Keyword Insertion, Countdowns and Location Insertion Oh My!

Jill Goldstein - October 18, 2021

Google recently announced that starting June 2022, you will no longer be able to create new or edit existing expanded text ads (ETAs). This means we all have to get pretty comfortable with using Responsive Search Ads (RSAs) in our Google Ads search campaigns. In the past, Google has recommended using many ETAs within campaigns and letting Google test and optimize towards top performers. With RSAs, Google does just that – tests various assets to optimize towards the top combinations of headlines and descriptions. That said, there are more advanced ways to customize your ad copy in a more dynamic manor. Introducing the great and powerful Keyword Insertion, Countdowns and Location Insertion for Responsive Search Ads.

Keyword Insertion

Keyword Insertion is an advanced feature that allows you to dynamically update text in your ads based on a keyword you are bidding on that matches a customer’s search. For example, if you are promoting a sporting goods store and you have an ad group targeting keywords for various types of home gym equipment, you would add a snippet of code that may look like this {Keyword:Home Gym Equipment}. When a customer uses one of your targeted keywords to search, Google may automatically update your ad copy with the matched keyword or if the keyword is beyond character count, the default text would be used. In this example, the copy would default to Home Gym Equipment.

• Why do this?
  • This level of copy customization has been shown to increase keyword relevance, improving your CTR and expected CTR which is one of the three components of quality score.
• How to Implement:
  • Step 1: Enter the “{“ symbol in the text field
  • Step 2: Enter the default text in the event that the matched keyword has too many characters to be shown

Countdowns

Keep your customers informed and drive a sense of urgency using the countdowns feature to customize ad copy. Using a countdown allows you to easy update your ad copy to show how many days, hours, minutes, and seconds before an event occurs. This could be great for an ecommerce merchant with a limited time only sale or for promoting live or virtual events.

• Why do this?
  • This level of copy customization has been shown to increase urgency, improving your CTR and conversion rate.
• How to Implement:
  • Step 1: Enter the “{“ symbol in the text field
  • Step 2: Enter the date that you would like your countdown to end, how long before the end date you want to run the countdown and the time zone in which you want to utilize.

Location Insertion (NEW)

Location insertion allows you to customize your ad copy based on either a searcher’s physical location or location of interest (typically driven by their search query). This is a great opportunity for businesses with brick and motor locations to highlight their locations by either city, state or country. For example, if you are promoting a chain of sporting goods stores, you maybe use location insertion to create a headline such as this, “Find a Store Near {LOCATION(City):Boca Raton}”. Similar to keyword insertion, you can include a default location in the event the character count goes past the limits.

• Why do this?
  • This level of copy customization has been shown to increase relevance, improving your CTR.
• How to Implement:
  • Step 1: Enter the “{“ symbol in the text field
  • Step 2: Select City, State or Country and define a default text in the event that your copy goes beyond character count limits.

If you are a MoreVisibility client, you likely know about advanced ways to customize your ad copy in Google Ads. If you are not a MoreVisibility client and would like additional information, please contact the experts at MoreVisibility.