Read Full Mix Marketing’s latest marketing how-to column from the October 2019 edition of ‘Connected’ magazine from Cambridgeshire Chambers of Commerce. Read here.
Important Changes to Google Ads PPC
Google has changed some of the information available when managing Google Ads campaigns (also known as PPC). Sarah West of Full Mix Marketing explains the implications.
What’s changed?
Among other changes, on 30th September, Google removed the ‘Average Position’ statistic.
Where your ad appears in search results is dependent on your Ad Rank. Ad Rank is determined by your ad’s Quality Score and how much you bid per click. Your Quality Score depends on how well your advert and landing page relate to the search term entered.
Until now, Google Ads (formally AdWords) has shown the Average Position your ad appears, relative to others. An Average Position of 1 indicated your ad was always the first paid search ad shown. An Average Position of 3 indicated there were typically two ads above it.
As the way Google search results are displayed varies, Average Position did not indicate your ad’s actual position. Though positions 1 to 3 are often at the top of the page, they can be at the bottom or even on the second page.
Google believe Average Position is unreliable. However, some say their change is to encourage more campaign automation which can raise costs.
Average Position has been replaced by four new metrics:
- ‘Top Impression Rate’ details the percentage of impressions that appear above organic results at the top of the page
- ‘Absolute Top Impression’ details the percentage of impressions that appear at the very top of the page
- ‘Top Impression Share’ details the frequency an ad appears at the top of the page relative to the number of times it could
- ‘Absolute Top Impression Share’ details the frequency an ad appears at the very top of search results compared with the total opportunities to do so
What are the implications?
Many PPC managers rely on Average Position. For example, though position 1 is typically at the top of the page, many target position 3 as it is more frequently clicked and requires a lower bid. This strategy is no longer possible and a new approach is needed to avoid poor results.
At Full Mix Marketing, we transitioned to the new metrics some months ago. Though complex, they provide more accurate information which can boost results and reduce costs. Make sure your campaign manager is aware and has a new strategy.
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