{"id":11620,"date":"2016-03-09T16:26:34","date_gmt":"2016-03-09T16:26:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/directive.wpengine.com\/?p=11620"},"modified":"2024-05-23T07:44:23","modified_gmt":"2024-05-23T11:44:23","slug":"auditing-adwords-account-marketers-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/auditing-adwords-account-marketers-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Auditing an AdWords Account: The B2B Marketer’s Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"

For better or worse, AdWords<\/a> is the lifeblood of many a B2B business. AdWords offers a unique advantage over other forms of advertising because it\u2019s measurable. As a marketer or a business owner, AdWords gives you the power to very easily measure your return-on-investment.<\/p>\n

With it\u2019s highly relevant and targeted platform; it gives you the opportunity to focus your advertising budget on a specific target audience that is looking to buy. Such laser focus gives businesses the upper hand in both profit and ROI, making Google AdWords a must.<\/p>\n

From the B2B marketer\u2019s point of view, however, you\u2019re sure to know that AdWords Accounts require an audit pretty regularly for prime optimization. This guide will help you know the why\u2019s, where\u2019s, and how\u2019s of auditing an AdWords Account.<\/p>\n

Why Audit Your B2B AdWords Account?<\/h2>\n

There is No Such Thing as a Perfect Account: No matter how efficient, user friendly, or even successful your AdWords Account is, problems are sure to arise. This is because there is no such thing as a perfect account, and treating your account as such could lead to tedious problems down the road. Understanding that every account will come with issues allows you a window of preparedness when the time comes.<\/p>\n

Performance Issues<\/h3>\n

Your AdWords Account may be showing some performance issues, and a Google AdWords audit will help you know what they are and why they\u2019re happening. Perhaps your ads are lagging, there\u2019s poor storage, or data just isn\u2019t being recorded like it should. An audit will expose these problems and more, allowing you to correct them.<\/p>\n

Avoid Wasting You or Your Client\u2019s Ad Budget:<\/h3>\n

Most businesses have a set budget for their advertisements, and it\u2019s up to you, as the marketer, to maximize their campaign performance with the budget given. Avoid wasting your own budget and the budgets of your clients by consistently monitoring your AdWords Account so that it\u2019s as efficient as possible.<\/p>\n

Where Do I Start?<\/h2>\n

Select the Correct Date Range:<\/h3>\n

The date range is important because of ad activity. Some ads may experience more traffic during the week, while others have peak interaction on the weekends. To choose the correct date range, use the \u201cTime view\u201d in the Dimensions tab of your AdWords Account.<\/p>\n

At least 30 days of data\u2026If Not More:<\/p>\n

A monthly date range is the typical time frame to measure ad performance, but you can do more. 30 days of data is the minimum, but you can actually add more days of data if needed.<\/p>\n

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The More Information You Have the Better Decisions You can Make:<\/h3>\n

With longer date ranges, you have more information to work with, which leads to better decisions. Monitoring ad performance over a longer period of time gives you a much more accurate view of ad performance because you can see developing patterns, down times, and high times in customer interaction.<\/p>\n

Compare Your Data to the Previous Period:<\/h3>\n

If you want to know how your ad campaigns<\/a> did one week, compared to the week before or after, you can compare date ranges.<\/p>\n

This option can be found in the \u201cCampaigns Section\u201d of your AdWords Account. Simply click the down arrow located in the date range in the upper right corner of the page. From here, set the \u201cCompare\u201d option to \u201cON.\u201d Then, set the date range you want, go to the \u201cCompare\u201d section, and select whether you want to compare the previous period, the same period a year ago, or you can make a custom comparison. Finally, click \u201cApply,\u201d to get things started.<\/p>\n

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Context is King:<\/h3>\n

You can always guesstimate how well performance is doing from week to week, but this is no way to make decision. Context is the best way to improve your ad campaign and comparing date ranges of data is the most effective way to get the data you need.<\/p>\n

Understand your KPIs:<\/p>\n

Your KPIs or \u201cKey Performance Indicators\u201d are what will tell you how well your ad campaign is actually doing. \u00a0Your AdWords KPIs will vary from business to business, but these are the most important:<\/p>\n