Guide · Paid ads
Google Ads and Meta Ads: a practical guide
Paid ads are the fastest way to put a small business in front of people, and the fastest way to waste money when the basics aren't in place. Wasted budget usually traces back to broken tracking, loose targeting or a landing page that doesn't convert, not to the ads themselves.
This guide starts with whether paid ads are the right channel at all, then covers running Google Ads and Meta Ads properly, and finishes with what to check when the clicks arrive but the enquiries don't.
Step 1
Should you be running ads?
Paid search and SEO solve different problems on different timelines. Start by working out which one you have.
SEO vs Google Ads: Which Should a NZ Small Business Do First?
How to pick between SEO and Google Ads based on your situation, not on what you were told to do.
StrategyWhy Most Digital Marketing Strategies Fail Before They Start
The decisions to make before spending on any channel, and a five-question test for your current plan.
Step 2
Running the campaigns
The setup and checks that decide whether an ad budget works.
The Google Ads Audit Checklist: 15 Checks I Run on Every Account
Fifteen checks that find wasted spend in a Google Ads account, with a free tracker template.
Paid MediaMeta Ads for Small Business: Set Up Your First Campaign
How to launch a first Meta Ads campaign in the right order: tracking, budget, targeting, then creative.
Step 3
When clicks don't turn into enquiries
If the ads are working but the phone isn't ringing, the problem is usually on the website.
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