If you are looking to maximise your success with Google Ads you need to build solid foundations and understand how data can influence the audience creation and campaign strategy for your campaigns. This is an abridged version of a presentation from the Ecommerce Mastery Live event in July 2019 in Barcelona.

1. Maximize your success
using Google Ads*
Jim Banks
CEO • Spades Media
@jimbanks

2. Maximize your success
using Google Ads*
Jim Banks
CEO • Spades Media
*We are covering more than
Google Ads here…
@jimbanks

3. Why me?
• 20 years buying media online
• Google advertiser since day 1
• Wish had kept score….
• 2 million leads
• $1.8 billion in ecommerce sales
• Over 1000 businesses
• Some of those are guesses..
@jimbanks

4. PRODUCT
PROMOTION
PLACE
PRICE

7. Let’s Talk Google Ads…….
• Google Analytics
• Google Tag Manager
• Data Capture
• Audience Management
• Features Few People Use
@jimbanks

8. Why GA, GTM, Data, Audiences?
@jimbanks

9. “Creativity will always
be our superpower.
But data is our
compass.”
https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/advertising-channels/-technology-and-creativity/
@jimbanks

10. “Data is the fuel for
what great creatives
do — move people in
the most emotional
way possible.”
https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/advertising-channels/-technology-and-creativity/
@jimbanks

11. FOUNDATIONS
@jimbanks

13. Why GA, GTM,
Data, Audiences?

14. Google Analytics – Out Of The Box
• Good, Not Great
• Basic Data Capture
• Google-centric
• Free
@jimbanks

15. “Default” Channels
@jimbanks

16. @jimbanks
Official Google Demo Site

17. Our “Default”
Channels
@jimbanks

18. @jimbanks
We also add Video
“channel” to most
accounts

19. Audiences
@jimbanks

20. @jimbanks
We also add Facebook
specific “audiences” to
most accounts

21. @jimbanks

22. This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND

23. @jimbanks
 Custom Channels - https://www.spadesmedia.com/channels
 Demographics - Age & Gender - https://www.spadesmedia.com/demographics/age/gender
 Demographics - Browser & OS - https://www.spadesmedia.com/demographics/browser/os
 Visitors - Recency, Frequency, Monetary (RFM) - https://www.spadesmedia.com/visitors/rfm
 Visitors - New vs. Returning - https://www.spadesmedia.com/visitors/new/returning
 Visitors - Facebook Ads - https://www.spadesmedia.com/visitors/facebook
GA – Audiences

24. @jimbanks
GA – Audiences

25. This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND

26. @jimbanks
 Shared Sources - https://www.spadesmedia.com/shared-sources
 Shared Placements - https://www.spadesmedia.com/shared-placements
 Segments Market & Non-Buyers - https://www.spadesmedia.com/shared-target-facebook
GA – Segments

27. @jimbanks
GA – Segments

28. @jimbanks
LOCATION

29. @jimbanks

30. @jimbanks
NEW vs.
RETURNING

31. @jimbanks
New vs. returning Visitors

32. @jimbanks
GOOGLE TAG
MANAGER (GTM)

33. GTM – Where (some) Of The Magic Happens
• Improves Site Speed
• Improves Efficiency
• Stop Bothering Developers
• Turn Marketers Into Coders
• Track behavioral activity, user engagement
@jimbanks

34. @jimbanks

35. @jimbanks

36. @jimbanks

37. @jimbanks
GTM – Omni-Channel Marketing

38. @jimbanks
GA – Segments
Build Audiences in GA based on Facebook Sources/Placements

39. @jimbanks
Track (in real time)
visitors/sources/funnel
stage/location/browser/devic
e/OS

40. @jimbanks

41. @jimbanks
GOOGLE ADS
1. Quality Score
2. Valuetrack Parameters
3. Ad Customisers & IF
4. Google Ads Editor
5. Ad Types
6. Scale

42. @jimbanks
QUALITY SCORE

43. @jimbanks

44. @jimbanks

45. @jimbanks
Why does QS Matter?

46. BAD EXAMPLE

47. @jimbanks
QUALITY SCORE ACTION POINTS

48. @jimbanks
VALUETRACK
PARAMETERS

49. @jimbanks
UTM PARAMETERS
• SOURCE*
• MEDIUM*
• CAMPAIGN*
• TERM (KEYWORD)
• CONTENT (ADS)
• * Required

50. @jimbanks
VALUETRACK
PARAMETERS
≠
UTM
PARAMETERS

51. @jimbanks
VALUETRACK EXAMPLES
ACCOUNT LEVEL
Go to - https://ads.google.com/aw/settings/account
Settings / Account Settings
Add under Tracking / Tracking Template :
{lpurl}{ignore}?camp_id={campaignid}&grp_id={adgroupid}&adid={creative}&kw={keyword}&mt={matc
htype}&source={network}&pos={adposition}&tgt={targetid}&phys={loc_physical_ms}&device={device}

52. @jimbanks
VALUETRACK EXAMPLES

53. @jimbanks
VALUETRACK EXAMPLES
Display -
{lpurl}{ignore}?camp_id={campaignid}&grp_id={adgroupid}&kw={keyword}&place={placement}&mt={matchtype}&source={network}&
tgt={targetid}&loc={loc_physical_ms}&device={device}&adid={creative}
Shopping -
{lpurl}{ignore}?camp_id={campaignid}&grp_id={adgroupid}&source={network}&tgt={targetid}&loc={loc_physical_ms}&device={devic
e}&ad_id={creative}&merch_id={merchant_id}&chan={product_channel}&prod_id={product_id}&part={product_partition_id}
Video -
{lpurl}{ignore}?camp_id={campaignid}&grp_id={adgroupid}&source={network}&tgt={targetid}&phys={loc_physical_ms}&int={loc_inte
rest_ms}&device={device}&adid={creative}&place={placement}
Removed pos={adposition} as Ad Position is being replaced

54. @jimbanks
VALUETRACK PARAMETERS ACTION POINTS
 Use them to capture extra information
 Always test your URL’s when adding
 Remarket to Facebook using campaign ID’s
 Use your own parameters if they make sense for your business

55. @jimbanks
AD CUSTOMISERS & IF

56. @jimbanks

57. @jimbanks
If FBEML Did Ad Customisers….

58. @jimbanks
But If FBEML Did Ad Customisers….

59. @jimbanks

60. @jimbanks

61. @jimbanks
Ad Customisers & IF – Action Points
 Business data feed in Google Sheets
 Countdown is SUPER powerful
 IF for mobile – Use “tap”
 IF for audiences – SUPER powerful for remarketing &
abandoned cart

62. @jimbanks
GOOGLE ADS
EDITOR

63. @jimbanks

64. @jimbanks

65. @jimbanks
Google Ads Editor – Action Points
 Use regularly – more than browser Google Ads
 Apply the rules that make sense for your business
 It will improve your speed/productivity by > 100%
 Export entire account every month
 Keep local notes of “tests” and changes
 Use annotations in Google Ads for shared data

66. @jimbanks
AD TYPES

67. @jimbanks
SMART DISPLAY

68. @jimbanks
Smart Display
 Great for tCPA – No conversions = free traffic
 Utilizes Google’s AI & Machine Learning
 Halo effect on other campaigns
 Set a generous tCPA
 Set daily budget at 10x tCPA
 Give enough time to learn (10 days min)
 Scale slowly

69. @jimbanks
Smart Display

70. @jimbanks
SHOPPING

71. @jimbanks
Shopping
 Standard, Smart, Showcase
 Ensure feed is well optimized
 Title, Description, custom_label, sizes/color
 Smart might perform better and less management, but less
control
 Multiple Smart Shopping if you have multiple ROAS goals
 Showcase only if you are a bigger brand with budget (Shopping
is BOFU)

72. @jimbanks
Shopping – Custom Labels

73. @jimbanks
RESPONSIVE
SEARCH ADS (RSA)

74. @jimbanks
Responsive Search Ads
 Assets shown in any order so make sure they make sense
 Pin important components
 Have 2 expanded search ads as well
 Minimum 5 unique headlines with unique phrases (8-10 unique headlines
better)
 2-3 headlines with keywords
 2-3 with product features (wide choice of colours or sizes) or service
benefits (24/7 customer service, free shipping)
 Headlines of different lengths
 At least 2 distinct descriptions

75. @jimbanks
Ad Types – 👍 or 👎
 Smart Display – 100% 👍
 Smart Shopping – 🤞
 RSA – Responsive Search Ads - 👍

76. @jimbanks
SCALE

77. @jimbanks
Secret To Scaling
 Be patient
 Walk the plank with GDN
 Think less about keywords, more about users, audience
& intent
 Dial in your audiences
 Think omni-channel
 Google Ads are less volatile than Facebook

78. @jimbanks
Secret To Scaling - More
 MUST use Google Ads conversion tracking
 Add in bid adjustments for – age, location, device
 Use dayparting to mirror conversion model

79. @jimbanks
Dayparting

80. @jimbanks
Dayparting

81. @jimbanks
Dayparting

82. @jimbanks
Dayparting

83. @jimbanks
Dayparting

84. @jimbanks
Dayparting

85. @jimbanks
TOOLS WE USE
✅ Optmyzr - https://www.spadesmedia.com/optmyzr/ (reporting/shopping/QS)
✅ SpeedPPC - https://www.spadesmedia.com/speed-ppc/ (campaign creation at scale)
✅ Teamwork - https://www.spadesmedia.com/teamwork/ (processes/templates/checklists)
✅ Supermetrics - https://www.spadesmedia.com/supermetrics/ (data upload & reporting)
✅ Evernote - https://www.spadesmedia.com/evernote/ (clipping ads, guides)
✅ Lucky Orange - https://www.spadesmedia.com/lucky-orange/ (user journey/heatmaps)
✅ Adbeat - https://www.spadesmedia.com/adbeat/ (competitor analysis/ad ideas)

86. Thank You
Jim Banks
CEO
Spades Media
jim.banks@spadesmedia.com
@jimbanks