25 Google Ads tips that small business owners were told by Google in Sydney
This week I watched Google successfully use a sponsored post on Facebook to gather 120 small business people into a room at the Cronulla Sharks Leagues Club and explain to them how to use Google products to promote their businesses.
The business people I saw at the Google event would have, in the past, traditionally advertised their brands in local newspapers, telephone directories and on local radio stations. The sales director at the Sutherland Shire Leader would have been doing cartwheels if his newspaper managed to draw in such a large crowd of potential advertisers to a breakfast event.
What was not lost on me was that Google paid Facebook to source the crowd.
The event was titled ‘Grow with Google’ and featured speeches by four key Australian-based Google employees, including Mel Silva the Australia and New Zealand Vice President.
For business owners this national roadshow by Google offers some excellent tips about navigating the important world of online marketing. Today’s attendees were told that 82% of people turn to their smartphones to find local businesses and ‘near me’ searches have tripled.
“We don’t go online. We live online” said Cookie Wong an Account Strategist at Google Australia and New Zealand.
In a subtle dig at Facebook and Instagram, there was a reference made about ‘organic social media posts not performing as well anymore.’ Obviously, changes to Facebook Inc’s algorithms could benefit Google’s revenues.
Attendees were introduced to a series of free online tools that can help their businesses be found in Google Search and on Google Maps.
Here’s how to take control of your businesses’ digital marketing by using Google’ free tools:
1. Create a Google My Business profile
2. Make sure you include your phone number and website in the profile — these are popular items wanted by customers
3. Verify your business — Google will take you through those steps
4. Download the ‘Google My Business’ app
5. Build loyalty by managing your customer reviews — respond to all feedback — the good and bad
6. Google Posts — Use this tool via the ‘Google My Business’ app tackle the issue of organic social posts not being seen by your customers says Google
7. Activate messages on your ‘Google My Business’ app — Allow customers to speak privately with you, and ‘keep customers happy’
8. Google says your ‘average response time is monitored’ and measured — so, make sure you respond quickly
9. Upload photos to your business profile — “90% of customers are more likely to look at business who uploads photos…35% then click through to find out more information about your business.”
10. Use Google Ads to be found by customers that are searching for what you sell. Also allows you to reach the right people at the right moment. If you’re time poor, sign-up for a Google Ads Smart Display campaign. https://ads.google.com
11. Google has ‘Partner Agencies’ who might be able to assist you with your online advertising
12. Getting Started with Search Engine Marketing — 20% of people who search for products and services never go past page one of the search results
13. Make sure you know where your business is placed — Google your own company — what are your customers seeing online?
14. “People don’t lie to Google”
15. How do I know when my ad is going to be placed? Google uses the bid and auction system and has an immediate live auction for every search result. Signals that Google picks up include device location and last search result. “But, bidding alone is isn’t enough…Google serves the most relevant result for the consumer, they don’t send the consumer to the business that is willing to pay most for Google Ads.”
16. Three factors determine your Quality scores for Google Ads search results: A/ Expected clickthrough rate, B/ Relevance, C/ Landing page usability eg Strong mobile website, does the website load quickly?
17. Use these Google tools — Google Analytics (read real time data on who is using your website, consumer behaviour, audience demo and conversion rate). Google Trends can reveal if there is a change in search queries over time eg pineapple pizza searches have increased over time.
18. When buying advertisements on Google, seriously consider your keyword strategies and look at buying Ad Extensions. Extensions expand your ad with additional information that takes up more real estate on your consumer’s phone — giving people more reasons to choose your business — plus, Google says there is a 10–15% increase on clickthough rates on extension campaigns.
19. Google Ads runs an auction every single time it has an ad space available — on a search result, or on a blog, news site or some other page. Each auction decides which ads will show at that moment in that space. Your bid puts you in the auction.
20. Google Bidding — What type of keywords should you bid on? What would a consumer be searching for to find my brand or business?
21. Negative Keywords — Tell Google Ads what words you don’t want your advertisement to appear on in search. This will save you money.
22. Tip: Avoid questions in Google Ad headlines
23. Explore Google free training courses at the Digital Garage: https://learndigital.withgoogle.com/digitalgarage-au
24. There are lots of ‘bite-sized digital lessons’ on the Your Primer app — use these searches: ‘AUbiz’ & ‘AUstudent’
24. Visit the Grow With Google website: https://grow.google/
25. If you find all this too time consuming, dial-up a digital specialist who might be able to assist you — don’t let them charge you too much though!
#Google #GoogleAds #GrowWithGoogle
