Let's just get to the top page of Google! Right?

Sure, being at the top spot on Google's famous search engine is great! Especially if your business sells a product or service that people just need (your customers spend their discretionary income). The notion is simple, people search for something on Google, they need it, there and then. Your business provides that service, or sells the product the user needs in that moment. When these dots join together and the stars align, you can be sure to generate a steady stream of new work.

So what then is the issue, with being at the top spot of Google 100% of the time? There isn't really an issue, as long as you have an infinite marketing budget. This also isn't an issue if you are happy spending money that doesn't generate any real income. What trickery is involved here then? What needs to be done to join the dots and align the stars?

Showing your adverts against terms you think are relevant versus showing adverts for terms we know are relevant, are two entirely different things. Relevance is also subjective to what your end goal actually is. It's worth thinking of this before anything else, your end goal that is. Showing your adverts on a search engine is a means to an end. You wouldn't worry about search engines, or even bother to read this sub par article, if you already had a never ending stream of quality work coming through the door.

As there is generally a cost associated with gaining traction for certain search terms, it's definitely within your best interest to find which of these terms is actually going to bring a tangible return. Unfortunately, this will sometimes go against what you know, or what you think you know about your industry.

How then do we combat this general uncertainty? Great question! I wish I had a full answer (I don't). I can tell you, however, that we can be fairly certain which terms are going to bring in a return before we actually run an advert campaign. The only way we can know for sure which search terms will bring in a great return, is to implement and test these new strategies. We can gather this data via tracking everything possible and making decisions based on these outcomes.

It's not all bad, some things are definitely important and you do want to be shown for these terms. Sometimes though, it's worth looking at what your end goal actually is before you decide which means you'll employ to get there.