The Big Changes in Google Ads in 2018 – Part II

So, as 2019 begins, what else should marketers know about the most powerful advertising platform in the world?

In our second part of the series, we’ll reveal more significant changes to Google Ads that happened throughout 2018.

Evolving Ad Types Give Advertisers More Power

Just as Google’s search engine is always learning more about user behavior, the Google Ads platform continues to grow so marketers have more ways of connecting with their audience.

In 2018, we saw the introduction of some useful new ad types, as well as some tweaks to existing formats.

1. Expanded Text Ads Are Larger

Today, you now have more options than before for expanded text ads, allowing you more freedom with your additional headlines and descriptions. Reports suggest these have a great impact on clickthrough rate (CTR).

One caveat, however, is that the third headline isn’t always displayed if you exhaust the full 300-character limit of these new ETAs, so you must consider your ad copy carefully so that no vital information is hidden.

2. Responsive Search Ads

It can take a lot of time to create multiple ads. Google realized that and in 2018 they responded by releasing responsive search ads.

When you create these ads, you can specify as many as 15 headlines and 4 descriptions. The ads then adapt to user interactions, changing over time to achieve optimal performance and engagement.

We touched upon this in the first part of this series, and mentioned how Google’s Ad Strength Indicator helps you determine the best in the bunch.

3. Hotel Ads in Google Ads Dashboard

Hotel campaigns are now available in your Google Ads dashboard. This allows hotel advertisers to run promotions in Google search and also in Google Maps.

By running hotel campaigns, owners can use smart bidding that is powered by machine-learning, which ultimately will help them maximize their bookings.

An Enhanced User Interface

Google may be a machine, but it caters to people. Therefore, the user experience is of paramount importance. Over the past 12 months, a host of new changes improved the user interface of the platform.

4. Google Marketing Platform

With the ever-shifting landscape of digital marketing, there is more integration between tools and marketing programs. The Google Marketing Platform heralds this movement by bringing together the features of Google Analytics 360 Suite and DoubleClick.

This all-in-one suite makes it easy for marketers to plan their campaigns, and track, analyze, and optimize their digital marketing efforts and customer experiences in one location.

5. Smart Bidding

If you use conversion tracking you can use smart bidding for all search partner sites. This utilizes contextual signals to optimize your auction bids, which enhances keyword performance.

In the end, this helps you maximize your conversions so you can get a similar cost per conversion as you would on Google Search.

6. New Workflow

Traditionally, whenever you were creating a new Google Ads campaign, the format was as follows:

• Create a campaign
• Choose the advertising network – search network, display, etc.
• Choose an ad type – clicks, calls, etc.

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Google now provides a way for advertisers to set their campaign goals first, and then offers suggestions on how they should configure the campaign. This makes it much easier to create optimized campaigns that are aligned with your business objectives.

7. Audience Management

The audience manager tab is another new addition that brings Google Ads onto the same playing field as Facebook when it comes to defined targeting.

Now you can hone in on custom audience segments, and create new bids based on their specific demographics and interests.

Data Analysis is Getting Deeper

As expected, 2018 was another massive year for data analysis. In modern marketing, it’s the companies that invest in data that will thrive. Here’s how you can do more with data in Google Ads.

8. Google Sheets Integration

Back in June, Google Ads released an add-on that allows you to import data from your advertising account into Google Sheets.

This makes it easier to conduct your own analysis and maintain records of your keywords or bids, and you can share your reports like any other Google Sheets file.

9. Google Ads Notes

Another one of the big changes in Google Ads is the Notes feature, which allows you to add notes at various levels of the campaign. Simply click a point in the chart and you can leave some added detail that will guide your analysis or assist other people viewing the campaign.

10. Call Reporting

Prior to this year, you could only use this feature with call-only ads or individual call extensions. Now, it’s possible to enable Call Reporting at your account level, and you can activate it for all accounts. Check our blog on Google Ads Call-Only Campaigns to learn more about using this ad type.

11. New Landing Page Reports

There are two available:

• Landing Pages Report includes mobile speed score, mobile-friendly click-rate, and valid amp click-rate.
• Expanded Report includes these plus it displays URL users reach after any contextual substitutions have been made.

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12. Store Visits Update

Every advertiser can access this report, which gives insights on important conversion metrics, such as clicks on:

• Website links associated with location-based ads
• Menu links
• Call buttons
• Get Directions buttons
• Order button

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It’s Vital that You Get Up-to-Speed with Google Ads Updates

In the past, Google has shown little mercy to websites that disregarded their regulations. Unless you’re happy to run the risk of your website being banished to the outer realms of search engine results pages (SERPs), you’d be wise to get acquainted with the latest regulatory updates.

13. Google Grants

If you rely on Google Grants, the rules are tighter now for nonprofit advertisers. The introduction of a minimum 5% CTR may deter many NPOs, as two months below the red line will result in your account being canceled!

On the upside, Google has removed the restrictive $2 bid cap, and also brought into more changes that encourage more structured campaigns, which should make it easier to attract those clicks.

14. GDPR

Last but not least, is GDPR. The General Data Protection Regulation updates shook up the game across all industries and effectively killed paid advertising for some.

This revolutionary change to data privacy regulations is not one to brush under the carpet, and so you must ensure everything in your advertising efforts is aligned with the latest GDPR practices. This is especially true if you are collecting personal information from customers.

Google Ads Will Continue to Evolve in 2019

Over the past year, the user interface of Google Ads underwent some major improvements as Google aims to provide a better service for advertisers.

But this platform is not set to rest now. Digital marketing is always shifting, and as it becomes more attuned with consumer behaviors and interests, advertisers need to be able to respond.

Just as we saw plenty of new features and announcements in Google Ads in 2018, the year ahead is sure to bring an exciting host of changes.

Stay ready.