Did you know that over 90% of the money Google makes every year comes from advertising? Last year, they made over 36 BILLION dollars, and all from those little ads on the top of your screen that you see when you’re searching for a new recipe or sunglasses. As impressive as those numbers are, Google makes it easy to set up your own AdWords campaign, and even easier to accidentally give all of your hard earned money right back to them! So how does one save money with Google AdWords?
Change the Default Settings
1. Disable the Display Network
2. Change the ad rotation to even for a true A/B split test
Hidden Money Saving Features
1. Add negative keywords! Scroll to the bottom of the keywords page and add all the things you don’t want to be shown for.
2. Create Automated rules under the automations tab to pause your campaign when you’ve spent all you want to spend.
3. Create bid adjustments in the automations to stabilize your bids around what your comfortable paying.
Mistakes to Avoid
1. Don’t use broad match keywords! These keyword are much too generic and Google will make your ads show for everything and anything related to the word.
2. Be sure to set up your conversion code correctly. Put it on the “thank you page” of your site after someone signs up/makes a purchase so you can funnel money into the keywords that are actually converting.
3. Lots of ads isn’t a good thing. When testing, start with a small sample size so you can optimize faster.
4. Not enough negative keywords. Simple, add them!
5. You didn’t research your competition did you? Seeing what your biggest competition is doing allows you to directly compete with a differentiating Unique Sales Proposition (USP).
6. Set up your geography! Campaigns by default target the entire, and even the world. Be sure to go to your campaign settings and set your targetting to where you service.
7. Be sure not to overbid. Google takes your money regardless of what you pay.
8. Avoid AdWords Express! Google sets it up with a bunch of default settings that ensure all your money goes to Google, with little to no results.
