Google ads

[Regencyroofingipswich]

Hi

Not getting too much action on the phone at the minute and just wondered how good google adwords is ?

Have heard of mixed results from advertising on there, i know it can be expensive but does it bring the work in ?

 

[Goldspoon]

Works very well for me. Not expensive. You only pay if somebody clicks on your ad - so they are "interested already". You set what you are able/wish to pay per click and you set a budget for a day (so if you set this at £5 a day and clicks at 50p then once 10 people have clicked then your ad does not show any more that day).

Also get yourself to the top of google for your area and skill e.g. "plumber Lowestoft" etc. Buy a book such as SEO for Dummies (seo = search engine optimisation) or get somebody to do it for you.

90% of my work comes from Google but I have made sure I am top Google spot or close for all towns in my area.

You can also be clever about this. For example the largest bathroom showroom in my area is called (I will use a made up example): Brilliant Bathrooms. I have used my Google search tools in such a way that whenever anybody searches for THEM my ad appears as well (if somebody is going to buy bathroom furniture they'll likely need a plumber). In this case I am actually just above their listing - as a sponsored listing. I also do this for a variety of search terms - all from within my Google Management panel.

Note that their is no point having your ad appear for search term "plumbing". Should be "plumber Lowestoft" or "tiling Derby" etc. You do not want your advert showing all over the UK.

I spend £60 a month on Google ads. Yesterday earned £240 after materials from two jobs - both from Google.

 

[Regencyroofingipswich]

Thanks for the informative and helpful reply.

I think im going to give this a try for a while , i like the idea of spending as much as you like .

 

[WoodYouLike]

Note that their is no point having your ad appear for search term "plumbing". Should be "plumber Lowestoft" or "tiling Derby" etc. You do not want your advert showing all over the UK.

You can use the term plumbing and not show up all over the UK by setting a specific area where you want your ad to show up. Like display only to googlers in Lowestoft or Derby (google picks up on the IP address the googler is using - you'll benefit from local searches. See Google Adwords home page and click on "For Local Businesses")

 

[HERTS P&D]

Hey Goldspoon, whats your daily hit allowance? and how long have you been doing it for?

Andy

 

[Goldspoon]

Daily hit allowance? I allow £10 max. a day. However Google took just £54 for June (just looked). £54 is peanuts - two hours work covers it. No brainer.

It's actually hard to make Google take money. If they take money then people are clicking on my ad. The more they take then the happier I am.

 

[HERTS P&D]

Thanks for letting me know your maximin daily hit, at £10, but how much per hit is your ad being charged?

Many thanks

Andy

 

[Goldspoon]

I specify a max 50p per click in general. However it actually costs 35p (average cost per click).

 

[jackflashh]

Quite interesting, I do well with google without paying, but realise this is a transition period, and eventually to get noticed I will have to spend. I guess by that time the amount of spend will have gone up because of the competitive nature of this type of advertising, and the diminishing revenues going to yell/yellow pages will be aimed well and truly at google, making it more expensive to compete. Time to get creative I think.

 

[Goldspoon]

I do well with Google without paying. However I use Google ads for where I do not do so well. For example I do not need to advertise primary trade in any local towns. But one town is an hour away and I cannot get high in that area so I use paid ads.

 

[ajstoneservices]

Goldspoon,

I know this is a little cryptic, J***** Canoe?

 

[Goldspoon]

Goldspoon,

I know this is a little cryptic, J***** Canoe?

Might be...

 

[DampDunce]

Around 80% of people will search online for what they want, so unless you have a good website which is listed naturally high anyway and you've the time to invest in it, then GoogleAdwords is a good way to go. Do your research thoroughly though - use the free keyword tools available and set your advert so that it's very specific to the sorts of jobs you want to be doing and the area you cover - and create different adverts to cover those areas and jobs.

If used correctly your return on investment is definitely worth it - you may do repeat jobs for that one customer, or be recommended off the back of work you do for that customer so even if the job makes you £50, the ROI will often be a lot higher. And it frees up time you would be doing SEO to get on with the actual jobs and increase customer base.

HTH

 

[opps]

Other than google ads register your home/premises on google local/maps. It is free and people like to use someone local. You can choose key words and have contact details, accepted payment types, links to your site etc.

You will need to wait a couple of weeks for google to send you verification though.

I have a friend that is a photography tutor and he now gets more trade thru that that adwords.

 

[ajstoneservices]

Goldspoon,

I know this is a little cryptic, J***** Canoe?

Might be...

Nice to hear you're doing well