking codification snippet). Remove immoderate scripts you don’t perfectly request truthful that they don’t dilatory down your website.

Further reading: What Is Page Speed & How to Improve It

6. Maintain a Negative Keyword List

Google Ads gives you a mode to forestall your ads from showing for irrelevant searches by allowing you to adhd negative keywords. These are keywords you don’t privation your ads to amusement up for.

If you’re moving Google Ads campaigns, utilizing antagonistic keywords is simply a must.

By adding antagonistic keywords to your run settings, you tin amended your ads’ click-through rates and trim your wide advertizing costs.

To adhd antagonistic keywords, spell to “Campaigns” > “Audiences, keywords, and content” > “Search keywords.” Then click connected the “Negative hunt keywords” tab.

From here, click the “+ Negative keywords” button.

Choose whether you privation the antagonistic keywords to use to an full run oregon conscionable a azygous advertisement group. And past participate oregon paste your antagonistic keywords.

Click the “Save” fastener astatine the bottommost erstwhile you’ve added each the keywords.

Not definite which keywords to exclude? Check retired the “Search terms” study by going to “Campaigns” > “Insights and reports” > “Search terms.”

Here, you’ll privation to look for 2 types of keywords:

• Any keywords that aren’t applicable to your business
• Relevant keywords with a batch of clicks but nary conversions

Take enactment of immoderate keywords that acceptable into the supra categories and adhd them to your antagonistic keyword database to trim wasted advertisement spend.

Apart from adding antagonistic keywords to idiosyncratic campaigns and advertisement groups, you tin besides make an account-level antagonistic keyword database that volition use crossed each your campaigns.

Here’s how:

From your Google Ads dashboard, spell to “Admin” > “Account settings” > “Negative keywords.”

Click the “+” button.

Add your antagonistic keywords and click “Save.”

Google Ads offers antithetic assets (formerly known arsenic advertisement extensions) you tin connect to your ads. These assistance supply much accusation astir your connection oregon company.

They tin besides summation your visibility successful the hunt motor results pages (SERPs) by taking up much ocular existent estate. This, successful turn, tin amended your advertisement click-through complaint and little your outgo per click.

Consider taking vantage of these types of Google Ads assets:

Location

The determination plus lets you database your business’ code connected a abstracted enactment successful hunt results. It looks similar this:

This is simply a precise utile advertisement plus if you tally a brick-and-mortar concern that relies connected in-person visits. Because it helps radical find your carnal determination much easily. Users tin simply click connected the code and get directions connected however to scope it.

Sitelinks

The sitelink plus lets you specify different pages you’d similar to nonstop users to isolated from your main landing page.

Image Source: Google Ads Transparency Center

You tin usage this arsenic an accidental to nexus to class pages, an FAQ page, pages with reviews oregon testimonials, oregon immoderate different leafage you’d similar imaginable customers to see.

Seller Ratings

With the seller ratings asset, you get the enactment to show a standing for your concern based connected reviews Google gathers from assorted online sources.

Image Source: Google Ads Transparency Center

This tin beryllium a large mode to amusement visitors that your concern is trustworthy.

Callouts

You tin usage the callout plus to item important information, specified arsenic your best-selling products, a escaped shipping offer, oregon your unsocial selling constituent (USP).

They’re added aft your statement text, and it’s a utile mode to adhd important accusation you couldn’t acceptable wrong the statement quality limit. 

Here’s what an advertisement with a callout plus looks like:

Image Source: Google Ads Transparency Center

Calls

If your concern relies connected customers making a telephone telephone to publication an assignment oregon inquire for a quote, you tin usage the calls plus to marque it casual for them to get successful interaction with you.

This way, imaginable customers volition beryllium capable to telephone your concern straight from the ad:

8. Test Location Targeting and Ad Scheduling

Before we wrapper up, we request to spell implicit 2 much tactics that tin assistance you get amended results with your Google Ads campaigns: determination targeting and advertisement scheduling.

Keep successful caput that these tactics won’t ever effect successful improved performance—you request to trial and spot if they nutrient results for your business.

Location Targeting

Google gives you the enactment to people circumstantial locations with your ads. If you usage determination targeting, your ads volition lone beryllium shown to radical successful locations you specify.

This tin beryllium utile for a fig of situations:

• If you ain a carnal business, specified arsenic a hardware store, you whitethorn privation to lone advertise to radical successful your area
• Ecommerce businesses that lone vessel to circumstantial locations mightiness privation to debar advertizing to users successful different locations to trim advertisement spend
• If you merchantability immoderate benignant of high-end oregon luxury products oregon services, you mightiness privation to absorption connected advertizing to radical successful much affluent areas

To acceptable up determination targeting for a campaign, spell to the “Campaigns” conception successful your Google Ads dashboard and click connected the cog icon adjacent to the run sanction to entree the run settings.

In the “Settings” pop-up, click connected the “Locations” drop-down and participate the determination you’d similar to people successful the hunt box. You tin people countries, cities, regions, oregon ZIP/postal codes. Once you adhd each the locations you privation to target, click “Save.”

That’s it. Your ads volition present beryllium shown lone to radical successful the locations you specified.

Ad Scheduling

With Google Ads, you person the enactment to docket ads to lone tally connected circumstantial days oregon during definite times of the day. This is sometimes referred to arsenic dayparting.

Ad scheduling isn’t needfully utile for each benignant of business. As a regularisation of thumb, if you spot that your outgo per conversion is comparatively adjacent crossed antithetic days of the week oregon times of the day, determination whitethorn beryllium nary request for you to usage advertisement scheduling.

But if your concern experiences highest times oregon days wherever you usually acquisition spikes successful clicks oregon conversions, you should see advertisement scheduling.

For example, ideate you run a kayak rental business. You announcement that the fig of advertisement clicks and bookings usually increases connected Thursdays and Fridays (perhaps due to the fact that radical are looking to rent a kayak for the weekend).

In this case, it would beryllium omniscient to acceptable up an advertisement docket to person your ads tally connected Thursdays and Fridays only, since these days are erstwhile your click-through complaint and conversion complaint are the highest. 

Or you could acceptable up bid adjustments to summation your bids during those 2 days of the week.

Here’s however to acceptable up advertisement scheduling successful Google Ads:

From your Google Ads account, spell to “Campaigns” > “Audiences, keywords, and content” > “Ad schedule.”

Click connected the pencil icon and prime the run for which you’d similar to make a schedule.

Then, prime erstwhile you’d similar your ads to tally and click “Save.”

That’s it. You’ve created your advertisement schedule. You tin besides trial retired antithetic advertisement schedules and spot which ones output the champion results.

When done right, Google Ads campaigns tin consistently thrust customers and gross for your business.

Follow the champion practices for Google Ads we outlined supra to guarantee your campaigns are a success.

You tin besides usage Semrush’s tools to marque things easier:

• Advertising Research tin assistance you find retired which keywords your competitors are bidding connected and amusement you the advertisement transcript and landing pages they’re utilizing for their campaigns
• Keyword Magic Tool shows you keyword metrics similar CPC and level of competition
• EyeOn allows you to show your competitors’ advertisement activity 
• PPC Keyword Tool makes it casual to program and signifier your Google Ads campaigns

You tin entree each of these tools and much with a free trial.