Google Ads: A Simple Step-by-step Tutorial For Detailers

Secondly, honing in on your ideal customer is easy with Google Ads. You will have access to advanced targeting options that will allow you to get super specific on locations, keywords, demographics, and even interests! This will ensure your ads are shown only to the right people - the audience that is most likely to convert, resulting in more qualified leads and ultimately, a higher return on investment (a.k.a. ROI). 

While we’re on the topic of money, Google Ads offers highly flexible budgeting options and gives you full control over your advertising expenses. Plus, the tool operates on a pay-per-click (PPC) model, which means you only need to pay when someone clicks on your ad, not when they see it. Talk about cost-effectiveness and getting the most bang for your buck!  

Lastly, to effectively advertise your detailing business, you need to measure the results and figure out what’s working and what’s not, right? Well, Google Ads has got you covered there too! You can track the success of your campaigns and measure key metrics like impressions, clicks, conversions, and ROI without the hassle. This will allow you to make data-driven decisions on how to continuously optimize your ads for better results over time.

In a nutshell, Google Ads is like hiring a personal marketing assistant that helps you get in front of the right people with the right message at the right time - and all that within your budget, no matter how big or small! It’s a crazy valuable tool that will help you attract new customers and grow your detailing business with just a little bit of know-how. 

Ready to get started with the step-by-step guide on how to leverage Google Ads like a pro? 

Let’s go! 

Obviously, if you don’t already have a Google Ads account, the first thing you need to do is create one for your business.

To do this, navigate to the Google Ads website and click on the “Start now” button. Follow the prompts to provide your business email address, password, and other important information.

Tip: Take your time with the Google Ads account setup and double-check all the information you provide to avoid potential issues later down the road. 

Keyword research is a critical first step for setting up a successful Google Ads campaign for your detailing business. You do not want to overlook it! 

It may sound like a drag, but keyword research is actually quite simple and super important. 

In simple terms, it's all about understanding the language your potential customers are using when searching for detailing services, so you can create ads that match it. And keyword research is your best bet to figure out exactly what terms you should be focusing on! 

Thankfully, you don't need to be a digital marketing guru to conduct great keyword research. 

We’ll walk you through the entire process step-by-step in the following paragraphs and provide you with practical tips on how to find the best possible keywords for your campaign. 

First off, come up with an extensive list of keywords that are relevant to your business. 

Consider all of the services you offer, especially the ones people generally go for, as well as those you want to be doing more of in the following months. Think about the location of your detail shop and the area you service, as well as any special features or benefits like eco-friendliness that can set your business apart from competitors in the minds of potential customers.

This list will be a starting point for your in-depth keyword research.

Now take your initial keyword list and put it into Google’s Keyword Planner. 

This handy tool will help you come up with even more potential keywords, but even more importantly, provide you with information about the search volume and competition for each of your target terms. 

What you’re looking for at this stage are keywords that are highly relevant to your business, with a reasonably high search volume and fairly low competition. 

The last step of your keyword research is narrowing your keyword list to terms that have the highest potential for impact. 

Disregard any keywords that are super broad as they may bring you irrelevant traffic, therefore wasting your budget. Plus, generic keywords are generally highly competitive, so you’ll be spending more money than you need to. 

At this stage, you should be considering search intent - meaning the intent people have when they search for a particular keyword. 

To illustrate this, here’s a simple example. A person typing “ceramic coating near me” into Google is probably looking for a local detailer to book with, while a person searching for “what are ceramic coatings” could just want to learn more about the technology. So if you want to get hot leads from your Google Ads, you need to identify the keywords that are most likely to convert into leads or sales!

• Focus on long-tail keywords: Long-tail keywords are words per se - they’re longer, more specific phrases that people tend to search for. These keywords generally have a lower search volume, but that doesn’t automatically mean fewer sales. The thing is, using long-tail keywords can help you target potential customers that are further down the sales funnel and are more likely to convert. To give you an example, targeting “paint correction Dallas” will certainly get you more qualified leads compared to “car detailing services”.

• Include location-based keywords: Whether you’re running a shop or you’re a mobile operator, your detailing business is certainly location-dependent. Therefore, it makes sense to target users within your service area by using keywords like “car detailing in Austin”. This means you’ll be competing with fewer detailers and that your ads will be hyper-relevant for searchers!

• Consider negative keywords: Negative keywords essentially exclude irrelevant searchers that may trigger your Google Ads. We suggest you use them if you offer only specific types of detailing services. For example, if you only do exteriors, you should type in “interior detailing” as a negative keyword to avoid showing your ad to people looking for an interior detail. Or if you offer premium detailing services, you can add "cheap" or "affordable" as negative keywords to avoid showing your ads to users searching for budget detailing options. This will help you optimize your budget and get better-quality traffic.

• Watch your competitors: If you want to get the best results from your Google Ads, competitor analysis is a no-brainer. It will help you identify keywords that your competitors are targeting and find opportunities to differentiate yourself. To do this, use a tool like Google Ads Auction Insights or another third-party app that will give you a solid view of your competitors’ keyword strategies. Then optimize your campaign by targeting keywords they have overlooked.

Now that you've got your keywords sorted, it's time to create some killer ad campaigns in Google Ads to showcase your detailing services to potential customers. Follow these steps to set up your ad campaign for success!

Once you've signed up and logged in to your Google Ads account, you'll need to select the campaign type that aligns with your advertising goals. 

Google Ads offers several campaign types, including Search, Display, Video, Shopping, and more. For a local detailing business, a search campaign is typically a good starting point, as it allows you to show ads to potential customers when they are searching for detailing services on Google.

Tip: Carefully consider the goals of your ads when deciding on the campaign type. Search ads are great for increasing website traffic and generating leads. However, if you want to showcase your work with visually appealing images or even videos, you should consider display or video campaigns.

Okay, now comes the somewhat tricky part that is crucial for success. 

You need to configure the settings for your Google Ads campaign, including choosing the people and the keywords you want to target, setting your budget and bids, and finally creating ad groups and ads. 

If this sounds overwhelming, don’t stress! 

Here are some important things to consider when configuring your campaign.

• Location Targeting: Be strategic here and select only the locations you serve, whether it’s cities, zip codes, or even broader areas like states or regions.

• Target Audience: This is where you get laser-focused on who you want to reach with your ads. So picture your ideal customer and then put the various Google Ads targeting options like age, gender, behavior & interests to good use. It’s like aiming your ads right at the bullseye of your target market!

• Keyword Targeting: Choose the most relevant keywords that your potential customers are using when they’re Googling detailing services. The key here is to find high-intent keywords with high search volume and low competition. 

• Ad Extensions: You don’t want to miss out on this awesome Google Ads feature. Ad extensions are essentially additional pieces of information that can help you increase the visibility of your ads and encourage users to take action, leading to optimal performance. Here are a couple of types of ad extensions you should consider: site link extensions, call extensions, location extensions, callout extensions, structured snippets, price extensions, and review extensions.

• Ad Groups and Ads: Finally, you should organize your campaign into ad groups with tightly themed keywords and start creating compelling ads. With ads, focus on highlighting your unique selling proposition (USP) to give potential customers a reason to choose you over the competition. For the best results, make your headlines engaging and your descriptions actionable.

Tip: It’s super important to keep your Google Ads Campaigns organized, just like how you keep your supplies and equipment neat and tidy in your shop or mobile rig.

• Budget and Bids: Lastly, it’s time to set your daily advertising budget. We suggest you start with a modest amount aligned with your current income and business goals. This has to be something you're comfortable with and can sustain in the long term. Later when you have more Google Ads experience, you can gradually increase the budget you’re working with to get even better results. You’ll also be prompted to set bids for your keywords, meaning you need to determine exactly how much you’re willing to pay for each click on your ad. We say be realistic here too! 

Tip: If you’re unsure of what to select when configuring campaign settings, let Google help you! Take advantage of Google’s recommendations during the campaign creation process. You’ll get suggestions on campaign settings, budget, targeting options, etc. based on your business type and goals. And don’t worry, Google won’t trick you. They want your ads to succeed too - so you keep coming back for more!

• Explore different targeting options: Maybe demographic targeting isn’t the right way to go for you. If that’s the case, try device targeting or geo-targeting to really narrow down your audience to the people most likely to convert. Give remarketing a go. This allows you to target users who have previously visited your website but did not become customers. Create ads tailored for them to remind them of your business and entice them to book an appointment.

• Keep refining your keyword strategy: Continuously monitor your keywords. Focus on those that are bringing you the best results while using negative keywords to filter out irrelevant searches that are wasting your budget.

• Test different ads & landing pages: We’ll talk more about split testing later, but it’s super useful to try out different ad formats such as text, image, and video ads to see which ones are performing the best. Also, never stop testing variations of ad copy and landing pages to identify the messaging and calls to action that resonate most with your target audience.

• Focus on the quality score: Quality score is a metric Google uses to measure the relevance of your ads, keywords, and landing pages. The higher your Quality Score, the lower your costs and the better your ad rankings. So make sure to keep your ads and landing pages highly relevant to your keywords and always strive to provide a seamless user experience.

The last step before launching your Google Ads campaign is setting up landing pages - the final destination for your ads, where users land after clicking on them. 

Landing pages are the key to turning those ad clicks into actual business. They play a critical role in the conversion process, and really shouldn’t be just an afterthought.

Think of it this way - your ad caught the attention of a potential customer, and they clicked on it because they’re interested in your services. Now your landing page needs to seal the deal and convince them to take action, whether it's making an appointment, filling out a form, or giving you a call. It's like the final handshake that seals the deal!

A great landing page is inviting, easy to navigate, and persuades users to take action. So how do you go about making one?

We’ll walk you through the process step by step, but before you get into it, keep this in mind: When people click on your ad, they expect to find exactly what they were promised - whether it's information about your services or a solution to their problem. So if the copy in your ads doesn’t align with the content of your landing page - you’ve got a problem. The key is to provide a seamless and consistent experience for users to increase the likelihood of converting the into leads or sales.

Okay, let’s now take a deep dive into what makes a landing page effective! 

You want your landing page to include the same keywords as your ad. So if your ad is all about “paint protection in Boston”, your landing page should reflect that and provide detailed information about the paint protection your business provides.  

The best way to incorporate target keywords into your landing page is to place them strategically. Include some in your headline, subheadings, and body copy in a natural way to reinforce the connection between your ad and landing page. This not only improves the user experience but also helps improve your ad’s Quality Score, which can lower your cost per click and improve your overall ad rankings.

A landing page without a clear and prominent CTA isn’t going to get you great results. Your CTA needs to tell users exactly what you want them to do, whether it’s “book now”, “get a free quote”, “call us today” or any other action aligned with your goals.

In terms of placement, your CTA should stand out and be super easy to spot. You want to make it as simple as possible for potential customers to take the next step. 

We suggest using a contrasting color and keeping the CTA about the fold of your landing page so people don’t have to scroll to find it. Also, consider using urgency or scarcity in your CTA, such as "Limited Time Offer" or "Only 3 Spots Left," to encourage users to take action immediately.

Most people will be on their phones when they find your landing page and you should really be designing with that in mind. 

The page should load quickly, be easy to navigate, and be responsive - meaning it adjusts to different screen sizes and orientations, as well as have forms and buttons that are easy to tap with a finger. 

The forms should be short and simple, minimizing the need for people to pinch or scroll excessively on their phones.

Tip: Test your landing page on different mobile devices and browsers to ensure it's responsive. 

Don’t underestimate how much a smooth mobile user experience can impact your conversion rates! 

• Keep it simple: Avoid clutter and distractions on your landing page. Use a clean design with ample white space to guide users' attention to the most important elements, such as your headline, CTAs, and key information. Choose easy-to-read fonts and visually appealing colors that align with your brand. Structure information with short paragraphs, bullet points, and bold text.

• Use compelling visuals: Include high-quality images or videos that help users visualize what they can expect from your services. Make sure they’re optimized for fast loading times and place them to enhance the overall user experience.

• Highlight your USP: Let people know what sets you apart from the competition so they have a reason to choose you! It could be your years of experience, stellar customer service, exceptional reviews, special deals, offers, etc.

• Include testimonials: There’s nothing quite as powerful as social proof when it comes to marketing. It will allow you to quickly build trust and credibility with potential customers, which is super important since they’ll have to trust you with one of their most prized possessions - their car or boat. Include quotes, ratings, or case studies from satisfied customers to demonstrate reliability.

Remember, your landing page is the one chance you have to make a great impression on potential customers and persuade them to take the next step. So put your best foot forward with a compelling, user-friendly page optimized for success!

Now that you’ve set up your Google Ads campaign and launched your ads it’s time to sit back, relax, and wait for the leads to start coming in. 

Well, not really.

To ensure maximum effectiveness and return on investment, you’ve got to continuously monitor and optimize your campaigns.

So if you want to get the most out of your advertising budget, keeping a close eye on your campaign’s performance is a must. 

This way you’ll be able to identify keywords, ads, and ad groups that are underperforming or catch any potential issues and make adjustments to optimize your campaign for better performance. 

And how do you do that? Let’s take a closer look.

Google Ads has great reporting and analytics capabilities which will allow you to track things like click-through rates (CTR), conversion rates, cost per click (CPC), and return on ad spend (ROAS). These metrics provide insights into how your ads are performing and can help you identify areas for improvement.

Dive into the performance data Google collected from your ad campaigns to identify trends and patterns. Identify keywords, ads, and ad groups that are generating high-quality traffic and conversions, as well as those that have high costs but low conversions.

Lastly, use the data you collected to continually refine and optimize your campaigns. 

This can include adjusting or pausing bids for underperforming keywords or ad groups, allocating a larger budget to top-performing ads, refining the ad copy to make it more relevant to your detailing services, or testing different ad variations to see which ones perform better and resonate more with your audience.

• Try split testing: Also known as A/B testing, split testing consists of creating multiple versions of your ads or landing pages and testing them against each other to find the ones that drive the best results. To do it right, experiment with ad copy, headlines, CTAs, and landing page designs. For example, you can split-test two variations of ad copy that highlight different aspects of your detailing services such as “eco-friendly detailing” vs “premium detailing” to see which is more effective in generating clicks and conversions.

• Schedule your ads: Ad scheduling allows you to choose the exact dates and times your ads will show. To leverage it, consider the peak hours or days when your detailing business receives the most inquiries or appointments, and schedule your ads accordingly. For example, if you notice that weekends are the busiest times for you in general, schedule ads for Saturdays and Sundays to maximize effectiveness and budget allocation. And always monitor the performance of your ads at different times of the day or days of the week to adjust your scheduling if necessary.

• Monitor the competition: Keep an eye on your competitors' ad campaigns and marketing strategies to get one step ahead. Analyze their ad copy, landing pages, USP, and offers to identify opportunities and gaps your business can fill.

• Manage your budget: Regularly monitor your spending and adjust your bids and budgets to ensure you're getting the most out of your ad spend. Use performance data to figure out the campaigns and keywords you should be prioritizing.

Monitoring and optimizing your Google Ads campaigns is an ongoing process that requires constant attention and analysis. It may sound like a laborious task, but believe us - it’s not that hard and it can ensure that you get the best bang for your buck! So regularly review your ad performance, compare it with your business goals, and make necessary adjustments so your campaign drives the desired results.

Well, there you have it! We've covered the foundations of Google Ads from setting up your account and performing keyword research to creating and optimizing ad campaigns. Plus, we provided lots of practical tips on how to use them to grow your detailing business. 

So, don't just sit back and wait for customers to come to you - get proactive with your advertising efforts. With a little creativity, experimentation, and a keen eye for optimization, you can truly make a splash in the digital marketing space.

If you’re thinking “But I'm not a marketing guy!" - fear not. Even if you're new to online advertising, Google Ads is designed to be user-friendly, with a wealth of resources and support available to help you along the way. You've already got a head start by being an expert in detailing! You know your business inside out, and that knowledge will serve you well as you craft your ad campaigns.

And hey, don't be afraid to get creative! Test out different ad formats, experiment with targeting specific locations or scheduling ads during peak hours, and use negative keywords to avoid wasting precious ad spend on irrelevant clicks. Remember, this is your chance to shine and showcase what sets your detailing business apart from the competition.

But it doesn't end there. Monitoring and optimization are key to long-term success. Watch your campaign performance, analyze key metrics like click-through rates and conversion rates, and make data-driven optimizations to keep your ads humming along at peak performance. And don't forget to celebrate your wins along the way - every click, every lead, and every new customer is a reason to celebrate!

Of course, if you ever feel stuck or overwhelmed, don't hesitate to reach out for help. There are plenty of Google Ads experts out there who can provide personalized guidance and support. Also, don't forget about the wealth of tutorials, guides, and resources available on the Google Ads platform - it's like having a digital marketing encyclopedia at your fingertips!

So, what are you waiting for? 

It's time to rev up your detailing business with Google Ads and take your marketing game to the next level. With a little bit of effort and a whole lot of passion, you've got the power to generate plenty of qualified leads and get your business up to new heights! 

One last thing. Please keep in mind that you can’t run successful Google Ads if you aren’t staying up-to-date with the platform’s features, industry trends, customer preferences, and competitors' strategies! 

Want to dive deeper into the world of Google Ads? Here are some additional resources that you can explore to gain extra insights and information:

• Google Ads Help Center: The official help center by Google Ads is a treasure trove of information, tutorials, and guides on how to set up and optimize your ad campaigns. There you’ll find detailed information on things like targeting options, bid strategies, tracking performance, troubleshooting issues & more.

• Google Ads YouTube Channel: Google Ads has an official YouTube channel with tons of videos that make it super easy to understand complex concepts. So if you prefer learning through video tutorials - this is your alternative to the Google Ads Help Center where you’ll get valuable insights and actionable tips. 

• Google Ads Blog: Staying up-to-date with an ever-evolving platform like Google Ads isn’t easy. That’s why you should be following the official Google Ads Blog. It includes insightful articles, case studies, success stories, and tips from Google Ads experts that can inspire and guide your ad campaigns. 

• Google Ads Academy: If you truly want to master Google Ads and make the learning curve as short as possible - Google Ads Academy is your best bet. It offers free online courses that provide in-depth knowledge and practical skills to help you succeed with Google Ads, making them a great resource for beginners and more experienced advertisers alike.

• Google Ads Community: This is an online forum by Google where you can connect with other Google Ads users, ask questions, share your experience, and learn from that of others. It’s a great spot to expand your knowledge. 

• Google Ads Editor: Google Ads Editor is a free desktop application that allows you to manage your Google Ads campaigns offline. It provides advanced editing capabilities and a more efficient way to optimize your campaigns.

That's a wrap! We hope this comprehensive guide has provided you with everything you need to know to get started with Google Ads. Now it’s time to take action, implement what you’ve learned, and watch your detailing business thrive!