How Often Should You Run Google Ads?

There’s no one-size-fits-all answer to how often you should run Google Ads.  It depends on various factors like your budget, campaign goals, and industry competitiveness.

Generally, consistently running your ads is crucial for optimal performance. Pausing them frequently disrupts the learning phase where Google’s algorithm analyzes your audience and refines ad delivery. Aim for at least a few weeks to gather sufficient data for adjustments.

Monitoring performance regularly is recommended.  For new campaigns, check ad performance weekly after the initial learning period (2-4 weeks). For established campaigns, adjustments can be made monthly based on collected data.

Optimizing your campaigns is an ongoing process. Regularly review metrics like impressions, clicks, and conversion rates. Consider introducing new ad variations while pausing underperforming ones to identify the most effective strategies.

Understanding Campaign Goals

Brand Awareness: Strategies for Continuous Ad Exposure

When your primary objective is to build brand recognition and establish yourself within the market, consistent ad exposure becomes crucial. Here’s how to leverage Google Ads for continuous brand awareness:

Campaign settings:

• Network selection: Opt for the Google Display Network (GDN). This vast network reaches users across various websites, apps, and YouTube channels, maximizing your brand’s reach.
• Bidding strategy: Consider employing strategies like Maximize Impressions or Target CPM (Cost Per Mille). These ensure your ads are displayed as frequently as possible within your budget.

Frequency capping:

• While continuous exposure is essential, it’s vital to avoid bombarding users with the same ad repeatedly. Implement frequency capping to limit the number of times an individual sees your ad within a specific timeframe. This helps prevent ad fatigue, where users become desensitized to your message due to excessive exposure.

Utilizing ad extensions:

Google Ads offers various ad extension options that enhance your ad’s real estate and provide users with additional information about your brand. Leverage extensions like:

* Sitelink extensions: Showcase relevant sections of your website directly within the ad, allowing users to easily navigate to specific pages.

* Location extensions: If you have a physical location, this extension displays your address and business hours, increasing accessibility for potential customers.

• Call extensions:  Enable users to directly call your business from the ad itself, fostering immediate interaction and simplifying the customer journey.

Additional Considerations

• Creative refresh: Maintain audience engagement by periodically refreshing your ad creatives. Utilize A/B testing to identify the most effective ad variations and keep your message fresh.
• Brand storytelling: Craft compelling ad copy that resonates with your target audience. Focus on conveying your brand’s unique value proposition and the emotional connection it offers.

Lead Generation: Optimizing for Conversions

When your primary objective is generating leads, the focus of your Google Ads strategy shifts towards attracting potential customers who are actively interested in your product or service. Here’s how to optimize your ad scheduling for lead generation:

• A/B Testing Different Ad Variations:
  1. Craft multiple ad variations with different headlines, descriptions, and call-to-action (CTA) phrases.
  2. Utilize Google Ads’ built-in A/B testing feature to experiment and identify the variations that resonate best with your target audience, leading to higher click-through rates (CTR) and form submissions.
  3. Analyze results regularly, replacing underperforming variations and iterating on successful ones.
  4. This data-driven approach ensures your ads are tailored for maximum conversion potential.

• Targeting Specific User Behavior and Demographics:
  1. Google Ads offers a multitude of targeting options that allow you to reach users exhibiting specific behaviors and belonging to relevant demographics.
  2. Leverage tools like:
     • Keywords: Target users searching for specific terms related to your industry or the problem your product/service solves. Utilize long-tail keywords with higher conversion intent.
     • Demographics: Target users based on factors like age, gender, income, and location.
     • In-market audiences: Reach users who have recently shown purchase intent by researching similar products or services.
     • Customer match: Upload your existing customer list to target users with similar characteristics.
  3. By employing these targeting options, you ensure your ads are displayed to users who are most likely to convert, leading to a more qualified pool of leads.

Additional Considerations

• Landing Page Optimization:
  1. Ensure your landing page aligns seamlessly with your ad copy.
  2. Provide a clear value proposition and a straightforward call to action (e.g., “Download our free guide” or “Get a free consultation”).
  3. Optimize loading speed and mobile responsiveness for a positive user experience.

• Conversion Tracking:
  1. Set up conversion tracking within Google Ads to monitor actions taken by users on your website, such as form submissions, phone calls, or live chat engagements.
  2. This data allows you to measure the effectiveness of your ad campaigns and identify areas for improvement.

Direct Sales: Tailoring Ads to Purchase Intent

When your primary objective is driving direct sales through your Google Ads campaigns, understanding purchase intent becomes crucial. Here’s how:

• Leveraging Retargeting Campaigns:
  1. Website visitors who browse specific product pages or add items to their cart demonstrate a higher interest in purchasing. Retargeting campaigns allow you to display targeted ads to these users on other websites they visit, reminding them of the products they viewed and potentially nudging them towards conversion.
  2. Utilize dynamic remarketing features to showcase the specific products users interacted with on your website within the ad itself. This personalized approach increases the ad’s relevance and can significantly improve click-through rates.
• Search Term Targeting:
  1. Focus on keywords with high commercial intent, indicating a user’s readiness to buy. These keywords often include terms like “buy now,” “best price,” or specific product names. Utilize tools like Google Keyword Planner to identify relevant high-intent keywords.
• Landing Page Optimization:
  1. Ensure your landing page aligns seamlessly with the ad content. When a user clicks on an ad promising a specific product or discount, the landing page should directly address their purchase intent.
  2. Include clear calls to action, such as “Buy Now” buttons or limited-time offers, to encourage immediate conversions.
• Ad Extensions:
  1. Utilize ad extensions like call extensions, location extensions, and promotion extensions to provide users with additional information and encourage immediate action.
  2. Call extensions allow users to directly contact your business through the ad, while location extensions showcase your physical store address if applicable. Promotion extensions highlight special offers and discounts, further incentivizing users to convert.
• Dynamic Search Ads (DSA):
  1. This automated ad format uses your website content to generate targeted ads based on user search queries. This approach ensures your ads are highly relevant to the user’s specific needs and increases the likelihood of driving conversions.

Showcasing Promotional Offers and Discounts

Strategic use of promotions and discounts can significantly influence purchase decisions. Here’s how to effectively integrate them into your ad strategy:

• Highlight Offers in Ad Copy:
  1. Clearly mention the discount percentage or specific promotional offer within the ad itself. This grabs the user’s attention and creates a sense of urgency.
• Limited-Time Offers:
  1. Promote flash sales or limited-time discounts to create a sense of scarcity and encourage immediate action.
• Countdown Timers:
  1. Utilize ad extensions with countdown timers to visually emphasize the limited availability of an offer, further pressuring users to convert before the deal expires.

Additional Considerations

• Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Integration:
  1. Utilize CRM data to personalize ad content based on past purchase history and user behavior. This allows you to showcase products relevant to their interests and buying patterns, increasing the chance of conversion.
• A/B Testing:
  1. Continuously test different ad variations, including headlines, descriptions, and call-to-action buttons, to identify the most effective combinations that drive conversions.

Budget Considerations: Understanding Daily vs. Lifetime Budgets

In the realm of Google Ads, budget allocation is a fundamental aspect influencing campaign success. Choosing between daily and lifetime budgets hinges on several crucial factors:

Control and Flexibility

Daily Budgets:

• Offer granular control over daily ad spend.
• You dictate the maximum amount you’re willing to spend each day, ensuring you never exceed your budget limitations.
• Ideal for:
  • Campaign testing phases: Experimenting with different ad variations and targeting strategies without risking overspending.
  • Seasonal promotions: Allocate higher budgets during peak sales periods and reduce spending during slower times.

Lifetime Budgets:

• Provide more flexibility in how Google spends your budget throughout the campaign duration.
• Google optimizes ad delivery, potentially spending more on high-performing days and less on slower days, aiming to achieve your total budget target by the campaign end.
• Ideal for:
  • Long-term brand awareness campaigns: Consistent ad presence even with fluctuating daily traffic patterns.
  • Utilizing automated bidding strategies: Google Ads leverages algorithms to automatically adjust bids for optimal conversions within your set budget.

Potential Cost Savings

Daily Budgets:

• May not always fully utilize the allocated budget, particularly on days with lower traffic.
• Requires closer monitoring and adjustments to ensure you’re spending efficiently.

Lifetime Budgets:

• Google strives to spend your entire budget by the campaign end, potentially leading to cost savings if the campaign performs exceptionally well and exhausts the budget early.

Choosing the Right Option

Campaign Goals:

• Daily budgets are better suited for short-term campaigns with strict budget control needs or for testing purposes.
• Lifetime budgets are preferable for long-term brand awareness campaigns or when utilizing automated bidding strategies.

Budget Flexibility:

• If you have a fixed daily amount you’re comfortable spending, a daily budget is the way to go.
• For campaigns with more flexibility in overall spending, a lifetime budget might be more suitable.

Additional Considerations:

Budget Pacing: Google Ads offers different budget pacing options within both daily and lifetime budgets.

• Standard delivery: Spreads the budget evenly throughout the campaign.
• Accelerated delivery: Utilizes the budget faster, reaching your target audience sooner. This might be strategic for time-sensitive campaigns.

Budget Optimization: Regularly monitor campaign performance and adjust your budget allocation based on data insights. Analyze which days or times yield the best results and consider increasing your budget during those periods.

Budget Pacing Strategies

Understanding how your Google Ads budget is spent throughout the day is crucial. Google offers two main delivery methods:

Standard Delivery: This method prioritizes even distribution of your daily budget across the entire day. Google’s algorithm aims to deliver your ads consistently throughout the 24 hours. This approach is ideal for campaigns with the goal of maintaining consistent brand awareness or driving a steady stream of leads.

• Pros: Predictable spending pattern, minimizes risk of budget exhaustion before the end of the day.
• Cons: May not capture peak traffic times when conversions are potentially higher.

Accelerated Delivery: This option prioritizes spending your entire daily budget as quickly as possible. Google aims to show your ads more frequently, potentially exhausting your budget earlier in the day. This approach is suitable for:

• Time-sensitive campaigns: Promotions with limited windows (e.g., flash sales) benefit from maximizing exposure during the active period.
• Testing new campaigns:  Reaching a wider audience quickly allows for faster data collection and campaign analysis.
• Cons:
  • Risk of budget overspending: There’s a possibility of exceeding your daily budget if the competition is high or your bids are aggressive.
  • Missing valuable traffic: Exhaustion of budget early might lead to missing out on potential conversions during later hours.

Choosing the Right Pacing Strategy

The optimal pacing strategy depends on your specific goals and campaign type. Consider the following factors:

Campaign goals:

• Brand awareness campaigns often benefit from standard delivery for consistent visibility.
• Lead generation or sales-focused campaigns might utilize accelerated delivery for initial testing or during crucial periods.

Budget flexibility:

• Standard delivery is recommended if budget control is a priority.
• Accelerated delivery can be used strategically with a buffer to account for potential overspending.

Analyze historical data: Monitor past campaign performance to identify peak traffic times. Utilize this information to leverage accelerated delivery during those periods for potentially higher conversions.

Additional Tips:

Monitor budget pacing closely: Regularly check the “Budget pacing report” within Google Ads to track your daily spend and adjust the delivery method if needed.

Utilize automated rules: Set up rules within Google Ads to automatically pause campaigns if the budget is nearing depletion or exceeding a specific threshold.

Combine strategies: You can leverage a combination of standard and accelerated delivery depending on the campaign goals and budget constraints.

Optimizing bids based on performance data

Manual Bidding: Analyze metrics like click-through rate (CTR), conversion rate, and cost-per-acquisition (CPA) to identify keywords or placements yielding strong results.

Increase bids: Allocate a larger budget share towards high-performing keywords driving conversions within your target CPA.

Decrease bids: Reduce bids for keywords with low CTR or exceeding your desired CPA.

Automated Bidding Strategies: Leverage Google Ads’ Smart Bidding options like Target CPA or Target ROAS (Return On Ad Spend). These utilize machine learning to automatically adjust bids in real-time, maximizing conversions or revenue within your set budget.

Additional points to consider

Conversion tracking: Set up conversion tracking to accurately measure the effectiveness of your campaigns and guide bid adjustments.

Historical data: Analyze historical performance data to identify trends and predict future campaign behavior.

Industry and Competitiveness

High-competition industries

• Continuous Ad Presence: In industries saturated with competitors, maintaining consistent ad visibility is crucial. Pausing campaigns can lead to a quick drop in impressions and potential customers forgetting your brand amidst the constant bombardment of competing ads.
  • Example: Imagine an online retailer selling athletic wear. With established giants like Nike and Adidas dominating the space, continuously running ads (even at a lower budget) ensures your brand stays present in the minds of potential customers.
• Strategic Scheduling:  While continuous presence is essential, blindly running ads throughout the day might not be the most efficient approach. Here’s where scheduling tools become valuable:
  • Peak Times: Analyzing competitor activity and audience behavior can reveal periods with heightened search volume and lower competition. Utilize scheduling tools to concentrate ad delivery during these peak hours.
    • Example: A legal service provider might schedule their ads to run heavily during weekdays between 9 am and 5 pm, coinciding with typical business hours when potential clients are more likely to search for legal assistance.
  • Dayparting: This strategy involves setting specific timeframes for ad display based on audience behavior.
    • Example: An e-commerce store selling furniture might schedule ads to run during evenings and weekends when people are more likely to browse online for home improvement products.
• Bidding Strategies:  In highly competitive landscapes, simply running ads isn’t enough. Implementing effective bidding strategies becomes paramount:
  • Maximize Conversions: Utilize bidding strategies like “Target CPA” (cost-per-acquisition) that prioritize acquiring conversions (e.g., sales) at a set cost, ensuring you get the most out of your budget even in a competitive environment.
  • Bidding Adjustments: Leverage features like location adjustments to increase bids in areas with higher potential customer concentration or competitor dominance.

Lower-competition industries

• Strategic Pausing:  While maintaining some level of ad presence is advisable, strategically pausing campaigns during periods of minimal activity can be beneficial. This allows you to:
  • Conserve Budget: Reduce unnecessary ad spend during times with lower potential return on investment.
  • Focus Resources: Allocate budget towards other marketing initiatives or optimize existing campaigns for better performance.
• Event-Based Scheduling: Aligning your ad schedule with relevant industry events or trends can significantly increase reach and engagement:
  • Example: A bakery specializing in seasonal treats could schedule a targeted ad campaign leading up to major holidays like Thanksgiving or Christmas, capitalizing on the surge in search queries for festive desserts.
• Targeting Niche Audiences:  In less competitive industries, focusing on a well-defined target audience can yield better results:
  • Example: A local plumber might target their ads to specific zip codes or neighborhoods with a higher concentration of their ideal customer base, maximizing their reach within their niche market.

Additional Considerations

• Seasonality: Certain industries experience significant fluctuations in demand throughout the year.
  • Example: A company selling pool supplies might see a surge in ad performance during the summer months and strategically pause or reduce ad spend during winter.
• Competitor Monitoring: Regularly monitor your competitor landscape. If competitors pause their campaigns during specific periods, it might be an opportunity to increase your ad presence and capture a larger share of the market.

Monitoring and Analytics

Key metrics to track

• Impressions: This metric reflects how many times your ad was displayed on search engine results pages (SERPs) or partner websites. While a high number of impressions signifies broad reach, it doesn’t guarantee user engagement.
• Clicks: This metric indicates the number of times users actually clicked on your ad. Analyzing the Click-Through Rate (CTR), which is clicks divided by impressions (CTR = Clicks / Impressions), provides a clearer picture of ad effectiveness. A low CTR might suggest the ad needs refinement to be more relevant or visually appealing.
• Conversions: This metric represents the ultimate goal of your campaign, whether it’s a website purchase, a form submission, or a phone call. Conversion tracking allows you to measure the return on investment (ROI) of your Google Ads spend.

Utilizing Google Ads reporting tools

Google Ads offers a robust suite of reporting tools that provide invaluable insights into your campaign performance:

• Campaign reports:  These reports offer a comprehensive overview of key metrics like impressions, clicks, conversions, and cost-per-acquisition (CPA). You can segment data by various criteria such as time period, device type, and location.
• Audience insights:  This tool delves deeper into your target audience demographics, interests, and online behavior. Understanding your audience’s characteristics allows you to tailor your ad copy and targeting strategies to resonate better.
• Search terms report: This report reveals the actual search queries that triggered your ads. Analyzing these search terms can be highly beneficial. You can identify new relevant keywords to add to your campaign and discover irrelevant search terms that might warrant adding as negative keywords to prevent unnecessary ad spend.
• Auction insights: This tool provides a competitive landscape view, showcasing metrics like impression share (the percentage of times your ad was eligible to be shown compared to total opportunities) and average position (the average rank of your ad on the SERP). Analyzing these metrics can help you assess your competitiveness and identify areas for improvement, such as adjusting bids or refining your keyword targeting.

A/B testing for continuous improvement

A/B testing is a crucial strategy for optimizing your Google Ads performance. It involves creating multiple variations of the same element (e.g., ad copy, headline, landing page) and running them concurrently to see which one performs better.

• Benefits of A/B testing:
  • Identify the most compelling ad copy and landing page combinations that resonate with your target audience.
  • Improve conversion rates and ultimately maximize your ROI.
  • Continuously refine your ad strategy based on data-driven insights.
• A/B testing best practices:
  • Start with small, incremental changes to isolate the impact of each variation.
  • Ensure a statistically significant sample size for each test to draw reliable conclusions.
  • Analyze the results and implement the winning variation across your campaign.

Additional considerations

• Frequency capping: This feature allows you to limit the number of times a specific user sees your ad within a certain timeframe. This helps prevent ad fatigue and ensures a positive user experience.
• Conversion tracking setup: Ensure proper conversion tracking is implemented to accurately measure campaign effectiveness. Google Ads offers various conversion tracking methods, including website tags and app analytics integration.

Advanced Strategies

Dayparting: Scheduling Ads for Peak Performance

• Concept: Dayparting allows you to schedule your ads to run during specific times of the day or days of the week. This strategy leverages the knowledge of your target audience’s online behavior.
• Benefits:
  • Increased Efficiency: Focuses ad spend on periods when your audience is most active, maximizing reach and potential conversions.
  • Reduced Costs: Avoids unnecessary impressions during times with lower click-through rates.
• Implementation:
  • Analyze historical data within Google Ads to identify peak hours and days for user activity.
  • Utilize the platform’s scheduling tools to set specific timeframes for ad delivery.
• Example: An e-commerce store selling running shoes might schedule their ads to run during mornings and evenings, coinciding with people’s workout routines.

Location Targeting: Reaching the Right Audience Geographically

• Concept: Location targeting allows you to restrict your ads to specific geographical regions, cities, or even postal codes. This ensures your message reaches the most relevant audience.
• Benefits:
  • Improved Click-Through Rates: Users are more likely to click on ads relevant to their location.
  • Enhanced Brand Relevance: Showcases local offerings and caters to specific regional needs.
• Implementation:
  • Define your target audience’s location through radius targeting, specific addresses, or pre-defined regions within Google Ads.
  • Leverage location extensions to display your business address and phone number directly within the ad.
• Example: A restaurant chain can target their ads to specific city areas where they have branches, attracting potential customers within close proximity.

Remarketing Campaigns: Reconnecting with Website Visitors

• Concept: Remarketing allows you to display targeted ads to users who have previously interacted with your website. This strategy re-engages website visitors who might have shown initial interest but not converted.
• Benefits:
  • Increased Conversions: Remind users about your products or services and nudge them towards the desired action.
  • Improved Brand Recall: Maintains brand awareness and fosters customer familiarity.
• Implementation:
  • Utilize Google’s remarketing tag to track website visitors and build audience lists.
  • Create targeted ad campaigns specifically tailored to address the interests and browsing behavior of website visitors.
• Example: An online clothing store can show targeted ads featuring abandoned cart items or recently viewed products to website visitors who haven’t completed the purchase.

Conclusion

Google Ads effectiveness hinges on a dynamic approach to scheduling, not a fixed one.  While the ideal frequency depends on your campaign goals (brand awareness requiring more consistency than lead generation), data analysis is key.  

Monitor metrics like clicks, conversions, and impressions to understand audience behavior and ad performance. Utilize A/B testing and adapt your strategy accordingly. Don’t be afraid to pause underperforming campaigns and relaunch them strategically.  

Remember, Google Ads mastery is an ongoing pursuit. Leverage resources like the Google Ads Help Center, Skillshop, and industry publications to stay updated and refine your advertising expertise. By continuously monitoring, analyzing, and adapting, you can ensure your message reaches the right audience at the right time, maximizing return on investment and achieving your marketing objectives.