The idea of using Google Adwords to market your products or services online makes a lot of sense. Although competition is tight in almost every niche market, there are still countless businesses that have yet to try the potential of the Pay Per Click model to further advance their visibility online. For first-timers in this field, you will notice that you have to choose between Google AdWords Express and Google Adwords (full version). Most online business owners and marketers might not notice the difference. Here’s a brief comparison with the pros and cons of each to help you decide the best option for your business.
Google AdWords Express
The Express version of Google’s online advertising program is specially designed for marketers to get their ads online faster. If convenience is what you’re looking for, AdWords Express delivers. In just a couple of minutes, business owners can add several keywords and a short description to advertise a product or service. They key in their credit card and the business is online in a few minutes. Sounds easy. But every convenience comes with compromise. Below are several pros and cons of Google Adwords Express.
Pros
- Easy and convenient set up
- Easy to learn and understand, even the high-level reporting is useful in monitoring performance
- Ideal for new marketers
Cons
- Limited geographic area
- Irrelevant audience targeting
- Limited control
Google AdWords (Full Version)
If you’re the type of marketer who likes to dig deeper into data, then you should go for the full version. The full version is completely customizable and offers more features, increased control, improved targeting options, and has more robust reporting capabilities than the express version.
Pros
- Completely customizable
- Complete control
- Very detailed control over keywords and audience targeting
- Can promote more than one product or service
- Can promote in more than one geographic area
- Detailed analysis and reporting
Cons
- Takes more time to learn
- Beginners can experience information overload
- More complex interface
The Verdict
Whether express or full version, both will drive new traffic to your site, and both can work effectively given the proper setup and optimization techniques. Whatever your choice of Adwords version is, it is important to pay close attention to your results. Take effort to update keywords, test new strategies and tweak bids for better outcomes. It is very easy to neglect an account, lose control and waste time and money on unqualified traffic.
Most marketers who went for the express version would switch to the complete version for several reasons. AdWords Express only allows you to promote one product or service. Most of the features of the express version is designed for local business, therefore bigger businesses or online retailers would be unable to take advantage for a wider geographical scope. Very limited data is available for each keyword, making it impossible to analyze the outcomes and optimize over time.
If you don’t want to compromise control over the granular details, the smarter move would be to stick with the Google AdWords full version. But if you just need to get your ads online quickly and conveniently without a lot of configurations, you might want to give AdWords Express a try.