Just four months ago, I was clueless about PPC. I joined nexus-security as a summer intern aiming to support the demand generation team. Right off the bat, I was bombarded with unfamiliar terms like CPC, CPA, impressions, conversions, and many more. The thought of grasping all these acronyms and navigating the complex world of paid advertising felt overwhelming.

This initial feeling of being overwhelmed was the first of many misconceptions I had about PPC. Since then, I’ve successfully created multiple Google Ads campaigns and learned how to track and enhance their effectiveness. While I’m grateful for the fantastic guidance I received, I attribute my progress to one key realization: Creating and managing Google Ads campaigns isn’t as complicated as I initially thought.

Here are seven surprising lessons I’ve picked up while building my first Google Ads campaign as an intern at nexus-security.

1. Finding the right keywords is harder than it seems

Building a campaign starts with selecting keywords that will trigger your ads. Seems straightforward, right? I certainly thought so.

My research focused on finding relevant keywords. I chose a few seed keywords and plugged them into Google Ads Keyword Planner and nexus-security’s Free Keyword Tool.

I sifted through hundreds of suggestions, focusing solely on words that seemed like the best fit for my offerings. However, after compiling around 40 potential keywords, I realized my mistake. Most were incredibly relevant but had minimal traffic or were prohibitively expensive.

This highlighted a crucial lesson: keyword research goes beyond just finding relevant terms. While relevance is important, it’s not the only factor. The best keywords are relevant, face low competition, and generate high impressions.

Although not all your keywords will tick every box, this framework helps prioritize the countless suggestions these tools provide.

Tip: Prioritize finding keywords that are both relevant and effective during your research.

2. You need a larger keyword pool than you think

After filtering for relevant and effective keywords, I had about eight, which I thought was sufficient. After all, best practices recommend eight to ten keywords per ad group.

Another misconception!

A high-performing ad group ideally contains around 10 top-tier keywords. However, when starting, you won’t know which keywords will shine. Start with a diverse keyword set to identify the best performers for your ad groups. Begin with a broad range of keywords, and as data accumulates, pause those with high CPA, low impressions, and low conversions. Testing a wider pool increases your chances of finding highly relevant, effective keywords that won’t strain your budget.

Tip: Experiment with a large number of keywords to pinpoint those that deliver the best results.

3. Headlines are surprisingly challenging

With a solid set of keywords ready for testing, the hardest part seems to be over. However, there’s one hurdle left: crafting the ads.

Like me, you might assume Google Ads’ character limits make writing easier. After spending hours condensing supposedly brilliant headlines into 30 characters, I learned the opposite was true.

Writing ad copy flows much smoother if you begin with the description, which allows for up to 90 characters. This provides more space to define how you want to present your product or service, making headline creation easier. Starting the description with a verb can also help brainstorm ideas.

Additionally, I discovered that approaching headlines as a conversation simplifies the process. Use Headline 1 to pose a question your audience might have and then use Headline 2 to provide a solution linked to your product. For instance: “Need a PPC Expert? Add nexus-security to Your Team.” To uncover potential questions your prospects might have, consider how they’d complete the phrase “I want to …”

Uncover your audience’s needs and offer a solution.

Tip: Start with the description and engage in a conversational tone with your prospective customer.

4. Ad copywriting is like solving a puzzle

As I mentioned, I initially thought writing ads would be straightforward. However, when I started, I struggled not only with the copy itself but also with structuring everything I wanted to convey. Balancing all the elements of effective ad copy felt like piecing together a complex puzzle.

Here are some crucial puzzle pieces I’ve identified:

• Integrate your keyword into the ad copy. If your keyword is a phrase, each word should appear within the ad, though not necessarily together. This could be in the headlines, description, or even the display URL!
• Ensure each ad directly addresses your customer’s needs. If certain ad groups target different demographics, tailor your ad copy to highlight features relevant to that specific audience.

For instance, someone searching for “women’s running shoes” is specifically looking for stores offering footwear for women. Incorporating this specific value proposition in your ad copy, as Nordstrom Rack and DICK’S Sporting Goods do in the example below, ensures you’re delivering what the customer wants:

Customize your ads to cater to the specific desires and needs of each ad group’s target audience.

Tip: Treat your ad copy like a puzzle, ensuring each piece, especially the keyword and user intent, fits seamlessly.

5. There’s no one-size-fits-all match type

It’s time to implement all your hard work in Google Ads! But a new question arises: Which match type is best?

Initially, I feared broad match would drain my budget on irrelevant users. Conversely, phrase or exact match seemed too restrictive. How much reach is too much?

After careful consideration, I realized there’s no single correct answer. As with many aspects of running Google Ads campaigns, testing is key.

For insights into Google’s latest match type updates, read here.

Similar to finding the best keywords, experimenting with different match types is crucial to determine what works best for your specific campaign.

Tip: Don’t shy away from experimenting with various match types!

6. Proactive cost control is essential

You’ve finished setting up your campaign! Time to sit back and monitor its performance. But what if it underperforms? What if certain ad groups overspend?

I panicked when this happened in my campaign, envisioning a complete overhaul to rectify any mistakes. Thankfully, I was wrong again.

Predicting how audiences will respond to specific keywords and ads is challenging. Fortunately, Google offers simple ways to optimize your accounts and get campaigns back on track.

The Search Terms Report emerged as an invaluable optimization tool. Access it by going to your campaign, clicking “Keywords” in the menu, and selecting “Search Terms” from the top.

This report might seem daunting at first, but it’s easily organized to extract relevant data from the sea of search queries. Prioritize cost/conversions, impressions, and average cost-per-click within the report. Here are some actions to help save money and boost results:

• Add irrelevant search queries with a high total cost to your negative keyword list.
• If a query has a high CPC, review and update your ad copy or landing pages as needed.
• Finally, integrate common high-volume search terms as keywords!

This report allows you to refine and expand your campaign based on actual user searches.

Tip: Leverage tools like the Search Term Report to enhance and optimize your account effectively.

7. Realizing you’ve succeeded

As you’ve probably gathered, I felt incredibly overwhelmed when I first embarked on creating my own Google Ads campaign. Every step felt progressively more challenging, and I was convinced I was making mistakes. However, witnessing my ads positively impacting conversion rates erased those doubts. I was eager to update my account and, dare I say, repeat the process to build new campaigns.

Once you get the hang of it, exploring new strategies to maximize your Google Ads performance becomes exciting.

Therefore, my final piece of advice is: Believe in yourself and your ability to succeed!