Google Ads Examples: 5 Effective Ads To Learn From
Looking for inspiration for your Google Ads?
I’ve collected some of the best examples I could find (as well as a few not so good ones) and analyzed what makes them effective.
In this post, you will learn…
- One of the six principles of persuasion that you can easily apply in your Google ads to build trust and get more clicks
- How to know what information you should include in your ads
- A simple headline formula you can use to make your ads stand out above competitors
- One of the main human needs to consider when writing your ads
1. Teeth Whitening Ad: Advanced Whitening
Search: Teeth whitening kits
This ad provides a great example of how you can do a lot with the limited space in Google ad.
Advanced Whitening are using a powerful concept known as social proof to promote their teeth whitening kits.
In his book Influence: The Principles of Persuasion, Robert Cialdini talks about social proof being one of the six key principles of influence.
Social proof explains why we tend to copy the actions of others. If a lot of other people are eating at a particular restaurant, you’re more likely to eat there yourself. Social proof is a shortcut to decision making.
Advanced Whitening highlights in their headline that their kit is the number 1 kit in Australia. They continue to build on the social proof in the first sentence of the description – highlighting that their product is ‘loved by over 500,000 peeps.’ And then they have used the Google Ads reviews extension to highlight their 320 reviews and 4.8 star rating.
This all sends a message to readers that other people have trusted this product so you can too.
Aside from social proof, they have also addressed possible objections and concerns effectively and concisely. Consider all the concerns that someone ordering a teeth whitening kit may have…
- How long will it take to use?
- Is it going to make a mess?
- Is it safe?
- Does it really work?
- Is there a cost for shipping?
In a very short space, they have addressed each of these concerns. People are likely to feel more confident clicking on this ad versus a competitor who doesn’t address these concerns.
How You Can Apply This Is Your Ads: You can take advantage of social proof in your ads by highlighting your customer reviews. Eg. “4.8 Star Rating From 400+ Reviews.” Or you could highlight how many customers you’ve had. Also, make a list of common objections in your business and try to address them concisely in your ad.
2. Dentist Ad: Dental 99
Search: Best dentist near me
Everyone knows that a trip to the dentist can be expensive. When someone searches Google for a dentist nearby, the cost is likely to be one of the main questions on their mind.
While there are some circumstances where it may be better to not include the price in a Google ad, I think Dental 99 are smart to include their price in this ad.
Many customers will make a decision on which dentist to visit based on price, location and ability to claim on health insurance. All of that information is addressed within this Google ad.
For the user, this means they don’t need to search all over the website to find these details. They don’t need to call the dentist to ask for pricing. Compare this to the ad below…
The potential client has no idea how much they will have to pay at this dentist. Pricing may or may not be on their website. There is no location extension to tell potential customers where the dentist is located. There is a site link extension for ‘services’ but you can’t see from the ad whether they offer check-ups or tooth extractions.
Dental 99 has already answered the prospect’s main questions within their ad. While someone looking at the Medora Dental ad above would need to go to the website or call them to get answers to these questions.
People generally prefer the simplest solution that allows them to save time. Dental 99 has made it simpler for their prospective clients so people will be more likely to click their ad and book with them.
How You Can Apply This In Your Ads: Consider what information your customers usually need before making a purchase decision. Try including that information concisely within your ads.
3. Property Buyers Agent Ad: Universal Buyers Agents
Search: Buyers agents Brisbane
Universal Buyers Agents have created a highly effective headline in this ad.
Just from reading the headline, we know that they are a buyers agent, which matches the search. That may seem obvious, but you will see many Google ads where it’s unclear exactly what the advertiser is offering.
We also know they are the #1 voted buyers agent in Brisbane. This is a great example of using social proof, as discussed in the Advanced Whitening ad.
They have then used the second part of their headline to highlight a key benefit: “Never Pay Market Value.” Securing properties for below market value is one of the major reasons why someone may use a buyers agent so they are smart to prominently highlight this in their ad headline.
Compare that headline to this one below for a competitor buyers agent…
The first part of their headline is fine – the searcher can at least see they are a buyers agent. But the second part of the headline is wasted.
Rather than providing a benefit to the reader as Universal Buyers Agents did, they have just put locations in the headline. Yes, it’s true that many people will want to know what locations the buyers agent purchases property in but I would argue that shouldn’t be featured in the headline.
Their ad description (below the headline) does at least provide some benefits to the potential customer. But if the headline doesn’t engage people, they usually won’t even bother to read the description.
Consider which ad you would be more likely to click on if you were searching for a buyers agent. My guess is that the first ad would have a much higher click-through rate.
How You Can Apply This In Your Ads: Follow this same formula when you’re writing headlines for your ads. Headline 1 should make it clear what you offer (and if you can combine this with social proof, even better). And headline 2 should promote a key benefit of your product/service.
4. Gym Ad: SPENGA
Search: Best Denver gyms
People are naturally drawn to that which is different or unique. In this ad, SPENGA gym in Denver does a great job at drawing people’s attention to their uniqueness.
This ad will be very appealing to people who have been to regular commercial gyms in the past but didn’t like it. Or if they weren’t able to achieve the results they wanted at a regular gym.
It will give them hope that perhaps since this gym is unlike any other gym, maybe it will be more enjoyable than the other gyms they have been to. Perhaps this gym has something that will help them achieve the results they want.
There use of site-link extensions is also quite effective. Particularly the ‘Redeem Your Trial Offer’ extension. A trial is one of the first things people will look for when joining a gym. For someone who is looking to get started with a trial, they will be more likely to click on this ad than a competitors ad that doesn’t mention free trials in their ad copy.
If you have a registered trademark on your brand name, it can also be effective to use the ® symbol in your ad copy, as SPENGA have done. It helps your ad to stand out and gives your brand a sense of credibility.
How You Can Apply This In Your Own Ads: Highlight in your ad copy how your business or product is different to your competition.
See More Gym Marketing Ideas In This Article
5. CRM System Ad: Pipedrive
Search: CRM Systems
Many of the ads above are for smaller businesses. Some of them being local businesses. But this ad is from SaaS company Pipedrive. Pipedrive has over 95,000 customers around the world and likely has a much larger marketing budget than the other businesses featured above.
You will notice they have used a very similar formula in their headline to the Universal Buyers Agents ad above…
In the first part of the headline, they make it clear that they do offer a CRM system (matching the search). But they also inject social proof by highlighting that they are “Rated #1 CRM By Real Users.“
They follow this up in the second part of the headline, with a key benefit: “The Easy-To-Use CRM”.
This is a great benefit to highlight for a CRM system. Anyone who has used a CRM before probably knows how difficult they can be to use.
Compare this to Mailchimp’s CRM Google ad…
I feel Mailchimp have really wasted the second part of their headline in this Google ad. Perhaps they are trying to leverage the Mailchimp brand name (which is more well-known than Pipedrive). But I believe the ad would be more effective if they were to highlight a benefit instead.
Pipedrive’s ad description is also fantastic.
Firstly they highlight that their CRM is “designed for salespeople, by salespeople.” This subtedly communicates to the reader that “we understand what you want, we understand your frustrations with other CRM’s.”
Then they add social proof: “Used by 95,000+ Teams.” The reader is going to think “there must be a good reason why 95,000 other teams have used this software.”
They also engage the reader’s imagination with the text that follows…
“Visual Interface. Intuitive Pipelines. Drag and Drop Deals.”
You can actually imagine yourself using Pipedrive’s CRM as you read this. It’s like taking a demo of the software in your mind. And it reinforces the simplicity factor that they have already highlighted in the headline.
Finally, they offer the reader a no-risk option: “Try It 14 Days Free”.
This eliminates the risk for the potential customer. They know they can try the product to see if they like it before committing financially.
And the potential customer can imagine the next step they would take after clicking on the ad – registering for a free trial. That is important because it creates certainty – which is one of the six fundamental human needs.
See the excerpt below from Entrepreneur Magazine’s article on the 6 human needs…
The person reading Pipedrive’s ad can feel comfort and certainty in knowing what will come next after clicking on the ad.
How You Can Apply This In Your Own Ads: Promote a major benefit in the headline of your ad. Get people to imagine what it would be like to use your product. And increase certainty by indicating what the next step will be after they click your ad.
Summary
You can start applying the principles used in these ads to immediately generate more conversions from your campaigns.
To summarise, here are six key lessons from the ads above.
- Take advantage of social proof in your ads by highlighting that other people have already trusted your business or product.
- Use your ad headline to make it clear what you offer and then include one major benefit.
- Highlight what makes your product or service different from other options.
- Address potential concerns and objections customers may have in your ad description.
- Consider the most important information a customer would need to make a purchase decision. Try to provide this information concisely within the ad.
- Include a call to action or next step within the ad so people know what to expect after clicking on your ad.
If you apply these lessons in your own ads, you can expect to see higher click through rates, higher conversion rates and ultimately more leads or sales in your business.
Understanding buyer psychology will always help to create better Google Ads copy. Those who can get in the mind of the person searching on Google and understand what they are looking for, what makes them click on an ad, are able to write the best ads.
If you want to learn more about buyer psychology, I strongly recommend reading some of the other content on this blog. We have dozens of articles analyzing marketing campaigns and the psychology behind them.
The articles below are a great place to start.
