Patience Hurlburt-LawtonIn the world of digital marketing, managing a Google Ads account for a niche fashion accessories brand can be challenging, especially with a limited budget. This blog post walks you through a real-world example of how to diagnose and optimize an underperforming account, offering valuable insights for marketers and business owners alike.
Underperforming Campaigns with Limited Budget
Our case study focuses on a high-end fashion accessories brand with a monthly ad budget of $1,000. The current setup includes:
- A Standard Shopping campaign promoting one category ($700 spent, 40% return on ad spend [ROAS])
- A Smart campaign ($159 spent, 180% ROAS)
The overall account performance is subpar, with a combined ROAS of only 65%. Let’s dive into the issues and solutions.
A Four-Step Optimization Strategy
Implement Remarketing
Problem: The account lacks any form of remarketing, missing out on potential conversions from interested customers.
Solution: Set up a Display Remarketing campaign with the shopping feed attached. This campaign will:
- Target website visitors
- Show products they’ve viewed
- Have a restricted daily budget ($2-$3) to avoid ad fatigue
- Complement the standard shopping campaign, potentially improving its ROAS
Introduce Smart Bidding
Problem: The Standard Shopping campaign lacks intelligent bidding capabilities, leading to inefficient spend on cold leads.
Solution: While a Performance Max (PMax) campaign would be ideal, the limited budget makes it challenging to implement immediately. Instead:
- Plan to introduce a PMax campaign once the budget increases
- In the meantime, focus on the Display Remarketing campaign to boost overall performance
Incorporate Video Ads
Problem: The account lacks video content, which is crucial for impulse-buy products.
Solution: Develop and implement video ads:
- Create at least 10 videos with attention-grabbing 5-second intros
- Implement video remarketing across all campaigns
- Allocate a small budget (e.g., $5/day) for outbound video targeting to a hyper-focused niche audience
Improve Ad Creatives
Problem: The Smart campaign uses only product images, which are less effective for display advertising.
Solution: Enhance the ad creative strategy:
- Add lifestyle images featuring people using or wearing the products
- Reserve product-only images for Shopping ads
- Use a mix of product feed images (90%) and lifestyle images (10%) in the Display Remarketing campaign
Key Takeaways
- Conduct weekly check-ups of your Google Ads dashboard
- Focus on metrics that matter most to each client
- Monitor budget pacing to avoid overspending
- Regularly review search terms for relevance
- Use these insights to prepare for client communications
By following this process, you’ll stay ahead of potential issues, optimize campaign performance, and build stronger relationships with your clients. Remember, a proactive approach to account management is the key to success in the ever-changing world of Google Ads.
