Google and Google AdWords

Google and Google AdWords
Objective: Learn about Google search and Google AdWords, and see how AdWords relates to the concepts of Internet search engines and keyword advertising.

About Google Search
As a search engine, Google gathers and organizes a multitude of information from the Internet, then makes this information available to online searchers throughout the world.

Users can simply visit the Google homepage or other Google domains, enter a search query (terms related to information they'd like to find) into the search field, and click Google Search. Google returns a variety of search results — including lists of files, articles, documents, and websites — that are all highly relevant to the query. (If a user clicks I'm Feeling Lucky, the user goes directly to the first website or document in the Google search results.) Users can also search for results within Google Images, News, and other specialized Google services.

Search results appear on the left side of the page. It's important to note that Google doesn't accept payment to place websites or documents in search results. However, advertisers can purchase Google AdWords ads, which appear on the right side of the page, and sometimes above the search results.

About Google AdWords
Google AdWords is Google's advertising program. AdWords lets you create simple, effective ads and display them to people already searching online for information related to your business. So how is it possible to show your ads only to the most relevant audiences? The answer is keyword-based advertising.

When a searcher visits Google and enters a query — say, good beginner guitars — Google displays a variety of relevant search results, such as links to articles containing guitar purchasing advice, or websites dedicated to novice musicians. Google also displays AdWords ads that link to online businesses selling guitars, music lessons, or other products and services related to the query.

For example, imagine that you own a music store carrying a large selection of guitars. You could sign up for an AdWords account and create ads for entry-level guitars in your inventory. For each of your ads, you might select keywords (single words or phrases related to your ad's message) such as beginner guitars or entry-level guitars.

Once you activate your account, your ads would be eligible to appear. That is, the AdWords system would constantly seek out search queries related to the keywords you've selected, then display your ads to highly targeted audiences. In short, you'd be advertising directly to an audience already looking for you.