AI is integrating more and more into our everyday lives, but it’s nothing new when it comes to Google. Google Ads has been using a branch of AI – ‘machine learning’ – for some time now, which means digital marketers are already utilising this technology in ad copy creation, audience targeting and day-to-day optimisation.
Using AI in PPC allows you to understand user behaviour, predict potential outcomes, automate marketing activities and develop personalised marketing content. This will make your ad processes, such as keyword selection, bidding management and ad selection, more streamlined and efficient – all done in real time.
As AI continues to evolve, its role in enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of PPC campaigns will only grow stronger.
In this blog, we will explore how to effectively incorporate AI into your PPC campaigns.
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How has AI grown within Google Ads?
As already mentioned at the start of this blog, AI isn’t a ‘new’ feature in Google Ads. The term AI is something that has certainly gathered pace and is most definitely taking the internet by storm, but the integration of types of AI has been a long-standing part of the platform for over a decade. The main being Machine Learning.
For total clarity, the concept of machine learning is a branch of AI. This term has been heavily used throughout Google Ad’s definitions of some of their features, so while there may be some sceptics, there’s no doubt that the ad platform has been utilising a form of AI for quite some time.
With this in mind, let’s explore the beginnings of how Google Ads used AI…
Automated bidding and enhanced CPC
Arguably it all started in 2010, with the release of automated bidding. This was a strategy built by Google to take “the heavy lifting and guesswork out of setting bids…”.
This resulted in the strategy ‘Enhanced CPC’ to bring about a new age of automated features across the platform, all of which are harnessed by advanced machine learning.
Smart bidding strategies
This later developed further in 2016 with the introduction of smart bidding strategies. Using machine learning algorithms you could now bid on keywords to maximise conversions, taking these even further by bidding to maximise on conversions with a target cost per acquisition (CPA) or return on ad spend (ROAS).
The platform used bidding signals based on consumer data to calculate the best outcome that is possible in line with your goals.
This data includes:
- Gender
- Age
- Device
- Location
- Time
- Day of the week
These features were fine-tuned and have grown in sophistication over the course of several years, expanding to different campaign types such as Google Shopping, YouTube and Discovery.
Machine learning
As we get closer to the present, these automated bidding strategies and tools were replaced with even more advanced machine learning versions of themselves, giving us fewer options to make manual adjustments and leaning more into automated bidding and adjustments.
Where we are now, we have new campaign types like Performance Max which are almost fully powered by machine learning, or AI as they now refer to it.
In the present day, new AI tools are launching for Google Ads that are less focused on bidding strategies, with the new focus being on developing tools that can enhance the campaign creation and optimisation process.
Creating campaigns using Google’s AI features
There are now different ways you can simplify creating an AI-powered campaign. To get started from a campaign level all you need to do is enter your website’s product or service URLs.
It will then produce relevant and effective keywords, headlines, descriptions, images, and other assets for your campaign. All you need to do from here is simply review and apply suggestions you feel are relevant to your business.
Performance Max campaigns have been the best example of how AI-driven campaigns can drive growth to your business. Advertisers who have utilised this campaign type have on average seen an uplift of 18% more conversion at a similar cost (according to Google’s official reporting).
To make things even easier Google has introduced a function that allows you to paste a block of text that best describes your business, product or service which it will use to generate a selection of headlines and descriptions for you to choose from.
YouTube is another campaign type which is benefiting from AI-powered creative tools. These tools are now revolutionising the way video ads are created and enhanced. Once you have uploaded your video, YouTube uses its AI feature to help make videos engaging for all audiences.
Features such as trimming, flipping and adding voiceovers or music are the most popular. These features help make your ads high quality and also match the viewing preferences of your audience.
The drawbacks of using these AI features
However, these features are relatively new within the platform and can end up producing poor results in terms of headlines and descriptions, if a detailed description of your business isn’t provided. The current form of machine learning lacks the nuance and understanding for businesses that have a particularly unique offering.
For businesses that have less of a unique service or offering, it’s still a fine line to tread. It’s great for getting initial ad copy onto your screen, especially if you’re stuck for what to write. However, without reviewing it yourself and casting a professional eye over the copy you may end up with headlines and descriptions that are uninspiring.
If you are using this tool, we’d always recommend reviewing and amending the copy where appropriate to what makes the most sense from a brand standpoint. The point of ads is to captivate an audience to your website or service, so if the copy Google is producing doesn’t captivate you it’s worth taking another look.
AI Video Creation
Google has recently been pushing video creation within the ad platform which is why they have released this feature, to help those without a budget to create videos, continue to compete on the platform.
There is a huge benefit to appearing on the platform and we do see this as a great brand awareness opportunity, however, context and quality of content are key when using this tool.
If what is produced using the AI tools on YouTube is not top quality, and your competitors on YouTube are producing high-quality ads, then venturing out onto the platform can harm your image and overall performance.
Enhanced Audience Targeting
Google’s AI technology is more enhanced than ever before – with the data you provide, it learns when to deliver your ad to the right people at just the right time to encourage them to convert.
It will calculate the probability of your campaigns converting and determine the best bid for your campaign. From our experience, this works best with accounts that have high-volume conversions or accounts that have richer levels of conversion data.
This technology can significantly enhance any digital ad campaign, boosting both performance and ROI.
While this is arguably one of the features that harnesses the true power of AI, by finding the right user within your location, we still recommend providing Google audience signals in order to steer it in the right direction.
Across search, you can provide detailed demographic targeting to show Google the exact users you want and can even prevent Google from showing the ads to users outside of these demographics currently.
The new performance max campaign type harnesses AI to fully determine who, when and where your ads are shown.
A warning for certain businesses
For new businesses with small amounts of ad data or businesses with a large portfolio of services and products, Google’s AI cannot always determine the right searches and people to trigger your ads 100% of the time.
This is why we recommend using the audience signal feature for these campaign types, as this allows you to ‘nudge’ Google in the right direction of who you want to target.
Ultimately Google has the final say on who they target, but by giving the algorithm data to work off, you’re giving yourself the best chance of success for these campaigns and working with the AI tool to produce you great results.
Generate and Edit Images With Google AI
Google has finally stepped up its AI capability with the introduction of image creation. You are now able to generate new images, replace image backgrounds, automatically enhance visuals, and create all the necessary sizes to engage audiences across Google’s advertising channels with Performance Max.
Image generation can help marketers save time and resources, creating high-quality image assets tailored to your business or brand, without necessarily needing a designer.
But it’s important to note that this tool is in BETA, so there may naturally be teething problems with the tool.
Consider the quality versus your competition
Similarly to the other generative tools we’ve discussed, it’s important to give the tool detailed prompts to make sure you give it the best chance to work. However, the quality of the imagery remains the most important thing to consider when using the tool. If what is produced is of poor quality, too generic, or doesn’t represent your brand then it might not be worth using, no matter how much time it might save you.
Measuring the Success of Google’s Built-in AI Tools
While adopting AI features can bring great benefits, it’s important to understand and measure the success of these features.
Google AI requires time, patience, and refinement, which is why tracking usage metrics can help us understand how humans interact with our AI features. The following metrics are the ones we recommend tracking:
- Adoption Rate
- Interaction rate
- Session Time
- Queries per session
- Abandonment rate
- Customer Feedback
Conclusion
It’s an exciting time for marketers to see the evolving benefits of AI integration in Google Ads. The last 12 months have shown that these features are getting more sophisticated and accurate with each iteration, allowing marketers to dedicate more time to strategic & creative planning.
However, we must exercise these features with caution, as AI operating autonomously can produce off-brand visuals, robotic copy, or low quality conversions. It is the responsibility of a Paid Media expert to refine and add the human touch to data and content, ensuring maximum positive impact on our PPC campaigns.
Want the help of an expert to guide you through the ever-evolving paid landscape? Find out more about our PPC services, or get in touch with our experts today!
Ahmed is a PPC Team Manager with over 10 years of experience in Marketing and Online Advertising. He has successfully managed campaigns across a range of sectors, both B2B and B2C, delivering impactful results and optimising strategies for diverse clients.
Hi! I’m Ben, CEO of The SEO Works
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