75 Google Ad Tips

75 Tips + Tricks to Optimize Your Google Ad Grant: Part 2

In Part One of our 75 Tips + Tricks to Optimize Your Google Ad Grant, we covered creating and structuring your account, target settings, and selecting keywords. Here’s a link to that post to get you started on the right foot. 

If you’ve already checked those 27 tips + tricks, we have more to share! In this post, we’ll cover the following topics to help you optimize your Google Ad Grant account:

  • Ad Copy + Extensions
  • Landing Page + UX

Ad Copy + Sitelink Extensions

  • Make full use of Google’s various ad extensions to help improve account CTR. We recommend implementing sitelinks, callout extensions, and structured snippets. 
  • Do not use automated ad extensions. Opt for manual ad extensions instead, to have more control over what shows alongside your text ad. To disable automated ad extensions, go to the “Ads + Extensions” tab → “Extensions” → “Automated Extensions” → Click the “More” icon on the top right corner → “Advanced Options” →”Turn off specific automated extensions.”
  • Aim for including at least four ad extensions, since in any given auction, an ad can show a maximum of four extensions.
  • Use Google Analytics to determine great sitelink ideas – what pages are already popular with your users? Make sure those links are front and center for people looking for your organization on search.
  • For call extensions, enable phone call conversions reporting to assess which campaigns, ad groups, and keywords are most effective at driving call conversions.
  • Location extensions are served via the Google My Business (GMB) account. Make sure information such as address and phone number are always updated.
  • Keep your callout extensions as short and specific as possible, and include at least six of them in your campaigns.
  • For structured snippets, add four values to each header, but be sure you have enough content on your website for at least two values.
  • Create at least one Responsive Search Ad (RSA) for each ad group and ensure to include at least two expanded text ads in that group. RSAs allow you to create and use multiple headlines and descriptions that Google then tests to see which combinations perform best.
  • Use Google’s Dynamic Search Ads (DSA) as well. With DSAs, Google dynamically generates headlines and directs users to the most relevant landing page. These can be very easy to create and can produce great results for your campaign.
  • Use Dynamic Keyword Insertion (DKI) to match ad headline(s) with what someone is typing into Google and greatly increase your click through rates. It also helps to cut down on the number of ad variations you may have to create for a campaign.
  • Leverage more advanced Google Ad features like highlighting an upcoming event with a Countdown Ad or using IF Functions to insert specific messages in your text ad when a condition is met.
  • Include at least one of your keywords in your headline – keywords in your ad text show your ad’s relevance to what people want. 
  • Try to use as much of the real estate given for each of your ads — 30 characters for the ad headline, 90 characters for the description line. 
  • Add search keywords in the path fields to increase quality score and expected click through rate. Remember, path fields are part of your display URL and give users an idea of where they land on your site once they’ve clicked your ad. 
  • If applicable, include promotions, discounts, or exclusive offers in your description lines to entice searchers and increase click through rates.
  • Encourage viewers of your ads to take action. Calls to action — like donate, call today, download, or sign up — make next steps clear to your potential supporter. Plus, doing so will increase your conversion rates significantly.
  • Test time-specific (day, month, year, time of day, etc.) or location-specific (city, state, country, venue, etc.) text in your ad to engage with your audience.
  • Check out our “How to Write Great Ad Copy for Google Ad Grants” for more tips on ad copywriting. 

Landing Page Optimizations + UX

  • It may sound obvious, but make sure your ad copy matches the content in your landing page – specifically the headline and intro paragraph. Otherwise, people might leave your website if they don’t find what they expect, which will increase your site’s bounce rate and negatively impact the performance of your Ad Grant.
  • Explore tools like Google Optimize to better test different landing page variations to see which is more effective.
  • Make sure your site loads quickly, especially on mobile devices. Look at Google’s PageSpeed Insights to determine the speed of your site and how you can improve things. 
  • Test your website across mobile devices using mobiletest.me and browserstack.com
  • Help users quickly find what they’re looking for by prioritizing the content that’s visible above-the-fold.
  • Include keywords in the meta tags of your website’s SEO structure, but don’t overdo it. Just use a few keywords here and there.

For more tips, download our free resource, The Ultimate How-to-Guide to Google Ad Grants.