15 Top Tips For Writing Text Ads In Google Ads

Does the thought of writing Google Ads give you nightmares?  Could you do with some insider tips on how to craft ads that clearly explain what you’re offering, encourage click-throughs and which improve your Quality Rating and your conversion rates?   If your answer was ‘yes’, then you need to read on.

Tips for Writing Text Ads in Google Ads

Even if you aren’t a creative copywriter, here are 15 top tips to get your Google Ads copy RIGHT!

Tip 1:    Get Into Your Target Audience’s Mind

Visualise how you would be searching if you were a buyer.  What sort of questions would you be asking and how would you ask?  What problem do you want solved?  How would your service or products meet their needs?  Getting into the mind of your buyers and understanding their search intent will help you create effective and compelling copy that will resonate with your target audience.

Tip 2:    Provide the Solution to What Your Audience Is Hoping to Achieve

This may sound complicated, but essentially your descriptive text should provide the searcher with information they want to hear.  It needs to highlight how you can help them.  Avoid repeating their question or stating the obvious – offer a solution instead.

Tip 3: Include a Call to Action

You can drive more clicks by giving customers a reason to click on your ad.  Your call to action should tell your customers what’s on offer and the text should include actionable verbs like ‘buy now’, ‘get in quickly’, ‘book now’, ‘download your free report’ etc.  Remember though, these are stock standard phrases which everyone uses and the more creative you are with your text, the more your ad will stand out.

Tip 4:    Time Constraints Add Impetus to FOMO

Creating a sense of urgency is a great way of increasing demand.  By including words like ‘sale ends soon’ or on a specific date or text like ‘first 10 customers get an extra 10% off’ etc, you appeal to a searcher’s fear of missing out which adds impetus to your sales call.

Tip 5:    Include Special Offers

Tailor your text to include special offers or discounts to entice more customers.   By keeping these current, relevant (eg Christmas promotion, buy one-get one free this spring etc) and specific (eg save $10 on your first purchase or free shipping), you can make your ad more tempting.

Tip 6:    Follow the KISS Principle

Keep It Simple Stupid!  Don’t overcomplicate your text with clumsy grammar, intimidating language or weird or confusing buzzwords.  Use clear, clean language that stands out.

Tip 7:    Place Relevant Keywords Where Possible and Practical

Try to match your text to the searcher’s intent by including the relevant keyword phrase in the headline, description or URL.  But only use it once!  Google displays the keyword in bold when people search using that term, so it can make your ad stand out.  Using relevant keywords also demonstrates to searchers that your ad is relevant to their search.  Over time, putting keywords in the text can also help improve the Quality Score of your Google Ad.

Tip 8:    Use Powerful ‘You’ and ‘Your’ Words to Improve Customer Engagement

Personalising your ad with pronouns like ‘you’ and ‘your’ can make searchers feel more important and they’ll be more likely to click on it.  Try and address the audience directly.  The ad is not really about telling your story, it’s about what you can offer customers that will benefit them.

Tip 9:    Customise Your Text

Your ads aren’t a ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution to a searcher’s query.  Consider your relationship with the customer.  Are they new or do you have a history with them?  Are they local or national?  Customising the text helps you grab their attention so you can answer their specific query and then invite them to click on the ad.

Tip 10: Put Your Headline to Work

A compelling headline is a must.  Figures are a good way of increasing click-through-rates, especially if you use specific numbers, eg  ‘1,952 customers bought our jeans this month’ as opposed to ‘over 1900…’ and these can be used effectively in a headline.  Keep it concise and compelling and avoid repeating the headline in the text copy.

Tip 11:  Use Ad Extensions

Using Google ad extensions to provide useful additional information can help improve your click-through-rates and your Quality Score.  Ad extensions are a good way of adding additional information to your ad (for example, a location extension provides details about your business’s physical location, contact details and a map link).  They are free to set up but they can cost you money each time an extension is clicked.

Tip 12:  Have a Look at What Your Competitors Are Doing

Why write your own text if your competitors have already done it for you?  Have a look at how they’ve crafted their ads and see if there are any variations that would be suitable for yours.  Make their hard work work for you!

Tip 13: Use Capital Letters WISELY!

Some advertisers capitalise the first letter of each word in their headline.  Others also capitalise each word in their descriptive text.  You should experiment with what works best for you, but beware of over-using capital letters as Google could block your ad.  And remember, never capitalise all the letters in a word as Google doesn’t allow that.

Tip 14: Use All Your Space

Creating copy that is crisp, clear, compelling and concise is a challenge, but you should use the space that Google gives you.  Your words are all you have to convince searchers that your website is exactly what they’re looking for.

Tip 15:  Test Your Ads Regularly

It’s unlikely that you’ll get your ads right the first time.  By testing and tweaking them, you can improve your CTR and conversion rates.  You’ll also benefit your bottom line because you won’t be wasting money on ads that don’t deliver results.

These tips come from Karen Dauncey, an SEO specialist in Perth who has decades of experience in creating effective, compelling copy for Google Ads.  She says that although Google Ads are one of the most cost-effective forms of digital advertising, getting them right takes thorough knowledge of the workings of Google Ads and some creative wordsmithing.

Google Ads is a key aspect of SEO and Dauncey covers the topic extensively in her popular new DIY course, The SEO School.  She designed the modular course to help businesses take ownership of their search engine optimisation and help them put their websites in front of their target online audience.  Participants of The SEO School learn all the fundamentals of SEO and apply the tools, techniques and insider tips to their own websites as they progress through the modules.

Find out more about The SEO School here.

Karen Dauncey

Karen Dauncey has been working in SEO since 2003. She specialises in helping businesses get found online through Google using Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) She is the founder and creator of The SEO School an online SEO Course to help teach business owners how to do their own SEO. She regularly delivers educational programs for both Local, State and Federal Government and is an advisor for the ASBAS Digital Solutions Program. Karen’s passion and commitment to help small business owners get found online is the driving force behind her online school, making SEO advice accessible to all with free resources and online courses.

Karen's wealth of SEO knowledge and practical digital marketing experience comes from running her own SEO and Google Ads agency, Blue Cherry Online Marketing since 2008. Karen has optimised over 1000 websites, managed millions of dollars' worth of spend on Google Ads and has a solid understanding of the constantly shifting industry of digital marketing and SEO. This gives her a unique advantage when it comes to being able to recommend the right online marketing strategies for your business. This gives her a unique advantage when it comes to being able to recommend the right online marketing strategies for your business. She was recently recognised as an SEO Expert for the popular course creation platform, Kajabi as well as appearing on ABC Radio
for her expert opinion on the ACCC's investigation into search engines.

Karen has attended search engine conferences in London, Stockholm, Adelaide and Sydney, and was also invited to attend a pilot Business Coaching Course at Google’s Head Office. She has a Diploma in Marketing from the Chartered Institute of Marketing in the UK.

She is also the co-owner of the Digital Experts Directory, an online directory for female serviced-based businesses to promote their business (with a great backlink for SEO).

To keep up to date with the latest in SEO, join her Facebook group The SEO School Community or follow her on Facebook or LinkedIn.