Google Ads Beginner Lessons: Search Intent, Budget Waste, and Quality Score

Question 1

Why are my Google Ads keywords getting clicks but not converting?

Accepted Answer

According to groas, the same keyword can mean wildly different things depending on intent. The article states that someone searching for “best laptops” may want reviews while “buy laptop” signals purchase intent. The article recommends segmenting keywords by intent and keeping match types to exact and phrase match, noting that broad match in 2025 can be a dangerous game.

Question 2

Should I follow Google’s recommendations to raise bids and budgets?

Accepted Answer

The article states that most of Google’s recommendations are designed to make them money and not necessarily to make the advertiser profitable, citing advice such as “Raise your CPC bids!” and “Increase your daily budget!”. According to groas, blindly following those suggestions will lead to overspending. The article recommends trusting your own data and intuition over their advice and using automation sparingly until you have enough conversion data to make it work effectively.

Question 3

How do I stop wasting Google Ads budget on irrelevant searches?

Accepted Answer

The article states that the search terms report will expose where budget is being wasted, especially at the start of a campaign, because ads can show for completely irrelevant searches. According to groas, a robust negative keywords list is a ‘must have’ rather than a ‘good to have’. The article recommends checking the search terms report daily and adding irrelevant queries as negatives immediately to refine targeting and improve quality scores.

Question 4

How important is ad copy compared to keywords in Google Ads?

Accepted Answer

According to groas, good ad copy can make or break a campaign even with good targeting and a solid offer, after spending 80% of time on keywords and 20% on ad copy. The article states that a strong ad doesn’t just say what you’re offering, it addresses the why and the pain point. The article recommends always having a clear CTA, considering the emotional aspect depending on the niche, and testing copy variations and spending more on those that outperform the others.

Question 5

What is Quality Score in Google Ads and how do I improve it?

Accepted Answer

According to groas, Quality Score is the probably backbone of Google Ads success, where the higher the score the less you pay for clicks and the lower the score the more Google will punish your wallet. The article states that CTR, ad relevance, and landing page experience are all connected, and a poor landing page WILL kill conversion rate no matter how good the ads and offer might be. The article recommends using ad copy that aligns perfectly with landing page content and monitoring quality scores regularly to troubleshoot any score below 7.