SEARCH ENGINE MARKETING

How to Make Google Discovery Ads Work for Your Business

Written By: Lauren Carey and Neal Yurick

SEARCH ENGINE MARKETING

What is a Google Discovery Ad?

Google launched Discovery ads in 2020 to not only improve targeting as compared to normal Google ads but to also to leverage machine learning to predict consumer behavior to zero in on their tastes and preferences.

In addition to appearing via mobile scrolling in Gmail inboxes and YouTube mobile feeds, Discovery ads also appear in Discover, Google’s replacement for news aggregator Google Feed. Discover reaches around 800 million users and offers query-less, visually facing features not found in the former Feed.

Specifically optimized for mobile scrolling, Discovery ads have gained impressive traction across e-commerce and lead generation companies.

Discovery ads mesh well with your company’s already active social or video media campaigns. You can re-use high-quality images and messaging to create immersive and interactive ads. Google’s machine-learning algorithms take it from there, shuffling the most effective images and spreading them natively within Discover, Gmail and YouTube.

As consumers browse topics ranging from DIY tips to fashion trends to recipes, they will encounter targeted, media-rich Discovery ads that are more relevant and meaningful to best meet buying needs. Target audiences then find themselves in an immersive experience that combines their curiosity about any specific topic with their desire to discover the best product at the point of peak interest.

Discovery ads offer automatic bidding options that help drive specific performance goals for your campaign, including maximize conversions bidding or target CPA.

Best Practices for YouTube, Gmail & Google Discovery Ads

Google Discovery ads offer marketing teams an opportunity to serve precisely targeted native ads to over 2.9 billion people on YouTube, Gmail, and Google’s discovery platform.

Displayed in formatting and fonts that are similar to surrounding content-rich data, Discovery ads get around ad fatigue, getting more users to read and click. Backed by Google’s machine learning engine, Discovery ads use AI to target users more precisely. And because they are optimized for mobile formats, Discovery ads capture the attention of users scrolling on their devices.

Though Discovery ads on their own offer a powerful enhanced visual ability to reach customers, to achieve the best results it takes experienced marketing strategies. Expertise in setting up the ads from the start, adjusting them as insights come in, and planning for future changes will lead to optimized cost per action and the maximum increase in pipeline.

Get started right with Google Discovery ads by following our best practice recommendations. Then when you’re ready to launch your first campaign, reach out to us at Add3 and we will collaborate with you to meet your goals for building your audience and driving conversions. Our experienced team will optimize your ad-buying and placement process for your unique marketing goals.

Google Discovery Ads Best Practices

In many ways, the best practices for Google Discovery ads overlap with best practices for traditional display ads. The major differences include the added AI features and the ability to do carousel ads with Discovery Ads. Make the most of these unique features by following our recommended best practices for Discovery Ads:

Choose the right campaign type: Discovery campaigns are available in two formats—single image and carousel. To make the most of Google’s machine learning engine, upload several images to allow Google’s AI to choose from what tests the best.

Check to see if your campaign objective is supported: Discovery campaigns currently support sales, leads and site traffic objectives. If you have a different goal such as brand awareness/reach and product/brand consideration, contact us, and we will help you find another solution that will work for you.

Optimize campaign targeting: The advantage of Discovery ads lies in the variety of audience targeting options offered, including remarketing audiences, similar audiences, in-market audiences, custom intent audiences, life events, and affinity audiences. Our team at Add3 will help you identify and adjust as needed to your target audience.

Create variety: Every ad group should include at least three ads with a mix between regular Discovery and carousel. Google’s machine-learning engine will determine which combinations work best based on consumer behavior.

Measure performance: Setting up sitewide tracking to support your marketing campaigns enables you to see what actions customers are taking on your site and find out if the ads are working. At Add3, we are committed to improving performance across all metrics. We take pride in our results and how we approach each client with transparency and responsiveness.

Exercise patience: It typically takes 2-3 weeks to collect representative data about a Discovery ad campaign. Once the data is collected, you’ll be able to adjust your spend with confidence knowing you’re basing your decisions on accurate reports.

Use automated bidding: Discovery ads offer automatic bidding options that help drive specific performance goals for your campaign, including maximize conversions bidding or target CPA.

Use Discovery Ads to increase immersion: Discovery ads mesh well with your company’s already active social or video media campaigns. You can re-use high-quality images and messaging to create immersive and interactive ads. Google’s machine-learning algorithms take it from there, shuffling the most effective images and spreading them natively within Discover, Gmail and YouTube.

By folding targeted ad campaigns into three of its most popular feeds and leveraging its powerful machine-learning tech, Discovery ads have the potential to become the new standard in interactive, immersive native advertising.

Want to start amplifying your message with this new type of ad? Contact us to see how to get started with a new Discovery campaign.