FAQ: Google Ads (formally Google AdWords)

If you only want to attract people looking for Pink Plantation Shutters in Newport Beach, CA, then the only people who will see your ad for Pink Plantation Shutters will be potential customers searching for Pink Plantation Shutters In Newport Beach. The only way you’ll be charged is if that person clicks on your ad.

This took place in August of 2018. It’s the same system, however, it’s now easier for Google Partners like me to place ads across several different platforms like Youtube or Double Click. It also helps retail stores to track foot traffic using the Google maps systems. Other than that it means little to the consumer. As they say in baseball, it’s inside baseball stuff.

The system is set up to target potential customers for the products you sell. So by first choosing the territory, you want to market to and then using keywords, your ad ends up on the page of the searcher.

There are several hundred metrics built into the system, but the best way to know your Google Ads are working is “call tracking”.

Call tracking is the best way to confirm that the call came from your Google Ads. We install a tracking code on your site and a 3rd party supplier provides the unique number. One very cool feature is when a call is traced back to an ad you’ll hear a whisper voice when you pick up the call saying you have a Google Ads call.

Picking the keywords is a key to success. Unfortunately Express forces you to use broad match KW’s. This means that if you choose the KW Blinds, you’ll be paying for people who are looking for hunting blinds or if you choose shutters you’ll be paying for photographers looking for shutter speeds. Express has NO TRACKING. One of the best tools in Google Ads is negative KW’s. Express doesn’t allow the use of negative KW’s. No ad extensions. This means you can’t have a link to your address or reviews or phone number. I recently met a guy who tried express and set his budget at $350 for the month. Within 6 hours Google spent $700. It’s basically like asking Harvey Weinstein to babysit your daughter. Not a good idea.

I started in the window covering industry in 1986 and I’m a Certified Google Partner. I’ve set up over 300 people in the window covering industry. My job is to analyze the data to find you the best customers, increase your conversions, and look for new opportunities for you to sell more window coverings.

You’ll pay me for the setup and monthly management. You’ll pay Google separately for the clicks. Using this divided system you know exactly how much you spent on the clicks and management. Most Ad Agencies will charge $1500-$7500 a month and not tell you how much they spent on clicks so they can hide their fees. I prefer an open book approach.

If you want your budget at the recommended minimum of $800 per month, I’ll start your campaign at $25 a day. If I see you’re not getting enough clicks, then I’ll set the ads to run M-F and raise the daily budget. If I see you’re getting more clicks from one part of town and for one type of product, I can make adjustments based on that data. If I see you getting more conversions on mobile devices, then I’ll adjust accordingly. This is why Google Ads must be monitored.

There is a $299 one time setup charge and $225 a month management fee as long as your spend is under $1400. After $1400 there is a sliding scale of management fees. I will also set up your account to be billed directly by Google for the clicks. This billing usually begins in a few weeks after you’ve accumulated at least $300 in clicks.

After setup, I can usually get a coupon from Google for $100 off if you spend $400 in the first 30 days.

You receive a campaign that is set up by a professional Certified Google Advertising Partner. Your account is managed by an expert in both Google Marketing and Window Coverings. You will receive weekly reports on your account performance. Most importantly you get great new customers who were looking for you online.

It takes my engineer and me about 3-5 days to complete the setup. Since I have dozens of window covering retailers as clients, I’m able to streamline the setup process. This scalability is the #1 reason for your success. I’m able to scale the management and setup to get a great return on your investment.

Yes, I guarantee I will do a great job setting up your campaigns and managing your account. I guarantee I will do my best to generate leads for you using Google Ads.

I recommend starting at $800-$1000 per month, per salesperson. This includes the clicks and remarketing display ads.

Imagine you’re on Amazon looking at a new Yellow YoYo. You leave and go to another site and see an ad for that same Yellow YoYo you were looking at yesterday. This is remarketing. I set this up with all Google Ads campaigns. I’ll take care of the setup and the building of the ads for you.

Sure. I enjoy writing ads with my clients, I’m kind of a marketing nerd. I have written hundreds of ads and tested them all. We’ll track which ads work the best for you.

Google uses A/B testing. In fact, your weekly report will show the metrics on all running ads. This is how Google determines which of your ads to display.

You will receive a report every Monday morning. It will be in your email inbox.

Some risks include: your website is poorly designed, not answering your phone, a bad credit card, and making promises you can’t keep. I can send qualified customers to your website, but I can’t control what happens after that.

No problem. The setup fee is the same if you’re spending $600 or $1000 per month. It’s the management that changes when the budget goes up. I can limit the runtime of your ads.

Sure. I do this to get the most clicks for your budget. If you can’t afford at least $800 per month in spending, this may not be for you.

Sure. Just let me know, and I’ll use it when I set up your campaign. Remember they are time-sensitive and have expiration dates. Please note we will usually be able to get the same offer for new accounts from Google. Google only allows one coupon per new account.

It’s usually not an issue. Not every dealer wants the same results. One may specialize in Draperies and another in Shutters. One may want commercial jobs and the other specializes in new homes. I have yet to encounter an issue with Google Ads competing with one another’s.

This can be a problem. If I see a lot of traffic going to your website and you are receiving no calls, then we can talk about rebuilding the site to contemporary standards. My belief is a website should be a tool to generate leads using both SEO and Google Ads. This is why I offer website/SEO services.

Believe it or not, the answer is No. I’ve seen people use their Facebook page as their site. I’ve seen people use individual landing pages, and they both worked to generate leads. Obviously, a great website is the best solution.

Yes, we do. We charge a one time $325 for Setup and $249 per month for the site management and SEO. It takes about 30-45 days from start to finish. My team will design, write, and build the site. Then we will be managing your SEO each month. SEO is the most important item your site needs to generate leads. I’m a big advocate of using both a great site and Paid Ads.

There are several ways. If you spend $1000 a month on advertising and your gross sales are $25K per month, you have a 25/1 ROI. I prefer to use net numbers. So if I spend $1000 on advertising and I net $15K then I have a more realistic ROI of 15/1.

Let me know and I’ll pause your campaign and turn it back on when you return. Aloha.

No, all I ask is you read my terms and conditions. Basically, it talks about realistic expectation and I am not a miracle worker. It’s important to have realistic expectations when signing up for Google Advertising.

This is highly unlikely, but it could happen. I did set up a guy in a major market and he canceled 3 days later claiming he knew it wouldn’t work. Unfortunately for him, 2 of his competitors came in right after he quit and both are doing very well with Google Advertising. BTW He’s welcome to come back at any time. I do my best to help everyone.

I can usually tell in about 30 days if you’re going to have success. It’s rare not to have success. Sometimes there’s just not enough traffic in small areas to warrant the cost. In cases like this, SEO is a better investment for you.

Yes, this is very likely. Since I’m a marketing guy, I look at your business by the year. Let’s say you have set a budget of $12,000 per year for advertising. I know from historical data that winter is slower, so I’ll spend more of your $12K in the winter, and in the fall when it’s busier I’ll spend less. By developing an advertising schedule we can remove much of the ebb and flow of your business. This is one of the reasons I send reports weekly, so you can let me know if you want to decrease or increase the spend the following week.

No problem. I have several clients who only want to attract high-end shutter or drapery clients. By using the sales funnel selling strategy, I can isolate buyers who are more likely to be looking for premium products.

Absolutely. If you’re having a sale on Roman Shades, let me know and I’ll build ads just for the Roman Shade special. If you are running a promo such as Buy One And Get One Free, no problem. Let me know and I’ll set it up with your campaigns. Just give a few days notice.

Sure. I’m sure you heard the story of the $1Million Dollar machine that stopped running? The repairman came in, walked the length of the machine, hit it with a wrench and it started working again. He then handed a $10,000 invoice to the plant manager who balked at the cost and asked, “Why so much?” The repairman answered, “It’s $10 for the hit and $9990 for knowing where to hit.” The same is true of Google Ads. It’s all about knowing what to do and how to do it.

The Google Ads dashboard has hundreds of features and tools and is very complex. It’s taken me years to learn, and I still have to study daily to keep up with the changes.

Yes, but I have yet to find a way to make it work. FB is interruption marketing. Your ads only show to a few select people due to the new security systems. Using Google Ads, you are able to target people who are seeking you out. This is a much better ROI. I have yet to meet a person who tells me that Facebook is working to generate leads for their window covering business. It could happen, but not yet. Usually, all they get is ‘likes’. FYI Likes don’t pay the rent. I’ve tested it and several other platforms to generate leads and still, nothing beats Google Advertising.

It depends on you and how you view your business. If you think advertising is a waste of money, then you’re not likely going to invest in any type of advertising. If you believe in investing in your business and know that advertising pays off, then Google Advertising is for you. For those of us who know advertising will pay off, the number is not how much should I invest but how soon can I start? It’s my belief that you can’t afford not to invest in advertising your business.

This is called click fraud and Yes it happens. The good news is Google can tell when it happens and you’ll get a refund. I have a customer that I noticed a $36.82 credit in his account one day. It was a click fraud credit. One of his competitors thought she would waste his money and clicked on his ads several times. Unfortunately for the person who did this, Google knows her IP address, and this could get her banned from using Google advertising for her own business.

If your business is faltering right now, don’t sign up with me. First, call me, and I’ll see if I can help you identify your particular business issues. I’ve set up over 300 people in this business. I wrote a book on how to start and operate a window covering business. I wrote another book on using Google Advertising in your business. We need to know why you’re failing first before we can fix it. I had a client whose website was failing to generate any calls. This went on for 7 months. The site was bringing in loads of traffic, I could see people were spending time on the site, but no calls. I could see where the site owner spent hours trying to figure out what was going on, but no calls. My entire team could not figure it out. One day I asked my brother who is also in the window covering business to have a look. He looked at the area code and said, “Oh, I see he’s in Dallas.” No, he’s in New Jersey. Problem solved!

Advertising with Google is not for everyone. If you’re fine working off referrals and repeat business, that’s great. One of the great things about this industry is that it can be a lifestyle business or you can earn a substantial income. I have a client who does both, he plays golf 3 days a week and works 3 days a week. It’s up to you. You decide how you want your business to serve you.

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