In May, Google AdWords announced it was updating its ad rotation settings to give advertisers three different options: 1) to show ads expected to provide more clicks, 2) to show ads expected to deliver more conversions and 3) to rotate ads evenly for a 30-day period.
A month later, the search engine updated its ad rotation settings again due to the number of concerns from advertisers regarding the change in May. Google expanded the 30-day period to 90 days to give advertisers a longer window to test new ads. In addition, AdWords implemented an opt-out option of the ad rotation change where advertisers could fill out a form for their account.
Now, Google is providing the option for ads to rotate indefinitely. The network said that less than one percent of AdWords accounts opted out of the ad rotation changes, but has decided to provide this latest change, regardless. In addition, the form to opt out of the June rotation setting changes is no longer available, nor is it necessary.
By choosing to rotate ads indefinitely, Google will show lower-performing ads as frequently as higher-performing ads. The search engine said that this may result in fewer, more costly clicks and a lower average position and does not recommend the rotate indefinitely option.
Below is a screenshot of the new ad rotation setting options in the Settings tab of AdWords.
Last month, Microsoft adCenter announced that it was planning to release a new ad rotation option and the new setting is now live within the advertising platform.
Advertisers now have the option of two different rotation settings — the first option is to show your ads that receive the most clicks most frequently, while the second option is to have your ads rotate evenly, regardless of the number of clicks the ads received. In the past, Microsoft adCenter only had one setting to rotate all ads evenly.
When an advertiser chooses to rotate their ads more evenly, they will have the option to test different ad headlines, description text and vanity URLs to see what performs best according to their metrics and campaign goals. Using the ad rotation option to optimize for clicks allows advertisers to have the search engine automatically show the better performing ad, based on the click-through rate metric, but may not always be in line with other goals such as conversions or even cost-per-acquisition.
To update your ad rotation settings in Microsoft adCenter, in the Settings tab of your ad group, go to Advanced Settings and you will see the new ad rotation option. The default setting is to optimize for clicks.
Last month we announced that Google AdWords updated its ad rotation settings, and now Microsoft adCenter is releasing an ad rotation option in the next few weeks.
Microsoft will allow advertisers two options for ad rotation at the ad group level; in the past, all ads rotated evenly and advertisers did not have an option. Now advertisers will have the ability to choose to have adCenter optimize rotation for clicks or to keep ads rotating evenly. Microsoft said its goal is to help advertisers create compelling ads to collect more clicks from targeted audiences.
Microsoft is encouraging advertisers to test the new ad rotation setting as well as identify optimal selling points for their audiences within ad copy. Strong ad copy is important because it’s a searcher’s first impression of your product or service. In addition, effective ad copy will only help your paid search marketing efforts by generating more clicks and traffic to your site, while increasing your click-through rate (CTR) and helping to bring a lower cost-per-click (CPC).
The ad rotation setting is just another feature that adCenter has added to its interface to make it easier for search engine marketers to advertise on the search network. Microsoft recently updated its location targeting capabilities, ad description length and implemented mobile device targeting.
Below is a screen shot of the new settings at the ad group level in Microsoft adCenter.
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