With Small Business Saturday upon us and gift-buying season in full swing, consider Google Ads to increase awareness of your photography business. Maybe someone will buy a gift certificate for a session as a holiday present!

Elements of a Google Ad

There is a lot that goes into crafting a high-performing Google search ad, but you can also get started without being an expert. Even if you have limited click-through, impressions (awareness) are free on a PPC ad. A Google search ad needs the following elements:

  1. Headline
  2. Description
  3. Keywords
  4. Destination / Landing Page
  5. Bidding Strategy
  6. Images (recommended but not mandatory)

First, it is good practice for the messaging on your ad, the keywords you chose, and the destination (your web page) to be related. Making keywords that you think will be highly searched terms, but have nothing to do with your business, is not a recipe for success.

Speaking of keywords, how do you think of them? Simply think of ways your customer would search for your services. Well, it may not be that simple for you to think like that. But, you know what you offer. You know your niche. So start there. The best keywords are specific but not overly specific. They are descriptive and they can be phrases or multiple words together. Gemini AI from Google is a great tool to help you.

Keywords

For example, try this prompt: What are some Google search ad keywords to consider for a local portrait photography business?

The response I received:

Here are some Google search ad keywords to consider for a local portrait photography business:

General keywords

  • portrait photography
  • family portraits
  • senior portraits
  • child portraits
  • newborn photography
  • headshot photography
  • boudoir photography
  • couple photography
  • engagement photography
  • wedding photography

Location-specific keywords

  • [Your City] portrait photography
  • [Your City] family photographer
  • [Your Neighborhood] photographer
  • [Your City] headshot photographer
  • [Your City] newborn photographer

Long-tail keywords

  • best portrait photographer in [Your City]
  • affordable family portraits [Your City]
  • professional headshots [Your City]
  • newborn photography near me
  • engagement photos in [Your City]

Additional tips

  • Use relevant keywords: Choose keywords that accurately reflect your services and target audience.
  • Consider negative keywords: Use negative keywords to exclude irrelevant search terms and improve the quality of your ad traffic.
  • Use keyword match types: Experiment with different keyword match types (exact, phrase, and broad match) to find the best fit for your campaign.
  • Utilize Google Keyword Planner: This free tool can help you research keywords, estimate traffic volume, and identify potential bidding costs.
  • Track and optimize your campaigns: Monitor your campaign performance and make adjustments as needed to improve your return on investment (ROI).

This will get you off to a great start, and you can use the example to make adjustments to be more relevant to your specific business. There are also negative keywords, which are terms that are excluded and will not trigger your ad to show on Goole.

Headline and description

A compelling headline must be concise (there’s a character limit), relevant (use some keywords here), and clear. Consider action words that direct people, such as “Shop Now.”

The descriptions (90 character limit) should be persuasive, highlight the benefits or your offerings, and create urgency. After all, you want people to buy holiday gifts now.

Destination

Send folks that click to a landing page that is relevant to your ad. It should include some of the messaging or keywords used. The page should have a clear call-to-action to further direct the viewer to your offerings/shopping cart.

Bidding

Bidding is interesting in Google since you probably need to start the campaign to see what your costs will be. There is manual and automated bidding. However, you can set limits on bid cost and daily spend. Maybe start with $15/day to get your feet wet, and once you see what works, do more of that and increase your bid.

While there’s not time here for a full crash course on Google Ads, use AI tools to help craft your messaging if needed. Good luck raising awareness and sales this holiday season!