Can You Use Google AdWords on WordPress?

Some things work together like peanut butter and jelly. They complement each other and add strength to one another.

The question you may be asking yourself right now is: is Google AdWords and WordPress such a killer duo? Can I use them together to fuel my small business and outsmart my competition?

The short answer is yes, but, unfortunately, things aren’t as easy as expected.

While both AdWords and WordPress are excellent at meeting their respective purposes, the two often run into trouble when you pour them into the same bowl. A lot of small business owners have difficulties when they’re trying to implement AdWords conversion on their WordPress website.

The problem is that, more often than not, they are not aware of the steps they need to take to combine these two amazing tools successfully. That’s where this short guide comes in handy. Let’s take a look at what you need to do if you want to use AdWords with your WordPress site.

You may also be interested in Can I Use AdWords without a Website?

How to Install a Tracking Code and Track AdWords Conversions?

To track AdWords conversions in WordPress, you’ll have to follow a two-step process. First, you will need to create a tracking code that you will then embed on your site via a WordPress plugin.

Let’s discuss each of the two steps briefly.

• How to Create an AdWords Tracking Code

If you want to obtain a tracking code, you will have to log into your AdWords account and select the Tools and Analysis tab. Click on Conversions, select the +Conversions button, and choose a name for your tracking code. For example, if you plan on using this code for tracking email signups, then you could name it “email signups tracking.”

The next step you will need to take is to select the source of your AdWords conversion tracking from the Source menu. That will determine the location where tracking will take place on your WordPress site. For example, if you want to track the landing page for your bridesmaid dresses, then enter the name of the page in the Source field and click Save and Continue.

Make sure to select the best matches for your conversion from the Conversion Category tab.

Click on “Conversion category” and select the category that’s most appropriate.

Once you are done setting everything, click on “I make changes to the code” to display your tracking code. Copy it and paste it into a document and add it to your WordPress site. We’ll show you how in a second.

• How to Add an AdWords Plugin to WordPress

Head to the plugins directory and download one of the available AdWords tracking plugins available for WordPress. Then log into your site’s dashboard, select Plugins and click Add new and Upload. Browse for the zip file you just downloaded and select it, then click Install plugin.

Once the installation is complete, click on Activate the plugin.

Open your plugin’s settings panel and copy the AdWords tracking code. Depending on the plugin you’re using, you may optimise some of the settings, such as where and how the code will appear.  Once you are satisfied with the changes, save them.

WordPress Makes It Easy to Create and Manage Landing Pages

Now, just because you have a tracking code on your WordPress site and can monitor your conversion rate, it doesn’t mean that you can kick back and relax. Sure, knowing what works and what doesn’t will give you a competitive advantage, but your efforts will amount to nothing if your landing page looks like an afterthought.

As you should probably know by now, Google considers not only the relevance of your keywords or the persuasiveness of your copy when deciding where to place your ads on the display network. It also looks at the quality of your landing page. In other words, if your landing page has a poor design, is difficult to navigate, and doesn’t provide helpful and informational content to your audience, then all the tools and tricks in the world won’t make a difference in the effectiveness of your AdWords campaign.

The great thing about WordPress is that it makes it easy for small businesses to create high-quality landing pages that could help boost their Quality Score.

As a rule of thumb, make sure to follow these principles when creating your WordPress landing page:

• Use a simple structure and theme
• Quit using sidebars and footers – they’re distracting
• Create a minimal header to shift attention to the content

How About AdSense – Can I Use It to My WordPress Site?

We know what you’re thinking: if I can implement AdWords to track conversions, then is it possible to use AdSense ads to monetise my WordPress website.

The answer is again yes, but you should be aware that AdWords and AdSense don’t mix very well together. AdSense policy forbids you to place ads on your AdWords landing page and drive traffic that you can then leverage to boost your AdSense revenue.

It’s ok to use a specific WordPress page as your AdWords landing page, but you must make sure it doesn’t contain any AdSense ads. Google is very strict about this rule and is quick to sanction those who don’t obey it.

Let’s learn how you add Google AdSense to your WordPress site.

• Method 1: Text widget

After you’ve created a Google AdSense account and got the OK from Google, you can begin creating an ad unit. Access the AdSense dashboard and choose the New Ad Unit button from under My Ads – Ad Units tab. Make sure to select the Responsive option when editing the size of your ad unit. Otherwise, it may not display correctly.

Once you’re finished editing your ad’s settings, click Save and Get Code. Copy the ad code and save it in a separate document.

Open your WordPress dashboard and click on Widgets from the Appearance tab to create a new text widget. Select Text from under Available Widgets and then drag and drop the ad to where on the site you want to display it. The sidebar is usually a great placement, but you should determine where it fits best on your site without interfering with your content.

After you’ve established the proper placement for your ad, copy the Google AdSense code and hit Save. If you’re not happy with the appearance of your ads, you can always go back and format the size or choose a different ad placement.

• Method 2: AdSense Plugin

If the process of creating a text widget seems a bit too complicated, then you can easily add Google AdSense on your WordPress page by using a plugin instead.

There’s a wide variety of Google AdSense plugins that you can choose from, so be sure to do a bit of research to find the one that fits your needs best. Also, don’t forget to backup your site before any major change. The last thing you would want is to lose all your current data and settings while integrating a Google AdSense code.

In the end, regardless of the method you choose for adding AdSense to your WordPress site, remember not to display any ads on the landing pages targeted by your AdWords campaign.

Conclusion

Combining Google’s powerful tools with the simplicity of WordPress can be an excellent way to fuel your business and grow it. Of course, there’s a learning curve to it, and it may take you quite a while to master the beast and align it with your business goals. So, instead of wasting time and energy with trying to figure out how to make AdWords and WordPress work together, let the experts at Australian Internet Advertising do the hard work for you.