Ultimate Google Ad Assets tutorial to safeguard your ad campaigns

Those working with Google Ads are familiar with the fact that the advertising system often undergoes various changes – from interface updates to introducing new features. Advertisers typically receive notifications about the most significant changes via email or account messages. However, some alterations are discovered by PPC specialists while working on campaigns. Google Ads’ Autogen Assets in the account deck is one such example. What exactly are these creatures, and where do they lurk? Diana Pavlova, a PPC specialist at Ringostat, delves into the details.

What are Google Ads’ Assets

“Google Assets” are ad extensions that, after Google’s rebranding, received a new name known now as Assets. Assets or extensions are components of content that add valuable information about the company’s online advertisement to make it more appealing. When users search for keywords aligning with your Google Ads campaign, the platform seamlessly integrates your curated assets. These objects are then displayed alongside your ad during the auction, increasing your ad’s visibility and prominence on the search results page.

Here is an example of Google Ads’ Autogen Assets “Additional Information” and “Website Link”:

With the help of Google Assets, the ad has become nearly twice as large and, consequently, significantly more noticeable in the advertising results.

Assets Types

You can access all the different types of assets in your personal Google account under the ‘Ads & Assets’ section and create them there.

Using all relevant types of assets relevant to your business will maximize the effectiveness of adaptive search ads. When it comes to the main asset types, it is worth considering:

• at least 4 additional links to pages on the website with contiguous products or services;
• callouts with additional information, such as ‘free delivery’;
• structured descriptions with product brands or types of services;
• logo and company name;
• address if you have an offline shop or service provision;
• prices for products or services, but remember to update it regularly;
• images that will be displayed alongside the search ad;
• promotions if you have special offers, such as discounts for Black Friday;
• phone number for immediate contact.

Let’s focus on the last point in more detail. If you add a phone number to your advertisement, a considerable number of potential customers may directly call you instead of visiting your website. However, in such a scenario, it becomes challenging to determine whether the ad has been successful or not. How would you measure the conversions in this case?

For this, static call tracking is employed. Here’s how it works for the “Phone Number” extension:

• the call tracking platform allocates a unique phone number to the company for placement in the extension;
• the company adds this number to the “Calls” asset and includes it in advertising campaigns;
• when customers call this number, the call tracking reports register that the person dialled specifically from the advertisement;
• these data can be automatically transferred to Google Analytics, allowing for the evaluation of advertising effectiveness based not only on clicks but also on direct calls from the extension.

What are Google Ads’ Autogen Assets

Automatically generated assets, similar to those mentioned above, aren’t crafted by advertisers but by the mysterious algorithms of Google Ads. They materialize in your personal Google Ads account sans notification, lurking in the shadows with default activation. Our serendipitous encounter with these enigmatic assets unfolded during routine campaign management. Suddenly, structured descriptions materialized, not of our own creation. 

Where are the automatically generated assets located

Uncovering automatically generated objects is not an easy task. Deleting these enigmatic entities demands digital detective work, as Google has hidden them away. But don’t worry; we are here to help you solve this mystery. To find them, simply go to the ‘Objects’ page, click ‘More’ and explore the dropdown menu. Google’s secrets won’t remain hidden for long.

You’ll land on a page where you can see the assets created at the account level. Click ‘More’ once again and select from the dropdown menu.

Now, brace yourself as you enter the realm where the power to turn auto-generated assets on or off at the account level lies:

Types of Google Ads’ Autogen Assets and which ones are worth utilizing

Auto-generated assets generally match with regular ones, but a few additional types exist. Let’s take a closer look at each one.

1. Extra links, callouts, and structured descriptions may not always integrate smoothly with your ads or could contain text that adds little value to your users. We faced a similar situation. The system depends on the pages and content of your website, using whatever it finds. Therefore, if you decide to enable them, it’s essential to conduct regular checks to ensure what content has been added and where it has been placed.
2. When it comes to e-commerce, seller ratings play a crucial role, especially when configured in Google Merchant Center. It’s highly recommended to include ratings when they are competitive. For instance, if your rating is a solid 4 out of 5, it can be a compelling trust signal. However, a less favourable score, like 2.5 out of 5, might have the opposite effect, potentially deterring users. 
3. The Google Help Center seems to have limited information on longer ad headlines. However, according to forum discussions, longer ad headlines may include text from ad descriptions and the displayed URL dynamically. Although this could improve the visibility of headlines, it’s important to be aware of which descriptions you’ve added to your ads and how they will appear.
4. Automatic app extensions can be leveraged, but aligning them with your campaign objectives is crucial. If the primary goal is driving conversions on the website, incorporating app downloads in such ad extensions may negatively impact macro-conversions.
5. Approach enabling automatic location extensions with caution. If you have multiple physical locations, they might appear in campaigns where they are not relevant. Campaigns are usually segmented by different regions, and the system might add all addresses even if users need a store from their specific city. It is recommended that addresses be added to the relevant campaigns manually.
6. The system automatically selects the dynamic images from the ad’s landing page. Hence, enable them if you are confident in their quality and affirm that you possess all the legal rights to these images, with permission to share them with Google.
7. Utilizing company names and logos is also recommended, as it helps your business stand out. This makes it easier for potential clients to remember. However, verifying what the system has generated is crucial to ensure accuracy.

Advantages of automatically generated assets

Automatically generated assets enhance the efficiency of ads and increase the likelihood of clicks. Google’s algorithms better understand which objects are worth adding to the campaign. Additionally, automatically generated assets positively impact the optimization metrics of the advertising account. 

Drawbacks of automatically generated assets

The system is not flawless, and as a result, it may create objects that are irrelevant to your business or add them to unsuitable campaigns. Moreover, you won’t be informed about a newly added object unless you check it yourself, as there are no notifications in the account. Therefore, regularly monitoring the extensions that have been automatically added is essential.

Is it Worth Utilizing Google Ads’ Autogen Assets

It is worth considering the use of automatically generated assets alongside regular ones. However, constant monitoring and oversight are necessary to ensure their appropriateness.