Everything You Need To Know About AdWords Ad Extensions - Updated

Advanced Tactics For
AdWords Ad Extensions
SAM OWEN, MAY 22 2014

Introduction
Sam Owen
Associate Director of Paid
Search @ Hanapin Marketing
Writer @ PPC Hero
www.ppchero.com
@SamOwenPPC
PPC Masters Hamburg 2014 – Konferenz für PPC, SEA &
AdWords

Overview
Sitelinks
Location
Call
Review
App
Google+
Seller Ratings
Consumer Ratings
Dynamic Search Ads
Betas & Other New Extensions
AdWords

We’re Ignoring Them
This is a problem…

Why Is It Important?
Bing Research: On mobile multiple
extensions increase CTR by 15-
30% over just Sitelinks.

New QS Algorithm
In October Google announced
extensions will play a part in
Quality Score calculations. This
is so the algorithm can decide
your optimum combination of
extensions.
http://adwords.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/improving-ad-rank.html

New QS Algorithm
Your QS is still mostly based
on CTR vs. Expected CTR.
As extensions generally
improve CTR, they help QS.

Ad Extensions
Thanks to Ad Extensions
we can turn our ads from
this:
AdWords

Ad Extensions
To this:
AdWords

Ad Extensions
Seller Ratings
Sitelinks Call Ext.
Location Ext.
Google+
AdWords
Consumer Ratings

Ad Extensions
AdWords
These are our
“active” ad
extensions –
i.e. ones we
can control.

Ad Extensions
Seller Ratings
Google+
Consumer Ratings
These are “passive” –
Google decides
when, where and
what to show.

Sitelinks – Quick Recap
25 characters (down from 35)
Unique URLs
Can be Ad Group or Campaign Level
AdWords

Sitelinks
Not using
Sitelinks:
1.18% CTR
Using
Sitelinks:
1.93% CTR
AdWords

Sitelinks
Not using
Sitelinks:
1.18% CTR
Using
Sitelinks:
1.93% CTR
64% increase in CTR
AdWords

Sitelinks
You absolutely need to
use Sitelinks.
Higher CTR means better
Quality Score means
cheaper Clicks.
AdWords

Sitelinks
So how do I make great
Sitelinks?
AdWords

Sitelinks
First, look at your data…
AdWords

Sitelinks
Not your real
Sitelink CTR

Sitelinks
Use This Extension vs.
Other segment to get real
CTR.

Sitelinks
AdWords

Sitelinks
Conference
attendees
care about
the schedule
not the
speakers!
AdWords

Sitelinks
But we can use this
data to help us create
better ads & show
Sitelinks that our users
want to see.
AdWords

Sitelinks
How?
• Creating extra Sitelinks
for each day’s schedule
• Test “See the schedule!”
as our ad’s Call-To-
Action.
AdWords

Sitelinks
In order to find out if
our Sitelinks are
actually useful we need
to build some Pivot
Tables.
AdWords

Pivot Tablin’
AdWords

Sitelinks
The importance of Sitelinks
varies greatly by industry.
Judge based on overall lift and
use direct clicks as your guide.
AdWords

Sitelinks
0.6% of total conversions
for our lead gen accounts
came from direct Sitelink
clicks.
AdWords

Sitelinks
14% of total conversions
for eCommerce accounts
came from direct Sitelink
clicks.
AdWords

Sitelinks
Notice the CPA and ROAS
are better from direct
Sitelink clicks.
AdWords

Sitelinks
This is because we
tested our Sitelinks… a
lot.
AdWords

Sitelink Test Example
COMPANY SITELINKS:
• OUR LOCATIONS
• CUSTOMERS SERVICE
• SIZE CHARTS
vs.
PRODUCT SITELINKS:
• REEBOK BOOTS
• NIKE BOOTS
• SAFETY TOE BOOTS
AdWords

Sitelink Test Example
Conversion
rate was 23%
higher when
Product
Sitelinks
showed, even
if not clicked.

FACT:
Sitelinks are more
important in
eCommerce accounts.
AdWords

Sitelinks
This is because there
are more options for
our customers to
choose from.
AdWords

Sitelinks
Ways to think of Sitelinks:
eCommerce = Gets clicks
Lead Gen = Helps the ad
AdWords

Sitelinks
For eCommerce, Sitelinks
are often just a way for
users to self-select the
products they care about.
AdWords

eCommerce Sitelink
Tests
Start by testing
different themes to find
your base camp.
AdWords

Themes To Test
• BRAND:
– NIKE, ADIDAS, REEBOK, PUMA
• CATEGORY:
– RUNNING, BASKETBALL, TENNIS, VOLLEYBALL
• CROSS-SELL:
– CLOTHES, SPORTS EQUIPMENT, FITNESS DVDS, GYM
GEAR
• COMPANY INFO:
– ABOUT US, STORE LOCATIONS, CUSTOMER SERVICE,
CATALOGUE
• OFFER DRIVEN:
– FREE SHIPPING, 365 DAY RETURNS, 25% SUMMER SALE
• MOBILE:
– MOBILE SITE, CALL NOW, STORE LOCATIONS

Sitelinks
Once you’ve found the
right type of Sitelink,
drill down to the Top 6
of that type by testing
10+ variations.
AdWords

Sitelinks
For Lead Gen things are a
little more tricky. You often
don’t have 6 worthwhile
landing pages…
SO BUILD THEM!
AdWords

If You’re Stuck…
Take your product’s
benefits and use a tool
like Unbounce to create
landing pages for your
Sitelinks.
AdWords

Sitelinks
“Every headline
should appeal to
the reader’s self-
interest… it
should promise a
benefit”
- David Ogilvy

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“We recommend that 80%
of the content on a page
be unique for that page to
count as a different page.”
-GOOGLE SITELINK POLICY

Does This Really Work?
245% more
leads from
Sitelinks
AdWords

Enhanced Sitelinks
These show rarely and only
when you are dominating 1st
position (i.e. Brand Terms)
AdWords

Enhanced Sitelinks
Google says there’s a
Significant CTR Boost when
shown.
AdWords

Enhanced Sitelinks
Our data shows 8-10% boost in
brand CTR and minimal change
to non-branded campaigns.
AdWords

Enhanced Sitelinks
Note: You don’t have to set up both
extended and non-extended. Google
will choose to extend or not.
AdWords

Mobile Sitelinks
Mobile-
Preferred
Sitelinks
improved
our mobile
CTR by 15%
AdWords

Mobile Sitelinks
If you aren’t using
Mobile-Preferred
Sitelinks, use your
existing data as a
starting point.
AdWords

Mobile Sitelinks
WORST!
BEST!
AdWords

Mobile Sitelinks
By letting Google
Optimize for Clicks,
We’re leaving mobile
clicks on the table.
AdWords

Sitelink Tips ‘n’ Tricks
• Keep to themes when testing.
• 6+ Sitelinks per campaign
• 17 characters for mobile Sitelinks,
22 for computers.
• Split out mobile-preferred
• Bad Sitelinks > No Sitelinks
• Use extended text for Brand
campaigns
AdWords

Location Extensions
Location Extensions
allow you attach your
business address to
your ads

Location Extensions
Using them delivered a
roughly 10% bump in CTR
for Hanapin clients.
*(Although can hurt CTR if you
were getting a lot of clicks to your
store locations sitelinks)
AdWords

Location Extensions
You have the option to
manage these manually
or with Google Places.
AdWords

Manually
AdWords

Google Places
AdWords

You can use your
location extension
targets to set your
campaign targets.
Location Extensions
AdWords

Location Extensions
AdWords

Location Ext. Metrics?
Location metrics
are not simple.
How do we
assign value to
“Get Directions”
& “Get Location
Details”?
AdWords
Source: SearchEngineLand

Location Extensions
AdWords
Dimensions > Free Clicks shows
you how many people started
navigation after using your
location extension.

Location Extensions
Google is working on a long
term solutions to our
metrics problems with
Estimated Total
Conversions.

Call Extensions
AdWords
Make sure you enable Google call
forwarding to get meaningful
data from AdWords.

Call Extensions
Use scheduling to only
show during open
hours!
AdWords

Call Extensions
This is because answer
machine messages
convert at only 20% the
rate of answered calls.
(Also fewer people
leave messages)
AdWords

Call Extensions
Test the value of
showing your mobile
visitors only a phone
number.

Call Extensions
Here it is
done badly:
I only wanted
a price list
and it’s not
even open to
take calls!
AdWords

Call Extensions
One of our clients saw
conversions rise by 68%
when re-enabling calls and
headline clicks.
Another got 34% more
leads by turning off
headline clicks.
AdWords

Call Extensions
You can use your call
extension data to make
bid and budget
optimizations.
AdWords

Dimensions Tab
AdWords

Call Extensions
Coming Soon: The ability
to set multiple conversion
values for calls based
upon duration.
http://adwords.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/dial-up-your-business-with-higher-value.html
AdWords

Call Extensions
AdWords

Warning!
Call Extensions do not
replace a need for call
tracking. They only
track calls directly
from the Google SERP.
AdWords

Review Extensions
AdWords

Review Extensions
You should use Review
Extensions because…
AdWords

Review Extensions
1. They improve overall
Click-Through Rate
*11% CTR boost on average,
26% in our best instance.
AdWords

Review Extensions
2. Clicks to the review
are Free!

Review Extensions
3. Good
Reviews =
Good
Conversion
Rates
AdWords

Review Extensions
4. You get extra ad real
estate.
AdWords

Review Extensions
5. Most people don’t
click to the review
anyway.
AdWords

Review Extensions
Interestingly, Review
Extensions are still
rare… 50 random
searches produced just
3 instances.
AdWords

Review Extensions
Must be:
• Unique
• Substantive
• Past 12 months
• Credible 3rd party
AdWords

Review Extensions
It can be hard to meet
these criteria if you have
a small business. Review
extensions are much
easier for major brands
who get more legitimate
reviews.
AdWords

Review Extensions
So where can you
get Reviews from?
AdWords

Review Extensions
Anywhere Google gets
Seller Ratings from,
such as…
• Ausgezeichnet.org
• ShopAuskunft.de
AdWords

Review Extensions
…Also try places like
Local News, Expert
Review Sites OR Google
Trusted Stores.
AdWords

Review Extensions
Unfortunately we can’t
use user reviews for
review extensions.

Review Extensions
AdWords
“Gone are the days of
biting off slice-sized
chunks of banana and
spitting them onto a
serving tray…”
-Amazon Review

App Extensions
Direct visitors to your app
from your PPC ad:

App Promotion Ads
If you want to promote your apps,
App Promotion Ads get more
visibility (app extensions show
rarely).

Google+
We used to be able to
control Google+ in
Social Extensions. It is
now automatically done
by linking G+ with your
website.
AdWords

Google+
AdWords

Google+
Across all our
accounts G+ had
better CTRs 87%
of the time.
35%(!) better for
our big brands
with lots of
followers. +5%
for smaller
clients.
No +1s
Using G+

Seller Ratings
~15% CTR Boost for
Hanapin clients.
Higher rating = Higher
CTR
AdWords

Seller Ratings
If you want to find if
you qualify go to:
google.com/shopping/s
eller?q=yoururl.com
Need 30 reviews in
past 12 months and
3.5/5 star to be
shown.

Seller Ratings
Try asking customers for
reviews – either after
checkout, in their
confirmation email, or
after successful customer
service actions.
AdWords

Consumer Ratings
• Leider nur auf Englisch im
Moment.
• Collected by Google through
Google Consumer Surveys –
only major brands right now
(needs 100 responses)
• Adjusted by industry
averages.
AdWords

Consumer Ratings
Google will only show if your
ratings are good and only if
your CTR is better showing
ratings than not. This is
done by them. You do,
however, have the option to
contact them to opt out.
AdWords

Dynamic Search Ads
Confession: I used to hate
Dynamic Search Ads.
But then I saw a great
presentation by Matt Umbro at
SMX West and started to test
them out again. Turns out they
got a lot better.
*LINK TO MATT’S DSA PRESO

Dynamic Search Ads
DSAs are ads written by
Google, based on
language found on
landing pages specified
by you.

Dynamic Search Ads
Think of DSA like broad
match for landing pages
VS.
AdWords

Dynamic Search Ads
Useful if you have a
large inventory of
products that are
constantly being added
and removed.
AdWords

Dynamic Search Ads
(Ok, so these might not technically be an
extension anymore)
AdWords

Dynamic Search Ads
Start with an “All
Webpages” ad group and
then build out targets
based on URL Text, Page
Title or Page Content.
*NOTE: Pages must be indexed by Google
AdWords

Dynamic Search Ads
You’ll want to exclude
pages that you aren’t
interested in
advertising.
e.g. URL contains “blog”
AdWords

Dynamic Search Ads
DSAs have some
nice benefits like…
AdWords

Dynamic Search Ads
35 Characters!

Dynamic Search Ads
Use them to mine for
good long-tail keywords.
Run Search Term reports
and add any converting
terms to your regular
campaigns.

Dynamic Search Ads
Set bids low so as not
to outbid your regular
traffic.
AdWords

Dynamic Search Ads
Try combining them
with RLSA for
increased relevancy.
*NOTE: This takes some
AdWords Editor trickery.
AdWords

Dynamic Search Ads
Don’t forget to add all
your account’s other
keywords in as
negatives.
AdWords

Dynamic Search Ads
DSAs can add great value
AdWords

Betas & New Extensions
AdWords
Unfortunately Google
makes us sign NDAs
(Non-Disclosure
Agreements), but…

Landscape of
available
extensions is
constantly
changing.
AdWords

Image Extensions
AdWords

Form Extensions
AdWords

Live Chat Extensions
AdWords

Drop-Down Extensions
AdWords

Smart Annotations
AdWords

Google runs lots of tests
(don’t freak out).
Unless test extension adds
+10% CTR, it’s very unlikely
to make it out of Beta.
AdWords

Best advice is to
contact your rep if you
see a beta you want to
be part of.
AdWords

Summary
Test, Test, Test Extensions
Implement every extension
that makes sense for your
business.
Experiment with dynamic
ads.
AdWords

Many Slides Later…
Live Q&A
@SamOwenPPC
sam.owen@hanapinmarketing.com
AdWords

Everything You Need To Know About AdWords Ad Extensions - Updated

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