It has been quite some time since last post of Clickadtrix and a lot of differences can be seen on Google ads platform between these 5 years. The most relevant example would be; it used to be called Adwords back then and now we call it Google Ads. There are several options which have been changed and anyone who thinks that all the paid search marketing platforms work the same way, should know that now all these platforms have decided to evolve rapidly. Huge amount of artificial intelligence has been put to work, so that advertisers can easily cope with all the offered changes. Here is the list of some prominent ones:
1. Definition of Keyword Match Types
Multiple match types are offered to make it easy to broaden or narrow down the focus area. Back then it used to be very precise. Broad, Phrase or Exact literally meant that a search term will match with advertiser's keyword broadly, as phrase or exactly respectively. But now the options of covering more variations have been introduced in all match types, so even if the keyword is added in exact match, it will be eligible to show ads on synonyms and close variants with addition of articles and connecting terms in between words that have been used as exact match. Same for phrase and broad match. Difference between all 4 match types have not been changed fundamentally. If a keyword is added in exact match then it will still only trigger ads if the words or their synonyms are present in the search term without any addition of extra words that can change the meaning of text string. Link for reference2. Automated Recommendations
Everyone is aware of the opportunities section which used to provide remarks in the account that can help in improving performance. But most of us were ignoring those opportunities as they were based on numbers and we were trained to procure them even before it can surface in the opportunities. Now the game has been changed with the introduction of machine learning where system uses so many performance signals to arrive at accurate recommendations apart from the visible metrics, such as specific time of the day, day of the week, location, device, demography, user behavior on search and other platforms, engagement level with the advertiser website etc. in real time, which takes a lot of efforts to do manually. Read more about change from opportunities to recommendations3. Inclusion of New Audience Categories in Search Campaigns
Back then it was only keywords that were used for showing ads to the users, but now apart from keywords we can add audience layer in search campaigns to get more precise traffic that is relevant for performance improvement. To increase the precision we can add any of or a combination of demographic, in-market, website visitors, YouTube users, similar audiences, app users and customized list of users. Read more about audience targeting4. Improved Ad Options
The option of classic ads with 25 characters of 1 headline and 35 characters of 2 description lines have been upgraded to an expanded version where advertisers can utilize 30 characters of 3 headlines and 90 characters of 2 description lines with 1 headline and 1 description line being optional. On top of that, another new ad format had been introduced which is responsive with 15 headlines and 4 description lines. In display, YouTube and shopping network also new ad types have been added.5. New Ad Extensions
Gone are the days when it was just sitelinks, call and location extensions which could be used to enhance user engagement. Now we can add callouts, structured snippets, app install, message, affiliate location, price and promotion extensions to show more information about offered products and services. Learn more about ad extensions
6. Keyword Planner
Along with change in definition of keyword match type there was a huge need for change in planning tool as well. Old keyword planner was providing insights on the basis of historical data of each term's exact performance. On the other hand new planning tools are equipped to cover insights for variations and related terms as well. You may notice that when we add closely matching terms in same plan then the variations are automatically eliminated, considering they will be covered by the matching variant. Get details of new keyword planning tool
7. Automated Bidding Strategies
There are certain bid strategies which have been deprecated and replaced with new strategies. Target search page location and target outranking share cannot be opted anymore, but you can start targeting impression share and conversions values. So now we have options to focus on primary performance metrics rather than focusing on relative goals. Here is the guide on how to align bid strategies with your marketing goal
8. New Interface
With several new features, it was inevitable to have a need for new design, because there is a limit to stuffing information in same design. The old interface which was based on tabs for different sections had been upgraded to a list style view. Not only the design has changed but the speed is also marvelous. New design of the Google ads interface is more intuitive and user friendly. You can now search for the setting you want to explore; you can also search for the metrics that you want to see in a specific report; the creation of customized reports has also become easier. Navigation on this new interface is especially made for beginners. Here is a quick guide to new interface design
There are many more new options which were not available few years back due to which optimizer had to find new ways to project improvement in performance. Now optimizer can focus more on planning rather than fine tuning the account for best results.
Please share your views on any new feature which has made life easier for optimizer.
Comments
Post a Comment