Google Ads audit – what is it and what elements are assessed during the analysis?

In recent years, online advertising has become the most important element in the promotion of companies both locally, nationally and internationally. Today, regardless of the complexity of business structures, every brand operating online uses SEO, Google Ads or social media marketing as its main advertising channel. We dedicate this article in particular to e-commerce owners and entrepreneurs in the service sector who include Google Ads in their strategy. Through a professionally conducted audit, you can learn how to improve the effectiveness of AdWords advertising and definitely maximise your profits. We encourage you to read on!

Google Ads audit – what is it?

A Google Ads audit is the process of carefully reviewing and analysing your Google Ads campaigns to assess their effectiveness and identify areas for optimisation.

Google Ads audit – what elements are assessed during the comprehensive analysis? [TOP 12]

With a Google Ads audit, you can assess, among other things, whether your campaign meets your business objectives and whether your ad conversion rate is at a sufficiently high level. It is also an opportunity to make an initial determination:

1. advertising costs;
2. performance indicators
3. the design of the campaign structure;
4. the types of advertising used to implement the strategy;
5. quality and consistency of advertising within the campaign;
6. the essentiality of the use of advertising extensions;
7. the effectiveness of the landing page in driving conversions;
8. adaptation of campaigns to different devices and formats;
9. ability to use remarketing solutions;
10. the degree to which advertising channels and formats are optimised according to business objectives;
11. the value of the Click-Through Rate (CTR);
12. effectiveness of the use of exclusions.

It is also worth mentioning that a comprehensive analysis of AdWords advertising is an excellent solution for verifying the correctness of key phrases in terms of sales.

Why opt for a Google Ads audit?

A Google Ads audit is a detailed analysis of an advertising campaign conducted by SEM specialists. A professional AdWords audit verification is worth opting for because:

1. Helps you diagnose problems and find solutions to them in your advertising campaign.
2. Assesses whether the Google Ads account has been configured correctly and whether there is a correct connection to the Google Analytics account 4.
3. Eliminates any errors and allows you to optimise your advertising campaign to attract a larger audience and generate more revenue.
4. Analyses theresults of advertising campaigns and evaluates the strategies used and, above all, analyses potential errors that cause financial losses and hinder the growth of your business.
5. Incorporates data from Google Analytics 4 into the analysis to assess whether the campaign is actually financially beneficial and effective.
6. Evaluates the effectiveness of the advertising campaign and allows you to detect the reasons for the lack of expected results and indicates ways to eliminate them.
7. Enables accurate tracking of the results of advertising campaigns and helps to establish key performance indicators (KPIs).

A Google Ads audit also allows you to identify ineffective campaigns, ad groups and keywords, so you can eliminate unnecessary expenditure.

How to perform a Google Ads audit? – step-by-step instructions

Google Ads audit yourself step by step:

1. Log in to your Google Ads account and go to the “Campaigns” tab. This will give you access to all your ad campaigns.
2. Review the business objectives of the ad campaign. Consider whether they have been clearly defined and whether the advertising campaign is appropriately aligned with the business objectives (e.g. maximising sales, increasing brand recognition or increasing engagement on the site).
3. Check that all campaigns have appropriate names. They should be easily recognisable.
4. Verify the campaign structure and ad groups. It is crucial that campaigns are properly organised and that campaign objectives are clearly defined and aligned.
5. Analyse the use of keywords in the advertising campaign. Pay attention to the effectiveness of the keywords and whether they are well matched to the target group. You can additionally implement long tail SEO phrases (containing more than 3-4 words) into your advertising strategy.
6. Test various forms of advertising. Find out which are the most effective for your advertising campaign. These can be either text, product or video ads in affiliate networks.
7. Make sure you have a suitable remarketing base. This will enable you to reach determined customers at a much lower cost.
8. Pay attention to whether your advertising campaign has been correctly matched to the geographical location of your target group. This will reduce the cost per click and maximise conversions.
9. Check the performance indicators of the advertising campaign. Among the most important we can mention: click-through rate (CTR), cost per click (CPC) and conversion rate (CR).
10. Analyse the subject categories in the advertising campaign. They should be individually tailored to the target group and your design objectives.
11. Verify exclusions. These should be skilfully added to the campaign to prevent ads being displayed in inappropriate places.
12. Check keyword alignment. Test the effectiveness of the campaign in the context of different match types.
13. Conduct audit analysis using conversion tracking tools. Use Google Analytics 4 in particular for this, to see what actions users take on your website after clicking on an advertising link.
14. Check the use of different attribution models. Add only those solutions that best fit your campaign.
15. Verify the effectiveness of using different advertising formats at specific stages of the purchase path. Check which solutions are the most effective.
16. Pay attention to the quality of the landing page. Check that the ad landing page is effective in driving conversions. Eliminate unnecessary elements (e.g. pop-ups and simplify contact forms).

After the audit, develop an action plan based on the results to improve the advertising campaign and increase its effectiveness. The schedule may include, but is not limited to, changing the campaign structure, adding or removing keywords, changing click-through rates and testing different forms of advertising to optimise your campaign and achieve better results.

Remember to pay attention first and foremost to the factors that may affect the effectiveness of your Google Ads campaign. To do this, ask yourself five important questions:

• Have the target keywords been properly matched to the chosen audience?
• Is the advertising campaign well matched to the geographic location of your target audience?
• Is the budget of the advertising campaign appropriately matched to your business goals and target audience?

When performing a Google Ads audit, it is important to focus on the quality of the results and to target the target group that stands out with the highest probability of conversion.

Google Ads audit – by yourself or with the help of a marketing agency?

If you have sufficient knowledge and experience in managing Google Ads campaigns and just need a quick check that your campaigns are optimised, you can try to carry out the audit yourself. In this case, it is a good idea to use the available Google Ads tools and the tips and advice published on the official blog of the developers of the Mountain View giant.

Source: https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/6146252?hl=pl

Many people, on the other hand, need a comprehensive audit that includes not only verification, but also suggestions for improvement measures. In such cases, it is worth seeking the help of the professionals at SEOgroup.

Using our Google Ads audit services, you can count on:

• we will detect weak points of your campaigns;
• we will suggest solutions allowing to increase the effectiveness of your actions;
• help you develop a modern marketing strategy;
• we will facilitate the management of your advertising campaigns;
• enable you to achieve a specific business objective within a specific timeframe.

We approach each order individually and adapt the implemented solutions to your needs and business goals. If you have any questions, we remain available by email or telephone.

How much does a Google Ads audit cost? – sEOgroup price list

The cost of Google Ads audit depends on, among other things:

• the scope of work,
• specificity of the client’s industry,
• number of accounts and campaigns,
• experience and skills of the agency,
• the individual requirements of the client.

Prices usually range from PLN 1,000 to PLN 5,000 net. Each case at SEOgroup is considered individually, therefore we encourage you to contact our specialists by e-mail or telephone.

Source: https://www.seogroup.pl/uslugi/consulting-audyty/audyt-ppc-google-ads/

However, it is important to remember that price is not always the most important factor when choosing an agency or specialist to carry out a Google Ads audit. It also turns out to be important to choose a company by its experience, reliability and reviews (e.g. on Google or in industry forums).

When you choose SEOgroup’s services, you order not only a Google Ads audit, but also a professional analysis of the results and ad optimisation tips – all in the standard price (at no extra cost).

How long does a Google Ads audit take?

The duration of a Google Ads audit can vary depending on factors such as:

• the size of the advertising account,
• the number of campaigns and ads,
• the complexity of the advertising strategy,
• the quality of the account,
• its compliance with Google guidelines.

A Google Ads audit usually takes no longer than 7-14 working days.

It includes an analysis of ad campaigns (including ad quality, ad groups, keywords, targeting settings and analytics tools), as well as A/B testing to optimise ad performance.

FAQ – Frequently asked questions and answers [What is a Google Ads audit]

What are the most common questions and answers about Google Ads auditing?

What is a Google Ads audit?

A Google Ads audit is a detailed analysis of your Google Ads campaigns to identify elements for improvement and to identify ways to optimise your campaigns to increase the effectiveness of advertising your products or services within the Google platform.

What does a comprehensive Google Ads campaign audit include?

A comprehensive Google Ads campaign audit includes a specific list of strengths and elements for improvement, along with a description of these and a detailed explanation of how to fix errors and what changes to make to make campaigns cheaper and more effective.

Who can benefit from a Google Ads audit?

The Google Ads audit is dedicated to companies, entrepreneurs and marketing professionals who want to start advertising their products and services on Google’s advertising network. It is also an excellent solution in terms of reducing costs while increasing return on investment.

What are the benefits of conducting a Google Ads audit?

A Google Ads audit can help you improve the effectiveness of your Google ad campaigns, optimise costs and increase your return on investment. It is also a very helpful option to improve your existing advertising strategy and identify new, more cost-effective ways to effectively promote your products or services on the Google platform.