A Google Ads campaign plan before the first launch

Many first Google Ads campaigns are built in one evening: one ad group, a long list of keywords, one ad, a budget, and launch. A week later the money is gone, the clicks came from people looking for something else, and it is hard to tell what went wrong. A short plan before the first launch saves much of that budget. Here is what it should contain for a search campaign.

Start with the goal and the numbers

Before any keyword, write down:

• What you want: calls, form requests or online sales.
• Where: the cities, regions or country you serve, and the languages.
• The monthly budget, and what one customer is worth to you.
• What you do not offer: a plumber who does not install boilers, a shop that does not sell second-hand.

The last point is easy to forget and saves the most money.

Split the campaign into ad groups

One ad group should hold keywords with the same intent and lead to one matching page. A bakery called Crumb might have:

• Birthday cakes: "order birthday cake", "custom cake near me".
• Wedding cakes: "wedding cake bakery", "tiered wedding cake".
• Catering: "pastry catering for office".

Each group gets its own ads, so the person searching for a wedding cake sees an ad about wedding cakes.

Keywords and match types

• Exact match for your most valuable phrases: you control exactly what you pay for.
• Phrase match for searches that contain your phrase with other words around it.
• Broad match only with care and a good list of negatives, as it reaches far.

For a first launch, fewer and more precise keywords are better than hundreds of loose ones.

Negative keywords

Negatives stop your ad from showing for the wrong searches. Typical ones: "free", "jobs", "course", "recipe", "how to", "used", and anything you listed as not offered. A bakery does not want to pay for "cake recipe".

Ads within the limits

Google search ads have strict limits: headlines up to 30 characters, descriptions up to 90. Write several headlines per ad group: the keyword, a benefit, a fact like delivery time or opening hours, and a call to action. Count the characters; text that is too long cannot be uploaded. Add sitelinks to important pages and callouts such as "Same-day delivery".

Prepare it in the editor's format

A plan in a spreadsheet laid out in the columns of Google Ads Editor can be imported in one step and checked in the preview before publishing. Nobody else needs access to your account.

What to check after 30 days

• Search terms: what people actually typed; add new negatives.
• Cost per lead or sale: compare it with what a customer is worth.
• Ads: keep the headlines that get clicks and replace the weak ones.

No plan guarantees clicks or sales: results depend on your offer, your site and the budget. A plan makes sure the budget goes to the right searches from the first day.

In short

A clear goal, ad groups by intent, precise keywords, a solid list of negatives and ads within the limits: that is a first campaign worth launching. If you would rather not build it yourself, order a search ad campaign: you describe what you sell, where and on what budget, and get an Excel file with ad groups, keywords, negative keywords and ads, ready to import into Google Ads Editor and publish from your own account. Payment is released only after you approve the work.