When it comes to advertising with Google AdWords, the first decision you need to make is deciding on a budget. One of the best things about Google AdWords is that it can be effective for nearly every business, big or small. You can set the ad spend where you’re comfortable and rest assured that you will never go over your budget.
Sounds, simple, right? Well, at first glance it may look simple and Google does a terrific job of walking you through things. You can also find a lot of online resources and YouTube videos explaining the process. The problem that most people encounter at this point, however, it information overload.
That brings us to the second big decision you’ll need to make - whether to do it yourself, or hire someone with some experience to do it for you. This may sound like a difficult decision, but when you consider that your business - and your money - is on the line, the answer becomes very clear.
Consider this: if your total spends in a month is $10,000 and the cost of keeping a full time-team to take care of it is $2,000 and the outsourcing company only takes a fee plus 10% of the total spends ($1000), it will save you time as well as money to outsource.
But, if the costs are nearly equal, it might be advantageous for you to do it in-house because you will have more control and the experiments will run faster if you have a qualified individual or team to manage it and keep up with all the updates and strategies.
Experience is key
We recommend outsourcing for most small business-owners. This is especially true if they don't have any prior online advertising experience. While Google does make it simple to get started with AdWords, the complexity increases rather quickly.
They say ‘practice makes perfect,’ but if you have little or no experience with pay-per-click, you’re simply learning with your own money - and the end result is usually a poorly-optimized campaign that isn’t producing results.
Setting up your account is the most critical aspect, and this is the area where many mistakes occur that can derail your campaign and cause a lot of frustration. When we hear anyone say that pay-per-click doesn’t work, the first thing we ask is how they went about incorporating it into their marketing strategy. Chances are, some errors were made in the setup process and things deteriorated from there.
When looking for a consultant to outsource to, always try for industry specific specialists. For example, at Bloomerang, we specialize in retailing. However, we have found great success for other professionals.
Pay-per-click is simply instant gratification and return on investment. Once it is live, it’s working. I have so many people tell me they have a Google AdWords account and hardly feel the impact, but I also see people like myself who could not imaging a day without Google. I once had a client that wasn’t sure if AdWords were worth it, so just for kicks I asked if we could just turn it off for 20 minutes. He yelled, “turn it on - let’s never do that again!”
There is a lot more to Google AdWords than just making a bid and closing a sale. There are hundreds of different strategies you can combine to secure a transaction, or a reservation, or even an appointment. The more time you put in, the better your results will be from your efforts.
If you decide to outsourcing your marketing efforts, the single most important question you need to ask the person handling your Google AdWords is: What is your plan of action and when can I see it? This will guarantee their professionalism, put a schedule that can be monitored, and give you a written contract of sorts so if something goes wrong you can claim explanation or refund if needed.
Oh, and here is one more important piece of advice - use a local agency. Sure, there are many international online advertising agencies with impressive portfolios, but there is nothing better than to sit down and talk with the people directly responsible for your online success. You need to feel comfortable with someone you can trust who knows your local market. At Bloomerang, we make sure you speak to an account strategist who’s directly responsible for your results. We believe that our experience - along with our one-on-one direct relationships with our clients - is what gives you the ultimate advantage when it comes to online advertising.
If you would like to get started with Google AdWords, we're here to help! Our team of experienced agents will work with you - at any budget - to make sure you achieve the results you desire! If you're brand new to Google AdWords, or any other online marketing platforms, We'll be happy to talk with you at any time to explain how it works successfully. Just drop us a line below or call anytime at (941) 806-1911.