Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising through Google Ads remains one of the most powerful ways to drive targeted traffic to your website. But simply setting up a campaign isn’t enough – you need to be strategic in how you target your audience. Whether you’re managing your own campaigns or working with a PPC consultant, it’s vital to get your targeting right from the start.
In this guide, we’ll cover five essential AdWords targeting strategies that can boost ROI, minimise wasted spend, and sharpen campaign performance. These tips are especially useful for small businesses, startups, and anyone working with a PPC freelance consultant to optimise their ads.
1. Use Granular Location Targeting
Why it matters: Ads shown to the wrong geographic audience are wasted spend. Google Ads allows you to drill down to cities, postcodes, and even radius targeting around a point on the map.
How to implement:
- Use the “Advanced Search” feature in location settings.
- Choose “People in or regularly in your targeted locations” to avoid tourists and one-off visitors (unless that’s your goal).
- Consider using Location Bid Adjustments to increase or decrease bids based on conversion data.
Pro Tip: Check out Google’s Location Targeting Help Guide for detailed instructions.
2. Leverage Audience Segments (In-Market, Affinity, and Custom)
Why it matters: Google Ads allows you to target users not just by keyword – but by who they are and what they’re interested in.
Types of segments to explore:
- In-Market Audiences: People actively researching or planning to buy.
- Affinity Audiences: Users with long-term interests or habits.
- Custom Segments: Build your own using URLs, keywords, or apps your audience engages with.
This is where a PPC freelance consultant can make a big difference by aligning these audiences with your buyer personas.
Useful link: Google’s Audience Targeting Guide
3. Nail Your Keyword Match Types
Why it matters: If your keywords are too broad, you’ll spend money on irrelevant clicks. Too narrow, and you’ll miss traffic opportunities.
Match types:
- Broad Match (least precise)
- Phrase Match (moderate control)
- Exact Match (high control)
Experienced PPC consultants recommend starting with phrase match and building negative keyword lists to filter out waste.
Example:
- Phrase Match: “kids shoes” could trigger “buy kids shoes online”
- Add Negative Keyword: “free” (to exclude people looking for free products)
4. Use Responsive Search Ads (Smartly)
Why it matters: Responsive Search Ads (RSAs) allow Google to automatically test different combinations of headlines and descriptions to find what works best.
Strategy:
- Provide diverse, relevant headline options (include keywords where appropriate).
- Pin essential copy (e.g., your brand name) if needed.
- Review performance data in the Assets section to remove underperformers.
A PPC freelance consultant can help test ad variants and interpret asset performance to iterate faster.
Best practice: Don’t abandon expanded text ads immediately. Use both RSAs and static ads for control and experimentation.
5. Combine Remarketing with Custom Intent
Why it matters: Users often need multiple touchpoints before converting. Remarketing keeps your brand in front of people who’ve already interacted with your site, while custom intent targets users who exhibit behaviours closely related to your offering.
Steps to execute:
- Create remarketing lists in Google Ads Audience Manager or via Google Analytics.
- Layer custom intent keywords to capture people in research or buying mode.
- Serve more tailored ad copy to warm leads.
Remarketing is a key area where a PPC consultant can advise on frequency caps, exclusions, and creative optimisation.
Bonus Tip: Always Be Testing
The best campaigns are never set-and-forget. Continuous testing of:
- Ad copy
- Extensions
- Bid strategies
- Landing pages
…is what separates the average campaign from a high-performing one. A PPC freelance consultant can bring an objective eye and systematic testing process to uncover hidden opportunities.
Conclusion
Effective AdWords targeting is about balance – between reach and relevance, automation and control, spend and strategy. Whether you’re managing your campaigns solo or working with a PPC consultant, mastering the five targeting strategies above will help you spend smarter and get better results.
If you’re looking to partner with a PPC freelance consultant to elevate your AdWords performance, consider starting with a free audit or consultation to identify quick wins.
