Last fall, Google and Microsoft revealed that expanded text ads (ETAs) would be phased out beginning June 30, 2022. They announced that responsive search ads (RSAs) would become the standard for all future search campaigns. You might think this means you can abandon your ETAs immediately. That’s incorrect! You might also think you can wait until June before taking action. Wrong again! To prevent your account from underperforming come June, there are crucial steps you need to take right now with both your ETAs and RSAs:
- Conduct expanded text ad testing immediately.
- Create new ETAs for later use.
- Anticipate a reduction in impressions.
- Begin utilizing responsive search ads right away.
- Set RSA performance baselines.
- Implement strategic pinning.
- Understand the limitations of RSA reporting. Let’s dive in.
1. Take advantage of the opportunity to test different ETA message combinations while you still have the chance.
If you’ve been meaning to run a particular ad copy test but haven’t gotten around to it, now is the time. Focus on ad messaging and implement ETAs now to identify the most effective headlines, descriptions, and their combinations while you still have access to detailed performance metrics. To make a new expanded text ad, start as if you were creating a responsive search ad.
When you reach the responsive search ad setup screen, choose “Use expanded text ads instead.” When the warning appears, select the option again.
You’ll then find yourself back in the familiar expanded text ad creation window.
For assistance with ad copy and testing, explore these resources:
- 6 A/B Tests Where Small Word Changes Made a BIG Difference
- The 5 Mistakes You’re Making in Your Google Ad Copy
- 7 Ways to Write Super Effective Google Ads Copy
2. Generate staged ETAs for future implementation.
Keep in mind that while you won’t be able to create or modify existing expanded text ads after June 30, 2022, existing ETAs will continue to run and can be toggled on or off as needed. Therefore, I recommend generating a reasonable number of expanded text ad combinations within your account that you anticipate using in the future. These can be paused initially but kept ready for upcoming tests. This way, you retain the flexibility to utilize them when needed by simply activating or deactivating them.
Exercise prudence
Note that I emphasized creating combinations you “believe you will reasonably use in the future.” This is crucial. Don’t create and upload every conceivable ad iteration and then blame me later for suggesting you clutter your campaigns. That’s not my intention. Carefully consider which ad variations are essential for your future testing and only upload those you’re confident about using. There’s no need to upload 500 ad variations per ad group if you only experiment with three new ones each quarter. Be practical, but seize the opportunity to create your desired ad variations.
3. Prepare for a potential decrease in ETA impressions.
While I believe it’s essential to maximize the use of ETAs while we can, I’m also a realist. Even prior to the announcement of this change, we observed a decline in impression counts for expanded text ads compared to responsive search ads in many accounts. My assumption is that this pattern will persist.
While you should test as many messages as possible and prepare creatives for future testing, anticipate RSAs potentially capturing an even larger share of impressions from ETAs as we approach and move past the June deadline.
4. Initiate the use of responsive search ads immediately.
Google’s standard recommendation is to have at least one active responsive search ad in every ad group within your account. At this juncture, I concur with them.
Like it or not, RSAs will become the standard across all Google Ads accounts. Therefore, it’s in everyone’s best interest to become accustomed to them sooner rather than later. The longer you resist, the more difficulties you’ll face when the deadline arrives. If you’re unfamiliar with RSAs, I recommend checking out this resource: Responsive Search Ads 101: Best Practices You Need to Know.
5. Establish benchmarks for your RSA performance.
RSAs generally exhibit higher click-through rates than ETAs (note the use of “generally” – there are always exceptions). However, conversion performance tends to vary significantly. Some accounts thrive with responsive search ads, while others struggle to convert customers. Activate RSAs in all ad groups across all your search campaigns and accounts now. This allows you to establish performance benchmarks for each account, which will prove invaluable when explaining performance changes to your boss or clients.
We’ve initiated testing with a new ad format that will become the default in the near future. Instead of providing generic benchmarks, we conducted account-specific testing to determine a performance range for your account moving forward. Even if the benchmarks are lower than previous results, setting clear expectations early on can help mitigate any negative reactions. This is a fundamental aspect of building enduring client relationships.
6. Utilize pinning strategically.
One notable feature of responsive search ads is the ability to pin specific headlines and descriptions. It’s important to remember that ads will consistently display a minimum of two headlines and one description, with the potential to extend to three headlines and two descriptions. However, ads will never exceed this length. Here are some essential tips regarding this functionality.
Ensure every ad includes a CTA through pinning.
While not every headline or description needs a call to action, it’s imperative that every ad does. Pinning specific components guarantees that every eligible ad variation will include a call to action.
Pin multiple elements to the same position.
If you have several similar headline variations, you can pin them to the same position. This ensures that only those specific headlines appear in that position and not elsewhere. This technique is particularly effective for call-to-action headlines. For instance, you can create four different CTA headlines and pin them all to position two, ensuring that position always displays one of those four CTA headlines.
Choose between pinning everything or leaving gaps.
If you pin elements to all five ad positions and have additional unpinned elements, those unpinned elements won’t appear. To avoid this, either pin all ad components to designated positions or leave some headlines and descriptions open for Google to dynamically generate ad copy. If this seems complicated, don’t worry, you’re not alone. Our responsive search ad copy template might prove useful in this regard.
Grasp the concept of ad strength.
Ad strength is distinct from Ad Rank or Quality Score. It’s a metric within Google Ads intended to guide you towards achieving better results with RSAs. However, it doesn’t influence your ad’s auction participation frequency. If you have inquisitive clients or managers who frequently access accounts and might notice this metric, ensure they understand its purpose. Google explains ad strength here.
Structure ETAs using the RSA framework.
Responsive search ads only require a minimum of three headlines and two descriptions for campaign implementation. Additionally, you can pin elements within your RSAs to specific positions.
Essentially, you can replicate an expanded text ad by creating a responsive search ad with minimal ad components and pinning them to desired positions.
Proceed with caution.
While this might appear enticing, particularly for users with legal requirements or disclosures, I wouldn’t recommend it as a universal solution. Google Ads will likely continue to automate ad campaigns further. The sooner you adapt and leverage its machine learning capabilities instead of maintaining rigid control, the better your results will be. By investing time in proper setup, you can customize RSAs to precisely align with your requirements.
7. Understand the reporting limitations associated with RSAs.
RSA reporting differs from ETA reporting. While we can still view ad unit-level performance for desired metrics, if you employ any level of dynamic ad serving, obtaining a precise understanding of which ad combinations drove results might be challenging.
As depicted in the image above, you can see the performance data for each ad unit. However, since the responsive search ad utilizes dynamic headlines and descriptions, it’s difficult to ascertain the exact combinations responsible for the performance.
Access and analyze asset details.
You can gain further insights into performance by clicking the “View Asset Details” link beneath the ad.
However, these additional details are often insufficient and might not provide the complete picture you desire. You’ll observe that all metrics except impressions are omitted. Consequently, while you can identify the most frequently displayed components, you won’t know which ones contributed to specific aspects of the ad’s performance. Gain a comprehensive understanding of your performance with our Free Google Ads Performance Grader.
Review asset performance ratings.
Furthermore, you’ll notice Google utilizes an asset performance rating system:
- Pending: Insufficient data available for the asset.
- Learning: Limited data available for the asset.
- Low: Among the lowest performers of its type. Consider replacing.
- Good: Performing well compared to similar assets. Retain and consider adding more.
- Best: One of the top performers of its type. Retain and consider adding more.
- Unrated (“—“): Rating unavailable due to insufficient activity, traffic, or comparable assets. Frankly, I find these ratings rather unhelpful. However, they do offer some indication of Google’s perception of each component’s performance. The crucial point to remember is that these scores do not directly correlate with conversion performance. A “Best” rating doesn’t necessarily translate to conversions. To determine this, you’ll need to pin specific ad components and gather more concrete data.
Examine the Combinations tab.
Finally, you can view ad combinations by navigating to the “Combinations” tab located at the top of the asset details page.
Similar to the previous page, you’ll only see impression counts. However, depending on the distribution of your combinations, you might be able to infer which variations are driving your ad’s performance.
Prepare for the phasing out of expanded text ads.
Regardless of your feelings about this change, it’s crucial to utilize the remaining time before the deadline to ensure your account is in the best possible position. Your focus on ETAs or RSAs will depend on your current account setup. In conclusion, resist the urge to micromanage by excessively pinning components or limiting dynamic learning. However, don’t blindly accept all of Google’s “best practices” as optimal for your account. Dedicate this time to testing, learning, and iterating. By doing so, you’ll be ahead of the curve when the rollout is complete. You might also find value in exploring these 5 Ways to Use Responsive Search Ads to Maximize Your ROI.