How to Set Up a Google Ads Account in 3 Steps

You won’t see the full potential of your account from the start. Cliché as it may be, it’s important to recognize that PPC is a marathon, not a sprint. It takes time to establish a strong account structure, expand keyword lists, identify negatives, and test ads/landing pages.

Table of contents

Before you create a Google Ads account

This will allow you to create a campaign from scratch. And we walk you through all the steps to creating your first Google Ads campaign here. You can also catch the video version here:

1. Make sure your website is relevant and easy to navigate

In order to create a Google Ads account, you need a regular Google account. If you use Gmail, that means you already have a Google account so you can skip to the next step. But if you don’t have a Gmail address or if it’s a personal email address, you’ll want to create a separate account for your business.
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Once you know the ropes, you can embark on the account build-out, and then for the first few weeks, you will need to monitor your performance pretty heavily. Though it may be tough right off the bat, the hard work will be well worth your while!

2. Prepare to commit to this project for the long haul

Good luck!
When creating the account, you have the option to create it under any email.

3. Be ready for some heavier lifting in the first month

Sure, once your account has been up and running for a while, you can sit back and relax. However, your first month will require a bit more heavy lifting. If you’ve never managed a PPC account before, I recommend taking a few weeks to do some studying (perhaps with one of these free Google Ads training courses.
One of the most important things to consider is how you will define a conversion. A “conversion” is the action that you want the searcher to take after they’ve clicked on your ad and visited your landing page. Different advertisers track different types of conversions. An e-commerce site might want to drive purchases, whereas a plumber may be looking for form fill-outs or phone calls. It is also important that you identify the value associated with a completed conversion.

4. Identify what your conversion will be

Get inspiration from these good, clean landing page examples.
Plus, you are likely to start off with poor Quality Scores, which will hurt your average position and CPCs. You will see your Quality Scores start to shift once you’ve established your Google “street cred” and proven that you’ve built an account that offers a positive user experience (this typically takes 4-6 weeks).

How to set up a new Google Ads account

1. Choose or create your Google account

Now Google will immediately take you to the first step of setting up a Smart campaign. You don’t need to do this! We also don’t recommend it as it’s the automated option that gives you less control over your account. Instead, click on “Switch to Expert Mode” below it:
Setting up a Google Ads account is fairly simple, but in order to run Google Ads effectively, you’ll need to have a few things in place first.
Check out our landing page best practices to make sure yours will make the money you put into your PPC campaigns well-spent.