The evolution of Google Ads to Google Ads represents a streamlined advertising platform that harnesses the full potential of Google’s advertising suite, encompassing key platforms such as YouTube, Google Maps, and Google Play. In addition to this enhancement, Google has introduced Google Ad Manager, a new platform designed to simplify advertising processes for advertisers.
Similar to Google Ads, Ad Manager serves as a replacement for existing programs, aiming to streamline operations for advertisers. It encompasses a range of functionalities, all designed to enhance advertising efforts. Here are eight key things to know about Google Ad Manager:
Over a decade ago, Google acquired DoubleClick, leveraging it to support advertisers in business growth. However, the company sought to consolidate its offerings into a single program, merging DoubleClick Ad Exchange (AdX) and DoubleClick for Publishers (DFP). What are DFP and AdX?
DFP: This platform primarily allowed publishers to manage ads on their websites, integrating various functionalities into a unified ad platform. Features included scheduling online ads, prioritizing ad lists, and optimizing ads for maximum revenue generation.
AdX: This platform facilitated real-time interactions between publishers, ad networks, and agencies for buying and selling advertising space. It simplified the ad buying process, serving as a Demand-Side Platform (DSP) for ad space acquisition.
By amalgamating these two platforms, Google has created a comprehensive ad platform, making both services accessible in one convenient location through Google Ad Manager.
The integration of AdX and DFP into Google Ad Manager enables users to access both programs within an easy-to-use interface, opening up more opportunities for advertisers to place their ads on desired websites. It’s important to note that Ad Manager is not an ad server or a Sell-Side Platform (SSP), but rather offers more automated features to maximize yield across reservations, private marketplaces, and open auctions. This comprehensive ad platform is designed to assist advertisers in increasing their revenue.
As AdX becomes part of Google Ad Manager, the legacy Ad Exchange brand is retired. When AdX was introduced by Google, it created a marketplace that facilitated increased earnings for advertisers through real-time competition for inventory. Today, the exchange has evolved beyond an auction, becoming a complete sales channel. Consequently, certain AdX terminology has been updated, such as “AdX buyers” now being referred to as “Authorized Buyers,” reflecting the closer relationship between advertisers and their partners.
Google is steadfast in its commitment to mobile advertising, as evidenced by its driving over 90 percent of paid clicks on mobile devices. Considering that more than half of internet traffic originates from mobile devices, mobile advertising is a smart consideration. Google Ad Manager serves as a platform that can deliver, measure, and optimize ads tailored to specific audiences and their devices, including connected TVs, Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMPs), and other applications. It can even serve ads on platforms like YouTube and Apple News, featuring Dynamic Ad Insertion for live and on-demand video, as well as formats like native and six-second bumper ads, ensuring advertisers stay relevant and support new distribution channels.
The digital advertising market often faces challenges such as brand safety and ad fraud, which can negatively impact user experience and legitimate advertisers. To address these concerns, Google Ad Manager incorporates several safeguards, offering over 30 controls to protect advertisers and align ad management with brand values. Google’s tools have prevented over 3.2 billion harmful or inappropriate ads from reaching consumers since 2017.
As a business investing in pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, maximizing advertisement success is crucial. Google Ad Manager introduces Responsive Search Ads, leveraging Google’s passion for machine learning. These ads combine your knowledge of your target audience with Google’s machine learning capabilities to create relevant ads that resonate with your ideal consumers, driving clicks and website visits. With just 15 headlines and four description lines, Google takes care of the rest, learning which ads perform best for specific search queries and serving up the most appropriate ads.
This feature of Google Ad Manager allows companies to lower their cost-per-click (CPC) while increasing their click-through-rate (CTR), benefiting all parties involved, from businesses to consumers. Responsive Search Ads can even yield up to 15 percent more clicks than standard ads.
With over one billion users, equivalent to nearly one-third of the internet, YouTube is a highly popular platform. Many consumers use YouTube as a reference when considering a purchase, making video advertising on YouTube not only beneficial but also crucial. Video ads can improve conversion rates by over 85 percent, so ensuring that your video ads are shown at the right time and to the right audience is essential. To achieve this, Google has introduced Smart Bidding, a machine learning-powered feature that serves ads at the optimal time and targets individuals most likely to consider your brand after viewing a video ad.
Smart Bidding also automatically adjusts bids to maximize the impact of your video ad. Whether users research a product on Google or YouTube, many make their purchases in physical locations. Google has noted a 500 percent increase in searches including the term “near me” over the past two years, with local searches offering a high conversion rate of 80 percent. This is due to users often being in the area or planning to travel to the area when conducting local searches, with intentions ranging from needing a product to seeking an outing. Driving traffic to your physical location can significantly boost your revenue. Google Ad Manager’s local campaigns feature offers a new campaign type designed to drive store visits, requiring only basic information about business locations and ad creativity.
Google will optimize your ads to attract more customers to your store from there. For those interested in learning more about Google’s new Google Ads program, subscribing to the newsletter at the top of the page ensures you never miss out on any updates related to this innovative program!
