The keys to a successful Google Ads audit

Imagine spending thousands of euros on Google Ads without the certainty that your money is being well spent. This is the situation faced by many companies. A recent WordStream study reveals that 61% of advertisers feel that their Google Ads campaigns could perform much better. The solution? A Google Ads audit audit.

In this guide, we will explore in detail how to perform an effective audit for maximize your return on investment.

Why carry out a Google Ads audit?

An audit Google Ads is more than just a campaign evaluation; it's a deep dive into the mechanics of your advertising efforts.

This review is an excellent starting point for identifying optimization levers and reaching your performance targets more quickly:

• ROI optimization
  Example: an online sales company discovers during its audit that 40% of its budget is allocated to campaigns generating only 10% of sales. By adjusting its budget, it increases its ROI by 35% in just two months.

• Cost reduction
  Example: A law firm identifies that 25% of its clicks were coming from irrelevant searches such as "lawyer jobs". By excluding these keywords, the firm reduces its expenses by 30%, while maintaining the same number of qualified leads.

• Improved performance
  Example : a B2B company finds that its mobile ads generate a conversion rate 50% lower than desktop ads. By optimizing its landing pages for mobile, it increases its overall conversion rate by 22%.

Junto reports that a well-executed audit can improve click-through rates by up to 50%, and reduce cost per conversion by up to 30% in some cases.

8 essential steps for a successful Google Ads audit

Step 1: Define campaign objectives

Before diving into the metrics, it's crucial to review the objectives of your Google Ads campaigns. Your objectives must be SMART :

1. Specific : "Increase online sales" isn't specific enough. Instead, aim for "Increase online sales of electronic products by 20%".
2. Measurable : Define clear KPIs such as conversion rate or ROAS (Return on Ad Spend).
3. Achievable : Based on past performance and market trends.
4. Realistic : Consider your budget and resources.
5. Time-defined : Set a deadline, e.g. "by the end of the quarter".

Example : An e-learning company defines a new SMART objective : "Increase the number of online course registrations by 30% over the next 3 months, with a maximum cost per acquisition of €50".

Step 2: Account structure analysis

A well-organized account structure is the foundation of a successful campaign. So follow a logical hierarchy:

1. Campaigns : Organized by product line or main objective
2. Ad groups : Grouped by theme or specific products
3. Keywords : 10-20 closely related keywords per ad group
4. Ads : At least 3 ad variants per group

Example : An online furniture store restructures its account by creating separate campaigns for "Living room", "Bedroom", "Kitchen", etc. Each campaign contains specific ad groups such as "Leather sofas", "Coffee tables", etc. Each campaign contains specific ad groups such as "Leather Sofas", "Coffee Tables", etc. This restructuring improves its Quality Score by an average of 15%.

Step 3: Targeting and audience evaluation

Precise targeting is essential to the effectiveness of your campaigns. Use SEISO 's tools to refine your targeting:

• Geographic : Target the areas where your offer is most relevant.
• Demographics : Adjust for the age, gender and income of your ideal audience.
• By device : Optimize your bids according to performance on desktop, mobile and tablet devices.
• Schedule : Identify the most profitable times of day.

Example : A restaurant discovers that 70% of its conversions (online bookings) come from mobile users between 4pm and 8pm. By increasing mobile bids by 30% during these hours, it increases its bookings by 25% and reduces its CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) by 15%.

Step 4: Keyword and match analysis

Keywords are the heart of your search campaigns. Keyword optimization involves :

• Performance analysis : Identify high-converting keywords and those that are draining your budget to no avail.
• Match types : Make judicious use of exact, phrase and modified wide matches.
• Negative keywords : Eliminate irrelevant traffic.
• Search for new keywords : Use the Google Keyword Planner to discover new opportunities.

Example : An online bike store uses the general keyword "bike" in broad match. The audit revealed that this keyword generates a lot of clicks for "exercise bike", a product that doesn't sell. By adding "apartment" as a negative keyword and refining its product matches, the company reduced its expenses by 20% while increasing sales by 15%.

Step 5: Reviewing ads and extensions

Your ads are your company's showcase on Google. To maximize their impact, use a number of levers:

• Ad text : Include your main keywords, a unique value proposition, and a clear call to action.
• Ad extensions : Use all relevant extensions (side links, site extracts, calls, etc.) to increase visibility.
• A/B testing : Continuously test different ad variants.

Example : A real estate agency adds the call extension to its ads, allowing mobile users to contact them directly from the search results. This simple change increases its click-through rate by 15% and generates 22% more leads.

Step 6: Analysis of landing pages

Landing pages are crucial to converting clicks into customers. Make sure they are :

• Relevant : The content must correspond exactly to the search intent and the ad.
• Fast : A loading time of more than 3 seconds can increase the bounce rate by 32%.
• Optimized for mobile : Over 50% of web traffic is mobile.
• With a clear CTA : The desired action must be obvious and easy to carry out.

Example : A fashion e-commerce company discovers that its main product page had a loading time of 6 seconds on mobile. By optimizing images and using browser caching, this time was reduced to 2.5 seconds. Result: a 28% increase in conversion rate on mobile.

Step 7: Budget and bid evaluation

An budget and bid management is essential to maximize your ROI. We recommend :

• Analyze budget allocation : Make sure your best-performing campaigns aren't limited by budget.
• Use smart bidding strategies : Test strategies like Target CPA or Target ROAS to automatically optimize your bids.
• Adjust bids by device : Increase or decrease bids according to performance on each type of device.

Example : A B2B software company uses manual bidding and spends its daily budget before 3 pm. By switching to a target CPA strategy and increasing the budget by 20% on the best-performing campaigns, it increases conversions by 35% while maintaining the same CPA.

Step 8: Check conversion tracking

Accurate conversion tracking is fundamental to measuring the success of your campaigns. Make sure you :

• Clearly define your conversions : Identify the actions that have real value for your business.
• Implement tracking correctly : Use Google Tag Manager for reliable tracking.
• Assign a value to each conversion : This allows you to optimize on the basis of revenue generated, not just the number of conversions.
• Analyze conversion path Use attribution reports to understand the impact of each touchpoint.

Example : An online school tracks only final registrations as conversions. By adding tracking of brochure requests and registrations for free webinars, it discovers that these actions have a 40% chance of converting into paid registrations. This information enables her to optimize her campaigns and increase her paid registrations by 25%.

Data analysis and optimization

Analyzing the data collected during the audit is important for identifying optimization opportunities. Here's how to do it effectively:

1. Use relevant comparison periods : Compare your current performance with that of the same period last year to take account of seasonal variations.
2. Segment your data : Analyze performance by device, location, time of day, etc., to identify specific trends.
3. Prioritize optimizations : Focus first on the changes that will have the greatest impact with the least effort.

Drawing up an action plan

After in-depth analysis, it's time to turn these insights into concrete action. Your action plan should include :

• Specific, measurable objectives : For example, "Increase conversion rate by 15% on search campaigns within 3 months".
• Short-term priority actions : such as "Optimize the 10 highest-spending but lowest-performing keywords within a week".
• A long-term strategy : For example, "Develop a series of optimized landing pages for each major product group over the next 6 months".
• A detailed schedule : with weekly and monthly milestones.
• Assigning responsibilities : Designate who is responsible for each task.

A Google Ads audit is not just a theoretical exercise, it's a powerful tool for transforming your transform your advertising campaigns and boost your ROI.

Remember that optimizing your Google Ads campaigns is an ongoing process. By carrying out regular audits you can not only improve your short-term performance, but also build a lasting competitive competitive advantage.

Don't let your advertising budget go to waste on unoptimized campaigns. Our experts can help you carry out a complete audit and set up a personalized action plan. Contact us to find out more about our solutions.

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