Welcome to the final part and congratulations on coming so far. This series is intended to give you an overview of the things you need to monitor after you have created your campaign. The biggest mistake that a lot of people make is “abandoning” a campaign after creating it, thinking that once an Ad is up and running, their job is done. Monitoring and adjusting a campaign is just as important as setting it up — if not more!
Google Ads Optimization Checklist
Use this checklist after your campaign has been running for at least two weeks to see what needs to be improved.
Devices
Analyse which devices are predominantly used when people click on your ads.
Source: Unsplash
Adjustment
Increase your bid for the best performing device.
Tips
Sometimes you may want to create campaign duplicates. One targeting desktop computers and one targeting mobile devices only. This will give you a clearer idea of which device works best for you.
Locations
Analyse which countries, regions, or cities are outperforming the rest.
Example: number of users and their location visiting Google Merchandise Store from August 9,2020 to August 16, 2020.
Adjustment
Increase your bid for high performing locations.
Tips
On the locations page you can filter locations by state, city, or province. You may want to add specific cities to your target location and adjust bids for particular ones.
Day & Hour
Looking at the chart under the “Dimension” tab, you may find specific hours or days when your ad is performing better.
Adjustment
You may want to create a schedule and adjust your bid percentage accordingly.
Ad Performance
Observe how each individual Ad is performing. If you have created two identical Ads, one targeting mobiles and one targeting desktop computers, observe their performance. One of the two may be more relevant.
Source: Unsplash
Adjustment
If an Ad performs very badly and has a very low CTR, consider pausing it and creating a new one.
Extensions
Monitor how your extensions are doing.
Example: Sitelink extensions.
Source: Google Support
Adjustment
Refine callouts and sitelinks if they are not resulting in a good CTR. Try different variations and links to different pages.
Keywords
Observe how your keywords are performing in each Ad Group and check their quality score (expected click-through-rate, landing page, ad relevance).
Source: Canva Pro
Adjustment
- If any keyword is performing below average, work on the ad copy or wording to improve Ad Relevance and Expected CTR. Make it more specific to increase the chances of being relevant to potential customers.
- Look at search terms to see if you can add keywords or negative keywords.
Tips
Try to split specific keywords into different Ad Groups to narrow the wording and make Ads more specific. Include specific search terms in your keywords that get a lot of hits and a good CTR or conversion.
Increase your bid with +10% for high CTR keywords.
Exclude search terms that are being searched for, but don’t result in people buying anything when they get to your homepage.
Support System
There will be times when you need help to figure out what’s going on with Google Ads. If you want to take a DIT approach in dealing with the issue, the Google Ads Help page is a great online resource. All you have to do is go to www.support.google.com to get answers. The common issues affecting Google Ads users are tackled thematically. You simply have to type the necessary keyword referring to your question or problem in the Google Ads Help page search box and then just hit the “Enter” Key.
If you have the resources necessary to hire a Google Ads expert, then do so. Ask that expert to teach you how to troubleshoot the common Google Ads issues. More than anything, being a hands-on business owner has the most significant impact on your success.
Source: Unsplash
What's Next?
Congratulations! You have made it all the way through. Join our free groups on LinkedIn and Facebook and post one distinction there – what will you do differently now? What stood out for you?