Create Ads/Extns in 1 Hour

Create a set of ads and extensions in one hour

Much of the functionality contained in CampaignBuilder is centered on providing the ability to respond quickly and easily to changes in your Google marketplace. Like: creating a new set of ads. This exercise doesn't require CampaignBuilder, but you will find it much easier that way.

And while you certainly can obsess for days about designing one set of ads (and we have many times), you will be surprised how good a set of ads you can create by following the instructions and going with your first instinct for answers. That is assuming you are sticking to the concept of one customer need for your campaign scope.

Let's review the seven types of messages that ads/extns can convey

You can do so much with one set of ads/extensions. And you have to if you want to get clicks and conversions. One ad with extensions can comprise over 500 characters. You've got a big canvas to work with. Let's look at how to use it. What really works well is when you can creatively combine two or more of them into one headline or one set of callouts. Your ability to communicate succinctly is what is in play here.

You're going to put together a lot of info that could be a part of your ads. Then go through some steps to get it to fit. These elements below are not presented in any particular order. Part of the fun in designing and refining ads is finding out what order causes the best ad performance. Often, a change in sequence yields huge changes in performance.

1. Identify your business by name and say what you do - Customers first have to know what you are called and what you actually do. You are a business that does exactly what they want. "Mantauk CPA: 25 Years of Creative Accounting".
2. Connect with the customer's search terms and location - this is done by feeding back the search the customer did in your ad succinctly and effectively. This will lower your bounce rate considerably when your customer can quickly see his search "acknowledged" in this fashion both in your ad and your landing page. And Google will reward this relevance handsomely. Example: "Concerto Pipe Fittings In Stock In Chicago".
3. Show your precision with some "insider information" - If there are terms or phrases or entities in your line of work that only the real customers and providers would know, use them in your ad (if you can in an effective way). PCR test. Microalloyed steel. LTL shipping. TROs. Whatever makes it clear you are precise experts in your field. Plain english is for the non-buyers. Your buyers may be looking for evidence you're serious about 3D printing - and sound like it. You can often say a lot with such TLAs (three letter acronyms).
4. What are your features and why are you better - Think of this as one requirement. It's best when you can provide this type of information in one. Examples: "Expert Installation In 24 Hours". "Fastest Estimates and Highest Yelp Ratings". Anything that makes you sound better and more serious. "We cover all insurance costs."
5. Be clear that you are ready, willing, and able to provide that solution - this is done with messages about how you handle this "opportunity" efficiently and expertly. What is your process? "We will assess your case in 20 minutes". "We can ship your configured parts today". "Our walk-in wait time is under 5 minutes.".
6. Clearly express that your ad is for buyers - this is done by sounding like you're a loaded gun ready go off that has no "research" purpose. Example: "We can have your order shipping in 15 minutes".
7. Communicate your passion - This is what you do! This is what you love to do! You're trying to get somebody who's never heard of you to buy from you in minutes. Make them feel like you are mecca for people with their particular problem or need. Far too many advertisers forget how powerful this messaging can be. "We love doing solar panel installations throughout North Carolina for homes of all sizes". (All that fits in one description field - just 88 characters).

The Pre-Work

Great ads and extensions are the result of clarity in what you want your campaign to do and how it is going to work. If you clearly lay that out first, you will be successful in designing the ads/extensions that support getting the right Google searchers (read: real potential buyers) to click on your ad. And buy!

What is the customer need you are serving?

Start with the desired conversion or conversion types that you want your new customers to invoke. Exactly what are you trying to get them to do? Be specific. Mobile, daytime, search terms, landing page, etc. Put together a set of ten search phrases that you think represent searches that your potential customer might use when searching for the particular customer need that you are focusing on in the campaign. (Of course, you should already have that from your work on keywords.)

Five steps to creating your ads in about 60 minutes

Think of this as a kind of small team design "scrum". You're going to immerse yourself in the task and use that intense focus to yield some insightful elements that can really appeal to buyers of what you are selling. Go through the exercise of creating at least two responsive search ads (with callout extensions) within the 60 minutes; even if you are going to make tons of changes later. 

1. Review the competing ads that Google shows for the targeted searches.
2. Create three or four different phrases for each type of ad messaging (above).
3. Match up your phrases to the different parts of your ad layouts.
4. Create two to three responsive search ads using the ads and extensions tab in CampaignBuilder.
5. Create callouts and snippets extensions using the extensions frame in the ads tab in CampaignBuilder.

Review your competitors’ ads on Google

Your ad doesn’t stand alone. It is viewed by your potential customer on a SERP (Google search engine results page). Before you start writing any ads for your business, you need to see what kinds of ads appear on the SERP for the search terms you are serving. This will provide you with some very good starting points for creating your own ads.

One of the big things you are looking for is a lot of repeated claims in many/most/all of the competing ads. If everyone says a set of claims, you might do very well by ignoring those phrases and concentrating on what makes you better. You would be surprised how well this can work. Especially on mobile devices, where a brief and powerful ad can really stand out.

• What parts of these ads might help your ad? How would you customize them for your business? Do they show phone numbers? How do they “ask for the business”?
• Copy what you think will work for you. Copy/modify where you think you can improve. Be original and creative where you think it will help you stand out.

Create a library of information to use

You should be ready to draft two to three different answers for each of the seven types of information covered above. Try the shortest version you can think of. Then two more. Think about the ones your competitors use. Or other similar businesses. They are phrases, not sentences. This list of phrases will be a great starting point for actually writing the different parts of your ads.

Don't worry if you have too much data to fit into one set of ads. The best outcome here would be a lot of good ideas for each type of input required for your ads and extensions. Run though your best effort at fitting that information into the fields in one set of ads and callouts and snippets.

Compelling Succinctness: The ultimate goal of great search ads/extns.

When you have your 7 sets of phrases ready, we can go ahead and see how best to fit them into the format of a responsive search ad, callout extensions, and structured snippet extensions.

Matching your phrases to the fields in your ad/extensions

Match up your ad phrases with the parts of your ads. You have 500 total characters of text to use (your ad is 300 max and the four callouts and snippets are about 100 total). Try laying out your ads and moving around the messaging between different fields. The order of the information can make a big difference in how the ad performs. This is the “matching” of what you want to say with how a search ad lets you say it.

1. Headline 1/2/3: Up to 30 characters each (x3). Required. A value in #3 requires a value be present in #1 and #2. This is the big font at the front of the ad. Obviously, this is what is noticed first.
2. Description Line 1/2: Up to 90 characters each (x2).  Required. A value in #2 requires a value be present in #1. This is where you can express a pretty long story in one continuous string.
3. Path 1/2: Up to 15 characters each (x2).  No spaces or special characters. Optional. This is attached to your website address so it can be used for some short powerful messaging.
4. Callouts 1/2/3/4: Up to 30 characters each (x4).  Optional. This is constant (set once) for all four ads. Callouts appear at the bottom or your ad, if you use them. They are a great place to use more generic “feature” type words. Or anything you want to communicate.
5. Structured Snippets: Up to 25 characters each (x4). Optional. These require a "type" (category such as: models, amenities, types, brands, etc.). If your offerings or company has such a list to present that you think will help attract buyers, you can enter up to 10 of these. Typically, only about four of them will appear in your ad at any one time.