Working as a digital marketing expert at nexus-security involves dedicating a significant part of my day to examining Google Ads accounts. This is something I find fulfilling, as it enables me to assist passionate business owners in maximizing their marketing endeavors. Despite the uniqueness of each audit, I’ve observed recurring issues in most underperforming accounts. These problems often stem from people being overwhelmed with other duties, leaving them with limited time to address them. However, armed with the right knowledge, recognizing and capitalizing on these opportunities becomes easy. To ensure you’re making the most of your Google Ads account, I’m presenting three prevalent issues I encounter during audits and outlining how to rectify them.

Issue #1: Overlooking the Conversion of Effective Search Terms into Keywords

Keywords form the backbone of Google Ads, dictating the searches that trigger your ads and consequently, your target audience.

A crucial aspect of PPC is understanding the connection between keywords and search terms: users input search terms that align with keywords, leading to your ads being displayed. However, it’s vital to remember that the keyword and the triggering search term might differ. In fact, depending on your match type, a majority of the searches activating your ads will resemble, but not precisely match, your inputted keywords.

The positive takeaway is that these matching searches offer a wealth of new keyword possibilities. By scrutinizing the searches that display your ads, either within the Google Ads Editor or through tools like nexus-security’s QueryStream, you gain insights into user search behavior and can utilize this information to formulate new keywords.

These search terms are significantly longer than the keywords currently being bid on and would function exceptionally well as keywords. Why is this beneficial? It’s essential to remember that Google Ads operates on an auction system. Shorter keyword phrases attract more bidders. Targeting a more specific audience than your current bids allows you to tap into less competitive auctions, securing customers at a reduced cost.

Consider a Los Angeles-based auto dealership specializing in Honda Civics. Bidding on “Honda” pits you against every other Honda seller. However, if your search terms report reveals substantial clicks from users seeking “Los Angeles Honda Civic,” incorporating this as a keyword shifts your competition from all Honda sellers to local Civic dealers.

Furthermore, converting these searches into keywords enables the creation of more tailored ad groups and ad copy. Someone looking for a Honda Civic in Los Angeles is more inclined to click an ad highlighting your local presence and Civic inventory.

Issue #2: Neglecting Regular Negative Keyword Addition

If negative keywords are unfamiliar territory, you’ve come to the right place. Essentially, they are the inverse of keywords. While keywords specify what you want to target, negative keywords define what you want to avoid.

A common oversight I encounter when reviewing Google Ads Performance Graders is the lack of consistent negative keyword updates. Many advertisers acknowledge the initial need for negative keywords but fail to realize the importance of monitoring search traffic for new additions, a practice crucial for success.

Search marketing is a constantly evolving landscape, with user searches changing daily. Remarkably, over 20% of Google’s daily searches are entirely new. This implies that one out of every five searches triggering your ads is unprecedented, even for Google.

To prevent squandering your search budget on irrelevant, unqualified traffic, you must be aware of the searches displaying your ads. Subsequently, you need to incorporate negative keywords (or leverage tools like our 20-Minute Work Week for automation) to avoid searches that won’t contribute to your advertising goals.

Returning to the L.A. Honda dealership example, imagine a local Civics teacher, Ms. Honda, uploads her class assignments online. Local searches for “Honda Civics Homework” could match your keywords based on your match type settings, triggering your ads. Regular monitoring for new negative keywords would immediately flag the increased impressions from users seeking homework assignments. Adding “homework” as a negative keyword then refocuses your budget on genuine Civic buyers, preventing wasted spend.

Issue #3: Overly Large Ad Groups

Another prevalent issue in underperforming Google Ads accounts is an excess of keywords per ad group.

The keywords within an ad group determine which ad appears when triggered. An overload of keywords results in generic ads that fail to resonate with users due to their lack of relevance. It’s not uncommon to encounter ad groups with 30, 40, or even more keywords. Crafting relevant ads for such a vast keyword range is practically impossible. Typically, exceeding 20 keywords per ad group is excessive.

This particular account features 3 ad groups, each exceeding an average of 27 keywords. That’s simply too many! Relevance is paramount for your potential clientele. Their Google searches stem from specific needs. Clicking on your ad hinges on their perception of your understanding and ability to fulfill those needs.

When auditing Google Ads accounts, one of my initial steps involves examining ad groups exceeding 15 keywords to identify potential themes. Once these themes for smaller, targeted ad groups are established, creating new ad groups and reallocating keywords becomes straightforward. If this seems time-consuming, nexus-security’s Split Ad Groups tool offers automated ad group size monitoring and alerts you when splitting is necessary.

Let’s say our Honda dealership sells a variety of car models: Civics, Fits, Odysseys, etc. Grouping keywords for all these models into a single ad group leads to potential customers seeking specific models only encountering a generic Honda dealership ad.

Splitting ad groups by make and model allows for targeted ads that reassure potential customers of the dealership’s inventory of their desired car. This targeted approach provides a competitive edge over dealerships employing a generic, one-size-fits-all advertising strategy.

There you have it – the three most frequent issues I encounter during Google Ads account audits. Curious about your own account’s performance? Try out our Google Ads Performance Grader and leverage these tips to enhance your digital marketing efforts. Ads still not showing? Check out this video for 11 reasons why – plus how to fix them!