It’s a very exciting time for PPC marketers. Google AdWords is starting to roll out its new updates. Check out this post for a list of all the updates Google announced in May. We all should have access now to expanded text ads – woohoo! Can you tell how excited I am about this rollout? I’m ready to let the testing begin.
Expanded Text Ads
Officially rolled out at the end of July, PPC marketers are now able to run expanded text ads, allowing us to have not just one but two headlines, each up to 30 characters and a description line up to 80 characters. For the next 4 months, we will have the opportunity to run expanded text ads alongside our standard text ads to test and measure lift. Google stated that the original purpose behind this release was to make the SERP more mobile-centric by providing mobile users with more information. Early tests reporting a lift in average CTR by up to 20%. Fingers crossed, we all see that type of performance!
The Return of Device-Specific Bidding
The other update I’m very excited about is device bidding. A lot of us remember the days prior to enhanced campaign rollout in the summer of 2013 when we had duplicate campaigns for each device: mobile, tablet, and desktop. We were able to set budget by device as well as bids. However, when enhanced campaigns rolled out, we were forced into serving ads on all devices while sharing a budget, with the only adjustment allowed being the mobile bid modifier of desktop bids.
With mobile search query volume overtaking desktop, the days of allocating the majority of our budgets and high bids to desktop are changing. Last week, Search Engine Land wrote an article regarding how to use device bid adjustments – with tips straight from Google. I have to admit I agree with the author when he talks about device level bidding becoming a necessity again. While consumers are still using cross-channel device experiences when in the purchase cycle, mobile has more often become the primary choice.
As a PPC marketer for the last 7+ years, I have seen a lot of changes in search trends. And more recently, with the influx of mobile search, I have worked diligently to adjust my keyword lists and ad copy to ensure I capture and convert mobile search as efficiently as possible. Enhanced campaigns always left me with the concern that I was missing out on one device or another, since everything was lumped together. I still segmented all of my reporting by device, but too many of my bid efforts felt like they were “up to Google.” And in my account, mobile conversions are high-value, since the majority of my call conversions happen from mobile search.
With device bidding rolling out I know I will have more work on my hands, as I need to ensure full coverage for both desktop and mobile. But I couldn’t be more excited to see my mobile conversion rate improve, specifically my call conversions!
Don’t forget to download our eBook, The Click-to-Call Playbook for Paid Search, to learn the latest paid search ad formats and strategies to drive calls and sales from mobile marketing.
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