This is the second instalment of a series we call “Critiquing Your Google AdWords Campaigns”.

We Google a search term and evaluate the top 3 Google Ads as well as their landing pages for their ability to ATTRACT and CONVERT visitors.

We grade each campaign out of 10:

• 5 Points ATTRACT: the actual Google Ad
• 5 Points for CONVERT: the landing Page experience

Let’s get started!

This week we’re looking for a pre-owned vehicle in Oakville, so we Googled “2010 vw golf oakville”

Google Ad #1

Company: Volkswagen.ca

Volkswagen.ca AdWords Ad:

The Good…

• Well, obviously you can’t get much more relevant than the Volkswagen site when searching for a Volkswagen

The Not so Good…

• The ad showcases a new 2012 VW Golf, but my search is for a 2010
• I’m searching locally for a car, so again, not very relevant to my needs

AdWords Score: 1/5

Volkswagen.ca Landing Page:

The Good…

• It’s a nice looking website, and I do see a “Find a Dealer” button in the top navigation

The Not so Good…

• Realistically I wouldn’t have even clicked on this ad because it wasn’t relevant enough to my search, and this page offers me little in terms of pre-owned Golfs in Oakville area.

Volkswagen Landing Page Score: 0/5

TOTAL VOLKSWAGEN ADWORDS SCORE: 1/10

Google Ad #2
Company: Autotrader.ca

Autotrader.ca AdWords Ad:

The Good…

• Used VW Golf right in the headline, that’s good
• The url is very relevant
• I like the 300,000+ vehicles, I know I’m going to have a lot of choice

The Not so Good…

• I don’t any mention of the “2010” model I’m looking for
• I don’t see any mention of “Oakville” in ad as my location
• “Find great deals” is not exactly an irresistible offer

AdWords Score: 3.5/5

Autotrader.ca Landing Page:

The Good…

• I’m seeing a couple results for VW Golfs in Toronto and Mississauga, so that’s fairly close to Oakville
• In the search tool, the model I’m looking for is already pre-populated, nice touch!

The Not so Good…

• I was hoping to see results for Oakville VWs first, but at least I can easily input the information in the search tool.

Volkswagen Landing Page Score: 4/5

TOTAL AUTOTRADER ADWORDS SCORE: 7.5/10

Google Ad #3
Company: Audi Centre Oakville

Audi AdWords Ad:

The Good…

• I see the word “Oakville”, and that’s really the only relevant thing about this ad

The Not so Good…

• The ad is basically irrelevant to my search.  It’s like Googling “baseball glove” and getting results for a “basketball”.

Audi AdWords Score: 0/5

Audi Landing Page:

The Good…

• It’s a nice site design, but I wouldn’t have clicked on the ad as well, I’m not searching for an Audi.

The Not so Good…

• See above 🙂

Volkswagen Landing Page Score: 0/5

TOTAL AUTOTRADER ADWORDS SCORE: 0/10

Who’s Getting My Business for “2010 vw golf oakville”?

Autotrader.ca wins it running away, as it’s the only campaign that was relevant to my search for a pre-owned VW Golf.

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