Signing Up for an AdWords Account

Signing up for an AdWords account is as easy as 1-2-3. In fact, I’ll bet that you can set up an account faster than you finish reading this chapter.

Signing Up

You can have absolutely zero knowledge of advertising and AdWords, skipped the whole of Chapter 1 and still set up an account. Well, here goes…


1. Open your web browser and go to http://adwords.google.com

2. Click on the “Start Now” button.

3. Select the email address you want to use with your Google Account.
You’ll have the option to use an existing Gmail address or create a Google account. The sign up form will change dynamically based on your selection.

4. Enter a website that you would like to promote.
When customers click on your ad, they’ll be directed to your website. If you don’t have a website, you can Google “how to create a website”. That’s pretty much how you learn to do any new skill under the sun. Google suggests using their free and basic Google sites solution. If you don’t want to create a website, you can create advertise using AdWords Express, but that’s a whole other ball game altogether.

5. Enter your time-zone and currency.
These are just basic housekeeping duties and Google will use this setting for billing and reporting purposes. You can’t change this setting later on, so don’t pretend you live on the North Pole! It would be confusing understanding your ad reports later on.

6. Activate your account.
Google AdWords will send you an email address with a link that you’ll have to go to.

7. Click “Sign in to your AdWords Account”.
Congratulations, you have just created your very own AdWords account!

Screenshot of the AdWords sign in page
This page may look slightly different from time to time.

Google update their logo and refresh their look every few months. You know how quickly the tech world evolves every day. If you’re seeing a different page layout to those in our screenshots, you could be residing in a different geography.

Google also presents two sign-up pages:

1. The basic setup: This one allows you to explore AdWords first and control your pace.

2. A guided setup: This is a 4-step process that goes straight into creating your first ad and adding your billing information. There is zero harm in creating a lousy first ad—you can always pause it immediately after before it runs. Also, you have to submit legitimate billing information so that your account can be activated. Don’t get cold feet here!

Frequently Asked Question: Which email address should I use with AdWords?
An average person today has three email accounts. Many savvy advertisers and business owners like you own more than six email addresses. Does it matter which one you use? Yes!

There are three things that you need to take note of:

1. If you already have a Google Analytics account, you must use the same email address for AdWords as your Analytics admin user email. This would make the task of linking accounts later a lot more convenient.

2. If you use a shared email address between multiple business partners and staff, you can set an AdWords-specific password and only share it with your advertising managers.

3. If you use other Google services like Gmail or YouTube, you can use the same address for your AdWords account. This way, you don’t have to switch accounts every time you want to check your email.

Quick Tip

One email address can only be associated with one AdWords account.

Warning

Your AdWords account will not be activated until you submit valid billing information.

No fake credit card numbers will do the trick! Google checks these with the financial institutions, just as Asos.com and other e-commerce sites do. You can edit your billing information at any time, so don’t worry about committing one credit card.