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How to Advertise on Google: An Overview to Google Ads

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Google advertising is a reliable way to reach people who are already searching for what you sell. It falls under search engine marketing (SEM) and uses a pay-per-click (PPC) model, so you generally pay only when someone clicks your ad.

Google advertising runs on Google’s own platforms, including Search and YouTube, plus a network of partner sites. It lets you show up near the top of search results for the terms your customers actually use. This guide is written for small business owners, founders, and managers who want a clear, practical starting point.

Use These Tips and Insights to Advertise on Google

This guide walks through what Google advertising is, the ad types available today, the benefits of the platform, how it works, and the steps to set up a campaign. It closes with a checklist and answers to common questions. It’s written for anyone running a small business who wants to advertise on Google without wading through jargon.

Key Points and Facts About Google Advertising

Pricing model

  • Google Ads uses a pay-per-click model, so you typically pay only when someone clicks your ad.

Campaign types

  • Google Ads now offers seven main campaign types: Search, Performance Max, Demand Gen, Shopping, Video, App, and Local.

Search visibility

  • The top five organic search results capture roughly two-thirds of all clicks on a search, which is why ranking or advertising near the top matters.

Cost

  • Cost per click varies widely by industry — from roughly $1 in low-competition categories to $50 or more for the most competitive legal and insurance keywords.

Ad review

  • Ads are typically reviewed and approved within 1 business day.

What Is Google Advertising?

Google advertising, known as Google Ads, is Google’s advertising platform. It lets businesses promote products and services on Google Search and other Google platforms, including YouTube, along with a network of partner sites.

Google Ads runs on a PPC model, so you typically pay only when a user clicks your ad. That gives you more control over how you promote your business compared to traditional advertising.

You can set specific goals for your ads, such as more website visits or more calls. You can set a budget, target specific audiences, and start or pause your ads whenever you want.

Types of Google Ads

Google Ads has moved well beyond the small handful of formats it once offered. Here are the main campaign types available today.

  • Search — text ads that appear on Google’s search results page when someone searches using keywords related to your business. This is the highest-intent format, since the person is actively looking for what you offer.
  • Performance Max — an AI-driven campaign type that runs across all of Google’s channels (Search, Display, YouTube, Gmail, Discover, and Maps) from a single budget. You provide the creative and goals, and Google’s system decides where and when to show your ad.
  • Demand Gen — visual ads that run across YouTube, Gmail, Discover, and Maps, aimed at reaching people before they start actively searching for your product.
  • Shopping — product listing ads for ecommerce businesses, showing a photo, price, and store name directly in search results.
  • Video — ads that run on YouTube, in a range of formats and lengths depending on your goal.
  • App — automated campaigns built to drive app installs and in-app actions.
  • Local — a campaign type built around driving activity tied to a physical business location.

Search ads still matter because of how search behavior works. The top five results on a Google search page capture roughly two-thirds of all clicks. Results further down the page get a small fraction of that traffic. That’s why ranking at the top, whether through SEO or paid search, has such a big impact on visibility.

Video ads deserve a closer look since their length depends on the format. Bumper ads run 6 seconds and can’t be skipped. Non-skippable in-stream ads typically run 15 to 20 seconds. Skippable in-stream ads, the most common YouTube ad type, can run anywhere from about 12 seconds up to 3 minutes, with viewers able to skip after 5 seconds.

Benefits of Google Advertising

Unlike many traditional advertising channels, Google advertising lets you reach people already showing interest in your product or service, across devices like phones, tablets, and desktops.

Ability to Measure Performance

One advantage Google Ads has over channels like newspapers and television is that you can track and measure results directly. If someone clicks your ad, you’ll know. If they call, buy, or download your app afterward, you can often see that too. Google Ads also reports:

  • How many people viewed your ad
  • Number of leads generated
  • Total cost per lead
  • Amount of traffic sent to your website

You can use this data to judge whether a campaign worked and adjust it accordingly.

Ability to Target Users

Google Ads lets you target people by specific interests and demographics, which increases the odds of reaching people likely to need what you offer. Common ways to set targets include:

  • Interests and psychographics — target people based on what they like, their habits, and their search patterns.
  • Demographics — target people by age, language, and location.
  • Time — show your ads during specific hours or days when they’re most effective.
  • Devices — choose to show your ads on all devices or only specific ones.

Offers More Control

Google Ads gives advertisers a lot of control over how they promote their products and services, within Google’s advertising policies. You choose when your ads run and how much to spend per ad, day, or month, which helps you manage costs and reach the right people at the right times.

Return on Investment

Google Ads gives you visibility into where your money goes. Three bidding options shape how you pay:

  • Cost-per-click (CPC) — you pay for each click your ad receives.
  • Cost-per-thousand viewable impressions (CPM) — you pay for every thousand times your ad is viewed.
  • Cost per action (CPA) — you pay when a user completes a specific action, like a purchase or sign-up.

How Does Google Advertising Work?

Google advertising falls under search engine marketing. You create, promote, and manage your ads through your Google Ads Manager account.

There are several campaign types to choose from, covering Search, YouTube, and Google’s partner network. In each case, you pay Google based on impressions or actions, such as clicks, depending on the campaign type and bidding strategy you choose.

With Google Ads, you can set a daily budget, choose target keywords, select where you want to promote, and start or pause your campaign whenever you want. Google decides which ads to display and where, based on ad content, device type, relevant keywords, viewer location, and time of day, using the audience information you provide as a guide.

Action Steps for Google Advertising

Before you launch

  • Decide on a single primary goal for your first campaign — sales, leads, or traffic. Don’t mix goals in one campaign.
  • Set a daily budget you’re comfortable testing with, even if it’s small to start.

While you build

  • Pick the campaign type that matches your goal (Search for active searchers, Performance Max or Demand Gen for broader reach).
  • Write at least a handful of headline and description variations rather than just the minimum required.
  • Add negative keywords early to avoid paying for clearly irrelevant clicks.

After you launch

  • Check your ad’s status the first day to confirm it cleared review.
  • Review performance data (clicks, cost per lead, conversions) after your ad has run for a week or two before making major changes.

Steps to Advertise on Google

Setting up a Google Ads campaign doesn’t take much. Follow the creation process inside Google Ads Manager:

1. Create a Google Ads Manager Account

Create or log in to your Google Ads Manager account. Tap the “+” icon to start a new campaign, or click the campaigns tab on the left-hand menu. Then tap the create button in the upper-left corner and choose “New Campaign.”

2. Choose Your Marketing Goal and Campaign Type

Choose your marketing goal — what you want the campaign to achieve. Google currently offers six goals:

  • Sales — drive sales online, by phone, or in store.
  • Leads — get leads and other conversions by encouraging people to take action.
  • Website traffic — get the right people to visit your website.
  • Product and brand consideration — encourage people to explore your products or services.
  • Brand awareness and reach — reach a broad audience and build awareness.
  • App promotion — get more installs, interactions, and pre-registrations for your app.

You can also create a campaign with no marketing goal. Once you select a goal, choose a campaign type: Search, Performance Max, Demand Gen, Shopping, Video, App, or Local.

3. Create a Campaign Name and Choose Your Networks

Create a campaign name — this is visible only to you, so pick something you’ll recognize later. Then choose where your campaign runs. Your options here depend on the campaign type you selected in the previous step.

4. Input Target Audience Preferences

Set your preferred target audience, starting with language and location. You can also configure demographics and interests under the advanced targeting options.

5. Set Your Ad Budget

Set your daily budget — the average amount you want to spend per day. Start with an amount you’re comfortable testing with, and adjust it once you see results. There’s no official minimum spend for most campaign types, though Demand Gen campaigns now require at least $5 a day.

Then choose your bidding strategy — the type of interaction you want Google to charge you for, such as conversions, clicks, or impressions.

6. Add Ad Assets

This section lets you add ad assets (formerly called “ad extensions”) — additional links or lines of text that show below your ad. Assets give users more information and encourage them to take action. Examples include extra links, business information, and contact details.

7. Select Keywords and Ad Groups

Once your campaign settings are filled in, choose your keywords and ad groups. Ad groups are sets of products or services that share a collection of keywords, and each ad group typically has its own keywords.

Select keywords — the phrases people use when searching on Google. Google Ads usually suggests keywords based on your website’s content and shows how popular a given keyword is.

When selecting keywords, choose your match types, then your negative keywords. Match types tell Google when to show your ad; negative keywords tell Google when not to.

Google Ads currently has three keyword match types:

  • Broad match — shows your ad on searches related to your keywords, including variants, synonyms, and related searches.
  • Phrase match — shows your ad on searches that include the meaning of your keyword phrase, even with extra words before or after.
  • Exact match — shows your ad on searches that match your keyword’s meaning closely, with little variation.

8. Create the Ad

With your settings, keywords, and ad groups in place, write your ad. Since Google phased out its older text ad format, responsive search ads are now the standard: you provide multiple headlines and descriptions, and Google tests combinations to find what performs best.

You’ll need a headline, sub-headline, and a brief description. Headlines are limited to 30 characters and descriptions to 90 characters, so keep them short and to the point.

Aim for an ad that clearly states what you offer. Highlighting a specific offer or discount gives users a concrete reason to click. Add a call-to-action and work your chosen keywords into the copy. See How To Write a Classified Ad for more tips on writing effective ad copy.

9. Confirm and Launch Your Ad Campaign

Review your campaign to check that every detail is correct, then click “Continue to campaign.” Google typically reviews new ads within 1 business day, and your ad will start running once it clears review, assuming it meets Google’s advertising policies.

Checklist for Google Advertising

  1. Set up your account
    • Create or log in to Google Ads Manager
    • Start a new campaign
  2. Define your goal and campaign type
    • Pick one of the six marketing goals
    • Choose the matching campaign type
  3. Set targeting and budget
    • Choose your audience, language, and location
    • Set a daily budget and bidding strategy
  4. Build the ad
    • Add ad assets (sitelinks, call info, etc.)
    • Select keywords, match types, and negative keywords
    • Write headlines and descriptions within character limits
  5. Launch and monitor
    • Review and confirm the campaign
    • Check performance data once the ad is live

FAQ: Google Advertising

1. What is PPC or CPC advertising?

  • PPC stands for pay-per-click, and CPC stands for cost-per-click. Both mean an advertiser pays only when a user clicks the ad.

2. How much does Google advertising cost?

  • You set your own budget, and Google works within it. Your cost per click depends heavily on your industry. Average cost per click can run as low as roughly $1 in lower-competition categories like ecommerce or arts and entertainment, and as high as $50 or more for the most competitive legal and insurance keywords.

3. What are smart campaigns?

  • Smart campaigns are a simplified ad type designed to help small businesses market online. You select your marketing goal, and Google uses machine learning to manage and improve performance automatically.

4. How long does it take for Google advertising to work?

  • Once you launch a campaign, Google typically reviews it within 1 business day. More complex reviews can take longer.

5. What is the minimum amount to spend on Google Advertising?

  • Most campaign types have no official minimum spend. Demand Gen campaigns now require at least $5 a day.

6. Is there any difference between Google Ads and Google AdWords?

  • No. Google Ads was formerly known as Google AdWords. Google rebranded it on July 24, 2018.

7. What is ad rank?

  • Ad rank determines the position of your ad in a given search result. When people search on Google, they see both organic results and ads relevant to their query.

8. What is a quality score?

  • Quality score is a diagnostic rating, from 1 to 10, that reflects how relevant and useful Google considers your ad and landing page to be for a given search.

9. How does quality score affect ad position?

  • A high quality score means your ad is highly relevant to the search query. It doesn’t guarantee the top spot, but it does make a higher position more likely when combined with other ranking factors.

10. What is the difference between SEO and Google Ads?

  • SEO is the process of optimizing your website to rank higher in organic search results. It’s free but takes time. Google Ads lets you appear at the top of search results immediately, at a cost per click.

Conclusion

Google advertising is an effective way to generate traffic and sales for your business. Google now offers several campaign types, including Search, Performance Max, Demand Gen, Shopping, Video, App, and Local, so you can match the format to your goal.

To get started, open your Google Ads Manager account, choose your marketing goal and campaign type, and name your campaign. Set your targeting and budget, add ad assets, and select your keywords. Then write your ad, review it, and launch.
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