If your brand has been utilizing PPC (Pay-Per-Click) ads to boost visibility and traffic to your site, you’ll likely be affected by Google’s “New Normal.” That’s because Google has decided to change its default ad type from standard and expanded text ads to RSAs (Responsive Search Ad). In fact, the Google Ads “Help” page currently states that after June 30, 2022, users will no longer be able to create or edit PPC expanded text ads.
Current expanded text ads will continue to run, but Google is strongly encouraging Google Ads users to incorporate RSAs into their existing PPC strategy. So, if your brand’s PPC strategy has been running on autopilot, now is the time to check on your ad program (especially any lingering ads from long-standing campaigns) and consider converting your expanded text ads to RSAs.

The Rise of the RSA

First introduced in 1996 with the rise of the search engine, Paid Search (also known as Pay-Per-Click or PPC) is a tactic in many marketers’ toolkit. Paid Search allows advertisers to bid on keywords and serve ads on the Search Engine Results Page (SERP). Google Ads is the largest Paid Search / PPC platform thanks to its ties to Google’s search engine (which brings in 3.5 billion searches a day) easy to use interface, and numerous placement options to give you ways to make the most of your impressions on Google’s SERP.

To make the most of your Google Ad budget, there are six factors to consider:

  1. Your bid structure
  2. Ad and landing page quality
  3. Ad thresholds
  4. Popularity of keywords
  5. Search context
  6. Ad extensions impact
One of the easiest ways to improve the performance of your Paid Search / PPC program to get the right users to see, click and covert are your ads, and the quality of them. Responsive Search Ads are the modern twist on the text ads once synonymous with PPC. Gone are the days when you would launch a campaign and manually create variations of the same ads to see how they perform against each other.
Launched by Google in 2018, RSAs automate the process of ad testing to find the highest-performing headline-description combinations. RSAs enable businesses to input multiple headlines and descriptions that can be combined and viewed in multiple orders based on what the user is searching for. Google Ads then automatically tests every combination of these ads to find winning pairings. Intelligently rotating headlines and descriptions in this manner means that companies can include more long-tail search phrases and natural language input to create ad combinations that connect with individual consumers and increase click-through and conversion rates.
This also helps improve the relevance of your ad to the searcher – Google will automatically serve the headlines and descriptions closest to the keyword triggered and that performs the best, taking the guesswork out of optimization.

Leveraging Responsive Search Ads in 2022

While you can certainly choose to continue running and tracking existing text ads, you may also be looking for ways to leverage RSA capabilities to leverage your current reach and connect with an even larger consumer base. To get you started in designing an RSA, here are a few quick pointers:
  • RSAs can be viewed by users in any order, so design RSAs that also make sense as stand-alone advertisements.
  • Monitor your ad strength indicator. Google recommends including 1 RSA per ad group that measures at “Good” or “Excellent” ad strength.
  • Text inputted to the Headline 1, Headline 2 or Description 1 positions will appear in every RSA.
  • You may submit up to 15 headlines and 4 descriptions to allow Google to mix and match and find winning combinations.
  • Pinning specific headlines or descriptions gives you some control over these automatic combinations and ensures that pinned content will always be shown.
Want to learn more about how LEAP Amp can leverage RSAs to increase your brand’s visibility and maximize your ad spend? There’s no time like the new year to connect with us and start making strategic new marketing moves!