Three certain ways to supercharge your SEO strategy with Google Ads

Google Ads are a great way to boost who sees your business on the world’s largest search engine.

More than 63,000 searches are made on Google every second – that’s an astonishing 5.6bn searches every single day.

The question for you as a business owner is - how can you capture even a fraction of that traffic for your business? Especially when you’re competing with around 1.9bn websites for attention.

Using Google Ads could be the answer. This powerful tool, also know as a Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising platform, helps you promote your business, so it appears at the top of search engines.

Here are three ways to stand out on the world’s largest and most popular PPC platform.

Creating a memorable ad

Snappy, impactful and even humorous copy is a must when writing Google ad copy. It’s not enough for your ad to appear at the top of search rankings – it has to be tempting enough for consumers to click on it. So, make those characters count.

Conciseness is key. People search Google for very specific reasons, and adverts need to address that very direct need. Make sure you keep the answers your target audience are looking for in mind when writing. Add any relevant numbers and dates to help reinforce your credibility in this space too, i.e. the number of happy customers you’ve helped, or the time they’ve saved by working with you.

Also, ensure that crisp copy is accompanied by a powerful call to action (or CTA). The goal of your ad is to encourage a user to take an action, so spell out what you want that to be.

Creating memorable copy is only part of the trick with Google Ads, though. You also need to think strategically about how you use keywords.

Optimising keywords for success

Using keywords that echo the user’s search terms is important, but be careful to use these strategically. If you include too many keywords, or they are too loosely related, it will be impossible to write relevant ad copy. Here is an example of what we think is a well written ad by Direct Line Car Insurance:

We think this is an excellent example because the description highlights the company’s key benefits, uses a common keyword – ‘car insurance’ and the company name. The headline in the ad copy also re-enforces Direct Line’s unique selling point (USP).

Here's an example of one we think might be less effective:

It’s very repetitive, and the URL appears in the headline and right below, while the headline is the same as the business name which is also the URL. The description is very vague, it doesn’t say what the Mendieta technique actually is and it doesn’t have a clear call to action.

Once you’ve chosen the handful of keywords you want to target, it’s time to place them in the copy. You only want to repeat keyword phrases two or three times. Try adding one to the URL, another to the headline and, finally, one in the description.

It’s also important to remember that your keywords, and their placement, don’t have to be fixed. Test what engages your audience, and what doesn’t – you can always tweak these over the course of the campaign.

What’s more, it’s really important your landing page copy reflects your ad copy. If it doesn’t give them the information they’re looking for immediately, you risk users leaving your website straight away.

Boosting visibility with ad extensions

Extensions are valuable additions to your Google ad. An extension is the additional information, which can include your telephone number, location information, sales promotions or links to specific parts of your website.

The reason? We know that 76% of people who search for something nearby (i.e. a florist near me) on their smartphone then go on to visit a related business within 24 hours. So, giving users additional information will increase their chances of acting on the ad – particularly if it’s your store location or helpline number.

If, for example, you sell your product online and also at an affiliate store, you might want to add an affiliate location extension too.

Setting you up for Google Ad success

Google Ads are a powerful tool for getting your business in front of the right people. Clever copywriting, well-thought-out keywords and valuable extensions can really help you make the most of this platform. By harnessing the power of the world’s largest search engine, you too can turn clicks into cash.

Want to further supercharge your SEO strategy? Check out our five quick ways to increase traffic to your website.