Should You Pay for Google Ads? What You Need to Know

January 25, 2025

Should You Pay for Google Ads? What You Need to Know

To understand how you can drive people to your site and improve your business visibility on Google, understanding the search results types and paid ads functioning is crucial. Google provides many options to advertise your business, and with the right approach you may be able to rank better and serve your products to more customers.

What to Know About Search Engine Results Pages (SERP)

Google displays its results in what is called a Search Engine Results Page (SERP) that is created when a user makes a search. A typical SERP has listings that are both paid and organic. While paid advertisements are mostly at the upper or lower ends of the page, organic results (free listings) can be found in the middle. On some occasions, paid listings could also be found on the right side of the page. Furthermore, Google provides additional special types of results depending on the query asked by users.

Categories of Google Search Results

Consider the following as some of the crucial categories of Google search results that may come up when you use Google:

Featured Snippets

These are summarized responses or snippets taken from content of the top-ranking Google results pages. This response can be in any form such as text, mager, list, or videos. A Featured Snippet offers an excellent opportunity for businesses to increase visibility, even if their site does not rank first for the targeted keyword.

Knowledge Cards

These type of snippets are displayed when Google extracts information from its verified sources such as government or Wikipedia pages. Knowledge cards can contain various pieces of information like currency exchange rates or the distance between two points. They cannot be considered the best types for listing businesses, though.

Knowledge Panel

This section allows showing a business’s information to site visitors directly from the search results. Knowledge Panel or Panel information gathers data from Google My Business profile, and other credible websites. When searching for a popular person, company’s name or place, it is often seen on the right side of the SERP.

People Also Ask

In this part, other relevant questions are presented alongside the top pages’ organic results. It is an area that users can use to gain further knowledge and it is also a great one to target with SEO content.

 Site Links

When advertising a specific company, remember that there can be different links to the various pages of that company’s website. Aside from paid ads, these site links can be added to help users navigate quickly without needing to search through the homepage.

Shopping Results

When a product is searched for, Google places them on a separate section on their results page. This section is especially designed for e-commerce users who want to advertise their products with ad campaigns.

Types of Google Ads

Google Ads has been designed to fit the specific needs of businesses regarding advertisement campaigns. Here are some of the most common types of Google Ads.

Text Ads

By far the most common of the advertisement is the text ad, consisting of the primary headline, description, and URL. Let your users know about other relevant resources with advanced ad features like site link, review, or phone number.

Responsive Ads

Responsive advertisements adjust their format depending on the platform being used, whether it is on desktop, smartphone, or tablet. This ensures that your advertisements look good and work as intended on all devices, therefore reaching a wider audience.

Shopping Ads

Shopping advertisements are generally targeted for e-commerce businesses. If you run an online shop, you can create a merchant store within Google which allows you to showcase your products directly in the search results.

Video Ads

Video advertisement promotes videos and usually appears on YouTube or other video-oriented sites. Video advertisements are great for appealing to users visually and delivering a more interactive form of communication.

Call-Only Ads

These ads are designed for businesses that want their audience to get in touch with them directly. Call only ads are particularly useful if your audience mainly calls or buys through their mobile devices.

Image Ads (Google Display Network)

Image advertisement can be viewed within the Google Display Internet who are including many publishers that work with Google. These ads are more graphics focused and can help in gaining the attention of potential customers across the World Wide Web.

Quality Score and Its Impact on Paid Ads

The effectiveness of your Google Ads campaigns relies on some facets, and one of those is the Quality Score. Google maintains a Quality Score to ensure that the correct and relevant ads are displayed to users. Factors that affect Quality Score include:

Ad Relevance

Your advertisement should match the chosen keywords and give informative details. If the ad’s message does not match the keywords, Google will decrease the Quality Score.

Landing Page Quality

Google looks at the landing page to which your advertisement leads. The page should be easy to navigate on mobile, load fast, and have content pertinent to the keywords of the ad. Google will consider any ineffective landing page to be detrimental to the Quality Score of your ad.

Click-Through Rate (CTR)

CTR defines how many times particular users click on your ad when it is shown in search results. If users are likely to click on your ad, it means that it is relevant and engaging hence boosting your Quality Score. Now, if your CTR is low, Google may decide to limit your ad’s exposure or stop showing it altogether.

Tips For Improving The ROI of Google Ads

Remember the following recommendations to ensure best ROI from Google Ads campaigns:

  • Relevant Keywords: Remember to include keywords that are relevant to your business and your ad message. The free Keyword Planner tool offered by Google can help you figure out the most appropriate words to target.
  • Ensure Your Landing Page Matches Your Ad: Make sure the link to the landing page you intend to use provides relevant information that is mobile friendly.
  • Put Attention To The User: Quick-loading sites and page movement smoothness is required to sustain interest and improve the page quality mark.

More Lifehack Videos

Leave A Comment