Table of contents
In the article, there will be abbreviations for metrics we use in the marketing world, such as CTR, CPC, ROAS, etc. If you want to know them in detail, I recommend the article „Campaign CPIs. What are they and how to determine them?„.
Google Ads campaign – configuration
Let’s get straight to the point then! After logging into your Google Ads account, we click
„New campaign”.
We will be shown a box with campaign goal prompts. I recommend selecting the „Create campaign without using the goal prompts” option. Any other choice will slightly limit our ability to configure the campaign. By choosing no hints, we will get the ability to configure the campaign in any way we want.
Next, we select „Search Network” and in the „Use these conversion goals to optimize campaign performance” window, we select the kind of conversions we want to get with the campaign. If you don’t have conversions defined in your account, you can set up a campaign without them!
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I recommend setting up events in your account, though. This will give you the ability to track key events, such as how many forms on your site are filled out by audiences acquired through the campaign, or how often they call you after seeing an ad. To configure conversions, you will need GA4 and GTM
implementations.
If you find this element too difficult, you can use the services of Digital Agency. The agency will take care of the comprehensive implementation of analytical tools and their full configuration. If you want to learn how to do it yourself, you can take advantage of SchoolUP training courses, during which trainers work with students online in a 1-on-1 setting.
After selecting the appropriate conversions (or because you don’t select any), click next. We then select the result we want to get with the campaign, such as „Site visits” or „Phone calls” and fill in the appropriate field. In the tutorial I will describe further steps for the former option, while further campaign setup will be almost no different if you choose the latter option.
Google Ads campaign – rate-setting strategy
The next step is to select a rate-setting strategy.
There are several options available. We can change the campaign’s rate setting strategy at any time, so there’s no need to stress 🙂
Conversions – the campaign will try to generate as many conversions as possible. E.g., calls, forms submitted, passes to the „contact us” page, etc. This option is chosen when you want the user to take a specific action on the site. (Note, you can only choose this strategy if you have conversions configured in your account!)
We can check the option „Set target cost of action (optional)”. – this is a setting that allows you to price the conversion. If we set, for example, PLN 30, the campaign will optimize the action to generate conversions just for this rate.
Conversion value – the campaign will try to generate conversions with the highest value. By default, the campaign will try to sell as many products with the highest value as possible. You can choose this strategy in the case of e-commerce or when you give conversions appropriate values, i.e. value a form or a call at x PLN, etc. You can do this in the conversion settings in your Google Ads account).
The „Set target return on ad spend (optional)” option allows you to set a target ROAS, or return on advertising. ROAS (Return on Advertising Spend) is a ratio showing the ratio of revenue from an advertising campaign to the cost of that campaign. If we spend PLN 1,000 on a campaign and the revenue is PLN 5,000, the ROAS is 500%.
Campaign in Google Ads – conversions or clicks?
Clicks – campaign will try to generate as many clicks as possible. This option is chosen when you want to get as many users to your site as possible. It is also the best option to start with, when we do not yet know how well our campaign will work. By maximizing clicks, we will get information on average CPC and other relevant metrics.
The „Set maximum click rate limit” option allows us to set an upper CPC range that the campaign will not exceed. I.e. by setting, for example, PLN 3.50 we can be sure that each of the clicks coming from the campaign will not be more expensive than the set limit. Using the keyword planner, you can check how much clicks from a given campaign or industry can cost.
Display share – the campaign will try to display the ad as often as possible. Display share is a metric that indicates the percentage of ad impressions compared to the total number of impressions your ads may have received. I recommend choosing this option for larger advertisers whose budget allows them to cover a large portion of the market.
The „Where do you want to display ads?” option allows you to choose the location of our ads. These can be:
- Any place on the search results page
- At the top of the results page
- First place on the results page
On the other hand, the „Target Display Share (%)” determines how often we want our ads to appear in our selected portion of the search results page when users search for keywords.
Underneath, we have the option „Set rates for new customers only”. This is an option that allows you to display ads only for new customers, i.e. those who have not yet been to your site. In order to enable it, you need to connect your Google Ads account with GA4 and set up the appropriate audience lists.
Creating campaigns in the Google Ads search network
Now we move on to the campaign settings. I will describe each section in turn.
„Networks” are additional places where your ads can be displayed, beyond the search engine. They are marked with the Google logo. Such a place can be found, for example, on Onet:
and the search results look as follows:
I recommend unchecking both options, however. In my experience, a Google Ads campaign generates lower quality traffic from these sources than from the search engine itself.
Setting your location, you can go into „advanced search” to select the locations you are interested in, or set a radius from a specific location (such as your store’s headquarters).
„Location options” gives you a choice:
- Presence or interest: people who are currently in the locations you are considering, regularly visit them, or are interested in them (recommended)
- Presence: people who are currently in or regularly visit the locations you are considering
In the case of the former, the creatives may display to users who are not in the area, but type in the password. In the second, they will only display to users who are in the designated area.
The „audience segments” field allows you to set the people you want to display the results to. You will do this by typing in a password or selecting the appropriate options in the „browse” tab.
The „viewers” field will be displayed to you.
At the very bottom, in the „More settings” box, you can set the ad rotation (depending on whether you want your Google Ads campaign to display the most effective ad or all of them in rotation). You’ll also find scheduling and brand inclusion and exclusion (use exclusion if you don’t want your ads to display when a competing brand is typed into the search engine).
Campaign-in-search – keywords
In the „keywords and ads” section, we will start with the former. It’s time to create a list of keywords on which we want to display ads. This works in a simple way. All the words you include in the list will cause ads to be displayed. For example, if you include „hairdresser Warsaw” then the recipient, when he/she types such a phrase, will display the ad. When designing a keyword pool, try to put yourself in the customer’s shoes and think about what phrases he or she might type into the search engine. If you want, you can also use the help of the keyword planner I mentioned earlier.
Try to create more than one ad group. Divide the campaign by location or service, for example. E.g. include words related to men’s haircuts in the first group, women’s haircuts in the second, and local phrases such as hairdresser Warsaw, etc. in the third.
We are on the last straight! Now all you need to do is to complete the advertising texts. Try to complete as many fields as possible. This affects the position of your ads in the search engine, as well as the CPC of your campaign. If you have 15 headline slots, fill them all, even if they differ slightly! Also try to use the character limit if possible.
The final URL – is where users go when they click, which is your site in short.
Headlines – appear at the top of the ad and can be up to 30 characters long. Describe your products or services in them in keywords.
The text of the ad – appears below the headlines and can have a maximum of 90 characters.
Texts and other ad elements (including extensions) may display in different combinations depending on the device used by the potential customer and Google Ads’ predicted effectiveness.
Campaign-in-search – extensions
„Images” „company name” and „logo” speak for themselves, so I won’t elaborate on them. Below you can also choose extensions for your campaign. We’ve covered a few of them in the articles Google Ads Extensions PART 1 and Google Ads Extensions, Part 2 Complete those as you see fit, then click „done”.
We’re at the finish line! Now all you need to do is complete the daily budget. This is the amount Google Ads will spend on the days it displays your ads. All you still have to do in the „check” box is to accept all the sections. Congratulations, you’ve just set up your search engine campaign! Remember to check your campaign regularly and check the results it generates. You’ll find plenty of guides on the Internet on how to handle this. You can also use mine, in which I described „Unobvious ways to optimize Google Ads campaigns„. Until next time!
