We are continually inheriting the consequences of our habits
You do not rise to the level of your goals; you fall to the level of your systems
Understanding Google Ads… learning what works, what buttons to push and which levers to pull, will give you a powerful tool kit.
But really improving your results?
That’s about action…
It’s about consistently turning up and – when the situation calls for it – bringing out those tools and actually using them.
So here are five valuable habits to adopt, to help make sure you get consistent, stay on top of your search campaigns and maximise your results.
None of these are new ideas. They are the simple actions that even seasoned ppc pros can easily let slide (maybe especially seasoned pros…) and we can all use a little nudge every now and again when it comes to doing these things consistently.
1) Checking the search terms report
If it’s been a few a days – or longer than it should be – go and have a good look through the search terms report.
When you do this, remember you’ll get more out of it if you add ‘keyword’ as a column, to show which keyword brought up each search term.
And of course – add those negatives that the report shows you need, and upweight any successful search terms that come to light…
2) Ad testing
This means consistently having multiple ads per ad group to find winning variations, and acting on them when you do.
Ad text is not an area to neglect, because as targeting and bidding become more automated, AI will be slower to outdo us in creating effective ad text.
Not that it won’t try… as it already does with DSA headlines, Automated Ad Suggestions, and the combination-testing of text elements performed by RSAs.
3) Landing page testing
This is one that most of us don’t do enough.
The more consistently you run landing page tests, the better you can expect your landing pages to perform.
Google Optimize is free – it’s simple to use – and it’s excellent for testing tweaks to existing landing pages.
4) Checking user variables
Run through all those other levers – beyond keywords, ads and landing pages – that you can pull, to tune up campaign performance. Periodically check performance based on:
- Location
- Device
- Time
- Audience
- Demographic
If you’re on smart bidding, use them sparingly (and be aware of the different results of bid adjustments based on different strategies)
If you’re on manual bidding, then twizzle those knobs… but try to base each decision on a good chunk of data.
5) Checking in with your clients
The closer your communication, the better you can make sure activity is signed with your clients’ goals, and the better your clients will understand the value you’re providing.
This also means being open to shifting the account priorities… particularly the balance between volume and efficiency.
Finally, another very powerful habit is: taking the time to learn.
The longer you’re in the game, the greater the danger of complacency (and – with the pace of change increasing – the worse its effects).
There are tonnes of good resources for honing your skills and staying up to date. I offer a few myself 👇🏽.
Find some that you like, and make a habit of using them.