Simple tips for tracking campaign performance for offline businesses

While many of our readers may have been using AdWords to advertise their online stores for years, we also recognize that some of our readers may own a brick-and-mortar business for which it is harder to measure the effectiveness of online campaigns. For those readers, it's important to remember that success isn't measured by how many potential customers click your ad, but by what happens after those clicks. Today, we'd like to share with you a few simple tips that can help you assess the effectiveness of your AdWords campaign.

1. Start with the very basics. Ask customers who call or walk through your door, 'How did you hear about us?' This is a quick way to discover how many customers find you through Google. Also, you may try putting a short 'How did you find us?' form (but not a pop-up) on your website. It's relatively easy to do, and the results may surprise you.
   
   
2. Note the number of sales, leads, or calls received before and after you begin using AdWords, and compare the results. Then try the same kind of tracking when you change your AdWords ad text or keywords. If the number of your customer calls rise significantly, then the change was probably a good one.
   
   
3. Create a new business email address or phone number, and place the new contact information just on your website. (Keep using your existing email and phone information for flyers, the phone book, and other offline campaigns.) Start counting the number of prospects who come through the new contact information, and you'll know exactly which customers come from your website. Many email services, including our personal favorite, offer email addresses at no cost.
   

And of course, if you are using AdWords Standard Edition (as opposed to AdWords Starter Edition), you have access to advanced reporting tools that can help you track sales, leads, sign-ups, and other critical business information.

We wish you the best success with your campaign reporting and growing your business!

Posted by Feng, Inside AdWords crew