Google Ads, formerly known as Google AdWords, can be a tricky tool to use. Google Ads, paired with successful Search Engine Optimization (SEO), is a great way to drive more traffic to your website and generate more leads, resulting in a higher number of cars sold. While it can be very useful for your car dealership, a faulty campaign can cause you to waste money and time.
If you have the time, we recommend that you get a certification. Google’s Academy for Ads
provides tutorials and information on how to use Google Ads and get the most out of your campaign. Completing your trainings will earn you a certificate that is valid for a year.
If you don’t have the time to invest in a Google Ads certification, that’s what this blog post is for! We’ve put together a guide to help you get started. Keep reading to learn how to select keywords, create ad copy, get a higher Ad Rank, and tips on getting the most out of your campaign.
Set Up Your Account
The first step is to create an account on Google Ads for your car dealership. We recommend that you create a separate Google account for your dealership that is separate from any personal accounts. Setting up your account is an easy process that shouldn’t take a lot of time.
Keywords
Select your keywords. You can use Google’s Keyword Planner tool to see what searches are the most popular and get ideas. Keywords can change weekly, and sometimes even daily, so you need to update your campaign on a regular basis.
If you bid on too many short phrases and regular keywords, you may end up wasting your money and time. That’s why we believe in long-tail keywords. Long-tail keywords have 3 or more words that are related to your specific niche or location, and they make up 2/3 of your search traffic, according to Moz. Consider the makes and models of the cars you are selling, the services you offer, and your location. Which brings us to our next topic.
Location Targeting
People want to purchase cars that are close to them. If your dealership is located in New York, you don’t want waste money by showing your ads to people in California. Thankfully, Google lets you choose the locations to display your ads. We recommend to start with a 100-mile range from the city where your dealership is located, but no more than that. Most people aren’t willing to drive more than a few hours to buy a car.
Creating Text Ads
The content you write for your text ads is what shows up for users on Google. The goal here is to make the most out of the spaces you are provided. Here’s where you can get your creative juices flowing.
- Headline
- This is the text that people are most likely to notice. You’ll want to grab the attention of users in this area.
- You can have up to three headlines that are up to 30 characters each.
- Display URL
- You can change the way your URL displays to give users a better idea of where they will go when they click on it.
- Description
- Use the description to highlight details about your dealership and vehicles, or any sales you have going on.
- You can have up to 2 descriptions that are 90 characters each.
- Include a call to action.
Bidding
It can be tricky to figure out how to bid strategically when you first start using Google Ads for your dealership. Your ads might not appear on Google until you get it figured out, but there is no need to panic. A good way to start is to set your bids to $1.00-$2.00 per click and adjust from there. There’s also a feature that allows Google to automatically adjust your bids to the highest bid, although we don’t recommend starting out that way.
Ad Rank
The position of your ad will depend on your Ad Rank. Google calculates your ad rank by your bid amount, the quality of your ad, and the context of the person’s search. A higher Ad Rank means that the cost of your ad will lower and your ad will be more likely to show first on Google’s Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs). You will want to invest some time in creating quality, relevant ads so that you can get better a better Ad Rank.
Don’t have the time or patience to run a Google Ads campaign? Let us do the work for you! AutoJini is a Premier Google Partner. Our proven expertise in Google Ads gives us access to more features and immediate support from Google. If you need any help creating your Google Ads campaign, call or contact us today! We are happy to help you get started, give you a PPC audit, or manage your ads for you so you can concentrate on your business!