If you are learning about advertising for your dropshipping store, you have likely encountered numerous articles and videos on Facebook Ads.
However, there really isn't much emphasis on Google Ads.
Google Ads truly is the unsung hero of ecommerce, and in this article, we're going to give you an overview of Google Ads as well as go through 12 reasons why you need Google Ads for your dropshipping store.
What is Google Ads?
Google Ads is an advertisement platform developed by Google, where advertisers can bid to display ads, product listings, or videos to online users.
The Google Ads platform runs on pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, meaning you pay each time a visitor clicks your ad.
This is contrary to Facebook, where you pay for impressions, meaning you pay each time your ad is shown to a prospective customer, whether they click or not.
It's important to note that Google Ads doesn't only operate on the search platform; it's actually everywhere. We will go over this in more detail next:
What are the different types of Google Ads?
Google offers four types of ads you can run. Fortunately, all of this is done within the same platform.
1. Search Network
Google search ads are the most popular choice for advertisers, but also the most expensive.
This is because when a user is actively searching for a product, it's more likely that the buyer's intent is already there, thus increasing the chance of a conversion.
The cost per click CPC will vary based on your sector; this is due to competitors bidding on the same clicks.
For example, this means that in the insurance sector, the advertiser can typically afford to spend much more per click, since conversions generate more revenue than in other sectors.
Fun fact: The insurance sector has the most expensive CPC at an average of $54.91!
2. Display
Google's display network claims to cover 90% of internet users worldwide.
Display ads will appear on any website across the Google Display Network as banners or boxes at the top or side of a page.
The ad will be relevant to the user's interests, which you can set by creating custom audiences; find out more here.
Display ads are seen as a cheaper way to drive traffic to your store. However, whilst the ads may be somewhat relevant to the user, the buyer intent may not necessarily be like that of search ads.
3. Videos
This works the same way as display ads, allowing you to create custom audiences so your ads are relevant to users.
The only difference is that this will largely be displayed on Google's own video-sharing platform, YouTube.
Video ads generally have much higher CTR (Click-Through-Rate) potential, as they can be far more engaging to users than display ads.
If the buyer's intent isn't there, you may be able to generate it through a high-quality video.
4. Shopping
Google Shopping is effective because it allows sellers to showcase a high-quality image on the product listing and the product's price.
It also runs off the search network within Google, so buyer intent is high when using this method:
The only drawback is that the process for approval for Google Shopping can be a little long-winded.
Additionally, every product you list will also need approval. This is because Google wants to ensure the ads are relevant to users and weed out potentially misleading/scam ads.
For more information about Google Shopping, check out this article here.
Now that we've gone through the different types of Google Ads, let's look at why you would want to use them for your dropshipping store:
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12 Reasons to use Google Ads for dropshipping
Google Ads can benefit your store in many ways and may well be the advertising solution you are looking for.
1. High return on investment
Companies can spend thousands of dollars pulling customers further down the sales funnel every day.
Google Ads can bring you customers who are already further down the sales funnel and ready to buy, especially when using the search network.
Given the sheer amount of data Google collects on users, it's a safe bet that the ads will always be very relevant to the user's interests.
2. Quick results
With Facebook Ads, you'll normally have to spend up to $1,000 before the AI figures out who your best customer demographic is.
However, with Google Ads, especially on the search network, it really doesn't take long to start seeing results.
We would advise avoiding Google Ads smart campaigns; they are anything but smart unless you have a few thousand dollars to spend before you start seeing results.
Manually setting your maximum bid per click is more appropriate for those with smaller budgets.
If you're interested in learning more about the difference between Google Ads and Google Ads, check out our full comparison article here.
3. Increases leads and customers
Google Ads can benefit your store in many ways. However, it's important to remember that when a customer visits your store, they may not convert on their first visit.
Remember that a visit without a sale is not always a lost opportunity.
A lead is a visit that either subscribes to a mailing list or is sent through a query; they may later become a customer.
Fortunately, Google Ads has a great feature called conversion tracking, which can attribute a sale to a particular visit when using it.
This is recorded even if the sale doesn't happen on the first visit, which is very nice data to have.
Should you decide to let Google's AI take control of the bidding, it will suggest a target CPA (Cost Per Action), as shown above, which could potentially increase your sales/leads.
It would be best to attempt this once you have at least 50 sales in 30 days; this ensures Google has collected enough conversion data.
Google will then bid higher or lower per click based on the user's likelihood of converting into a sale.
4. High-quality traffic
As mentioned earlier, Google Ads delivers high-quality traffic, and visits to your dropshipping store via Google tend to have a higher conversion rate.
This is because users who search for the product you are selling are more likely to have buyer intent.
It's important to note that the Google Ads search network is only beneficial to your business if your product is already known; people won't search for a product they don't know exists.
In this case, Facebook Ads may be a better bet as they appeal more to impulse buys.
If you're wondering if Google Ads is the right choice for your online store, then take a look at this article here.
5. You learn about your market
Google Ads provides a huge wealth of data about your best-performing markets.
Once you have made a few sales on your dropshipping store, you will soon know who your best audiences are just by looking at the data Google gives to you:
As you can see above, Google Ads shows that the 65+ age group was the best for conversions; however, most of the revenue came from the 25-34 group.
Again, this is useful information that I would never have known without Google Ads.
6. Amazing integration
Google Ads also offers seamless integration with Google Analytics, giving you even more insights into which ads and audiences are performing better.
We have a more in-depth guide on how to get started with this here.
It also integrates with ecommerce platforms such as Shopify and WooCommerce, enabling you to monitor and manage your ad campaigns in one place.
7. Great customer service
When you begin to scale your ecommerce store and your monthly ad spend increases, it won't be long before a Google Ads representative gets in touch with you.
Your dedicated representative will always be but an email away; they offer advice on improving your ad effectiveness because they legitimately want you to grow.
However, please note that their goal is to get you to spend more on ads, but they certainly are more helpful than pushy in this regard.
From a billing perspective, they are crystal clear about how much you have paid for and on which campaigns.
8. Customers worldwide (or even locally)
The biggest benefit of running a dropshipping store is access to a global market; you can target your ads worldwide with Google Ads.
But on the flip side, did you know this would also benefit you by attracting more local traffic if that's what you're looking for?
Especially during the last year, when many brick-and-mortar businesses are moving online due to national lockdowns, the benefit of local advertising is extremely underrated.
9. In-depth analytics
Google Ads platform is a great way to gain a broad insight into who your visitors are and how much it costs you to turn visits into customers.
As you can see above, it also shows the conversion rate.
Of course, the more visits and sales you get, the more accurate their analytics will be.
Knowing your cost per conversion gives you more control over your ad spend and a better sense of your scalability potential.
Additionally, Google Ads provides valuable insights into competitors bidding on the same keywords.
As you can see below, they also show competitors' top of page rate and how much they outrank you on the keywords.
For more information about doing keyword research for Google Ads, check out our other article here.
10. Control over your budget
If you have come this far, you may already know that your advertising spend is one of (if not the) highest overheads you will have.
So getting this under control early on is an absolute must.
With Google Ads, you have complete control over your budget by setting your maximum CPC and monthly budget.
If you want to learn more about setting the right Google Ads budget for dropshipping stores, check out our article here.
11. Engaged shoppers
This is quite a big one. Google Ads brings engaged shoppers right to your product page.
As customers are actively searching for your product, you will already have them at the second step of the purchase funnel, thereby increasing the likelihood of them purchasing on their first visit to your dropshipping store.
Not to bash Facebook too hard in comparison, but as mentioned earlier, their ad platform emphasizes impulse purchases.
As a result, however, the conversion rate will usually be lower than that of Google Ads.
12. Easy to start
Last but certainly not least, Google Ads is so easy to get started with.
You don't need to spend a huge amount before you start seeing results, and it takes you through getting started in an effortless step-by-step method through their campaign wizard:
As mentioned earlier, just be wary of falling into a Smart Campaign if you don't have a lot of money to start with, the wizard will usually try to propose this.
Turn this guide into an AI checklist
Click your favorite AI tool below to get a short summary and step-by-step checklist based on this article.Prefer ChatGPT? Open this guide in ChatGPT with a pre-filled prompt (most readers start here).
So, is Google Ads really worth it?
People are turning to Google Ads largely because of buyer intent, which ultimately helps their bottom line by enabling them to spend less per conversion.
In my humble opinion, the integration between Google Ads and its Google Analytics platform is the best in the business. It truly helps the retailer know who their customers are.
Such insights enable them to eliminate what isn't working and focus more on what is.
Being in control of your budget, more specifically as a business in its infancy, is a huge deal, and Google Ads knows this.
This advertising model empowers smaller businesses while gently nudging them to scale, with incredible insights and ad representatives just an email away.
So now that we have given you 12 reasons why you may need Google Ads for your dropshipping store, do you think it's worth it? Seriously, please drop us a comment and let us know!
Want to learn more about Google Ads?
Ready to move your Google Ads skills to the next level? Check out the articles below:
- 15 Great Google Ad Examples for Ecommerce | Inspiration
- Google Ads Click Fraud Prevention: How To Reduce It in 2026?
- How to Set the Right Google Ads Budget for Dropshipping Stores
- Google Ads Keyword Research for Dropshipping Stores (Learn How)
Plus, don't forget to check out our in-depth beginner's guide here!
