The Minimal guides / Google Ads
Google Ads,
in plain English.
Search, Shopping, Performance Max. Different tools for different jobs. Here's how to think about the options before deciding where to put your budget.
- No long contracts
- Clear and honest reporting
- Only what your business needs
Search
When people
are already looking.
Search ads can appear alongside Google search results. Your keywords, ads, budget and campaign settings help determine which searches your business competes for. The goal is to connect a relevant query with a useful answer.
- Useful for services, products and specific customer needs
- Search terms show the actual queries triggering your ads
- Negative keywords help exclude irrelevant searches
- A relevant landing page matters as much as a good headline
Shopping & Performance Max
More ways to
show your products.
Shopping uses product information from Merchant Center to show people what you sell. Performance Max is a goal-based campaign type that can run across Google's channels. Both need clear goals and reliable inputs.
- Keep product titles, prices and availability accurate
- Check the quality of conversion tracking
- Give automated campaigns useful creative and business signals
- Assess results alongside margins and overall sales
Display & YouTube
Beyond the
search results.
Image and video campaigns can introduce your business or reconnect with suitable audiences. They need a clear role in the plan, enough creative to do that job and measurement that reflects the objective.
- Choose formats that match your resources
- Keep an eye on placements and audience quality
- Separate awareness goals from direct response goals
- Use remarketing where consent and platform rules allow
Good to know
The terms behind the reports.
Clear answers. Always a good starting point.
What is a conversion?
An action you choose to measure, such as a purchase, a completed enquiry form or a qualifying call. The definition should reflect what is valuable to your business.
What do CPC and CPA mean?
CPC is cost per click. CPA is cost per acquisition or action, depending on how a campaign defines it. A cheaper click isn't automatically a better result if it doesn't lead to useful business.
What is ROAS?
Return on ad spend compares attributed revenue with advertising spend. It can be useful, but it doesn't automatically account for margins, operating costs or sales that would have happened anyway.
Why don't Google and my shop show identical numbers?
They may use different attribution rules, time windows and ways of recognising customers. Consent choices and technical limits also affect measurement. We look for a coherent picture rather than assuming every report should match exactly.
A good place to start
Let's see what your ads could do.
Tell us a little about your business. We'll take a look at your Google and Meta Ads, then walk you through what we'd change and why.