Google Ads Auction: How to Optimise Your Paid Campaigns
More than 80% of desktop searches are done on Google. It’s no wonder Google advertising has been popular. Google ads, as the name implies, involve advertising on the search platform. With loads of people trying to be relevant and rank high in search results, the competition can be fierce. However, with a proper understanding of how Google makes the decision on which ads to show, it can become easier.
Google uses an auction system to determine eligibility, and only ads that meet its requirements will be shown in the search results.
What is this auction system?
The Quality Score of an ad estimates the quality. Google intends for only the best results for its users, and if the keywords in your ad don’t have a high-quality score, you might not stand a chance.
The quality score ranges from 1-10 for keywords. Ten being the highest means excellent, and 1 means bad. There are three factors that affect your quality score.
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Expected Click-through rate
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Landing page experience
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Relevance
The rating gotten from these three is compared with that of other advertisers.
Importance of Quality score
Your Quality score rating can affect
1) Eligibility and rank
The score you get determines if your ad is worthy of being shown in the results and determines what position or rank your ad gets on the search results.
2) Cost per click (CPC)
If your ad has a low-quality score, you’ll pay a higher cost per click and vice versa.
3) Extensions
The higher the quality score, the better the chances of extensions accompanying your ads in the search results. Extensions, as the name implies, provide additional info that can help increase the likelihood of a user clicking your ad.
4) Performance
The higher your ad quality score, the fewer bounce rates it has and the higher the chances of a user clicking your ad, increasing conversion rates.
How to improve quality score
Here are some tips to improve the Quality score
1) Review the quality score of a keyword before using it
Using a keywords table, you can search for a keyword and find out its expected performance characteristics, such as expected CTR and ad relevance. Keywords with an above-average performance are ideal for use.
2) Pick only relevant keywords
Pick keywords with the user in mind. Make sure these are specific and correlate with search queries. Generally, avoid generic keywords and make use of long-tail keywords. Google Ads keyword planner can help you with this.
3) Classify keywords into ad groups
Ad groups organize keywords which are specific. It is not advisable to have more than 20 keywords in a group. Your cost per click CPC can also be set for the group level instead of individual keywords, depending on your preference.
4) The use of negative keywords
The concept of negative keywords is to exclude search queries that are not relevant to your ad in order to reduce time wastage and irrelevant clicks. You can build a collection of negative keywords on your Google ads account. For e.g., if your ad is about cat food, every cat-related item that is not good should be included in the list of negative keywords.
5) Make your landing page user friendly
Your landing page should provide relevant information to your customer and should be easy to understand and navigate. It shouldn’t have a fast loading time and be responsive across all devices, including mobile. Use Search engine optimization practices for every subheading and keyword placement.
In conclusion, the competition in the Google ads industry is tough. However, by implementing the tips you’ve gotten from this article on how to improve your quality score, you’ll start to see an increase in your ad click-through rate and conversion rates.
Ensure your Google Ads campaigns are properly optimised by enlisting the services of an award-winning Gold Coast SEO company that has extensive experience in Google Ads campaigns, Gold Coast SEO services and eCommerce SEO. Having your paid ad campaigns optimised is particularly important for eCommerce store owners.
