For some, it’s beneficial to unpack that what it means to have “tried Google Ads”, often rolling-back some preconceived notions or identifying some missed steps. In some cases, it’s best to politely (but intently) ignore what’s been tested or executed previously, with a logical and rational explanation to the brand owner, to focus on what opportunities lie ahead. For all though, shy of niche B2B initiatives, there’s something within Google’s stack that you should be leveraging to drive new business and positive ROI. There are also things that you should be avoiding, blocking, or mitigating to avoid wasteful ad spend and inefficient ad campaigns.

Google, websites, online ads; these things have become commodities, easily overlooked once we see something as “done”. Having a website (alone) doesn’t mean much, nor does having spent money in a Google Ads account. Having a car in your driveway doesn’t qualify you to win a race, or even enter one. You’re familiar with cars, you even drive one daily, and isn’t a race just people driving cars? If you were in some sort of driving competition, you’d want advice on how best to drive that car of yours, from someone who knows you and your car, but more importantly, knows how to race a car. That level of expertise and quality of advice will matter, even with tools and applications that you feel familiar with.

It pays to seek the help of those who have seen the best and worst, across business verticals. With Google it’s as much about what not to do, as what to do, including ignoring some specific recommendations from Google reps and the Google Ads UI. Know where to use – and not use – or even block/prohibit certain assets or settings. Understand the difference between bid strategies related to new, short-lived, or long-standing campaigns, with respect to how different strategies are likely to impact KPIs. Keep an eye out for automatically applied changes to campaigns or account settings, leveraging them sparingly, if at all. Those truly qualified will have alerts systems and Google Rules or Scripts for safeguards and automation. Leverage GTM to lend signals (valued interactions on your site) where conversion volume is minimal. Day-part your call extensions, monitor for unanswered calls, scan your CRM for the phone numbers that called you from your ads, and leverage Google’s website phone swapper for improved call tracking. Leverage Local Business profiles and keep Shopping Feeds concise and clean, while lending full info to the items you do list, leveraging Performance Max Shopping campaigns with that feed.

If you’ve tried Google Ads, it’s unlikely that you tried it the same way as someone who successfully spends hundreds of thousands of dollars, daily, in a direct-response, performance-based environment. Most digital marketers will never meet someone like this; we are those people.

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