5 Key Factors for International Google Ads Campaigns for Your Online Store

As digital marketing continues to evolve, paid advertising is becoming more prominent across all industries. Several major social media platforms already allow marketers to advertise to their audiences, but the dominant force in paid advertising is still Google. The ‘front door of the internet’ offers marketers a world of opportunity through their dedicated advertising platform, Google Ads.

While it is quite straightforward to get up and running with a new ad campaign, many ecommerce owners make mistakes that can tank their investments quickly. This is especially true for international campaigns. Imagine you have a multinational ecommerce company for fashion retail, and you’re planning to launch a Google Ads campaign in the UK and France. Let’s see how to do it right.

5 Key Factors for International Google Ads Campaigns

Launching an international paid advertising campaign is not just an extension of your existing local efforts. There is a lot to consider, such as the differences in currency, culture, language, and demographics. Unfortunately, there isn’t a universal fit that will apply to France and the UK. However, there are some common factors that ecommerce businesses should consider when setting up their campaigns.

1. Your Budget

In Google Ads, you can only set the budget at the campaign level, which means it’s not possible to create separate budgets for each individual ad group. If you create a separate campaign for France and another one for the UK, you need to stay on top of both or your spending could escalate out of control. A counter-measure for this would be to set the daily maximums a little lower on each campaign, however, you must then consider what impact that will have on your traffic and conversion rates.

2. The Location

As much as 60% of consumers use their mobile devices to search for information on products and services in the local area. Ecommerce stores can run separate ad campaigns with geo-targeting so that their messaging targets the different segments of their audience.

For example, one ad could target people in the north-east of England and Scotland with offers for light jackets and sweaters, while another ad could target people in Nice with promotions for beachwear. Similar to the budget, you can adjust geotargeting at the campaign level. With that being the case, it’s essential to create a separate campaign for each location.

3. The Campaign Type

In Google Ads, you can set up your PPC campaigns to display different types of ads, including:

• Only in search results (i.e. text ads)
• Mobile app ads
• Call-only ads
• Video-triggering ads

4. Landing Pages

Going beyond the ads, you should also consider where your leads will be directed. The perfect landing page will be personalized for the leads, and highly-optimized to speak directly to their needs and interests.

Sometimes you can use a single landing page for multiple segments of your global audience, especially if the demographics align. However, if you are trying to make your new line of wooly hats seem cool to both French millennials and British seniors, then a single, catch-all landing page is unlikely to work. You need to appeal to both groups, and so your landing pages will have to be tailored to maximize conversions.

5. The Importance of History

Analytics are a massive component of modern marketing, and in advertising, proper analysis gives marketers the insights they need to finetune their campaigns for success. You could set up two identical campaigns – one for the UK, and one for France. However, after a month, the click-through rates and conversions for the UK campaign are far superior.

By looking at the analysis, you can gauge the performance of certain keywords and ads in each campaign to decipher where the problems lie. It may be the case that you just need to make some minor tweaks to the France campaign to get it on track. By using data analysis, you can make smarter marketing decisions to improve the campaigns.

3 Key Guidelines for Ecommerce Ad Campaigns

Nobody wants to see their money go to waste. When you’re about to embark on an international campaign, the rewards increase, as does the risk. Here are three tips to keep you on track:

Base Your Targets on Solid Data

You may have your sights set on world domination, but in the beginning, it’s important to choose targets carefully. Using data analytics, consider factors like geographic location, demographics, and projected ROI from advertising in a specific location.

If you’re selling three-piece designer suits to middle-aged professionals, the prospects may look more promising in London or Paris than in the French Riviera. Make sure you have an accurate data set to base your strategy on. That way, your digital marketing campaign will be rooted in cold, hard facts, which is a better foundation for your investment. It’s no coincidence that around 80% of marketing is data-driven today.

Manage Your Money

When you’re dealing with multiple currencies, the accounts can quickly become confusing. Ideally, you should have a master currency, which is most convenient for you. Whether it’s Euros, Pounds Sterling, or the US dollar, remain vigilant with your accounting to ensure all conversions and calculations are accurate.Only then can you make accurate projections and smart business decisions about your campaigns.

Don’t Get Lost in Translation

Hiring native speakers to write your ad copy is always a good move. But a spelling faux-pas is not the only thing to watch out for when advertising internationally. You have to consider culture and humor, and how that translates from one country to the next. A hilarious joke in the UK may come off as offensive in France. Getting in tune with the locals is key, especially if you want to build bridges between your brand and your prospects.

Staying Agile Matters with Google Ads

Just like everything else in digital marketing, advertising is ever-evolving. Marketers must pay close attention to their data analytics, assessing reports to learn more about their audiences, their keywords, and how their campaigns are performing. When you want to set up global advertising campaigns for your ecommerce store, there is a lot to be gained when you can do it right. Staying alert to changes in the market, and in your customers’ interests is critical to the success of your campaigns.