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Google Ads Account Audit Checklist: Essential Steps for Optimizing Performance

Anton Ingram •
#advertising

Google Ads account audits are crucial for improving ad performance and getting the most out of your advertising budget. These audits help find areas that need work and show ways to make your campaigns better. A Google Ads audit checks things like account structure, ad content, keywords, and tracking to boost your ad results.

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Regular audits can help catch issues before they become big problems. They also help you stay up-to-date with new features and best practices in Google Ads. By doing audits, you can make sure your ads are working as well as they can be.

A good audit looks at many parts of your Google Ads account. It checks how your account is set up, looks at your ad copy, and reviews your keywords. It also makes sure you’re tracking conversions correctly and using the right bidding strategies. All of these checks help make your ads more effective and give you better results for your money.

Key Takeaways

Account and Campaign Structure

A well-organized Google Ads account is key for success. Good structure helps manage campaigns, track performance, and make improvements easily.

Understanding Account Hierarchy

Google Ads accounts have a clear hierarchy. At the top is the account itself. Under that are campaigns, then ad groups, and finally ads and keywords. Each level has its own settings and purpose.

Campaigns focus on specific goals or product lines. Ad groups contain closely related keywords and ads. This structure allows for targeted messaging and budgeting.

A good account structure makes it easy to:

When auditing, check if campaigns are logically organized. Look for clear themes in ad groups. Make sure there’s no overlap between campaigns or ad groups.

Evaluating Campaign Settings

Campaign settings control how and where ads show. Key settings to review include:

Check if these align with campaign goals. For example, a local business should have tight location targeting. An international company might target multiple countries and languages.

Review daily budgets. Are they enough to meet goals? Look at bid strategies. Manual bidding offers more control, while automated strategies can save time.

Assessing Ad Group Organization

Good ad groups have a clear theme. They contain similar keywords and relevant ads. This helps create targeted messages for searchers.

When auditing ad groups:

Aim for 10-20 keywords per ad group. This allows for specific ad copy. If an ad group has many unrelated keywords, split it up.

Also check ad relevance scores. Low scores may mean ads don’t match keywords well. Consider creating more specific ad groups if needed.

Keyword Management and Optimization

Keywords are the foundation of search campaigns. Good keyword management is crucial for success. When auditing keywords:

Use a mix of match types. Broad match can find new opportunities. Exact match gives more control. Phrase match balances reach and relevance.

Search terms reports show what people actually searched for. Use these to find new keywords and add negatives. Negative keywords prevent ads from showing for irrelevant searches.

Remove duplicate keywords across ad groups. They can compete with each other and waste budget. Also pause or remove low-performing keywords to improve account efficiency.

Ad Content and Quality

Ad content and quality are crucial for Google Ads success. They affect how well your ads perform and how much you pay for clicks. Let’s look at key areas to check during an audit.

Reviewing Ad Copy and Relevance

Ad copy is the text that appears in your ads. It needs to be relevant, clear, and compelling. Check if your ads match the keywords in each ad group. Make sure they include a strong call-to-action.

Look at your responsive search ads. These ads mix different headlines and descriptions. Check if you have enough options for each part. Aim for at least 10 headlines and 4 descriptions.

Review your ad rotation settings. You can let Google optimize which ads show most often. Or you can rotate them evenly to test different versions.

Ad extensions add extra info to your ads. They make ads bigger and more useful. Check your extension setup during the audit.

Common extensions include:

Make sure your sitelinks go to relevant pages. Update any old or incorrect info in your extensions. Add new extensions if you’re not using all types.

Analyzing Quality Score and Ad Rank

Quality Score affects your ad position and cost. It’s based on expected clickthrough rate, ad relevance, and landing page experience. Check the Quality Score for your keywords during the audit.

To improve Quality Score:

Ad Rank decides where your ad shows on the page. It’s based on your bid, Quality Score, and expected impact of extensions. Review these factors to improve your ad positions.

Keyword and Search Term Analysis

A thorough review of keywords and search terms is vital for a successful Google Ads account audit. This process helps optimize targeting, improve relevance, and maximize ad spend efficiency.

Identifying Branded vs Non-Branded Keywords

Branded keywords are terms that include your company or product name. Non-branded keywords relate to your products or services without mentioning your brand. Analyzing both types is crucial for a complete audit.

Branded keywords often have higher click-through rates and lower costs. They can show customer loyalty and brand awareness. Non-branded keywords reach new customers but may be more competitive.

Create separate campaigns for branded and non-branded terms. This allows for different budgets and strategies. Track performance metrics for each type to understand their impact on your overall campaign success.

Analyzing Search Intent and Relevance

Understanding user intent behind search queries helps match ads to user needs. Review search term reports to see what users actually type when they see your ads.

Categorize search terms by intent:

Ensure your keywords and ads align with these intents. Adjust ad copy and landing pages to match user expectations. Remove irrelevant keywords that don’t match your offering or target audience.

Optimizing Keyword Match Types and Negative Lists

Keyword match types control how closely a search must match your keyword to trigger your ad. Review and adjust match types for better control over ad spend and relevance.

Broad match: Reaches the widest audience but can trigger irrelevant searches. Phrase match: More targeted, showing ads for searches that include your keyword phrase. Exact match: Most specific, showing ads only for very close variations of your keyword.

Use a mix of match types to balance reach and precision. Start broad and narrow down based on performance data.

Build a robust negative keyword list to prevent ads from showing for irrelevant searches. Review search term reports regularly to find new negative keywords. This improves ad relevance and reduces wasted spend.

Conversion Tracking and Bidding Strategies

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Tracking conversions and setting the right bidding strategy are key to a successful Google Ads campaign. These elements help measure performance and optimize spending for better results.

Setting and Measuring Conversion Goals

Conversion tracking is vital for measuring campaign success. It lets you see which ads lead to valuable customer actions.

To set up conversion tracking:

  1. Define your conversion goals (purchases, sign-ups, etc.)
  2. Add conversion tracking code to your website
  3. Set up conversion actions in Google Ads

Check that conversion tracking is working properly. You can do this by performing test orders. Click on your own ad and complete a conversion action to verify tracking.

Monitor your conversion rate regularly. This shows the percentage of clicks that result in conversions. A low rate may indicate issues with your landing page or ad relevance.

Evaluating Bid Strategy and Adjustments

Choosing the right bid strategy is crucial for campaign performance. Google Ads offers several automated bid strategies to consider:

Review your current strategy. Is it meeting your goals? If not, test a different approach.

Bid adjustments let you fine-tune bids based on factors like device, location, and time of day. Analyze performance data to identify opportunities for adjustments.

Analyzing Cost Per Click and Conversion Value

Cost Per Click (CPC) is what you pay for each click on your ad. It’s important to balance CPC with conversion value.

To optimize CPC:

Conversion value is the worth of a conversion to your business. Assign accurate values to different conversion actions.

Calculate your Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) by dividing conversion value by ad spend. This helps determine if your campaigns are profitable.

Regularly review these metrics to ensure your ads are cost-effective and driving valuable conversions.

Performance Metrics and Optimization

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Tracking key metrics and optimizing campaign performance are crucial for successful Google Ads campaigns. Advertisers need to focus on important data points and use tools to gain insights that drive better results.

Understanding Impression Share and Ad Spend

Impression share shows how often your ads appear compared to potential impressions. A low impression share may mean you’re missing out on clicks. To improve it, increase your ad budget or boost quality scores.

Ad spend is the total amount spent on your campaigns. Monitor it closely to ensure you stay within budget. Compare ad spend to conversions to calculate return on investment (ROI).

Use budget reports to track daily and monthly spend. Adjust bids and budgets based on performance to optimize ad spend efficiency.

Leveraging Auction Insights and Competitive Data

Auction insights reveal how your ads perform against competitors. This data helps identify areas for improvement and opportunities to gain market share.

Key metrics to review:

Use this info to adjust bids, improve ad copy, and refine targeting. Focus on outperforming competitors for your most valuable keywords.

Integration with Google Analytics and Attribution Models

Link Google Ads and Analytics accounts to get a fuller picture of campaign performance. This integration provides data on user behavior after clicking ads.

Key benefits:

Use attribution models to understand how different touchpoints contribute to conversions. Popular models include:

Choose the model that best fits your business goals and customer journey. Use these insights to optimize ad performance and allocate budget more effectively across campaigns and channels.

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