Google AdWords For Small Business Made Simple: A Step-by-Step Guide

Why Small Business Owners Should Tap into Google AdWords

If you are wondering whether Google AdWords is suitable for small businesses, the answer is definitely yes.

Google AdWords provide small businesses the flexibility and space they need to launch a marketing campaign with low commitment and high returns. With Smart campaigns, small businesses are using Google Ads to design effective ads that produce results in a short span of time. Google AdWords offers several benefits specific to small businesses, such as:  

1. Control over landing pages

When a user clicks on a PPC ad, they will be directed to a specific page on your website. With PPC ads, you can select that landing page. By directing visitors to landing pages offering what they are searching for, the chances of conversion are much higher.

2. Manage advertising costs

For small businesses, Google AdWords gives you full autonomy over your advertising budget, which can be set way in advance and adjusted anytime you want. By setting a maximum budget, you will never have to worry about overspending.

3. Local reach

Google AdWords offers location targeting choices. The beauty of this feature for small businesses is that you can choose to reach where you want, who you want, and when you want. If you are running a local business, you will want your ads to appear in search results only in your area. By targeting your ads to only users in your geographical location, you are ensuring that your ads are effectively reaching the most applicable potential customers.

4. Get Measured Results

Google AdWords offers a wide variety of customizable options to measure and monitor all your campaigns in a single dashboard. For instance, you can set and monitor your own targets for:

• Website traffic
• Sales and conversions
• Return on investment
• Brand Awareness

Step-by-Step Guide to Using Google AdWords

1. Create an account and start your first ad campaign

To begin, create an AdWords account and get started on your first ad campaign. The Search Network is the most popular ad type on Google AdWords, and it refers to ads that are displayed on the SERP when a user types in a keyword you bid for.

2. Set up your budget

To determine your AdWords budget, you should take into account the following:

• Cost of production
• Conversion rate
• Worth of a conversion
• Ideal amount of profit

Although Google ads may not be the cheapest, there are plenty of ways to save your spending on digital marketing efforts. The Aspire business account, for instance, offers 1% cashback from online marketing campaigns, including paid ads, helping you make the most of your marketing budget.

💡 Tip: With the expense management feature on the Aspire Business Account, set specific budget limits and gain real-time updates on your transactions in a unified platform.

3. Choose your preferred keywords

The next step is to select the best keywords to bid for to achieve optimal performance. One of the best tools for this is the Google Keyword Planner.

4. Check out the competition

One important aspect of the Google AdWords campaign process is understanding your competition. You can use the SpyFu tool to get a better idea of what and how much your competition is bidding for while the SEMrush tool can be very useful when you want to compare the cost of certain keywords.

5. Focus on your landing page

Your landing page will either bring or waste your money, depending on the amount of work placed into it. Some important features to consider when creating your landing page are:

• Simple and intuitive UX: The main essence of boosting traffic to the landing page is to increase conversions.
• Strong headline: The headline of your landing page should immediately catch the attention of the visitors.
• Mobile optimisation: Ensure that your landing page is optimised for both web and mobile users.
• CTA buttons: Add relevant call-to-action (CTA) buttons to guide users towards your goal conversion.

💡 Tip: Did you know that the Aspire Rewards Programme offers exclusive discounts on website hosting platforms? Optimise your landing page for success and gain access to these perks when you sign up for an Aspire account.

6. Set up your campaign

To set up the campaign, enter your budget and bid first before stating the geographical area your ad is targeted to. Key in the network the search should be displayed on. Next, key in your chosen keywords and adjust your bid to the desired amount.

7. Write your first ad

One tip to writing your first ad is to go straight to the point, be simple, precise, and brief. State your unique value proposition clearly and boldly.

8. Conversions tracking

Tracking your conversions is important for Google to know if a lead has been converted. The conversions are tracked using a piece of code attached onto the final thank you page of your website. Google AdWords will then receive an alert once a lead has completed an action or purchase.

You can also get the Google Adwords certification

The Google AdWords certification is a professional accreditation given by Google to businesses or individuals who have proven to be proficient in AdWords. To obtain this certification, you will need to pass two exams – the AdWords Fundamentals exam and one of the five other specialty exam.