Google's AdWords can be an excellent way to grow your brand, attract new customers, keep the ones you already have, and advertise without high costs. In this article, you'll learn how best to get started using Google AdWords.

Start with a clear goal in mind. Whether it's a monthly budget, a sales goal, a desired cost per click or onsite time, having a goal is essential to the success of your campaign. Your goals will depend on whether you're establishing your brand, or trying to get repeat customers. A good place to start is a goal to get ten sales from every $100 you spend on advertising.

Build a keyword list. We recommend that you create your campaign around brand terms rather than keyword terms- this will allow you to faster familiarize yourself with the AdWords platform.

Now, you're all set to log into AdWords and begin creating your campaign. Go to the login page, and click on the button that says "Campaign Summary", then the one that says "keyword-targeted". From there, you will be able to name your campaigns and select the countries in which your ads will be reviewed. The more countries you select, the more potential leads your ad will reach, but the quality of the leads will suffer.

Now you can write your actual ad copy. Try to make it short, easy to read, and always include a "call to action". Next, add the keywords you created and some of the ones that Google recommended. Set your budget and your cost per click, unless you want to set it later on. Higher cost per click means the ad gets a higher position, which usually means more clicks. A good CPC is fifty cents, but of course yours will depend on your keywords and your budget. Start by setting a content bid of one penny, because of the content network's lower traffic.

It's time to track the effectiveness of your campaign, and there's no better tool than Google Analytics (which integrates seamlessly with Google AdWords). Connect the two accounts, and sign up for AdWords' conversion tracking. You will be able to determine what keyword brought a visitor to your site, which will allow you to determine your return on investment by placing a value on each keyword.

Repeat the process with more ads. It's a good idea to have at least five ads running, because Google can find which ads have the best CTR and start showing those more. After about seven days, omit the lowest-performing ad and try again.

AdWords isn't like a slow-cooker- you cannot set it and forget it. Keep adding and deleting keywords, and don't forget to optimize your ads. Tinker with your daily budgets and content bids, and remember that the quality of your site plays a big part in how good your AdWords campaign will be. Now, you're ready to start using AdWords to grow your business and get more traffic to your site.