Google AdWords let you appear prominently on Google searches in exchange for payment.
Decide on a marketing budget for Google AdWords, create the campaign and rake in new business. That is the short version. Below are examples of how your business advertisement may appear.
Google AdWords Display Network
Google AdWords Text Ad
How much money should I spend on Google Adwords?
An online marketing campaign budget of at least R750 should suffice to display your advertisement(s) on Google search and partner websites. The better your ad, the more exposure it will enjoy.
What are Hits and Impressions?
Website hits refer to the individuals that see and click on your advertisement which in turn takes them to your website. If your products/services appeal to them, they will be prompted to contact you.
Impressions on the other hand are the number of times your advertisement display on Google searches without any clicks. Individuals may see your advertisement but choose to click on another company’s link instead.
What this means is that your advertisement can appear thousands of times without deductions from your budget. An amount is deducted only when an individual clicks on your advertisement.
What happens when I click on my own advertisement?
Believe it or not, the temptation to click your own ads run very high among people. Google will treat your click like any other click and deduct money from your marketing budget. Rest assured that your advertisement will take the individual to your website. You don’t have to test it.
Can I decide what country or province I want to target?
Yes, absolutely. You can choose multiple countries or just South Africa. You can narrow it down to a city or cities that you want to advertise in. In other words, you expect potential customers to be in that area where you advertise. Google knows where people are located when they search the internet and thus gives them information based on their current location.
If you have a plumbing business in Pinetown, then people from Pinetown will see your advertisement on Google when they search for a local plumber. If your service area extends to Westville for example and you specify this in your advertisement, then people from Westville too will see your ad. However people from Durban will not see your advertisement since it was excluded from the target area.
Do I need a website to use Google AdWords?
Yes. Without a website your advertisement cannot link to anything. The point of Google AdWords is to attract attention and take people to your website where they will find all the information they need about your business.
How do I sign up?
You can market your website by registering an account with Google. However it is sometimes better to assign your website designer the task of managing your online marketing campaign. Your website designer will be familiar with your website content and will be comfortable using Google AdWords to get the most out of your marketing budget. The actual setup of your Google AdWords campaign is beyond the scope of this article.
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