All AdWords management is not equal: tips for managing your AdWords account

The management of your AdWords account is very important. Whether your company is taking the task on in-house or hiring an agency – AdWords management is not created equal. Strategy along with optimizations differ among industries, within media budgets, locations, and importantly – within your business’ goals.  So here are some helpful tips and tricks for the management of your AdWords account:

1. Think about your business goals and how it relates to online ads

When deciding on who is going to manage or how to manage your AdWords account, first think about your business goals. Are you a startup trying to create awareness for your Brand? Start with Display ads targeting a specific audience you want to reach. Are you looking for more sales from potential customers who might not be aware of your Brand but are actively searching for your offerings? Search ads are perfect for that! Maybe you need a combination of campaigns. Think about your goals and develop a strategy from there.

2. There's no such thing as a perfect google AdWords account

So you’re not coming up in the first position on a Search Results page and your Search Impression Share isn’t 100%? This is fine! Google is designed to give the big wigs as much of a chance to display ads as a small startup. Look at this data and what points you’d like to improve on and start optimizing Adwords there. But your account will never be perfect.

3. Don't focus on one single Adwords data point

Keep in mind that for almost every data point there are so many factors that influence these. Worried about your Search Impression Share percentage? Tighten up your geographic targeting. Or maybe increase it if you’re too saturated in a small area.

Are you fixated on Bounce Rate? Maybe your bounce rate is high because you’re landing page experience is outstanding. You’re taking the customer exactly where they need to be.

4. When in doubt—test it out

With the new AdWords interface, management got even easier! If you don’t know which call to action to use in your ads – run a test! You can do this live or experiment in the new AdWords interface.

5. Less optimizations is more

Optimizations come hand in hand with AdWords management. After you’re up and running, now it’s time to tweak your account. Optimizations are best made in smaller batches. This way you can really see if your ad text change worked better, whether bidding more in one city drove more conversions, etc. Gathering results from your account changes are best seen after 60-90 days. This is the best time to study results from your changes and the pivot within the account if needed. You won’t see immediate changes within hours of making one – so stop looking.

6. Keep up with search trends

Search ads are always evolving. With the rise in use of voice search like Alexa, OK Google and Siri, long-tail and “near me” keywords are a must. Whoever is managing the AdWords account needs to be able to pivot with change and capitalize on the types of keywords that work for your business.

7. Define your AdWords management expectations

When working in-house or with an agency, this is super important. Do you want monthly meetings? Are weekly reports important to you? Are you really concerned with Search Impression Share or love A/B testing ad text? Define what you want to see and set a meeting cadence.

8. Management should evolve as your account and strategy evolve

Once your startup has some traction, look into adding Search. Are you seeing ROI for your ads? Is there opportunity to add more budget? Then add more! Would you like to see year over year performance? Refine your management style. Think about the account and how much attention it will need. Have your goals within your company changed? If it’s time for some spring cleaning then pivot your AdWords strategy. There’s so many modes of advertising just within AdWords. Utilize remarketing to hit users who have shown interest in your Brand but haven’t converted. The possibilities are relatively endless.

Management from campaign to campaign isn’t going to be the same. Management from one industry to another isn’t. Make sure your management of the AdWords account evolves as your goals and Google does. Expect change.

For all your AdWords management needs contact Brightlark today!