What Are The Most Common Google Ads Mistakes & How Can You Fix Them?

Amir Fereydoonkhan - September 4, 2023September 4, 2023

Particularly if you’re just starting out with investing in digital marketing for your small business, you may be asking questions such as: what does a Google Ad look like, what are the most common mistakes made with Google Ads, and ultimately how can they be avoided? Luckily, this blog article will cover all things from mistakes to recommendations, including our exclusive top tips. Let’s get started!

• Using Only One Keyword Match Type

A keyword match type allows your Ads to show, or not show, on specific searches that match the parameters of your chosen keywords. There are three keyword match types available in Google Ads: exact, phrase, and broad match keywords. 

Broad match keywords are usually the default keyword type, which can help with initially increasing the reach of your Ads. In the first stages of starting up your Google Ads campaigns, it might be useful to use broad match keywords to maximize reach and brand awareness. 

However, it is recommended that all three types of keyword match types are implemented into your campaign to ensure that your Ads show for the most relevant searches. In other words, utilizing a diverse range of keyword match types gives you ultimate control over when and where your Ads will appear. 

The use of exact and phrase match keywords allow for greater control over your Ad spend, by matching to search queries that closely or perfectly match your keyword. The closer the match of the keyword and search query, the more likely it is that the user will click through and convert. As a result, exact and phrase match keywords can allow for greater control over your Ads, in turn reducing Ad spend and increasing return on investment.

 It is important to utilize all keyword match types to ensure that your Ads only show for the most relevant searches. As a result, using specific keywords can help to allocate your Ad spend to the best of its ability, by showing your Ads to the users who are most likely to convert.

• Adding Too Many Keywords

Now that we’ve outlined the importance of using broad, exact, and phrase match keywords, you may be wondering: how many keywords for Google Ads is optimal? While there is no set answer to how many keywords you should have, it is recommended that you stick to less than 25 keywords per ad group. However, it’s important to note that this number fluctuates heavily depending on the specific Ad group and offering. 

To ensure that your Google Ads keywords strategy is optimized, it’s important to consider prioritizing quality over quantity. For example, if you have less than 10 keywords that are very specific and relevant to your business, this is far more valuable than having 30 keywords that are more related to the general topic of your offering. When all of your keywords are specifically targeted to your intended audience, your Ad spend is allocated effectively across these relevant keywords that are most likely to convert. Once you add more generalized keywords, you may generate lots of clicks but it’s likely that not many of these users will convert because your Ad could be irrelevant for the user’s search. As a result, your Ad spend will be allocated to these low-converting keywords which ultimately takes budget away from higher converting specific keywords.

In summary, the number of keywords that you use will ultimately depend on what your Ads are offering and what your target audience is searching for. Generally, we recommend that you aim to add a smaller amount of high-quality, specific keywords with a variety of keyword match types to maximize your Ad performance and return on investment. Digital8 is the leading Brisbane Google ads campaign creating agency and our team will be able to handle your keywords and maximize return of the investments.

• Neglecting To Add Negative Keywords

Considering the high search volume that Google receives daily, it’s likely that your Ads will naturally show for some search queries that aren’t particularly relevant. This is particularly common when you are just starting out your Google Ads campaign and have neglected to add negative Google Ads keywords. As a result, the more that your Ads show for irrelevant search queries, the more Ad spend is wasted and lower the chance of your Ads showing for interested users that are likely to convert. 

Therefore, it’s important to find and remove negative Google Ads keywords, to ensure that your Ads are only showing for the most relevant search terms. If you’re wondering what negative keywords are, negative keywords are essentially phrases that you can selectively exclude from Ad campaigns for the purpose of improving the Ad relevance.

Luckily, there are two simple ways to identify and remove negative keywords from your Google Ads account. Firstly, you are able to research some potential negative keywords using the Google Keyword Planner through the Google Ads interface. The Google Keyword Planner is most useful for conducting keyword research to discover some negative keywords to add into your campaign. Another way to identify negative keywords is through the Google Search Terms Report. The search terms report in your Adwords campaign can be used to identify what phrases or words are triggering your ads, presenting the opportunity to add any irrelevant search terms as negative keyword phrases.

Due to the power of negative keywords, we highly recommend using the Google Keyword Planner and Google Search Terms Report to identify and add any negative keywords to your Ads account. By adding these irrelevant search terms to a negative keyword list, you can optimize your Adwords performance and ensure that your Ads are only triggering for your target audience’s searches.

• Not Tracking Conversions

Not having Google Ads conversions set up correctly is one of the most common and harmful mistakes made when buying Adwords. 

Tracking conversions is one of the most impactful tools that you can utilize through Google Ads. Conversions in Google Ads are when a user performs a specified action after clicking on your Ad. For example, a conversion could be when a user purchases a product, books an appointment, or installs a mobile app. Tracking conversions is a key metric that provides key insights into user’s behaviour and actions after viewing or clicking on your Ad.

Conversion tracking is one of the most powerful tools used to reveal which keywords, Ads, and campaigns are driving the most interaction with your target audience. As an added bonus, conversion tracking can also reveal the return on investment, making it easier to optimize your Ad spend. 

Are You Ready To Correct Your Google Ads Mistakes?

Do some of these common mistakes sound familiar, but you’re not quite sure how to resolve them? Don’t worry, our team of digital marketing experts are experienced in optimizing Google Ads campaigns, to help generate leads and boost conversions! As accredited Google Partners, the digital marketing team at Digital8 are fully certified in delivering strong digital marketing campaigns supported by strategic digital plans. Reach out and let us help to optimize your Google Ads campaign today!