If you are just starting to get into the AdWords space or are already at a proficient level, you probably have looked at or wondered about getting certified in AdWords.
At New Jupiter Media, we have six professionals on-staff that are AdWords certified, and we are a Google AdWords Certified Partner. This certification and our extensive experience in the search advertising and display advertising space makes us a valuable and insightful partner for our clients.
And while the majority of our clients rely exclusively on our expertise, a couple have asked whether AdWords certification would still be a worthwhile endeavor to help inform their analyses of our recommendations. While you may not have the time for the extensive coursework, we say, “Absolutely!” Knowledge is power, and as an organization, we are here to up the ante across our industry by constantly testing and refining PPC strategies, and challenging our competitors to do the same.
Step 1: Decide which Google Adwords certification option is best for you.
1) Individual:
Who: Best for PPC specialists or a consultant looking to take on additional PPC work
What: Take two exams, one general Advertising exam, the other an advanced level
Cost: $100 ($50/exam)
2) Company:
Who: If your company is already spending $10k or more on PPC within a 90 day period, train one of your employees that’s managing your account
What: Same as individual, two exams
Cost: FREE
Step 2: Utilize the free online resources, and study!
The great part of the AdWords certification process is that Google and many others provide a lot of support and study resources to to help you pass successfully. Google’s Learning Center helps you familiarize yourself with ad formats, keyword targeting, campaign management and some general best practices. There is also support in the Google Analytics section. As you familiarize yourself with the information, it will be become second nature. Just keep reading and keep practicing to keep the content top-of-mind.
Step 3: Evaluate your free time.
There is no rush to become certified right off the bat–you can still work with PPC campaigns without being certified. And that’s what we’re here for–to help you implement the right PPC strategies for your business. Be sure you are ready to pass prior to taking the test and spending any money.
Step 4: Understand the test and time constraints!
There are 120 questions that they allow you to answer in 2 hours, which is one minute per question. Be sure you are ready to answer those right off the bat or are comfortable skipping the question and coming back to it. They typically will flag which ones you skipped; so at the end of the exam you should have the ability to answer the ones you skipped assuming you have extra time.
Step 5: Relish in the fact that you made a smart choice for your business.
These certification courses can be challenging and are not cheap! But do not let this discourage you; if you study and prepare, you should be fine. Just remember to evaluate your options prior to taking on the certification process to ensure this is the right path for you.
Dollars spent on education are the most valuable when you put them to use. Give New Jupiter Media a call and we can help plan out a PPC campaign that will maximize your ROI, and drive the leads that your business needs. And, if you are a first time advertiser, we’ll provide you with $100 credit to spend in AdWords.
We’re not going to lie to you: the process of getting certified takes time, and it may be a better spend of your time and money to hire a company like us to manage your PPC campaign. Our years of experience and the consistently great results we achieve for our clients makes outsourcing your AdWords to us worth it.