How to Create a Google Ads Account in 10 Minutes
- Dan Kabakov, Google Ads Certified Partner
- Last Updated:
- Reading Time: 10 minutes
Creating a Google Ads account doesn’t have to be complicated. Whether you’re a small business owner, marketing professional, or entrepreneur, this guide will walk you through the entire process of setting up your Google Ads account and launching your first campaign in under 10 minutes.
With over a decade of experience managing Google Ads campaigns, I’ve helped hundreds of businesses get started with paid advertising. The biggest mistake beginners make? Rushing through the setup without understanding critical settings that can make or break your campaign performance.
In this comprehensive guide, you’ll learn:
- How to create your Google Ads account from scratch
- Which campaign goals actually matter for your business
- Critical targeting settings that prevent wasted ad spend
- How to write your first ad that converts
- Budget recommendations for beginners
Ready to start advertising on Google? Let’s dive in.
Table of Contents
Step 1: Creating Your Google Ads Account
The Reality Check (Read This First)
The first step is straightforward – head to ads.google.com and click the “Start Now” button. You’ll be prompted to sign in with your Google account. If you don’t have one, you’ll need to create it first.
Business Information Setup
After clicking “Create your first campaign,” Google will ask for basic information about your business:
Business Name
- Enter your company or brand name
- Don’t worry – you can change this later in account settings
- This name will appear in your billing information
Campaign Objective Google will ask what you want to happen after people click your ad. You have three main options:
- Website visits – Drive traffic to your landing page (most common)
- Phone calls – Get customers to call your business directly
- App downloads – Promote mobile app installations
For most businesses, you’ll want to select website visits and enter your full website URL.
Business Description
Help Google understand your business better by:
- Describing what makes your business unique
- Specifying the products or services you’re advertising
- Adding relevant business categories
Pro tip: The more detailed you are here, the better Google’s recommendations will be throughout the setup process.
Connecting Google Accounts
If you have other Google properties, you can connect them now:
- YouTube channel
- Google Business Profile
- Google Analytics
You can skip this step and connect these accounts later from your settings. It won’t affect your campaign performance.
Step 2: Choosing Campaign Goals That Actually Matter
This is where most beginners mess up. Your campaign goal determines how Google optimizes your ads, so choosing the wrong one wastes money.
Understanding Campaign Goals
Google offers several goal options:
Purchase – For e-commerce websites where customers can buy online
- Tracks completed transactions
- Optimizes for conversion value
- Best for: Online stores, SaaS products
Lead Generation – For businesses that collect contact information
- Tracks form submissions
- Optimizes for lead quality
- Best for: Service businesses, B2B companies
Website Traffic – For building brand awareness
- Tracks clicks and pageviews
- Optimizes for maximum visitors
- Best for: Content sites, new businesses
Brand Awareness – For reaching the largest audience
- Tracks impressions and reach
- Optimizes for visibility
- Best for: Large companies with big budgets
My Recommendation
Start with the goal that matches your business model:
- E-commerce? Choose Purchase
- Service-based? Choose Lead Generation
- Just starting out? Begin with Website Traffic
Important note: Conversion tracking is complex and requires additional setup. You can change your goal later in settings, so don’t get stuck here. For now, you can click “Skip” and come back to this once your account is running.
Step 3: Selecting the Right Campaign Type
Campaign type determines where your ads appear across Google’s networks. This is a critical decision that impacts your results.
Available Campaign Types
Search Campaigns (Recommended for beginners)
- Ads appear in Google search results
- Target users actively searching for your products
- Best ROI for most businesses
- This is what we’ll focus on in this guide
Video Campaigns
- Advertise on YouTube
- Great for brand awareness
- Requires video content
Display Campaigns
- Banner ads on websites across the internet
- Shown on Gmail, news sites, blogs
- Good for remarketing
Shopping Campaigns
- Product listings with images and prices
- Requires Google Merchant Center setup
- Essential for e-commerce
App Campaigns
- Promote mobile app downloads
- Automatically optimized across Google networks
Demand Gen Campaigns
- Combines multiple networks
- Increases product demand
- Advanced strategy for experienced advertisers
For your first campaign, always choose Search. It’s the bread and butter of Google Ads – the campaign type that delivers the most consistent results for new advertisers.
Click “Search” and then “Next” to continue.
Step 4: Keyword Targeting Setup
Search campaigns work through keyword targeting. You choose specific keywords, and your ads appear when people search for those terms.
How to Choose Keywords
Think about what your customers are searching for:
- What problems are they trying to solve?
- What terms describe your products or services?
- What questions do they ask?
Example for a flower delivery business:
- flower delivery
- same day flowers
- flower delivery [city name]
- order flowers online
- birthday flowers
Keyword Research Tips
Don’t stress about having a perfect keyword list right now. You can add, change, and remove keywords anytime after creating your campaign.
For proper keyword research, use:
- Google Keyword Planner (free tool inside Google Ads)
- Third-party tools like Semrush or Ahrefs
- AI assistance from ChatGPT or Claude AI
Action step: Enter 10-15 keywords that are most relevant to your business. We’ll refine this list later based on performance data.
Step 5: Location and Language Targeting
This step is crucial, especially for local businesses. Targeting the wrong locations is one of the fastest ways to waste your budget.
Setting Up Location Targeting
- Click the “Edit” button next to Locations
- Click “Location options”
- Critical: Select “Presence” not “Interest”
Why this matters:
- Presence = Only people physically in your target area
- Interest = People interested in your area (includes tourists planning trips)
For a local business, you never want Interest targeting – it brings irrelevant traffic.
Choosing Your Target Area
Options include:
- Specific cities – Perfect for local businesses
- Radius targeting – Target X miles around your address
- States or provinces – For regional businesses
- Multiple locations – Service multiple areas
Example: If you’re a flower delivery service in Atlanta, target only Atlanta and surrounding suburbs within your delivery zone.
Language Targeting
Select the languages your customers speak:
- English only – Safest option for English-speaking markets
- Multiple languages – If you serve diverse communities
- All languages – Only if you have multilingual landing pages
My recommendation: Start with specific languages. You can always expand later.
Step 6: Audience Settings
Audience segments let you narrow down who sees your ads beyond just location and keywords.
Understanding Audience Options
Interest-Based Audiences
- People who showed interest in specific topics
- Example: Home & Garden enthusiasts for a landscaping business
In-Market Audiences
- People actively researching products in your category
- Example: “In-market for home services”
Remarketing Audiences
- People who previously visited your website
- Requires additional tracking setup
Demographic Targeting
- Age, gender, parental status
- Household income level
- Education level
What Should You Do?
For beginners: Start broad. Don’t add audience restrictions on your first campaign.
Why? You need data before you can optimize. Let the campaign run for 2-4 weeks, then analyze which audiences convert best.
Exception: If your product has obvious demographic requirements (e.g., retirement planning for people 50+), add those restrictions from the start.
Step 7: Network Settings - Critical Mistakes to Avoid
This section has two checkboxes that will make or break your campaign profitability.
Pay close attention.
Google Display Network ❌
UNCHECK THIS BOX
Display network shows your ads on websites, not search results. It’s a completely different advertising strategy that requires different:
- Ad formats (image banners)
- Bidding strategies
- Landing pages
- Budget allocations
Why Google defaults this to “on”: They want you to spend more money across their entire network.
Why you should turn it off: Mixing search and display in one campaign makes it impossible to measure what’s working. Keep them separate.
Google Search Partners ❌
UNCHECK THIS BOX TOO
Search partners are websites that partner with Google to show search ads. Examples include:
- YouTube search
- Amazon
- Other smaller search engines
Problems with search partners:
- Lower quality traffic
- Less control over where ads appear
- Generally lower conversion rates
My rule: Turn this off until your main search campaign is profitable. Then test search partners in a separate campaign with 10-20% of your budget.
After unchecking both boxes, click “Done.”
Step 8: Creating Your First Ad
Now comes the fun part – writing the ad that potential customers will see.
Ad Components Breakdown
Final URL
- The landing page where users go after clicking
- Must be highly relevant to their search
- If they search “red roses delivery,” don’t send them to your homepage – send them to your roses page
Headlines (15 maximum)
- The biggest, boldest text in your ad
- 30 character limit each
- Create 15 variations for maximum optimization
Descriptions (4 maximum)
- Additional details below headlines
- 90 character limit each
- Expand on your value proposition
Writing Effective Headlines
Structure your headlines to include:
- Keywords – “Flower Delivery Atlanta”
- Benefits – “Same-Day Delivery Available”
- Unique selling points – “100+ Fresh Flower Options”
- Credibility – “Rated 4.9 Stars on Google”
- Offers – “Free Delivery on Orders $50+”
- Call to action – “Order Fresh Flowers Today”
Example headline set:
- Atlanta Flower Delivery
- Same-Day Flower Delivery
- Fresh Flowers Delivered Today
- Order Flowers Online Now
- 100+ Flower Arrangements
- Free Delivery Available
- Rated 4.9 Stars
- Birthday & Special Occasions
- Roses, Lilies & More
- Local Atlanta Florist
- Order by 2pm for Same Day
- Starting at $39.99
- Custom Flower Arrangements
- Fresh From Our Greenhouse
- Delivered Within 3 Hours
Writing Compelling Descriptions
Description 1: “Order beautiful, fresh flower arrangements online. Same-day delivery available throughout Atlanta. Starting at just $39.99 with free delivery on orders over $50.”
Description 2: “Choose from 100+ stunning arrangements perfect for birthdays, anniversaries, and special occasions. Freshness guaranteed.”
Description 3: “Locally grown flowers delivered to your door within hours. Easy online ordering with secure checkout.”
Description 4: “Family-owned Atlanta florist since 2010. Order now for same-day delivery. Call us at (404) 555-0123.”
Ad Assets (Extensions)
Assets are additional pieces of information that make your ad more prominent and clickable.
Sitelinks
- Links to specific pages on your website
- Perfect for e-commerce product categories
- Example: “Roses,” “Birthday Flowers,” “Wedding Flowers”
Call Extensions
- Display your phone number
- Users can click to call on mobile
- Great for service businesses
Callouts
- Short phrases highlighting benefits
- “Free Shipping,” “24/7 Support,” “100% Guarantee”
Structured Snippets
- Organized lists of offerings
- Types: Roses, Lilies, Tulips, Orchids
Price Extensions
- Show prices directly in ads
- Reduces unqualified clicks
My advice: Add as many assets as possible. More assets = larger ad = more clicks = lower cost per click.
Using AI to Generate Ad Copy
Pro tip: Don’t manually write all 15 headlines and 4 descriptions. Use AI tools:
ChatGPT prompt: “Generate 15 Google Ads headlines (max 30 characters each) and 4 descriptions (max 90 characters each) for a flower delivery business in Atlanta. Focus on same-day delivery, fresh flowers, and competitive pricing.”
Claude AI prompt: “I’m creating a Google Ads search campaign for [YOUR BUSINESS]. Generate compelling headlines (30 char limit) and descriptions (90 char limit) that emphasize [YOUR KEY BENEFITS].”
Review AI suggestions, personalize them to your brand voice, and use the best ones.
Step 9: Choosing Your Bidding Strategy
Bidding determines how much you pay when someone clicks your ad.
Understanding Bidding Options
Clicks (Maximize Clicks)
- Google tries to get you the most clicks within your budget
- Best for beginners – simple and predictable
- You set a maximum cost-per-click limit
Conversions (Maximize Conversions)
- Google optimizes for completed purchases/leads
- Requires conversion tracking setup
- Best after you have data
Conversion Value (Maximize Conversion Value)
- Optimizes for revenue, not just conversions
- Advanced strategy for e-commerce
- Needs detailed tracking
Impression Share (Target Impression Share)
- Focuses on visibility, not results
- Expensive and rarely recommended
- Only use for brand protection campaigns
My Recommendation for Beginners
- Click “Change bidding strategy”
- Select “Clicks”
- Set maximum CPC (cost per click) to $2-5
Why start with Clicks:
- You’re learning what works
- You need traffic to gather data
- Manual CPC limits prevent overspending
- After 30-50 conversions, switch to automated strategies
Setting your max CPC:
- Research industry averages for your keywords
- Start conservative – you can always increase
- $2-5 works for most local businesses
- B2B or competitive industries may need $10-20+
Click “Next” to continue.
Step 10: Budget Settings for Beginners
Your daily budget determines how much Google can spend on your behalf each day.
How Much Should You Budget?
Daily budget recommendations:
- Absolute minimum: $10/day ($300/month)
- Local businesses: $20-50/day ($600-1,500/month)
- E-commerce: $50-100/day ($1,500-3,000/month)
- B2B/Services: $75-200/day ($2,250-6,000/month)
Start small. You can always increase budget once you see results. It’s much easier to scale up than to recover wasted ad spend.
Understanding Daily Budget Limits
Important: Google may spend up to 2x your daily budget on any given day, but will never exceed your monthly budget (daily budget × 30.4 days).
Example:
- Daily budget: $20
- Google might spend: $0-40 on any single day
- Monthly cap: $608 ($20 × 30.4)
Why this matters: Don’t panic if you see a $35 spend on a $20/day budget. Google balances it over the month.
The 24-48 Hour Rule
Monitor your campaign closely for the first 2 days:
- Check spend pace (is it going too fast or too slow?)
- Verify ads are showing for relevant searches
- Look for any technical issues
- Confirm targeting settings are correct
After 48 hours, you can relax monitoring to weekly check-ins.
Payment Setup and Launch
Final step – adding your payment information and launching your campaign.
Critical Payment Settings
⚠️ WARNING: These settings are PERMANENT and cannot be changed:
Country
- Choose the country where your business is registered
- Determines currency and tax settings
- Cannot be changed once set
Time Zone
- All reporting uses this time zone
- Budget resets at midnight in this time zone
- Cannot be changed once set
Double-check these before proceeding. I’ve seen people create second accounts because they got this wrong.
Payment Methods
Google Ads accepts:
- Credit cards (Visa, Mastercard, Amex)
- Debit cards
- Bank account (direct debit)
Payment timing: You’ll be charged either:
- When you reach your billing threshold (starts at $50-500)
- At the end of each month
- Whichever comes first
Final Review Checklist
Before clicking “Submit,” verify:
✓ Business name is correct
✓ Website URL is accurate
✓ Campaign type is Search
✓ Location targeting uses “Presence” not “Interest”
✓ Display Network is unchecked
✓ Search Partners is unchecked
✓ You have 10+ headlines and 3+ descriptions
✓ Daily budget is comfortable
✓ Country and time zone are correct
Click “Submit” to launch your campaign.
FAQ
Yes, you can pause or stop your campaigns instantly at any time. You won’t be charged for any time your campaigns are paused. This flexibility makes Google Ads ideal for seasonal businesses or limited-time promotions.
Search campaigns can generate clicks within hours of launching. However, meaningful results (conversions, ROI data) typically take 2-4 weeks to assess. Google’s algorithm needs 30-50 conversions to optimize effectively.
You can still run campaigns without conversion tracking, but you’re essentially flying blind. At minimum, set up Google Analytics to track basic metrics like bounce rate and time on site. Proper conversion tracking should be implemented within the first 2 weeks.
Yes, almost everything can be changed after launch except country and time zone. You can modify keywords, ads, budget, targeting, bidding strategy – essentially rebuilding your entire campaign if needed.
For search campaigns, aim for 3%+ CTR. Rates vary by industry:
- Brand searches: 10-20% CTR
- High-intent keywords: 5-10% CTR
- General keywords: 2-4% CTR
- Display campaigns: 0.5-1% CTR
Calculate your customer lifetime value (LTV) and compare it to your cost per acquisition (CPA). If LTV > CPA, you’re profitable. Example: If customers are worth $500 and you’re paying $100 per customer, that’s a 5:1 return.
Ready to Master Google Ads?
Setting up your first campaign is just the beginning. To truly succeed with Google Ads, you need to understand:
- Advanced bidding strategies
- Conversion tracking implementation
- Performance Max campaigns
- Audience targeting techniques
- Landing page optimization
- Account audit systems
That’s exactly what we teach in the Google Ads Masterclass. Get access to:
- 20+ hours of expert training
- Live Q&A sessions with a Google Certified Partner
- Private community of 500+ digital marketers
- Professional templates and audit systems
- Monthly updates with latest platform changes
About the Author
Dan Kabakov
Dan is the founder of Online Labs and has over 10 years of Google Ads experience managing campaigns worth $5M. He built a six-figure digital marketing business that allows him to work from anywhere as a digital nomad. Dan is a Google Certified Partner and has helped 500+ students master Google Ads through his systematic approach. His Google Ads Masterclass teaches the exact frameworks that transformed his career from employee to successful entrepreneur.
