If pay per click advertising is on your mind, you won’t get far until you learn how to choose the appropriate keywords.

Like many, you may begin your quest for PPC dominance with the Google Ads platform. As you get started, many keywords will run through your head. Your goal is simple: to choose those that will put your ad in front of your target audience.

To achieve this goal, there are a few things you can do:

1. Understand which keywords are most relevant to your business. Do yourself a favor and create a list of five to seven keywords that best explain your business and website. With these in place, you have a good foundation for moving forward.

2. Know your customer. If a person is interested in a product or service that you offer, what keyword would they type into Google?

3. Get specific. Let’s take for example a website that sells basketball equipment. You could bid on the keyword “basketball,” but this is not specific enough to ensure that you are truly reaching your target audience You want to drill down deeper. In this example, try keywords such as:

• Basketball equipment
• Basketball training
• Basketball training equipment
• Basketball shooting system

These keywords may not generate as much traffic, but they are much more targeted. In the end, this results in higher quality visitors who are ready to take action.

4. Let Google help. Google’s keyword tool is available to provide assistance. Once you plug in a keyword, it will give you a list to choose from. Who knows, you may come across a few you have yet to consider. Click Precision's keyword recommendation tool also identifies profitable similar keywords you may want to add.

5. Track everything. The keyword group you choose the first time around may not perform as well as you had hoped. Don’t get down on yourself. Instead, change your approach and track the performance of your new keywords within Adwords and Click Precision.

When you follow these tips, you should be able to more effectively choose keywords for your Google Ads campaign.