1. DON’T put all of your related keywords in one list
Keep in mind that the goal of any search engine marketing effort is to reach the right people at the least cost. Google AdWords work with a pay-per-click business model to help your online campaign succeed. Google only charges when an interested prospect or a regular customer clicks your ad and gets redirected to your chosen landing page.
From your end, you are expected to know your market and figure out which specific keywords they use to search for your product. For example, a person looking for Nike Free running shoes will search for Nike Free and not shoes or shoes for running.
When you begin building your keyword list, remember to enlist only specific keywords. With this said, it is also recommended that you do not put all of your PPC ads in one AdGroup. Although a number of ads can run at the same time, only one ad will be shown per search; you cannot risk displaying the wrong ad. Be careful to group together ads with similar niche keywords.
2. DO include your keywords in your AdWords copy
Google AdWords automatically highlights the keywords that your ad is optimized for. It is highly recommended that you include your niche keyword in your ad’s copy so that it gets highlighted. This attracts the viewers’ attention and they can immediately decide whether this ad is something that can help them or not.
If your ad copy is vague, 2 things can happen: a) your desired target market will just ignore your ad because they don’t see anything that can help them or b) a random Internet surfer will click your ad, just to see where it leads. Either way, you lose money.
3. DO have a converting landing page
Your landing page is as important as your keywords and your AdWords copy. Search engine marketers make the usual mistake of redirecting all their ads to the company’s home page.
Take into consideration the thought process of an online market. They search for what they need using specific terms. They expect to be taken to the page that will immediately give them what they need. And then they lean towards making a purchase.
Most instances, your home page will be too vague. Redirect users to the page where the content is most relevant to the keyword that the user searched for. This will immediately tell them that you know what they’re looking for, and they’ll become more interested in what other things you have to say.
4. DO track the performance of your AdWords regularly
Online and traditional marketing campaigns work best when they are measured. Regular tracking tells you immediately whether your campaign is working or not. This way, you can constantly tweak specific elements of your campaign to match changes in the market.
Tracking protects you from realizing mistakes too late—mistakes that will cost you a lot of money. Google AdWords comes with reports that you can view regularly and an interface that is easy to navigate. It is recommended that you read more into the results as opposed to just taking the figures at face value.