Are you looking to improve your website’s visibility in the search engines and reach more customers? If so, you need to know about utilising all of the Assets available in Google Ads in order to get noticed. Google Ads assets are like the icing on the cake of Google Ads and can help your ad to not only stand out more and get more clicks, but also provide users with valuable information that could increase your conversion rate.
In this article, we’ll do a deep dive on how to improve your campaign performance with extensions in Google Ads. But first, let’s start at the beginning.
What are Assets in Google Ads?
Assets, previously known as ‘Ad Extensions’ in Google Ads refer to the additional pieces of information about your business, like your location, contact details, product or service features, and more, which can be added to your ads. They effectively expand your ad with more relevant details, giving potential customers more reasons to choose your business. As the name implies, they serve as an added ‘asset’ to your primary ad, offering supplementary data to attract users.
By providing more visibility and information, Assets make your advertisements more appealing and engaging, thus improving your ad’s overall performance. The best part? Google does not charge extra for using Assets. You’re only charged per click, similar to the standard pay-per-click (PPC) model.
Where Can I Find Assets in Google Ads?
Assets are within your Google Ads account. Here’s how to find them, step-by-step:
- Sign in to your Google Ads account.
- In the page menu on the left, click on “Ads and Assets”.
- Click on the “Assets” tab.
- Here, you can view, add, edit, or remove ad Assets. Remember that these Assets are not guaranteed to show all the time. Google’s algorithm decides whether to show them based on the addition’s expected impact and the user’s search intent.
How Many Asset Types are There in Google Ads?
Google Ads provides ten types of ad Assets that you can leverage for your marketing campaigns in Australia, including:
Sitelink Extensions: Google ads sitelink extensions direct users to specific pages on your website (e.g., “Contact Us” “Store Hours”, or “Sale”).
Callout Extensions: Google ads callout tensions allow you to include additional text to show unique information about your business, products, or services.
Structured Snippet Extensions: Structured snippet extensions Google ads enable you to highlight specific aspects of your products or services.
Call Extensions: Call extensions Google ads encourage people to call your business by adding a phone number or call button to your ads.
Image Extensions: Use a specific type of image in your ad campaign. Just like with your headline, description and even other ad extensions, image extensions google ads won’t appear every time, and aren’t tied to one specific ad. Google calculates which of the images you’ve uploaded is most likely to lead to a click and chooses that one based on the expected CTR, allowing for Google ads dynamic image extensions. Google ads image extensions consistently receive high CTRS according to Google’s own studies.
Location Extensions: Google ads location extensions help people find your locations by showing your ads with your address, a map to your location, or the distance to your business.
Affiliate Location Extensions: Useful for manufacturers or advertisers who sell their products through retail chains.
Price Extensions: Display your services or product categories with prices.
App Extensions: Encourage users to download your app.
Lead Form Extensions (Currently in Beta) – Google’s new and improved variation of the old Message extension from 2020. This innovative new extension lets users fill out a form directly on your ad itself, without needing to navigate to your website. This form can include the following fields:
- Name
- Work email
- Phone number
- Work phone number
- City
- Postal code
- State/Province
- Country
- Company Name
- Job Title
Keep in mind that Google regularly updates and adds new Assets as customer search needs change and evolve over time. It’s a good idea to stay up-to-date to find out when new available Assets are released.
What are the Benefits of Google Ads Assets?
Ad Assets present numerous benefits, particularly for Australian marketers looking to advertise across the country or to a global audience. These benefits include:
Increased Visibility: Assets increase the physical size of your ad, making it more prominent in search results. More visibility translates to a higher click-through rate (CTR).
Improved Click-through Rate (CTR): By providing additional useful information, ad extensions can increase your ad’s CTR. According to Google, ad Assets can improve CTR by several percentage points.
Competitive Edge: Using ad Assets can give you an advantage over competitors who aren’t using them. They make your ad more robust and informative, which can be the deciding factor for a user to click on your ad over a competitor’s.
Better User Experience: By providing relevant information upfront, you enhance the user’s experience, potentially leading to higher conversion rates.
Advanced Customisation: Ad extensions allow for better customisation of your ads, aligning them with your marketing strategy and business goals.
Optimising Ad Assets for Australian Campaigns
To optimise ad Assets for your Australian campaigns, consider the following tips:
Localise Your Additions: If you have multiple locations in Australia, utilise location assets to help users find the nearest store or office.
Highlight Local Services: Use structured snippets to highlight specific aspects of your services that cater to the Australian market.
Leverage Call Extensions: Many Australians prefer businesses with a local presence. Call extensions with a local Australian number can make your business more relatable.
Keep Mobile in Mind: Australians are heavy mobile users, so consider Assets like message or app extensions for mobile-oriented services.
Test and Refine: The key to optimising ad extensions, like any part of a Google Ads campaign, is to continually test, monitor, and refine. Each market and industry is unique, and what works well for one may not work as well for another.
Best Practices for Ad Assets in Australian Campaigns
It’s one thing to know about the different Google Ad Assets, but another entirely to use them according to best practices. Here are a few ad Asset strategies that are currently working well for businesses across every industry in Australia:
- Utilise All Relevant Extensions: Make use of all extension types that are relevant to your business and campaign goals. Each extension provides different kinds of valuable information. The more information you provide to your potential customers, the easier it is for them to make informed decisions.
- Create Compelling Callout Extensions: In your callout extensions, highlight unique selling propositions (USPs), benefits, or features of your business or product that are particularly relevant to the Australian market. For example, mention ‘Free Shipping Across Australia’ or ‘Locally Made Products’.
- Use Localised Language: To connect better with the Australian audience, use local language or terminologies in your ad Assets.
- Monitor and Adjust: Regularly review your ad Assets’ performance. If they aren’t performing as expected, don’t hesitate to adjust or replace them. Monitoring and adjusting is a critical part of campaign optimisation.
- Schedule Your Extensions: Consider the timing of your extensions. If you’re using call extensions but your business only takes calls during certain hours, schedule your Assets accordingly. Similarly, if you have a sale or special offer, use sitelink extensions and set them to only appear during the sale period.
Advanced Techniques for Optimising Ad Assets
Once you understand the basics of working with Google Ads Assets, you might feel like you’re ready to tackle more advanced options. Fortunately, Google has options available for ad extension “power users” who want to take their ad performance even further.
Here are some steps you can take to optimise your ad Assets beyond the basics:
Leverage Automated Extensions: Google Ads can automatically generate and show certain Assets when it predicts they’ll improve your ad’s performance. These additions are created based on the information already provided in your Google Ads account or your website linked to the account. Automated Assets can save you time and improve your campaign performance.
Use Dynamic Sitelink Extensions: Dynamic sitelink extensions are automatically generated links that appear below your ad text. They take users directly to pages on your website that Google determines to be relevant to the user’s current search. These may even be sitelink combinations that you hadn’t considered relevant to ad performance, like your privacy policy or returns and exchanges. By using dynamic sitelink extensions, you can make your ads more relevant to users’ queries.
Experiment with Different Extension Combinations: While it’s important to use all relevant Assets, it’s also beneficial to test different combinations of extensions. The performance of your ad Assets can vary depending on the combination used. Monitor the performance and adjust your strategy accordingly.
Keep Asset Content Fresh: Just as with your main ad content, your Assets should be kept up to date. Outdated information in ad extensions can confuse or mislead users, which could harm your ad’s performance.
With these advanced techniques in ad Asset optimisation, there’s just one more thing to keep in mind as you adjust your ad campaigns for the best possible performance in Australian markets.
Adapting to Changing Trends in Australia
The Australian digital advertising landscape is as varied as the physical landscape itself. Although Australian demographics are decidedly different, there are a few broad points that you should keep in mind as you test your ads with Australia-centric audiences:
Mobile-centric Approach: Australians are increasingly using smartphones for online activities, including shopping and finding local businesses. Mobile usage is extremely high in Australia, so make sure your Assets are optimised for mobile viewing. For instance, consider using the call extension to make it easy for users to tap and call directly.
Focus on Local Businesses: Australians are increasingly focusing on supporting local businesses. Highlighting your local presence using location extensions or localised callouts can help attract these customers.
Health and Sustainability: Australians are becoming more health-conscious and interested in sustainability. If these values align with your business, consider highlighting these aspects in your callout or structured snippet extensions.
E-commerce Growth: With the global pandemic changing buying habits, Australia has seen significant growth in online shopping. As e-commerce becomes more prevalent, consider using price extensions to display your products and their prices directly in your ads.
Omnichannel Shopping: Consumers in Australia are increasingly using multiple channels to make their purchases. They may research online and buy in-store, or vice versa. Ensure your Google Ad Assets cover all potential touchpoints, including location extensions for physical stores and sitelink extensions for different parts of your website.
Increased Use of Voice Search: As more Australians use voice-activated tools like Google Assistant, Siri, or Alexa, optimise your Assets with more conversational phrases or commonly spoken queries.
Rise of Social Consciousness: Many Australians are looking to support businesses that align with their social values. If your business has any social initiatives, such as supporting local charities or implementing sustainable practices, highlight them in your callout extensions.
Get Additional Help with Your Google Ads Assets
With this thorough Beginner’s Guide, along with a handful of advanced techniques, you’ve taken your first steps in better understanding how to use Google Ads Assets to the fullest to make your ads stand out, increase CTR and improve your conversion rate. But even though we’ve covered a great deal in terms of how to use ad assets to the fullest, you still might discover you need some additional help and guidance maximising your ad campaigns.
For that, there’s CLIQ. As a full-service Australian digital advertising and paid ads agency, we specialise in helping businesses targeting Australian markets or working within Australia to fully optimise their campaigns to tap into the country’s massive buying power. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you improve your ROI and ROAS, improve your ad performance and leverage Google Ads Assets to the fullest to grow your business.
