3 Reasons Your Google Ads is Broken – And How to Fix It

google ads broken

If your Google Ads have suddenly vanished, or if they aren’t showing up at all, this can be incredibly concerning. After all, paid media management is an important part of any good marketing campaign. Below, you can learn the three most common reasons why your Google Ads  are broken as well as some steps you can take to fix it. 

#1 – Your Bid is Too High or Low 

Getting a Google Ad to go live involves a few different steps, especially when it comes to money. First, you have to bid on individual keywords with what is known as a CPC (cost per click) bid. Simply put, you determine which keywords you want to associate with your ad. If you’re a bakery, you might choose “buy local muffins”, for example. Then, if a user types “buy local muffins” into the search bar, sees your ad, and then clicks your ad, you will pay Google the amount you bid on that particular keyword (or phrase in this example). 

Aside from your CPC keyword bids, you’ll also need to tell Google how much you’re willing to spend each day on your ads by setting a daily budget. If your ads are no longer showing up, then it’s possible that your CPC bid was too high. What’s happening is that as people click your ad, you’re getting closer and closer to your daily budget. When you reach that budget, your ad is no longer live until the next day. On the other hand, if you bid too low, Google may not associate your ad with that particular keyword.

#2 – Your Ad was Removed or Wasn’t Approved

If you’re positive that your bid was not the problem, the next thing to check is whether or not your ads were removed. Perhaps it’s possible that you accidentally removed an ad group from your account, or perhaps Google has not approved them. It’s important that you take the tie to review Google’s policies as they relate to ads very carefully and make sure they apply to every single ad you create. Otherwise, Google simply will not publish them. Sometimes marketers find that they have accidentally paused their ads or ad groups. Fixing this is as simple as changing the status of the ad or the group from paused to active. 

#3 – Conflicts Between Negative and Active Keywords

When you create a Google Ad, you’ll be given the opportunity to bid on active keywords – the keywords that will trigger your ad – as well as negative keywords, which are specific keywords that you do not want to relate to your ad in any way. To put this into perspective, assume your bakery is in a town called Green Tree, and you name your business Green Tree Bakery. You might choose to add “Green Tree Park” as a negative keyword so that when people use that phrase, they won’t accidentally click your company’s ad, and you won’t find yourself paying for completely irrelevant clicks. 

The trouble comes when the negative keywords you use counteract your active ones. If you’re bidding on a phrase match of “Green Tree Bakery” but you choose “Green Tree” as a broad negative keyword, that broad negative will override the phrase match and you won’t see your ads at all. Be very careful when selecting your negative keywords to make sure this doesn’t happen. 

Inappropriate bids, incorrect activity settings, and conflicts between negative and active keywords are three of the most common problems that break Google Ads across the internet. Be sure that you take the time to check for each of these issues before you place your bid so that you can get the most out of every ad campaign. 

7 Things You Should Not Do with Google Ads

google adwords

Whether you are brand new to Google Ads or you’ve been relying on it for years to help you generate traffic, there’s a good chance that you aren’t getting as much from it as you could be. Below, you can learn more about seven mistakes that you should always avoid if you want to maximize your pay-per-click marketing investment and improve the quality and quantity of your website traffic. 

#1 – Never Forget about Scheduled Bid Modifiers

It’s common to see people setting up their ad schedule bid modifiers once and then forgetting them, and it can have a negative effect on relevance. For example, “prime time” in the middle of December may be a completely different time of day than “prime time” in August, and if you aren’t accounting for this by changing your modifiers, it can hurt your traffic. Pay-per-click marketing only works when you’re willing to adjust as needed. 

#2 – Never Avoid Checking for Duplicate Keywords

Getting the most out of your campaign involves checking the search query report often and adding new keywords as they become relevant. This leads to duplicate keywords over time, so make sure you’re heading to the Tools section in your Editor to check for them frequently. 

#3 – Never Fail to Use Experiments

To save money and make sure your campaigns are the way you want them, you can use the “Experiments” feature in Google Ads to your advantage. Without it, you’re dealing with educated guesses – and you’re also paying for things that aren’t driving traffic at all. 

#4 – Never Fail to Learn about Your Bidding Strategy Options

It can be complicated at first but learning more about bidding options is the key to optimizing your campaigns. There are numerous strategies available to you – cost per acquisition and cost per click – that can make bidding much simpler and far more profitable in the end. 

#5 – Never Run Ads without the Extensions

Missing ad extensions may not seem like a big deal, but it is – especially in competitive industries. Check to make sure you’re using your extensions to your advantage, then make sure none of your extensions have been disapproved, too. Not using extensions is like trying to sell your house without a real estate agency. It works, but it narrows your reach, and it’s likely going to cost you more for the results you want in the end. 

#6 – Never Fail to Bid on Your Own Brand

It’s borderline controversial, but bidding on your own brand is akin to voting for yourself in an election. What if your own vote is the reason you don’t get elected? What if you vote for the other guy, and the other guy votes for himself? That’s a lot like what happens when you don’t bid on your own brand name. Your competitors very well might bid on your brand and essentially take the traffic that would have otherwise become yours. 

#7 – Never Purposely Avoid Negative Keywords

A negative keyword is the opposite of a keyword. It’s a word or phrase that you do not want to pull up your ad, and it’s important that you utilize these as intended. Negative keywords help to siphon out irrelevant traffic and will ultimately save you money. 

If you’re new to Google Ads, you certainly aren’t alone. Be sure to take the time to learn as much as you can, then come back to this list of seven things you should never do to get the most out of your paid campaigns. 

Pro Tips to Avoid Problems with Your Google PPC Ads

Though Google Ads, a pay-per-click advertising option, can definitely help you boost your sales, it can also help you go broke if you aren’t careful. Below are some of the best pro tips out there for avoiding common PPC ad mistakes so that you can ensure your ads work for you instead of against you. 

Make Sure You Use the Right Keywords

Before you launch your first PPC ad through Google, take the time to understand the difference between the three major categories of keyword matches: broad matches, phrase matches, and exact matches. You will need to choose one of these before running your ad, and it’s not as cut-and-dry as it might seem. Different industries can benefit from different categories, so be sure you do your research and choose the match type that works best for you. 

Write Professional Ads

Next, it doesn’t matter which match type you choose if your ad is poorly written or if you aren’t optimizing your ad extensions. Go over your ad copy with a fine-tooth comb and correct any spelling or grammar mistakes. Then, look at the extensions available to you and decide whether you want to use them. You can attach location, call, or sitelink extensions if they are ideal for you. You can even utilize social or mobile app extensions. These extensions simply allow you to add extra tidbits of info that could have a tremendous effect on the number of clicks you get. 

Don’t Shy Away from Negative Keywords

The term “negative keywords” sounds ominous, and for many, it sounds like something to be avoided at all costs. Believe it or not, if you aren’t using negative keywords to your advantage, then your Google PPC ads may not be as effective as they could be. Of the millions and millions of words that Google processes each and every day, a significant number of them are new. It’s important to utilize negative keywords in such a way that you can exclude poor matches and reach the people who are most likely to interact with your ad. 

Use the Right Ad Position

Though Google’s SEO algorithms are incredibly complicated, their ad ranking algorithm is relatively simple. All you have to do get your ad to appear at the top is bid more than other advertisers targeting your keywords and ensure your ad is high quality. That’s it. Of these two things, bid and quality, quality is the most important. Your ads can generate plenty of clicks even if they aren’t first in line. Most of the time, it’s a good idea to aim for positions three and four, so be sure to test your copy and position by changing your bid and cost per click as necessary. 

Google PPC ads are a great way to improve traffic and visibility, and in the long run, they can boost your sales a great deal. Make sure you’re using the right keywords – including negative keywords – in a professionally written ad. Then, make sure you target the right ad position and adjust things as necessary to get there. That’s all it takes to make your PPC ad campaign a success. 

How to Explain Google Ads to Your Grandparents

If you’ve been toying with the idea of utilizing Google Ads to advertise your business but you aren’t sure how it works, you’re in the right place. Below, you can learn the ins and outs of Google Ads in a way that will allow you to explain it to your grandparents with confidence. 

Understanding Google

Google is a company just like any other, and its main goal involves generating revenue. To do this as a search engine, they must be able to provide their users with the most relevant search results as often as possible. If someone searches for a red bicycle, for example, and they see photos of a red panda instead, they may feel frustrated and move on to another search engine. To ensure that this doesn’t happen, Google has created numerous guidelines and algorithms to ensure that only the best content – including advertisements – shows up among the first page of search results. 

The Premise of Google Ads

To put it as simply as possible, Google Ads is essentially an auction in which companies who are interested in the same keywords bid against each other for optimal ad placement. The goal is to outbid other companies who are interested in your keywords and create quality, relevant, professional ads attached to those keywords so that your ads will show up in an ideal location on the first page of results. 

As an example, assume you’re a baker and you want to place Google ads using the keyword “chocolate cupcake.” There’s a good chance that other bakers will also want to place ads with that keyword, but you can’t all be on the first page of ads. To determine whose ads go first, you and all the other bakers who want ads associated with the keyword will place a bid on that keyword and present the ads you want to run. Whoever bids the most – and whoever has the best ad – wins the best spot. Because these ads are PPC, or pay-per-click, you only pay when someone clicks your ad. 

Money vs. Quality

Even though your ad placement is based on your bid, it’s safe to say that ad quality is even more important than the amount you bid. As stated above, it is Google’s ultimate goal to provide their users with an accurate, high-quality service, and if your ad is not professionally written, it will likely receive an undesirable placement even if your bid was the highest bid of all. Google even scans the landing page – or the page where your ad link will take the person who clicks it – for accuracy, relevance, grammar, and spelling. Whichever option fits the keyword best will receive the best ad placement. 

Google Ads is essentially one big auction that requires companies like yours to bid for good ad placement. Unlike eBay auctions, though, you’re bidding with quality ads and landing pages just as much as you’re bidding with your money. Though it can take some time to truly learn the ins and outs of Google Ads, it’s a powerful tool that can benefit any marketer. 

PPC Management – B2B Lead Generation

Includes Advertising on Google (Search, Display and YouTube) and Bing
One-time Setup Fee
Monthly Ad SpendMgmnt Fee3 Month6 Month12 MonthReporting
Up to $10,000$1,000 / mo$749$549$449Monthly Meeting
$10,001 - $20,000$1,500 / mo$849$649$549Bi-Monthly Meeting
$20,001 - $40,000$2,500 / mo$949$749$649Weekly Meeting
$40,001+Needs to be priced

PPC Management - Localized Campaigns

Includes Google Search & Google LSA
One-time Setup Fee
Monthly Ad SpendMgmnt Fee3 Month6 Month12 MonthReporting
$600 - $2000$400 / mo---Monthly Meeting
$2,001 - $5,000$600 / mo$699$499$399Monthly Meeting
$5,001 - $10,000$800 / mo$799$599$499Bi-Monthly Meeting
$10,001 - $20,000$1,200 / mo$799$599$499Bi-Monthly Meeting
$20,001 - $40,000$2,000 / mo$899$699$599Weekly Meeting
$40,001+Need to be priced