SEA: Search Engine Advertising
There are several ways to increase traffic to your website. One of the fastest ways is through search engine queries. This can be further divided into two categories: SEO and SEA. The difference lies in the fact that with SEA, you pay for your website to appear in the search results. With the right strategy, you’ll be at the top of Google or Bing in no time. In this article, we’ll focus on SEA.
What is SEA?
Search engine advertising involves purchasing ad space on search engines such as Google. These ads ideally appear at the top of the search results page. Through an auction system, you purchase the ad space by bidding on specific keywords. The advertiser then pays per click on the ad, which is known as Cost Per Click (CPC) or Pay Per Click (PPC).
To manage your ads, you can use Google Ads, where you can manage all types of Google ads.
How does SEA work?
The foundation of an effective SEA strategy is setting the right goals. So start by asking yourself this question: “What do I want to achieve? More brand awareness, more leads, or more sales?”
Once you’ve defined your goals, you can determine the right KPIs for your business. Is your goal to increase brand awareness? Then impressions and interactions are key KPIs. If you want to increase sales, KPIs include return on investment (ROI), revenue, and cost per conversion. Learn more about Calculating the ROI of SEA? Then read our articles.
SEA goals
Based on your objective, you create an account in Google Ads. Here, you can start creating campaigns and ads. There are several goals for your ads. Among other things, it’s important to have a high click-through rate (CTR). This is the percentage of users who actually click on the ad after seeing it. The higher the click-through rate, the more effective your ad.
In addition, the conversion rate is also an important goal. This determines how many out of 100 people made a purchase. For example: if 5 out of 100 people who come via an ad make a purchase, then your conversion rate is 5%. Within online advertising, there are various billing models:
- Cost Per Click (CPC) – The advertiser pays per click on the ad.
- Cost Per Mile (CPM) – The advertiser pays per thousand impressions.
Google Ads
Google Ads is a widely used advertising program from Google. Approximately 95% of Dutch internet users use Google, making it a very important channel. Furthermore, Google operates on an auction system. This means you must bid on the keywords you want to use: the higher your bid, the greater the chance that your ad will actually be shown to the user on Google.
The bid is not the only factor that plays a role. The quality of the landing page, the text in the ad, the relevance of the keywords, and the history of the Google Ads account also play a major role in the final position of your ad.
Quality score
Google Ads takes all these factors into account in a Quality Score ranging from 1 to 10. 1 is poor and 10 is optimal: the goal within Google Ads is to achieve the highest possible Quality Score. In short: if your Quality Score is as good as or better than your competitors’, you’ll pay a lower CPC than your competitors.
There are several basic types of ads available through Google Ads:
- Text Ads
With Text Ads, the advertiser selects search terms based on keyword research. These terms are divided into Ad Groups. When a user enters a search term from one of your Ad Groups, your ad will be displayed. - Shopping Ads
Google Shopping displays product ads that advertisers can submit to Google. This allows the products being searched for to be shown to the consumer. - Display Ads
Display Ads show images or text in the form of an ad on one of the websites linked to the Google Display Network. Here, too, relevant search terms are taken into account. - Video Ads
Video ads are primarily displayed on YouTube or other video channels within the Google Video network.
Based on your objectives, we determine how your Google Ads account will be set up and which ads are best suited to your needs. Do you want to increase brand awareness? Then Display Ads and Video Ads are good choices. If you have an online store and want to boost sales, Text Ads and Shopping Ads are effective channels to use.
Benefits of SEA
Using SEA for your business offers many benefits. One of them is generating more traffic to your website. By ensuring you’re easily discoverable online, you also immediately increase your company’s brand awareness. Search engines also offer enormous potential reach, as Google is used by 90% of the Dutch population. Furthermore, SEA is also ideal for remarketing. This allows you to reach users who have already shown interest in your product or business.
What can Digital Wizards do for you?
Digital Wizards has extensive experience in the field of SEA. Google Ads and Google Shopping hold no secrets for us. We can help set up your Google Ads account, create successful campaigns, and ensure your profits increase. Once your SEA is fully optimized, you’ll notice the difference quickly! Digital Wizards can ensure that all basic settings are correct, continuously apply optimizations, and also prepare monthly reports highlighting your website’s growth opportunities.
Want to learn more about SEA?
Are you interested in search engine advertising? Read more about this on our website or contact Digital Wizards directly to find out what we can do for you!
