Google+Adwords

=Google AdWords = toc

Google AdWords Overview
Back in 2000, two years after the debut of the Google search engine, Google introduced simple text ads which immediately began to outperform banner ads and other popular web advertising of the time. The success was attributed to the fact that the results were highly relevant; users received ads based on the keywords that they entered. At that time, Google charged advertisers based on the CPM, or cost per thousand ads shown. The text ads were shown in a light box at the top of the search results under the header “Sponsored Links”. In 2002, the ad service was redesigned to incorporate the CPC, or cost per click, model that other online ad services were using at that time. Google’s model differed in that the focus was still on keyword relevance. The service paired a keyword auction with the concept of click through rate (CTR), or the number of times an ad is clicked on per times shown. Today advertisers can choose either the CPM or CPC model. Ads are still listed as “Sponsored Links” at the top of the search but may also be listed on the right side of the screen. Google AdWords has several additional options to help advertisers target a precise audience. In spite of being around for eleven years, Google AdWords has received very little attention from libraries or other information organizations, who are increasingly offering web based services that could be easily advertised online. media type="youtube" key="kce07j6zQLI" height="315" width="420"

**Account Level**
The account is generally name of the organization. At this level the AdWord’s Account can be linked to a website’s Google Analytics account. The summary of each campaign’s activity can be monitored at this level, as well.

**Campaigns**
Each Account can have numerous campaigns. Think of campaigns as different “products” or services offered by the library, such as Electronic Resources, or Community Outreach events. At this level, each campaign can have different settings for a daily budget, a geographic region, and whether the ads will display on d esktop and laptop computers, mobile devices with full browsers, and/or tablets with full browsers. There are numerous additional settings which can determine when and where the ads are displayed. Whole campaigns can be paused if they are not producing the desired results. Daily budgets can be shifted and readjusted as often as desired.

**Ad Groups**
Ad Groups divide the campaigns even further. For example, Electronic Resources may have an Ad Group for Health databases and another one for a database devoted to small engine repair. Essentially, the library could have an Ad Group for each electronic resource it owned or each category if the resources are grouped by subject on the website. Different resources could only be grouped together if they would be attracted by the same group of keywords. If someone trying to repair a law mower, types in the keywords “lawn mower repair”, the ad for the small engine repair database could display. When the Ad Groups are more specific, and have tightly focused keywords, the ads are more relevant to the searcher. A higher relevancy will usually yield a higher click through rate. Which means more people will come to the website and over time the bid prices will drop. At this level, advertisers can customize the selection of keywords, set maximum bid amounts for the group or per keyword, and multiple ads can be set up for each ad group. Individual Ads or keywords can be paused or deleted.

**Keywords**
Each ad group can have keywords and negative keywords. In the example above, Small Engine Repair ad group would have separate keywords from the Outreach ad group. Two ad groups from the same campaign should not have the same keywords. It would drive up the bid prices. Negative keywords can prevent ad groups from showing up for unwanted keywords. Negative keywords start with a "-". Both types of keywords can be specify Broad, "Phrase" or [Exact ] Match.

**Ads**
Each Ad Group should have at least two ads. An ad will have four lines of text. The first line is the title and is limited to 25 characters. The next two lines can have 35 characters each and make up the main part of the ad. The last line is the display URL which is limited to 35 characters. The display URL is not functional, adding "small engine" and can be altered to include a keyword.

**Example of ad for a small engines database:** <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Repairing Small Engines? <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Reliable Engine Repair Info! <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Download From your Local Library <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">www.yourlibrary.org/smallengine

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Key Terms
<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**Click** - A click (sometimes called a clickthrough) occurs when a user sees your ad and clicks on the title of your ad, leading them to your website.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**Conversion** - When a user completes an action on your site, such as buying something or requesting more information.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**CPC** - Cost-per-click bid - Your maximum cost-per-click (CPC) bid is the price you tell AdWords you're willing to pay for clicks or impressions on your ads. You set a budget at the campaign level, and you can set bids at the ad group level, or for specific keywords or placements.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**CPM** - Cost-per-thousand impressions - This stands for cost-per-thousand impressions. A CPM pricing model means advertisers pay for impressions received.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**CTR** - Clickthrough rate - This is the number of clicks your ad receives divided by the number of times your ad is shown (impressions). Your ad and keyword each have their own CTRs, unique to your own campaign performance.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**Display URL** - When you create your ad, you'll specify two URLs: a display URL and a destination URL. The **display URL** is the website address that's displayed on your ad. The destination URL is where users actually end up after clicking on the ad. In the example below, the last line (in green) is the display URL.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**Impression** - Each time someone searches on Google or the [|Google Network] and your AdWords ad displays, it is counted as one "impression." The "Impr" located on your reporting statistics shows the number of impressions for your ad. Impressions on Google Instant are measured differently.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**Landing Page** - Landing Page is an active webpage where customers will 'land' when they click your ad. The web address for this page is often called a 'destination URL' or 'clickthrough URL.'

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">From @http://adwords.google.com/support/aw/bin/topic.py?hl=en&topic=15464

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Helpful Links & Tools

 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;"><span class="wiki_link_ext">Glossary of Terms - This is a glossary of essential terms used in the Google AdWords process.
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">AdWords Help--Google provides a variety of free resources to advertisers get started.
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">AdWords Online Classroom-– Google’s YouTube Channel for AdWords help.
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Inside Adwords - Google's official blog for news, information, and tips on AdWords
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Keyword Tool - This is generally used inside a campaign to help come up with lists of related keywords to target.
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Traffic Estimator -This tool is generally used inside the campaign to help estimate how many clicks certain keyword combinations and bid prices will generate.
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Google Analytics -A free Google application that can be linked to a website to track the website’s traffic.
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Google AdWords Editor - A downloadable application, from Google, used to facilitate the ad writing experience. It automatically counts the characters of each line and can be used to find keyword and negative keyword combination. When linked to a campaign, the AdWords editor can sync with the account and upload and download changes made in either location.

Library Science Connection
While any library can use Google AdWords to attract patrons to online or real world services, it is ideal for promoting online resources. Digital libraries, electronic databases, and eBook collections are ideal candidates for attracting new patrons online with Google AdWords.

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">**References**
<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Cohen, D. (2000). Success comes fast for search outsider Google. New Media Age (1364-7776), 34. Retrieved from Business Source Premier.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Google. (2011). AdWords help. Retrieved from https://adwords.google.com/support/aw/?hl=en-GB

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Google. (2011). AdWords help – glossary. Retrieved from http://adwords.google.com/support/aw/bin/topic.py?hl=en-GB&topic=15464

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Google. (2011). AdWords online Classroom. Retrieved from http://www.google.co.uk/adwords/onlineclassroom/#utm_source=awo&utm_medium=hc&utm_campaign=en-uk-aw-hc

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Google. (2011). Google AdWords. Retrieved from https://accounts.google.com/ServiceLogin?service=adwords&hl=en_GB<mpl=regionalc&passive=true&ifr=false&alwf=true&continue=https://adwords.google.com/um/gaiaauth?apt%3DNone%26ltmpl%3Dregionalc&sacu=1

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Tan, H. (2000). Google's simple text ads. MC: Technology Marketing Intelligence, 20(11), 24. Retrieved from Business Source Premier.