The Ultimate Search Audience Playbook 2024 (Oct) : Unlocking the Power of Google’s Audience Targeting

 

As marketers, we're always looking for ways to be more precise, more relevant, and more cost-effective in our campaigns. Google Search has always been about keywords, but with audience targeting, we can take things to a whole new level. This playbook will walk you through how to effectively use Search Audience Targeting to reach the right customers, at the right time, and maximize your ad spend.

What is Search Audience Targeting?

Search Audience Targeting allows you to combine your own customer data (also called first-party data) with Google’s insights on user behavior. This means you’re no longer just relying on keywords; you’re layering on powerful audience insights that make your ads more focused and efficient.

Exploring Audience Targeting Options with Google Search Ads

When running Google Search Ads, it’s crucial to understand the different audience targeting options available. These options allow you to reach specific groups of people who are more likely to engage with your ads. Here’s a breakdown of the main types of audiences you can target:

Basic Affinity Audiences

This targeting method allows you to reach people based on their lifestyle and interests. It includes a broad range of users who share similar passions. For example, if your business sells outdoor gear, you can show ads to individuals who enjoy hiking and camping based on their interests.

Custom Affinity Audiences

This feature enables you to create a more tailored audience. You can define your target group by including specific keywords, websites, or even locations that are relevant to them. For example, if you have a boutique that sells handmade jewelry, you might target users who frequently search for unique accessories or visit fashion blogs.

Demographic-Based Audiences

With demographic targeting, you can focus on users based on specific characteristics like age, gender, marital status, or education level. This helps you tailor your ads to reach the right people. For instance, if you sell family-oriented products, you might want to target parents or homeowners specifically.

In-Market Audiences

These are individuals who are actively searching for products or services similar to what you offer. This audience is more likely to convert since they’re already considering making a purchase. For example, if you sell car insurance, targeting users who are researching insurance options can yield better results.

RLSA (Remarketing Lists for Search Ads)

This option allows you to re-engage users who have previously visited your website but didn’t make a purchase. When they search for related terms again, you can ensure your ads appear to them. This is important because many people don’t convert on their first visit, so reminding them about your offerings can increase your chances of a sale.

Customer Match

With this targeting option, you can use your existing customer data to reach those who already know your brand. By uploading a list of your current customers, you can ensure they see your ads when they search online, encouraging them to return to your site for more purchases.

Similar Audiences

This feature allows you to find new users who resemble your existing customers. If you have a list of people who have converted before, Google can help you find similar profiles, making it easier to expand your reach and attract new customers.

How to Use Google Search Ad Targeting

You have the choice to target specific audiences or observe their behavior first. If you’re unsure who your ideal customer is, observing different audience groups can provide insights into who might be interested in your products. Once you identify an audience that performs well, you can adjust your bids to prioritize those users. For instance, if you notice that parents engage more with your ads, consider increasing your bids for that demographic.

Layering Audiences for Better Results

Combining different targeting options can lead to better results. For example, you might want to target parents who are interested in outdoor activities. The key is to test various combinations and analyze the data to see what works best. You can check your analytics to gain insights into your audience's interests and demographics.

As targeting methods evolve, it’s important to stay adaptable. You can explore new strategies, like using performance-based targeting, which allows you to focus on audience engagement first. This way, you can optimize your ads based on real user behavior and preferences.

 

Why Does This Matter?

Imagine if instead of just targeting people who search for “running shoes,” you could focus your efforts on those who’ve already browsed your website, people who match the profile of your existing customers, or even those who share certain demographics, like age or income level. That’s the promise of Search Audience Targeting—it lets you zero in on the users who are most likely to convert.

Types of Audience Data You Can Use

1. First-Party Data (Your Own Data)
   This is data that you’ve collected from your website or CRM, giving you direct access to potential customers who already know your brand.
• Customer Match: Upload your email lists and directly target your existing customers. Great for upselling or promoting loyalty offers.

Example: A fashion retailer could use Customer Match to show ads for an exclusive sale to their VIP customers.

• Remarketing Lists for Search Ads (RLSA): Target people who have visited your website but haven’t yet converted. These are warm leads—you know they’re already interested!

Example: A travel company can retarget visitors who searched for vacation deals on their website but didn’t make a booking.

2. Google’s Data
   Google brings powerful audience insights that allow you to expand beyond your own data and find new, high-potential customers.
• Similar Audiences: Reach new customers who behave like your current ones. Google analyzes the actions of your best customers and finds others with similar traits.

Example: A gym targeting men aged 25-40 can reach users with similar interests in health and fitness.

• Demographics for Search Ads (DFSA): Refine your audience by demographic information, like age, gender, and household income.

Example: A luxury car dealership can focus on ads for users in higher income brackets who are more likely to afford premium models.

Key Benefits of Search Audience Targeting

Now that we’ve covered the types of data available, let’s dive into how this changes your search ad strategy:

1. Smarter Bidding
   With audience data, you can adjust your bids depending on how valuable a user is likely to be. For example, you might increase bids for users who have previously purchased from your site or who share similar characteristics to high-value customers. At the same time, you could lower bids for users less likely to convert.

Play: Set higher bids for customers who’ve already engaged with your brand to increase the chance of conversion, while lowering bids for broader audiences.

2. Expanded Keywords with Confidence
   Audience targeting allows you to use broader keywords that may not have been as effective in the past. With the additional audience signals, you can reach users who are a better fit for your product, even if their searches aren’t exactly on target.

Play: A shoe retailer could target broader terms like “sports gear” or “fitness apparel,” knowing their audience targeting will help them reach people with an interest in shoes.

3. Creative Customization
   Not all audiences are the same, so why show them the same ad? By using audience targeting, you can tailor your messaging and offers to different groups. Maybe parents get an ad for family vacations, while young professionals see a more adventurous trip.

Play: Use dynamic ad customization to serve personalized offers or content based on the audience’s characteristics, such as showing discounts to returning visitors or exclusive offers to high-value customers.

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Building Your Search Audience Strategy

Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s get into how you can create a winning audience strategy for your next search campaign.

1. Start with Your Data
   Your first-party data is gold. Begin by segmenting your audience lists: create separate lists for existing customers, repeat visitors, and those who abandoned a cart. By treating each of these segments differently, you can tailor your bids and ads more precisely.

Play: For a skincare brand, show loyalty rewards to past buyers while offering first-time discounts to new visitors.

2. Expand with Google Data
   Once you’ve tapped into your own data, use Google’s insights to find similar audiences and target demographic groups that match your best customers.

Play: A SaaS company can target businesses that resemble their current customers based on browsing behavior, ensuring they’re spending ad dollars where they matter most.

3. Test, Learn, and Adjust
   Audience targeting is all about refinement. Test different audience combinations, tweak your bids, and see what performs best. Track results closely and adjust based on performance.

Play: Run A/B tests with different audiences to find the most responsive segments and optimize your campaign.

The Power of Audience in Search

With Search Audience Targeting, you’re not just relying on keywords anymore. You’re layering on deep insights that help you reach the right people at the right time. By leveraging both your own data and Google’s powerful audience tools, you’ll create more focused campaigns, improve your return on ad spend, and ultimately drive better results.

Whether you’re new to audience targeting or looking to take your current efforts to the next level, this playbook is your roadmap to success in the evolving world of search advertising.

 

Customer Match

With Customer Match, you can use your offline data (like CRM information) to connect with your existing customers across all their devices. This feature allows you to engage with your customers at the perfect moment, whether they’re on their phone or computer, delivering tailored messages that help build stronger relationships and drive conversions.

It’s perfect for:

• Lapsed Customers: Re-engage customers who haven’t interacted with you for a while.
• Contest Entrants: Follow up with people who entered a contest or promotion.
• Expiring Contracts: Send renewal reminders to customers whose contracts are about to end.
• Loyal Buyers: Show appreciation to your most frequent buyers with special offers.
• Recent Purchasers: Cross-sell or upsell to customers who just made a purchase.

Customer Match brings your offline data online, helping you target high-value customers with precision.

Similar Audiences for Search

Want to reach new customers who are similar to your best ones? Similar Audiences for Search allows you to do just that by targeting people whose recent search behavior is similar to those on your remarketing lists. This tool is great for expanding your audience beyond your current customer base and reaching new potential buyers who are likely to be interested in your products.

Remarketing Lists for Search Ads (RLSA)

RLSA lets you focus on users who have already visited your website in the last 540 days. These are people who’ve shown interest but might not have converted yet. To start using RLSA, you just need to place an AdWords Remarketing tag or a Google Analytics tag on your site. Once they’re tagged, you can reach them with targeted ads whenever they search on Google again.

• Important Note: Users already on your RLSA list won’t be included in your Similar Audiences list, ensuring you don’t target the same people twice.

How It Works

1. A user visits your website and gets added to an RLSA list.
2. If they search on Google before or after visiting your site, you can prioritize showing them your ads.
3. Meanwhile, people with similar search behavior (but who haven’t visited your site) will be added to a Similar Audience list, so you can reach them with new ads.

This approach lets you target both returning visitors and new potential customers, increasing your chances of driving valuable conversions.

Demographics for Search Ads (DFSA): A Simple Way to Boost Performance

Demographics for Search Ads (DFSA) allows you to target users based on their age and gender, using both data that users provide and data Google infers from their behavior. With DFSA, you can adjust your bids or limit your target audience based on these demographic details, making your campaigns more efficient and effective.

How DFSA Helps You Win

DFSA gives you two powerful options to improve your campaigns:

1. Optimized Bidding
   You can bid higher or lower based on how certain demographics perform for your business. This ensures you’re focusing your ad spend on the people who are most likely to convert.
• Example: If you sell luxury skincare products and see that women aged 35-50 are more likely to purchase, you can increase your bids for this group to drive more traffic and conversions.
2. Personalized Ads
   DFSA also lets you customize your ad copy and landing pages to better resonate with specific groups. This personalization boosts relevance and can lead to higher engagement.
• Example: A clothing retailer might create ad copy or promotions specifically aimed at millennials, offering trendy fashion options tailored to their preferences.

Real-Life Example: Clothing Retailer Targeting Millennials

Imagine you’re a clothing brand that primarily caters to millennials (ages 18-34). DFSA can help you reach this key demographic by allowing you to bid more aggressively for users in this age range. As a result, you’re likely to attract more visitors and increase sales from the audience that matters most to your business.

Search Audience Product Requirements

Almost any advertiser can run a Search Audience campaign, provided they meet Google's ad policy guidelines. Here’s a breakdown of some common ad solutions available depending on your data and goals:

1. First-Party Data-Based Solutions
• Customer Match (CM): Use customer email lists from your CRM system to segment audiences and target them based on your marketing goals.
• Remarketing Lists for Search Ads (RLSA): Add tags to your website to track whether someone has visited before and how far they made it through the purchase process.
2. Google Data-Based Solutions
• Similar Audiences for Search Ads (SAS): Google uses your audience lists to find people who share similar characteristics. By creating new remarketing lists, you provide fresh data for Google to analyze and find even more potential customers.
• Demographics for Search Ads (DFSA): No special setup is needed. You can use this feature to adjust your bidding or simply to gain insights into how different demographic groups are interacting with your ads.

Why DFSA Matters

Demographics for Search Ads is a straightforward but powerful tool that allows you to fine-tune your campaigns for better performance. Whether you're optimizing bids or personalizing your message, DFSA helps ensure you're getting the most out of every ad dollar by focusing on the audience that matters most to your business.

Implementation and Bidding: Practical Tips for Search Audience Success

Getting Started with Your First Search Audience List

Most advertisers kick off with Remarketing Lists for Search Ads (RLSA) because it targets users who’ve already been to your website, making them more likely to convert. These are people who know your brand, and targeting them is more effective than starting from scratch.

A great way to begin is by creating an All Site Visitors list. This is a broad list that captures everyone who visits your website, regardless of their activity. Whether you use a Google Ads Remarketing tag or a Google Analytics tag, the goal is to cast a wide net early on. This ensures you have a large pool of potential customers to work with. To get a fuller picture of your audience over time, set your remarketing list to track users for up to 540 days. This helps you see trends and behaviors that can guide your future strategy.

Key Things to Consider

If your business relies heavily on in-store sales or offline interactions, many of your customers might not have visited your website before. In this case, you can use Customer Match to reach them online by uploading your CRM data, like customer email lists. This lets you target those real-world customers in the digital space.

For businesses already using audience targeting on Google Display ads, try mirroring that strategy on Search. By syncing up these approaches, you can create a seamless experience for your customers across different platforms.

If you’re aiming for higher efficiency and more conversions, one tactic is to increase bids for your best-performing audience segments. You can also experiment with a broader range of keywords for these audiences, which might capture more relevant search traffic. Don’t forget about personalized ads either. Use tools like IF Functions to automatically tailor your ad copy based on who’s viewing it, increasing its relevance.

How to Make the Most of Customer Match

When using Customer Match, it’s important to have a good-sized audience list and target users who are valuable to your business. You’ll typically want to set a higher bid for Customer Match users compared to your RLSA list. As a rule of thumb, you can start by setting Customer Match bids at 1.1x your RLSA bids. According to Google, combining Customer Match with RLSA can increase audience clicks by up to 20%.

Here’s how you can use Customer Match:

• Upsell or Cross-sell: If someone bought a camera, for instance, target them with accessories like lenses or tripods.
• Re-target past customers: For example, if someone bought during a holiday sale last year, target them again when the next sale rolls around.
• Boost loyalty: Show appreciation to your top-tier customers with special offers or early access to new products.

Best Practices for RLSA

To get the full benefit of RLSA, make sure you’ve tagged every page on your website, both desktop and mobile. This helps build a comprehensive All Visitors list, which you can use in all your Google Ads campaigns. Sharing this list across all accounts ensures you’re reaching as many past visitors as possible.

Instead of treating every past visitor the same, consider prioritizing users who have engaged more deeply with your site. For instance, someone who visited your product pages or added items to their cart is more likely to convert than someone who only viewed your homepage. You can bid more for these high-value users and maximize your chances of driving a sale.

You also have the option to apply audiences at the campaign level or ad group level. Applying them at the campaign level ensures you have full audience coverage without accidentally missing out on any important user segments.

Getting the Most Out of Similar Audiences for Search (SAS)

Similar Audiences for Search (SAS) helps you find people who behave like your existing high-value users, such as those who converted or browsed specific product categories. For example, if you’re an electronics retailer, you can create a remarketing list for people who viewed your laptops page. Then, Google can build a Similar Audiences list filled with new users who share the same interests as those who looked at laptops on your site.

Here’s a step-by-step approach to using SAS effectively:

1. Start by focusing on your most valuable RLSA lists—users who completed a purchase or spent significant time browsing.
2. Apply these SAS lists to all your ad groups.
3. Choose 3-5 SAS lists that vary by behavior, such as Similar to All Visitors or Similar to Product Viewers. This variety ensures you’re not relying on one audience type.
4. Set these lists to Bid Only with a 0% bid adjustment at first to gather performance data.
5. Let the lists run for a week or two, then analyze results and adjust bids based on performance.

By targeting similar users, you’ll have a much better chance of expanding your customer base while maintaining a focus on high-quality leads. You can even reach out to your Google rep for pre-launch recommendations on optimizing these lists.

This strategy allows you to scale effectively while staying focused on the users who are most likely to convert.

 

Getting the Most Out of Demographics for Search Ads (DFSA)

Demographics for Search Ads (DFSA) gives you the power to adjust your ad strategy based on user age and gender, which is a useful tool to fine-tune your campaigns. By default, DFSA is already applied to all your search campaigns for reporting purposes, allowing you to analyze performance for different demographic groups.

Simple Steps to Maximize DFSA:

1. Check Your Demographics Tab: Start by reviewing the age and gender performance of your audience. Are certain groups engaging more than others? For instance, if you’re selling beauty products, you might notice that women aged 25-34 respond better to certain campaigns.

2. Adjust Bids Based on Performance: If a certain age or gender is performing above your campaign average, consider increasing your bids for that group to capture more of their traffic. For example, if men aged 18-24 are making more purchases than other groups, bid higher to prioritize them. Similarly, if a segment is underperforming, lower your bid to focus on more profitable demographics.

3. Customize Ads by Demographic: Tailor your ad creatives to match specific audiences. If you’re a fashion retailer, you could create separate ads for men’s and women’s clothing. An insurance company might offer different plans for young drivers versus retirees.

Expanding Your Audience Lists

Once you're comfortable with using RLSA (Remarketing Lists for Search Ads), there are several ways to expand your reach and drive even better results:

• Start with All Site Visitors: If you’re already running campaigns targeting all visitors to your website, consider creating additional remarketing lists, like targeting users who abandoned their shopping cart or those who have made purchases in the past (All Converters).

• Try Customer Match: If your goal is to engage with offline customers or those who haven't visited your website recently, upload your CRM data using Customer Match. This helps you target users across devices who are familiar with your brand, but not actively visiting your site.

• Expand to Similar Audiences: If you’re running both RLSA and Customer Match campaigns, it's time to take it further. With Similar Audiences, you can reach new customers who behave like your best ones, expanding your acquisition strategy effectively.

Using Bid Adjustments for Audience Lists

When adjusting bids for Audience Lists, you’re often working with strong signals about user intent. Unlike other bid adjustments (like location or time of day), Audience List adjustments typically involve more significant changes. Here’s how to handle it:

• Regularly Review Performance: Manually adjusting bids can be powerful, but it requires constant monitoring. For instance, if your RLSA list of past buyers is performing exceptionally well, increase your bids to ensure you capture as much of that traffic as possible.

• Bold Adjustments: Don’t be afraid to set bold bid adjustments based on audience performance. If your cart abandoners list consistently drives conversions, increase bids for this segment significantly to maximize results.

Best Practice: Combine Audience Lists with Smart Bidding

For even better results, combine Audience Lists with Smart Bidding strategies like Target CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) or Target ROAS (Return on Ad Spend). These automated strategies use audience signals to optimize bids without requiring manual adjustments:

• Boost Efficiency: Smart Bidding allows you to get the most out of your “audience + intent” data. By letting Google’s machine learning adjust bids based on audience performance, you can focus on driving more conversions while maintaining your target CPA or ROAS.

• Save Time: Smart Bidding automatically applies bid adjustments, so you don’t have to manually tweak settings for each audience. If you prefer some manual control, Enhanced CPC (eCPC) offers a balance by automating most adjustments while still allowing for fine-tuning.

By combining audience insights with smart, automated bidding, you can ensure your campaigns are both efficient and effective at reaching the right users.

Understanding "Bid Only" vs "Target & Bid" in the Context of Google Search Audiences

When you’re using Google Search Audiences, your goal is to target users based on their behaviors or characteristics, such as previous interactions with your site, demographics, or similarities to your existing customers. Google offers two main options for audience targeting: Bid Only and Target & Bid. These settings influence how broadly or specifically you want to reach users searching for your keywords.

Let’s explore how each works, with real-world examples to make it easy to understand.

1. Bid Only in Google Search Audiences

• What It Means: With Bid Only, your ads will still appear to everyone searching for your targeted keywords, but you can adjust how much you're willing to bid for users on specific audience lists. This means you can increase or decrease your bids for people who are more likely to convert, like those who have interacted with your site before.
• Example in Context: Imagine you own a gym, and you want your ads to show for anyone searching for "gym memberships near me." Using Bid Only, your ad will appear for everyone searching for that phrase. But, if someone is on your RLSA (Remarketing Lists for Search Ads) list—let’s say they visited your website in the past—you can increase your bid for that user, knowing they are more likely to sign up for your gym.
• Advantages:
• Wide Reach: Your ads still show to all users searching for your keywords, but you can prioritize audience segments (e.g., past visitors) with higher bids.
• Safe Testing: You can experiment with different bid adjustments, even starting at 0%, to see what works without drastically changing your campaign’s performance.
• Custom Ads: You can customize ads for different audiences using IF Functions (e.g., offering a special discount to people who’ve already interacted with your brand).
• Limitations:
• You can’t direct different audience groups to separate landing pages (e.g., sending first-time visitors to a homepage and return visitors to a loyalty program page).
• You can't set different performance targets (like ROI or CPA) for different audiences when using Smart Bidding.

2. Target & Bid in Google Search Audiences

• What It Means: With Target & Bid, your ads will only be shown to users on your specific audience list. This is more focused targeting, where you exclude everyone who isn’t part of that audience—even if they’re searching for your keywords.
• Example in Context: Say you run an online clothing store and want to focus your ads solely on people who have visited your site before but didn’t make a purchase. Using Target & Bid, you ensure that only users on your RLSA list—those who previously viewed your products—will see your ad. This helps you concentrate on higher-potential customers.
• Advantages:
• Tailored Ads and Landing Pages: You can create different ads and landing pages for each audience group. For instance, you might show different promotions for loyal customers versus first-time visitors.
• Advanced Bidding: Smart Bidding lets you set different performance targets for each audience, like higher return on ad spend (ROAS) for your best customers.
• Budget Flexibility: You can allocate different budgets for each audience. For example, you might spend more on targeting high-value returning customers and less on general audiences.
• Limitations:
• Managing multiple campaigns can become complex, as you’ll need to create and monitor separate campaigns for each audience.
• Splitting campaigns into smaller segments may reduce your overall campaign volume, leading to less data for analysis.

Which One Should You Use?

• Bid Only: Use this when you want to keep reaching all users searching for your keywords while fine-tuning your bids for specific audience lists. This is great for maximizing your reach while optimizing for certain audience segments, like people on your RLSA list.
• Target & Bid: Choose this option when you want to focus entirely on a particular audience list, like existing customers or high-value users. This is best when you have a specific group in mind and want to show them tailored ads or direct them to specific landing pages.

For example, a restaurant could use Bid Only to adjust bids for regular customers who previously ordered online, while still showing ads to anyone searching for "restaurants near me." Meanwhile, they could use Target & Bid to only show ads to users who subscribed to their newsletter, offering them special discounts.

Both strategies have their strengths depending on your marketing goals. Choose Bid Only for broad targeting with fine-tuning, and Target & Bid when you want to zero in on a particular audience.

 Expansion and Optimization: Building a Search Audience Strategy

When you’re working on a Search Audience strategy, the goal is to make sure you're reaching the right people by using as much relevant data as possible. Combining all of your audience data—whether it's from people who've visited your site, purchased before, or are similar to your best customers—gives you the broadest reach and the biggest impact on performance.

Here’s how to expand and optimize effectively:

1. Customer Match:

Use Customer Match to target people who have already converted or engaged with your business. For example, if you run an online clothing store, you can use email addresses from your loyalty program to show ads to previous customers when they search for similar products. These users already know your brand, so they’re more likely to make another purchase.

2. RLSA (Remarketing Lists for Search Ads):

With RLSA, you can reach people who have interacted with your website but haven’t converted yet. For example, if someone visited your site and added a product to their cart but didn’t complete the purchase, RLSA helps you re-engage them with a targeted ad the next time they search for a related product on Google. This is a great way to bring potential customers back to your site and nudge them toward conversion.

3. Similar Audiences:

After you've tapped into your existing customer base, Similar Audiences can help you find new potential customers who haven’t interacted with you yet but share similar behaviors with your current ones. Let’s say your RLSA list has users who frequently browse high-end tech gadgets on your site. Similar Audiences uses Google’s data to identify other users with similar interests, giving you a new group of potential buyers to target.

4. Demographics for Search Ads (DFSA):

Lastly, DFSA lets you refine your targeting based on age and gender. For example, if you’re a fashion retailer selling both men’s and women’s clothing, you can adjust your bids to focus more on women ages 18-34 if that demographic is performing better for you. It’s a great way to optimize your bids and tailor ads to the most relevant groups.

Scale Your Strategy

It’s important to keep in mind that not all your traffic will be audience-targetable right now, so focus on scaling the data you do have. Start by targeting the audiences that matter most to your business (like loyal customers or abandoned cart visitors) and then expand with broader strategies like Similar Audiences to reach new prospects. By layering these different audience types, you can maximize your reach and improve overall performance.

 

Bid Adjustments and Maximizing Reach

When setting up your initial bid adjustments for Google search audiences, think of it like adjusting the volume on a radio. You don't want every channel at the same level, right? It’s the same with your audience lists. Start by assigning different bid amounts based on how valuable each group is to your business. If you treat all audiences the same, Google will randomly choose which list to show your ad to if a user is in multiple lists.

For example, if you’re an online retailer, you might give a slight bid increase to people who abandoned their shopping cart, a bigger boost to loyal customers, and leave your bids neutral for first-time visitors. Even a small change, like increasing bids by just 1%, can help prioritize your top audiences without being too aggressive.

Why Maximizing Reach is Key

Maximizing reach is crucial because it lets you go beyond simple campaign averages. Imagine you’re running an ad for a new product launch. You could focus only on high-value customers, but that might be a small group. Instead, by also targeting broader audiences, like those who have visited your site but never made a purchase, you increase your chances of gathering useful data on how different groups respond to your ads.

In short: the more people you reach, the more performance data you collect, which helps you fine-tune your campaigns for better results.

Combining Site Visitors and Customer Data

One of the best ways to improve your audience strategy is by blending data from different sources. For example, you can build an RLSA list from site visitors and combine it with a Customer Match list from your CRM. This way, you're covering more ground. Let’s say you’re a clothing store—you could target people who recently browsed winter coats on your site and also reach out to those who’ve bought from you during the last holiday season through Customer Match.

By combining these lists, you're casting a wider net, reaching both current and potential customers more effectively.

Identifying Key Segments for Better Targeting

It’s also important to identify segments of users who should be treated differently. Let’s say you run an online fitness store. People who’ve previously bought yoga mats might respond better to ads for yoga accessories than to ads for running gear. You can adjust your bids and tailor your messaging for these specific groups to make your ads more relevant.

For instance, you might run a separate ad with a special offer, like “Complete Your Yoga Setup with 10% Off Accessories,” to re-engage people who already bought a yoga mat.

Avoid Over-Segmenting Your Audience Lists

While it’s good to make audience lists specific, don’t go overboard. Think of it like slicing a pizza—you want enough slices to feed everyone, but if you make too many, they’ll be too small to satisfy anyone. Similarly, creating too many tiny audience segments can limit your insights and make campaign management harder.

Cautiously Apply Negative Targeting

If you find that a certain audience isn’t performing well, don’t rush to exclude them. For instance, if people in the 35-45 age range aren’t converting as expected, try lowering your bids instead of cutting them off completely. This helps you save on cost without completely losing the potential to convert them down the line.

Broaden Your Target with Neighboring Segments

Let’s say your target audience is people over 55 years old, but don’t forget to include people slightly younger, like those in the 45-55 age bracket. Age data isn’t always precise, and you might miss out on valuable customers who are close to your target. In this case, casting a slightly wider net ensures you're still reaching the right audience, even if the data isn't 100% accurate.

Customize Ad Creative for Different Audiences

Customizing your ads to speak directly to different groups can be a game-changer. For instance, if someone has been browsing laptops on your tech website, you could tailor an ad just for them: “Ready for an upgrade? Get 15% off your next laptop.” Using IF Functions in Google Ads allows you to switch out messages based on the audience viewing the ad, making the experience more personalized and relevant.

By customizing your ads, you're not just showing any ad—you’re showing the right ad to the right person, at the right time.

 

Strategies for Engaging Your Audience

1. New Sales or Stock: Keep your loyal shoppers in the loop about new products or sales. For example, if you just restocked popular shoes, send an email or ad saying, "Check out our new arrivals!"
2. Cross-Selling: Suggest complementary products to specific groups. If a customer buys a smartphone, you could recommend a protective case or headphones. This increases the chances of them making an additional purchase.
3. Loyalty Programs: Encourage repeat business by offering loyalty programs. For instance, if customers earn points for every dollar spent, they’ll be more likely to return to redeem those points for discounts on future purchases.
4. Promotions: Highlight special promotions or free shipping in your ads. If you’re running a summer sale, create ads that say, “Enjoy free shipping on orders over $50 for our loyal customers!”
5. Cart Abandonment: Use RLSA (Remarketing Lists for Search Ads) to target customers who left items in their shopping carts without buying. If someone abandoned a stylish dress, show them an ad that offers, “Complete your purchase today and get 10% off!”
6. Lead Generation: Offer both paid and free subscription options. For example, if you have a fitness app, provide a free trial for a week before requiring payment to encourage sign-ups.

 

Creating Target & Bid Campaigns

If you want to connect with specific groups of people, consider setting up a Target & Bid campaign. Here’s a simple step-by-step guide:

1. Duplicate Your Current Ad Groups:
   Let’s say you have an ad group for running shoes. Copy this ad group so you can create a new version that targets a different audience, like people who have bought shoes in the past.
2. Add Your Audience List:
   Choose a specific group to focus on, like customers who purchased running shoes in the last six months. This way, you can tailor your ads just for them.
3. Update Your Ad Copy and Landing Pages:
   Change your ads to reflect your new audience. For example, if your audience is previous buyers, your ad could say, “Thanks for choosing our running shoes! Enjoy 15% off your next pair!” Make sure the landing page highlights the discount.
4. Set Your Campaign to “Target and Bid”:
   By selecting this option, your ads will only show to people on your chosen list. This means your message is reaching the right people, making your ads more effective.

Example: Targeting Loyal Customers

If you run a bakery and want to target customers who frequently buy your cupcakes, you can create a Target & Bid campaign for them. Duplicate your existing cupcake ad group, update the ad to say, “We miss you! Here’s a 20% off coupon for your favorite cupcakes,” and set it to target only those loyal customers.

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Expanding Your Keyword Strategy

When you target specific audiences, you can also experiment with different keywords to reach more potential customers. Here’s how to do it:

1. Try New Keywords with Past Visitors:
   If you run a fitness store, keywords like “fitness equipment” may not have worked well before. However, when you target people who visited your site, they might respond better.
2. Use Seasonal Keywords:
   During the holiday season, create a special ad group for the keyword “Holiday Gifts.” If you previously had limited success with this keyword, it might perform better now when aimed at past customers who are likely to buy gifts.
3. Example: Holiday Campaign
   If you sell outdoor gear, consider running an ad with the keyword “Camping Gifts” during the holidays. Target customers who bought camping gear last year. Your ad could say, “Find the perfect camping gifts for your loved ones!”
4. Focus on Specific Audiences:
   Use your “Target and Bid” strategy to reach specific groups. For example, if you want to focus on families, create an ad group that promotes family camping gear and uses the keyword “Family Camping Gear.” This way, your ads are relevant to their interests and needs.

 

Audience Targeting in Google Ads: Campaign vs. Ad Group

When setting up your Google Ads, you can choose to apply audience targeting to your entire campaign or to specific ad groups. Here’s how to decide:

Focus on Ad Groups
It's often better to apply audience targeting at the ad group level. This allows you to see how different audiences perform and gives you room to experiment. For example, if you sell shoes, you might have separate ad groups for "Running Shoes" and "Formal Shoes." By targeting different audiences for each, you can find out which type performs better.

Targeting vs. Observation: What to Choose?

A crucial decision is whether to target specific audiences or to observe how they perform.

• Targeting: If you want your ads to show only to users who meet certain criteria, like people actively looking for "fitness trackers," select Target. This narrows your audience to those specific users, which is useful when you have a well-defined group in mind. For instance, if you want to promote a new fitness tracker, targeting users interested in health and fitness will ensure your ad appears only to relevant potential customers.
• Observation: If you're unsure about your ideal audience, choose Observation. This lets you see how different audiences perform without limiting who sees your ads. For instance, you might set up a campaign for "summer clothing" and observe how users interested in "beach vacations" or "outdoor activities" engage with your ads.

Important Points to Remember

• Minimum Audience Size: Google requires at least 1,000 active members in an audience for ads to show to that group. For example, if you create an audience of people who visited your site but have fewer than 1,000 visitors, your ads won’t show to them until the group size increases.
• Start with Observation: If you’re unsure who your best audience is, start with Observation. For example, if you're selling home decor, you can run tests with different audience segments—like "new homeowners" or "interior design enthusiasts." Once you identify which group converts better, you can refine your approach.
• Use Targeting for Specific Offers: Targeting is great when you want to reach users who have already visited your site with a specific message. For example, if someone added a lamp to their cart but didn’t buy it, you could target them with an ad saying, “Complete your purchase and get 10% off your lamp!” This approach can help recover potentially lost sales.

Getting Insights on Your Audience

If you haven’t analyzed your audiences yet, you can gain valuable insights from Google Ads. In the Audience Tools section, under Audience Insights, you can learn about your past visitors or customers.

Demographics: For example, if you find that a large portion of your audience is women aged 25-34, you can tailor your ads to appeal more to that demographic, perhaps focusing on styles or products they might prefer.

Interests: You might discover that many of your visitors are interested in DIY home projects. This insight allows you to create ads promoting your products that cater to that interest, such as offering tools or materials that align with their DIY pursuits.

Conclusion

Choosing the right audience is key to running a successful ad campaign. A well-defined audience can significantly boost your conversion rates. Different campaigns may require different audience strategies, so there’s no one-size-fits-all approach.

To find the best audience, check Audience Insights and run Observation tests. For instance, if you’re promoting a new line of eco-friendly products, observe how audiences interested in sustainability respond before switching to targeting them directly.