{"id":2373,"date":"2014-09-22T15:57:01","date_gmt":"2014-09-22T05:57:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.spiffystores.com.au\/blog\/?p=2373"},"modified":"2014-09-22T15:57:01","modified_gmt":"2014-09-22T05:57:01","slug":"how-to-set-up-google-adwords-to-get-more-traffic-to-your-online-store","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.spiffystores.com.au\/blog\/2014\/09\/22\/how-to-set-up-google-adwords-to-get-more-traffic-to-your-online-store\/","title":{"rendered":"How to set up Google AdWords to get more traffic to your online store"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"getting-traffic-to-your-store\"One of the quickest and easiest ways to get traffic to your online store is through paid ads on search engines like Google. It\u2019s great for bringing people to your site when you first launch.<\/p>\n

But wait, I hear you say, why pay when I can get listed in search engine results for free?<\/p>\n

OK. Here\u2019s a quick recap on the difference between the two types of search engine results listings.<\/p>\n

Organic (free) listing<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Appearing for free in search engine results is known as an organic listing. You can\u2019t buy the placement – it\u2019s made by the search engine based on its assessment of the content on your web page and its relevance to the search term. It looks at about 200 factors to help it make that decision.<\/p>\n

Paid listing<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Paying for a listing in search engine results is known as Search Engine Marketing (SEM) or pay-per-click (PPC) advertising.<\/p>\n

These ad listings show up in the top positions on the first page of search results, and in a column down the right hand side. They look very similar to other listings, but they\u2019re labelled \u2018ads\u2019 or \u2019sponsored links\u2019. And if you look closely, you\u2019ll see they read a little differently. AdWords is Google\u2019s paid advertising program.<\/p>\n

It doesn\u2019t cost anything for your ad to show, but you\u2019ll be charged a small amount when your ad is clicked on. The charge varies depending on the relevance of your ad and web page to the search term, and how much you\u2019ve offered to pay for that click.<\/p>\n

Why would you pay?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Well, put simply, it can be hard to get in the top search results otherwise.<\/p>\n

The algorithms that calculate the position a web page is given in the free search results are highly complex. Trying to get a high ranking can take a lot of time, effort and specialist knowledge and you\u2019ll be competing with countless other businesses trying to do the same.<\/p>\n

And when the algorithms are updated (which happens a lot), you can find your page rankings change overnight.<\/p>\n

Google AdWords gives your web page a much better chance to appear on the first page results for your chosen keywords, and you can do it really quickly.
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

Ready to give it a go? Here\u2019s how to get started
\n<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Don’t be tempted to rush in to creating your ads before you’ve done steps 1 and 2. They’re crucial!<\/p>\n

1. Get into your customers heads<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Before you create your first campaign, write down everything you\u00a0know about your customers.<\/strong> It\u2019ll help you create better campaigns if you\u2019re seeing your offerings from their perspective.<\/p>\n

Who are they? What would they type into the Google search box to if they were looking for products like yours? Where do they live?<\/p>\n

2. Draw up a list of keywords related to your business and products<\/span><\/h2>\n

Make a list of the search terms you\u2019d expect your customers to use to find your products.<\/strong><\/a> These are your keywords.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t be too general in your choice. A one-word term is usually expensive for a click because it\u2019s so generic and popular, and you can end up paying for traffic that\u2019s looking for something you may not stock.<\/p>\n

Aim for keywords of two or three words, and include brand names, colours, and your location. A jewellery store keyword list might include high-level keywords\u00a0like \u201cgold jewellery<\/em>\u201d, as well as more specific categories like \u201cgold and diamond wedding rings<\/em>\u201d. As a rule, the more specific the keywords, the closer the visitor is likely to be to buying as they\u2019ve already narrowed down their choices.<\/p>\n

Your web analytics software might give you some insights into the terms people are already using to find your web pages. This is not as easy as it was though, as the most common web analytics tool, Google Analytics, has stopped sharing that information. Grrr.<\/p>\n

3. Set up your AdWords account<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Now you’ve done your homework, head over to https:\/\/adwords.google.com<\/a> and follow the instructions<\/strong> to set up your AdWords account.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve already got a Google account (like Gmail), you can use that email address and password to sign in. You can also create a separate account if you\u2019d prefer to keep your business and personal activities separate.<\/p>\n

4. Set up your first AdWords campaign<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Once you\u2019ve signed up and verified your email, you\u2019ll be taken to the \u201cYour first campaign\u201d page.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s important to know your goal for the campaign before you start<\/strong> so you can tell if it\u2019s effective. Generating sales is probably the main\u00a0goal for an online store, but you can use AdWords to bring in just leads or traffic too.<\/p>\n

Each\u00a0AdWords campaign\u00a0has its own settings that let you define the budget and where want your ads to appear. These settings will apply to all ads within the same campaign.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s very easy to set up a campaign – just fill in the fields displayed:<\/p>\n

\"Set-up-campaign-AdWords\"<\/p>\n

Your budget <\/strong><\/em>\u2013 this is the most you\u2019re willing to pay per day for traffic to the ads in this campaign. You can change it at any time if you find you\u2019re not getting the results you want.<\/p>\n

Locations <\/strong><\/em>\u2013 these are the geographical places where you want your ads to display.<\/p>\n

Networks\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>\u2013 these are the online networks where you want your ads to show; Search Network is the default but you can also choose Display Network to have your ad show on Google partner websites too.<\/p>\n

Keywords<\/em> <\/strong>\u2013 This is where you list the keywords you want to use to bring traffic to your ads. This field will be pre-filled with suggestions and their approximate search volumes but you can delete the ones you don\u2019t want and add your own. Don\u2019t go mad here, use around 10-20 keywords per campaign to keep it manageable.<\/p>\n

Bid<\/em>\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 this is the most you want to pay for a click on your ad. You can set your bids for a click manually, or let AdWords do it. When you\u2019re starting out, it may be easier to let AdWords do it for you. If you choose the manual option, enter a default bid\u00a0as well. This will be the most you want to pay for a\u00a0click.<\/p>\n

Write your ad <\/strong><\/em>\u2013 this is where you put together your AdWords text ad. There are other types of ad you can make but this is the easiest and most popular.<\/p>\n