Are you tired of wondering how Google prices its ads?
Introducing...this video,
where you’ll learn about everything that impacts your investment in Google ads!
Advertising your business on Google can result in major success. Seriously.
We’ve seen increases in conversions, contact form submissions,
revenue, and so much more as a result of a well-optimized campaign.
When it comes to the cost of your Google Ads campaigns,
there’s not really one number that works for all businesses.
Google Ads uses a bidding system to determine the cost of your ads,
so prices vary depending on a bunch of factors...which I will go over in this video.
Before I jump in, I think it’s important to briefly explain how Google Ads works.
How you pay for ads on Google When you set up a Google Ads campaign,
it’s important to have an overall budget so you know how much you can spend each day.
How Google spends this budget depends a lot on the bidding model you choose.
Three basic types of bidding you should definitely know about
are cost-per-click (CPC), cost-per-thousand impressions (CPM), and cost-per-action (CPA).
With CPC bidding, you pay for every click on your ad.
So if you’re focused on getting people to your website, CPC is a great bidding method for you.
CPA bidding is similar to CPC bidding because you want people to take action. However,
CPA focuses more on conversions. A conversion may be filling out a contact form or clicking a link.
For this type of bidding, you decide what a conversion will be and pay for each one.
Google will optimize your CPA campaigns so you see the most conversions within your budget.
CPM is a bit different than the other two bidding models. With this model,
you’re more focused on getting eyes on your brand. You pay for every 1000 impressions,
which means your ad has appeared in front of people 1000 times. So if your goal is
to get more people on your website, you might want to consider CPC or CPA bidding.
Types of Google ads In addition to knowing how you pay for
Google ads, it’s also important to understand where your ads can show up through Google.
Your ads can appear in many places on the web due to Google’s huge network.
Some ads may show in the Google search results, on websites across the Internet, on YouTube, in
Gmail, or on certain apps. The cost varies between the different types of ads and their formats.
Don’t worry, you can choose where you want your ads to appear when you create your campaigns.
Ads can be formatted as text-only, using images, or even videos. Just note that the
format you choose can help determine where the ad appears, and vice versa.
I know that was a very, very brief introduction of Google Ads, but that’s not what you’re here for.
So, let’s move on to what you’ve been waiting for:
what affects the cost of your Google ads. Factors that affect the cost of Google ads
There’s a lot going on under the hood when you place your bids for your ads.
And, unfortunately, you’re probably not the only one Google is evaluating for that coveted ad slot.
Google Ads uses an auction, so you’re competing against
many, many other companies to reach people with your ads.
A big factor in your Google Ads cost is that competition.
Some industries are much more competitive than others, leading to higher costs.
The legal field is one industry where you can expect to pay more than average for your ads.
Even if you’re not in a competitive industry like the legal field,
the competition around the keywords you want to target can drive up the cost of your campaigns.
Short-tail keywords might get you in front of a lot of people, but you’ll
probably spend a lot of money with little return. These keywords are short in length,
highly-competitive, and have a high amount of search volume.
For example, if you’re a tennis professional advertising your lessons for adults,
you’d want to avoid targeting the short-tail keyword, “tennis.” People searching for that
term probably aren’t looking for lessons, and you’ll be left with a low-performing ad.
You’d be better off targeting the phrase “tennis lessons for adults,” since there’s
a good chance someone is actually in the market for lessons. “Tennis lessons
for adults” qualifies as a long-tail keyword, which has a lower amount of search volume and
less competition than a short-tail keyword but a higher conversion rate since it’s more specific.
Some additional factors that can impact the cost of your ads are:
Your bid: If you bid too low, your ad may not appear as often as you’d like. A bid
that’s too high might mean your ad appears but you don’t see a good return on ad spend.
The ad’s relevance to the user and the landing page you direct people to:
These factors impact your quality score, which you can learn more about on our blog.
The ad format: Video ads, display ads, search ads, and other Google ads aren’t the same cost.
How and where you advertise affects what you spend.
While there is definitely a lot more to dive into about Google Ads,
that’s all I have for you in this video.
We have plenty of Google Ads content on webfx.com and on our YouTube channel,
so I would definitely recommend checking it out.
Before I go, I’m going to encourage you to sign up for Revenue Weekly,
our email newsletter, so you never miss out on the latest digital marketing content.
Until next time!