Jane Harrell, co-owner of Working with Dog and founder of ’cause Digital Marketing, holds Office Hours with Jane twice a month, and members of Working with Dog can ask any burning questions they have about business or marketing.
Question:
What advice do you have on Google Ads for a complete newbie?
Expert Jane Harrell Responds:
First, think about whether Google Ads is truly the best channel for your business. What, exactly, are you looking to do? For example, if you’re trying to encounter people searching for something specific when they’re researching or ready to purchase, Google Ads can be powerful. Alternatively, if you are trying to raise general awareness of your products and services and start building warm leads by driving email sign-up, Facebook ads might have better ROI.
Second, consider what the circumstances are when that person is doing the searching on Google.
- What terms are they looking for?
- What phrases (long and short) might they use?
- Where are they (physically and mentally) when they perform the search?
- Are they somewhere where they’ll be able to dive in and actually learn something new – which takes some time – or are they doing this in passing, focusing only long enough to quickly see something before they get pulled back into something else?
If it’s the first scenario, these could be highly valuable leads, which may even convert on the first visit – the holy grail, so to speak.
If it’s the second scenario, you’ll likely have to find ways to coax them back and help them remember you. This can be done through getting a “simple” conversion on that first visit by getting their permission to email them or through another kind of Google ad called “remarketing.”
In this case you’d actually be serving two separate kinds of Google Ads – Search and Remarketing.
Search ads bring people to your website when they’re doing the initial search for, say, “Dog Walking Near Me.”
Remarketing ads target people who have visited your website, and even a specific page on your website, but who haven’t completed a goal you set – like email sign-up or purchase. These ads serve to remind people who already know you about your product or services and can even give an additional incentive to come back and complete a goal. This means the user journey looks like this:
- Google search
- Click to your website (which you pay for)
- Remarketed ads reminder
- Second click to your website (which you pay for again)
Third, we have an overview in the Working with Dog member content on how to find topics and titles using Google Ad Words, if you’ve gone through the above two questions and still think Google Ads are something you’d like to try. If you aren’t yet a Working with Dog member, get on the wait list to be notified right away the next time membership opens. Whether or not you end up running a campaign, this can help you see what people are looking for, as well as the suggested ad rates and competition.
Become a Working with Dog member to get access to pet-industry specific marketing genius, tools, insights and done-for-you templates to help you navigate the road to more profitability AND more freedom, one simple step at a time. Get on the wait list here and be the first to know when membership opens!
