Google Ads (formerly Google AdWords) is Google's online advertising platform that allows businesses to display ads across Google Search, the Google Display Network, YouTube, Google Shopping, and Gmail. The most common format is search advertising — text ads appearing at the top and bottom of Google search results for specific keyword queries. Advertisers pay on a pay-per-click (PPC) basis — only when users click their ads. Google Ads reaches over 90% of internet users globally and is the primary digital advertising channel for most UK businesses.
Google Ads provides immediate, controllable visibility for businesses that need to generate leads or sales before organic SEO has had time to build. Unlike SEO — where results take months — a well-configured Google Ads campaign can generate qualified traffic within hours of launch. The trade-off is cost: every click has a price, and that price increases with competition. Managing Google Ads efficiently requires strategic keyword selection, compelling ad copy, conversion tracking, and continuous optimisation.
Google Ads campaign types
- Search campaigns — text ads appearing on Google Search results pages for specific keywords
- Display campaigns — visual banner and image ads across the Google Display Network (millions of partner websites)
- Shopping campaigns — product listing ads showing product images, prices, and merchant information in search results
- Video campaigns — ads appearing before, during, or after YouTube videos
- Performance Max — AI-driven campaigns running across all Google channels simultaneously
- App campaigns — ads promoting mobile apps across Search, Display, YouTube, and Play
- Smart campaigns — simplified campaigns with AI-driven targeting (generally less control than expert campaign types)
Google Ads costs have two components: ad spend (money paid to Google for clicks) and management fees (agency or in-house resource to run campaigns). UK cost-per-click varies enormously by industry — competitive sectors like legal, financial services, and insurance see CPCs of £10 to £50+; less competitive niches may pay under £1. Average UK CPCs across all sectors are approximately £1.50 to £3.00. A realistic minimum effective investment for UK SMBs is £1,500 to £3,000/month total (ad spend plus management).
Google Ads places paid listings at the top of search results and charges per click — results are immediate but stop when budget is paused. SEO builds organic (unpaid) rankings through content, technical improvements, and backlinks — results take months but persist and compound after investment stops. PPC and SEO are complementary: PPC provides immediate visibility while SEO builds long-term authority. Most effective digital marketing programmes run both, using PPC to capture demand while SEO reduces long-term cost per acquisition.