Paid search has quickly become one of the easiest ways that e-commerce specialists, marketers and non-profit brands alike can gain traction in a search world where competition is fierce. Even within PPC, however, there can be quite a steep learning curve, with the end result being lost revenue in many cases. Google AdWords is perhaps the most popular PPC solution available today, and you probably already use it if you are marketing products or content. To get the most out of AdWords is to use it effectively – because so many still struggle with the basics of how to get the best bang for their buck, we’ll outline a few tips to help you double-check your strategy and improve results.

Assess Daily

All too many brands will set up a few AdWords campaigns with the hope that they’ll be pinging search engines effectively, but fail to check in on the results frequently. There is a world of information that suggests that in addition to A/B testing, a consistent rotation of even the best-performing ads is necessary to achieve maximum results. Because of this, you should be assessing each AdWords campaign daily. These metrics are your clues to whether a change in pitch is needed, or whether your money is well spent. Every day that goes by without an assessment of the data on your part is a potential day of wasted revenue. While knee-jerk changes in your PPC approach aren’t smart, a campaign that performs significantly below expectations for multiple days needs to be pulled pronto.

Assess the Competition

Having a good idea of what your competitors are doing may be the best way to discover where and how you need to target your PPC efforts. There are a variety of tools available that can be used to assess these brands’ strategies,  from keyword usage to ad copy. This will help you see where they are targeting their efforts; you’ll even be able to use some of these tools to determine what they are bidding. Whenever you need to consider a change in budget or a new campaign promotion, assessing the competition is an invaluable approach. Not all of your competitors will be using AdWords properly, but the ones who are can be the best examples of what you should do going forward.

Assess the Industry

With constant changes in AdWords, you need to stay abreast of the latest announcements and changes by Google. Pinging search engines without understanding of nuanced alterations or new features can leave you at a disadvantage when it comes to other competitors. Your brand’s focus is also an area where you’ll want to be up-to-date (if you sell fashion apparel, then knowing about the next major fashion show can be helpful information, for instance). Many different blogs exist out there to cover both AdWords changes and news related to your particular industry, so there’s no excuse not to be informed.

Conclusion

The key to success on Google AdWords is dedication and persistence. Improving your current results can be enhanced through three types of assessments: assessing changes in AdWords itself, assessing changes in each of your PPC campaigns and assessing changes in your industry. By following these basic tips, you’ll quickly see improvements in your return on investment.