Google Ads are a smart, cost-effective marketing option for many small businesses – particularly local businesses. Google has offered ad options for a long time, but the features and formats have evolved a great deal over the years.
In fact, Google has rolled out several new trends just in the last 6 months! As usual, the ever-changing algorithm is keeping marketers on their toes!
It’s important to understand what’s new and be aware of changes on the horizon so you can make the most of your Google Ad budget.
Here are 5 recent changes that should be on your radar:
- New Bidding Strategies
You probably know how Google Ads work – you place bids on keywords and search terms and set the max you’re willing to pay per click. If you win, you secure a top SERP spot for your ad- but that’s all changing…
Google is now offering a Target Return on Ad Spend (tROAS) bidding option that allows you to bid based on your predicted average conversion value rather than your predicted conversion rate. This gives you the option to maximize your conversion value rather than simply maximizing your conversion rate, and that ultimately boosts your revenue. - Simplified Campaign Tools
Google introduced Smart Campaigns in 2019 to handle targeting and optimization for less experienced advertisers. Now, they’re making it even easier to build an ad campaign with their Performance Max option.
Performance Max allows you to advertise on all Google-owned channels, and it basically builds your campaign for you. You provide information on your campaign goals and objectives, your budget and bidding parameters, your ad copy, and your location, language, and ad scheduling, and Google does the rest! - Updated Keyword Matching
The days of single keyword ad groups are over! Google is focusing on making it easier for users to get relevant results no matter what search terms they use, so they created Simplified Match Types.
They’ve updated their phrase match and broad match modifier keywords to have the same matching behavior. This means that they can show results for exact matches, phrase matches, broad matches, and even phrases that include the meaning of your keywords. - New Ad Formats
Google is offering a host of new ad formats, and many of them are fantastic tools for local businesses. You can pick from options like Auto Suggest Ads to feature your store in auto suggest results near users’ location. Or you could use Navigational Ads to have your business shown on a user’s navigation route regardless of their search destination.
You could also try Similar Places Ads to share your business with users who are searching for similar locations nearby. And don’t forget about Discovery Ads- they’re displayed in places like smartphone discovery feeds, Gmail, and YouTube to help new audiences discover your brand. - Capture More Leads
With 3rd party cookies going the way of the dodo bird, smart marketers have had to come up with savvier ways to capture data from promising leads.
Google is helping you out by offering Lead Form Ad Extensions. You can place the extension at the end of your ad so users can submit their information directly rather than being redirected to your website.
These are just a few of the many new features Google plans to introduce over the course of the year. If you’d like some advice on creating the most effective Google Ad campaigns for your business, Resonetrics can help! Visit https://resonetrics.com/services/paid-ads to learn more about the advertising services we offer.
