How to advertise on Google: a step-by-step guide to your first Google Ads campaign

Advertising on Google looks like a few minutes of setup on paper: open an account, enter a budget, and the ad goes live. The problem is that Google will happily spend money on a half-built campaign too. In this guide we explain the steps of advertising on Google in an order a non-technical business owner can follow: from opening an account and choosing a campaign type, to keywords, budget and bidding, and what to expect in the first weeks.

Before you advertise on Google: answer two questions

Have two answers ready before you open the account. First: what exactly do you want from the ads? A phone call, a form, a WhatsApp message, an online sale or a store visit. “More customers” is a wish, not a goal. Without a measurable action you cannot tell whether a campaign is working.

Second: what is one customer worth to you? If you know your average order value and your profit margin, you can work out the most you can spend on advertising to win one customer. Our ad profit calculator helps with this. That limit becomes the compass for every later bidding and budget decision.

Step 1: Open a Google Ads account

Advertising with Google Ads starts with a Google account. Where possible, use an account owned by the business rather than someone’s personal email, so ownership stays with you when an employee or agency changes.

During sign-up Google may steer you towards a simplified, automated setup flow. It is fast, but it leaves you little control over keywords, match types and bids. If you want to manage the campaign in detail, look for the option to switch to the advanced (expert) setup. Interface labels change from time to time; the logic stays the same.

You will be asked for billing details and a payment method. Google may also ask some advertisers to verify their identity or business. If that request arrives, do not postpone it; until it is completed, your ads may be limited.

Step 2: Choose the right campaign type

There is no single way to advertise on Google; the campaign type decides where your ad appears and to whom. The most common ones:

• Search: Text ads shown above or below the results when someone searches for your service. The demand already exists and you appear at that exact moment. For local service businesses this is usually the right place to start.
• Performance Max: A single campaign that runs across Google properties such as Search, YouTube, the Display Network, Gmail and Maps, with Google largely deciding where the ad shows. It can work well with solid conversion data, but launched without measurement it becomes hard to see where the budget goes.
• Display Network: Image ads on websites and apps. Since there is no search intent, it suits awareness and reaching people who have visited your site before.
• YouTube (video): Video ads. Good for introducing a brand and building interest; expecting immediate forms or calls usually leads to disappointment.

For a business advertising on Google for the first time, one simple rule works: start with a Search campaign and add other types as data builds up.

Step 3: Do not go live without conversion tracking

A conversion is the action you want from the ad: a form submission, a phone call, a purchase. If you do not report these actions to Google Ads, the system only sees clicks and tries to collect clicks. Clicks can be cheap and still bring no customers.

Conversion tracking is usually set up through the Google tag or Google Analytics 4. After setup, make a test conversion yourself and check that it appears in the report. Counting the same form twice, or a thank-you page that never fires, are very common mistakes. For a checklist, see our article is your conversion tracking set up correctly?

Step 4: Keywords and match types

In a Search campaign, keywords and match types decide which searches trigger your ad. When choosing keywords, think in your customer’s words, not yours: “factory cleaning company” rather than “industrial cleaning solutions”.

• Broad match: Google also shows the ad on searches it considers related in meaning. Reach is highest, but without conversion data and smart bidding it can spend money on irrelevant searches.
• Phrase match: Shows the ad when the search includes the meaning of your keyword. A balance between control and reach.
• Exact match: Shows the ad when the search has the same meaning as your keyword. The narrowest and most controlled option.

Just as important as match types are negative keywords. Exclude searches that will never bring you customers, such as “free”, “jobs”, “how to” or “second hand”, from the start. Once the campaign is live, read the search terms report regularly and keep extending the list. We explain in detail where budget quietly leaks in where is your Google Ads budget going?

Split keywords into small ad groups by topic. If “boiler repair” and “boiler installation” sit in the same group, two different intentions see the same ad text.

Step 5: Budget and bidding strategy

In Google Ads the budget is set per campaign as an average daily amount. Google may spend more than this on some days and less on others, but over a month the amount billed will not exceed your daily budget multiplied by the average number of days in a month. So do not panic over a single day’s spend; look at weekly and monthly totals.

A bidding strategy is how Google decides what to bid in each auction. The main options are manual bidding, where you set the maximum cost per click yourself; a strategy aimed at getting as many clicks as possible; smart strategies that aim to increase conversions or conversion value; and target strategies such as a target cost per conversion. Without conversion data, smart strategies have nothing to learn from, so many accounts start with a simpler strategy and move to smart bidding as conversions accumulate.

There is no magic budget figure. But this logic helps: your budget should be large enough to get a meaningful number of clicks on your target searches every day. Spreading a small budget over dozens of keywords means collecting too little data on any of them. If the budget is tight, focus on fewer keywords and a smaller area.

Step 6: Ad copy and landing page

The standard format in Search campaigns is the responsive search ad: you write several headlines and descriptions, and Google tests them in different combinations. Good ad copy:

• Speaks the language of the search; someone searching for “boiler repair” wants to see “boiler repair” in the ad.
• States a difference: a real fact such as same-day service, a free site visit or your service area.
• Asks for a clear action: “Call now”, “Get a quote”.

Also fill in assets such as phone number, sitelinks, address and callouts; the ad takes up more space and gives more information.

Someone who clicks the ad arrives on the landing page, and most of the decision is made there. The page should show what the ad promised on the first screen, load fast on mobile and make the call or form button easy to find. Sending traffic to a service-specific page instead of the home page often makes a clear difference to the conversion rate.

The first 2–4 weeks: what to expect

Before going live, ads pass Google’s policy review, which is usually quick. The first weeks after that are a data-gathering period, not a profit period. Smart bidding strategies go through a learning phase after setup and after major changes, and costs can fluctuate during that time.

What to do in this period:

1. Check the search terms report often in the first days and add irrelevant searches to your negative list.
2. Confirm that conversions are really being recorded.
3. Do not change budget, bids or ads every day; let the system learn.
4. After two to four weeks, look at cost per click, conversion rate and cost per customer, and make your first serious decisions.

What determines the cost of Google ads?

There is no single answer to “how much does it cost to advertise on Google?”, because Google advertising has no fixed price list. Search ads run on an auction: every time a search happens, businesses that want to show an ad for that term compete. Your position is not decided by your bid alone; ad quality and relevance to the search, landing page experience, assets and the context of the search are assessed together. That is why a higher-quality ad can rank higher with a lower bid. And the amount you actually pay per click is often less than the maximum bid you set.

The main factors behind cost per click:

• Industry and competition: In sectors where one customer is worth a lot (such as law, healthcare and finance), clicks are generally more expensive.
• Location: In large cities more advertisers compete for the same keyword.
• Time and device: Competition varies by hour, day and device.
• Quality: A relevant ad and a good landing page can let you pay less for the same position.

To get an idea for your own sector, the Keyword Planner in Google Ads shows estimated bid ranges per keyword. These are not fixed prices, only estimates to guide your start.

Manage it yourself or work with an agency?

You can run a small Search campaign for one service in one area yourself, as long as you set aside regular time each week and make reading search terms a habit. Handing Google ads management to an agency is usually more efficient when you have several services or areas, when conversion tracking is complex, when you need e-commerce product campaigns, or when you suspect part of the budget is being wasted.

In AGO Dijital Medya’s Google Ads management service, the SME package is 10.000 ₺ per month; there are also packages at 25.000 ₺/month for e-commerce and 30.000 ₺/month for healthcare providers. These prices are as of September 2026, VAT included, and exclude ad spend: you pay the ad spend directly to Google. The current price is on the relevant service page. When evaluating a Google Ads agency, ask one question: does the management save more in wasted spend and lost customers than it costs?

Common mistakes when advertising on Google

• Going live without conversion tracking: You never learn what works.
• Not checking default settings: For example, leaving the Display Network option switched on in a Search campaign, or a location setting that also reaches people outside your target area.
• Skipping negative keywords: Part of the budget goes to irrelevant searches.
• Putting everything in one ad group: Different intentions see the same message.
• Changing settings every day: The campaign never leaves the learning phase.
• Sending traffic to the home page: Visitors leave before finding what they came for.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a website to advertise on Google?

In practice, yes. The vast majority of ads lead to a page, and Google also assesses that page’s experience. A page that loads fast, works on mobile and makes the next step clear directly affects both cost and conversions.

How long do Google ads take to show results?

Once approved, ads can start getting clicks the same day. But for costs to settle and to learn which keywords actually pay off, treat the first 2–4 weeks as a data-gathering period.

Is there a minimum budget for Google ads?

You set the budget yourself. The real question is whether it is enough to collect meaningful data on your target searches.

What is the difference between Google ads and SEO?

With ads you pay for every click, and visibility stops when the budget stops. SEO is long-term work for lasting visibility in the organic results. Many businesses use both.