Joy Gendusa

I’ve heard from a number of HVAC professionals that they would love to understand how to navigate AdWords and make pay per click (PPC) a valuable marketing option for them, so this is the last article in a three-part series where I break it down for you and show you how to do that. If you missed either of the others, get caught up right quick with these helpful links…

• Part 1 provided a quick overview of what AdWords is and how it works.

• Part 2 supplied 5 ad creation tips on how to maximize your cost per click (CPC).

• Part 3, this article, explains how to navigate the many targeting options Google provides.

Navigating AdWords’ Targeting Settings

No doubt search ads are the most well-known PPC quantity. (The ones in the red boxes in Figure 1 above.)

However, other kinds of pay per click ads exist, and you want to make the most of all of them. We covered the three types of PPC ads (text, display, and YouTube) in the second article. Now it’s time to master the targeting settings and criteria that ensure your ads get in front of the right eyeballs.

Targeting Settings

Tweaking your targeting settings ensures your AdWords campaign excludes the wrong kinds of people. Figure 2 above indicates the categories you have to work with.

The most useful settings for you will probably be the Geographic Location and Timing settings, but if you have a very specific ideal profile in mind, you just might get some use out of the Age & Gender setting as well.

Targeting Criteria

Once you’ve excluded those you don’t want, it’s time to ensure you target those you do want. Here’s how:

1. Content Targeting

Target specific content on websites using keywords. For example, if you want your ads to show up on blogs that talk about “diy hvac” or “hvac maintenance” you’d target those keywords. (And of course, only readers in your area would see the ads, because you excluded those outside your area in the settings.)

Figure 3 shows an example of a gardening supplies ad showing up on a specific web page for gardening tools. See how that works?

2. Topic Targeting

Rather than targeting specific words and phrases on just one web page (content targeting), topic targeting targets entire websites. So instead of showing up on a specific blog post that talks about HVAC, your ads would show up on websites that are all about HVAC. Make sense?

Figure 4 shows an example of a chiropractor’s ad being displayed on a website that focuses on good health through light cooking.

3. Interest Targeting

I love this one! Unlike the first two, interest targeting targets people, not websites or content. Google uses the pages and websites a person visits to form a profile of what they are interested in or need. So if someone has been cruising a couple different HVAC sites or reading articles about HVAC repair, Google knows they are interested in HVAC. And you can target them.

4. Placement Ads

Placement ads let you stick your ad exactly where you want it. No fussing about. You can essentially point to a spot on a website and say, put my ad there. If you know where your prospects are going online, this is super useful. But it’s not perfect for every industry, obviously.

So there you have it. If you still have any questions at all, put them in the comments.I’ll answer them as best I can.

Thanks for Reading!

To learn more about pay per click, download this free report: Google AdWords: 12 Targeting Options Most Businesses Don’t Know About.