The online advertising market grows on average by 20% annually, while other types of advertising lose ground. This means the battle for customers is moving online. How not to miss out? To avoid mistakes and not waste money and buyers, check your ad campaign settings.

In this article, you will learn:

  • How to set up Google Adwords step-by-step

  • What to pay attention to when configuring Google Adwords

How to set up Google Adwords: campaign types

The number of orders and site traffic depends on the type of ad campaign. It should match your advertising goals and product category.

For the B2B market, where clients think rationally and look for specific products, choose search ads. For example, if your company sells auto parts, set up a campaign for search queries. Technical specifications matter here, not appearance.

For B2C with mass-market products, use both display network and search ads. For example, if you sell dresses, banners in the display network may have a higher click-through rate due to photos. Interested users will then visit the site.

Create separate campaigns for banners and text ads to track results more accurately. Choosing the wrong campaign type can lead to lost traffic or budget.

Targeting in Google Adwords

The narrower the targeting, the higher the chance your audience will see the ad. If you advertise a bakery, target residents of a specific district and show ads during the day.

In large cities with high mobile traffic, set up call-only campaigns — this can increase conversion by 10–15%. Meanwhile, for other campaigns, consider disabling mobile displays to better measure campaign effectiveness.

Use targeting by operating system. According to Google, iOS users have higher conversion rates — they buy more often and choose more expensive products.

Apply remarketing to reach users who didn’t purchase immediately. This reduces costs and increases conversion.

Ad budget

Traffic volume and conversions depend on the ratio of your bids to competitors’ bids.

For a large budget, set a daily limit 10% lower than planned. For example, if you want to spend 100 UAH per day, set 90 UAH, otherwise the system might spend 115 UAH.

If the budget is small, due to high competitor bids or low demand, the system may not spend the entire amount. In this case, set 30–40% higher bids than the initial budget. For example, for advertising agglomeration machines, set slightly higher bids — this increases chances of impressions and lowers click costs.

Ad delivery method

There are two options:

  • Standard — ads are shown evenly throughout the day. Suitable for popular queries with low conversion (e.g., “mobile phones”).

  • Accelerated — ads are shown as often as possible. Can be effective for niche queries, such as “polished steel pipes,” but risks quickly exhausting the budget before evening.

Maximum keywords

Keywords are queries that trigger ads. The more variations, the higher the chance the user query exactly matches a keyword, so ads appear higher and cost less.

Do not use the same text for all keywords. Group keywords and write unique ads for each group to increase relevance and lower CPC.

Dynamic keyword insertion

Use it when the query is similar but not identical to the keyword. Limit: keywords must be up to 25 characters. Example: {Keyword:Buy at ABC} — for the query “flat slate,” dynamic insertion shows: “Flat slate. From manufacturers. Buy wholesale and retail!”

Query length

The system accepts queries no longer than 10 words. For example, for auto rims advertising, do not use full product names. Long phrases may not work in mass campaigns and ads won’t run.

Keyword match types

  • Broad match for synonyms, similar words, and errors. Suitable for low demand.

  • Phrase match for popular products. For example, for “tractor” — the query “buy tractor.”

  • Exact match for identical queries.

Negative Keywords

Negative keywords filter out irrelevant queries:

  • At campaign level, exclude unrelated phrases (e.g., “garage” for floor ads in houses).

  • At ad group level, filter queries for specific subgroups. For example, “chip potato” is a negative keyword for ads about “new” potatoes.

Ad details

Additional links, phone, and address increase CTR and trust. If a user calls without clicking the ad, you get a lead for free. Relevant for B2B.

Inefficient placements

Three days after launching a new campaign, check which sites perform. Disable those that don’t bring leads. Repeat audits quarterly.

Google Adwords and Google Analytics

Link accounts to see conversion sources. Remember: these services count conversions differently.

For example, a user comes from an ad but doesn’t buy, later returns from social media, then two weeks later from organic search and buys.

  • Ads attribute the purchase to the ad.

  • Analytics attributes it to organic traffic with the first visit date.

Also connect Google My Business so customers see your address and map right in search.

Account structure

Google Ads works better if account structure and keywords match your site structure. This allows you to:

  • track demand,

  • reduce bids,

  • improve search position.

For example, our ad moved from last position to first in 5 months without increasing bids. Savings — 30%.

Result

After applying these settings, CTR increased by 28%, and conversion by 13%.

Author Oksana Tymchuk, specialist in contextual advertising setup at the International B2B Internet Trade Center Allbiz.

Professional merchant journal “Commercial Director”