Whatever kind of business you’re in, Google Ads can be an incredibly powerful tool to help you reach more customers, expand brand awareness, drive sales and conversions, and more. Yet there are lots of different types of Google Ads campaigns and Google Ads formats to choose from, and it can be difficult knowing which combination is right for you.
Follow this guide from the ‘busy bees’ at WebHummel, an official high-performing Google Partner, to better understand the types of Google Ads available to you and empower your decision-making to high return campaigns to use in order to meet your unique marketing goals.
What are Google Ads?
Previously known as Google AdWords, Google Ads are an amazing paid form of digital advertising which—depending on the campaign type you choose—are seen by billions of internet users, potential customers and clients, across both a range of Google platforms and products and the wider internet.
Google Ads operate under a pay-per-click cost model, also known as PPC advertising. In essence, you only pay for your ad when someone clicks on it—the amount you pay being dictated by the type of ad campaign you choose, the Quality Score of your ad’s landing page, and the amount you choose to bid on each ad (only businesses which win their PPC bids have their ads displayed).
When breaking down types of Google Ads we can split them into two camps: Google Ads formats and campaign types.
The ‘format’ of your ad refers to the form it takes: from text to images to video and so on. The format is often dictated by the type of Google Ads campaign you choose to run.
The ‘campaign’ for your ad involves where your ad is displayed, how it is displayed, and the various sets of outcomes each is designed to help you achieve. The campaign you choose is typically informed by your unique marketing goals.
Where are Google Ads displayed?
Different Google Ads are displayed across different Google-owned, -operated or -affiliated channels, each with their own unique audience and benefits to your digital marketing campaign. Generally speaking, Google Ads are displayed across Google Search, Google Play, YouTube, Discover (on Google Search), Google Maps, and the Google Display Network.
Exploring different Google Ads formats
Before we dive into the various types of Google Ads campaigns you can choose to run, we’ll take a moment to explore the different Google Ads formats which your campaign may run. When writing and creating your ads, the format will dictate things like:
- The ratio, number and size of images you can use
- The quantity, type, and length of text you can use, as well as its placement in your ad
- By ‘type’ we mean, for example:
- Headlines
- Descriptions
- URL
- Business name and/or information
- Calls to action (CTAs)
- By ‘type’ we mean, for example:
- The length, quantity and format of any videos involved
- The products you’re able to link to on your website
- The business information you display, e.g., contact details and location
Text
Text ads use text—i.e., words—only. These ads can be written and published quickly, and maintained relatively easily.
Campaign types which use this format: Almost all Google Ads will use an element of text, but the campaign type which mainly uses the Text format is ‘Search’.
Responsive
The beauty of the Responsive Ad format is that it is automatically adjusted in terms of size, appearance and format to fit whatever available ad spaces there are for your chosen campaign. For example, they can ‘transform’ into text or image-based ads depending on the space available. Responsive Ads use Google’s AI algorithm to determine how best to display based on tests of various text and image combinations.
Campaign types which use this format: Search and Display
Image
Image-formatted Google Ads use images in JPG or PNG formats most typically, though can also platform GIFs for animated graphics.
Campaign types which use this format: Display
App promotion
The App Promotion format from Google is unique in that promotes your app through the Google Play app store and other relevant channels, typically taking the information and assets it needs directly from your app.
Campaign types which use this format: App
Video
Video ads are formatted, unsurprisingly, as videos, displayed across a variety of Google channels, including YouTube and Discover. These ads require an MP4 or other compatible video file format and can be run as standalone videos or as inserts in other streaming video content.
Campaign types which use this format: Video
Shopping
The Shopping Ad as well as the newer and incredibly performant Pmax campaign format on Google displays photos of your products, the product title or name and its price, your store name and some additional descriptive and sales information about your products. These formats are called product listing ads and are the cornerstones of Google’s industry-leading AI
driven product listing ads.
Campaign types which use this format: Shopping & Performance Max
Call-only
Call-only-formatted ads show search engine users your business information and, crucially, your phone number—making this format ideal for service-based and local bricks-and-mortar businesses. Ads formatted as ‘call-only’ are only displayed to users on devices which can initiate a call, and are automatically adapted to display optimally on different devices. With a call-only ad, users can make a call to your business from the ad in a single tap or click.
Campaign types which use this format: Search
9 different Google Ads campaigns: What they do & when to use them
Having discussed the various formats your Google Ad may take, it’s time to explore the 8 different types of Google Ad campaign you get to choose from when first setting out.
Google can give you a decent overview of these campaigns, helping you make the decision between campaign types based on your marketing goals, brand strategy, and how much time you’re able to invest in creating and maintaining your ads.
The ‘hive mind’ at WebHummel, however, is here to give you a head start with much more comprehensive Ads training or, when needed, professional Ads management.
Before you begin your next Google Ads campaign, first have a think about which of the below marketing objectives best describes what you want to achieve:
- More product sales
- More service leads
- More traffic to your website
- To initiate consideration of your product or brand
- To expand your reach and awareness of your brand
- More downloads of your app and/or more in-app sales
- More visits to your local store or engagement with your service from travellers
- A customised combination of the above
- Note: Customising your campaign can be tricky and should be engaged with only once you’ve a competency with Google Ads—unless undertaken with the assistance of professional PPC Management providers
With these goals in mind, it’s time to choose the right campaign for you.
1) Smart campaigns
Smart campaigns are undoubtedly one of the easiest and most stress-free ways to launch a Google Ads campaign for beginners. As such, they’re a great campaign type to get started with. These are fully-automated campaigns designed to garner more sales and leads, though with other customisable marketing-goal options available.
Why choose a smart campaign?
- Leave it all up to Google to find the best targeting strategy to get you maximum results for your time and money
- Super easy setup: just enter your business’s information, create a few initial ads, and Google will handle the rest
- Google will then also automatically optimise your ads for you, based on performance data it gathers, rather than you having to monitor the success of your campaign, adjust your ads manually, and then rerun
2) Performance Max campaigns
Performance Max campaigns are one of the newest types of Google Ads campaigns available, introduced for the first time in November 2021. Performance Max is an incredibly high performing AI driven campaign type which allows advertisers to access, manage and optimise their entire Google Ads ‘inventory’ at once, via a single campaign. This makes Performance Max campaigns user-friendly and therefore ideal for those new to digital marketing.
Why choose a performance max campaign?
- Performance Max campaigns are straightforward to set up and easy to manage thanks to automated optimisation from Google—in other words, Google does the heavy lifting for you
- Great for increasing conversions and their value—reportedly, Performance Max users enjoy an average of 18% more conversions, for a similar cost-per-action, compared to other campaign users.
- Google automatically optimises your campaign according to your budget, and bids for you on Ads across all Google channels (YouTube, Search, Discovery, Maps, etc.) in order to capture conversion opportunities in real time.
- Unlock new audiences by using real-time understanding of user intent, behaviour, and context—allowing you to show up in the right moments with relevant ads (high intent marketing)
3) Search campaigns
Search campaigns are the OG type of Google Ad, and are the type of campaign most commonly associated with PPC advertising for small businesses and entrepreneurs. They are typically text-formatted Ads (though can also be call-only or responsive) which appear to search engine users at the top of the first Search Engine Results Page (SERP) for relevant queries. You get to determine which query is relevant by researching and bidding on search term keywords pertaining to your brand and the products or services you offer.
Search campaigns can take more work to get off the ground than P-Max or Smart campaigns, but you retain greater control of your Ad spending and narrative—great for those already familiar with Google Ads or who are ready for more of a challenge.
Why choose a search campaign?
- Great for generating leads and sales, and therefore well-suited to businesses selling services and/or physical products, such as eCommerce sites
- Search campaigns are perfect for high-intent marketing—presenting people with exactly what they’re looking for, when they’re looking for it, in order to drive click-throughs, conversions and sales.
- Search campaigns are also easy to set up—all you have to do is choose your keywords, write your Google Ads copy, set your bidding amount(s), and off you go
4) Shopping campaigns
Shopping campaigns are uniquely built for eCommerce and bricks-and-mortar x online retailers—essentially, any business which sells physical products, subscriptions or services. Your product catalogue from your website is synced up with Google, from which Google takes the information and assets it needs to create your ad.
When a user searches the internet for a specific item—e.g., acid-ash denim jeans in the UK’—a shopping campaign ad would link them directly to your most relevant product, with an image, price tag and product description displayed at the top of SERPs.
Why choose a shopping campaign?
- Shopping campaigns are the digital bead and butter of eCommerce and online retail
- Great for brands wishing to appear directly in front of customers actively searching for the item you wish to sell
- You can also promote stock at your local bricks-and-mortar outlet with location-specific targeting
5) App campaigns
App campaigns use the app format discussed above, automatically optimising ads for your app based on information you provide when setting up this campaign. Your ad is then displayed across Google Search, Play, YouTube, Discovery and 3,000,000+ other sites and apps.
Why choose an app campaign?
- To expand your app’s reach, drive install and active user numbers, and increase in-app sales
- App campaigns are easy to set up and easy to manage
- Ad targeting, bidding, and even ad creation are all automated for you by Google, based on your PPC budget, goals, and target demographic
6) Demand Gen campaigns
The ‘Demand Gen’ campaign replaced Google’s previous ‘Discover’ campaign. It’s effectively Google’s answer to the image-rich, eye-catching ads you see on social media, and is designed to help you inspire consumers with visually-stimulating images showcasing your products and brand.
Why choose a demand generation campaign?
- Great for eCommerce websites and local or service-based businesses
- This campaign allows you to leverage Google’s AI algorithm to find the right audience for your business, making it perfect for retailers and others who are unsure about who to target
- Demand Gen campaigns are displayed across Google’s highly-popular entertainment platforms: Discovery, YouTube, YouTube Shorts and Gmail, so that as they scroll their devices, the right customers are delivered the right ads to suit them, increasing demand for your brand
7) Display campaigns
You can think of Display Ad campaigns as the digital marketing world’s answer to physical billboards and magazine or newspaper ads, with the added bonus of much ore specific targeting. These are image-based advertisements designed to target chosen demographics as they browse millions of websites, apps and other Google-affiliated channels.
Why choose a display campaign?
- Great for expanding brand awareness, exposure and reach beyond Google Search (i.e., beyond search engines)
- Allows you to present a striking visual reminder of the products and services you offer, both drawing in new custom and remarketing to your existing customer base
- Display campaigns are ideal for low-intent marketing, through which you want to capture and retain the awareness of your audience for your brand, without necessarily selling them on a specific product or service
8) YouTube Video campaigns
If you’ve used YouTube even once in the last few years, then you’re bound to have come across at least one YouTube Video ad (whether you noticed or not—and in that is half the magic!).
Behind Google, YouTube—also Google-owned—is the 2nd biggest search engine in the world. Once ad-free, the platform now hosts ads all throughout: from ads integrated into, or prefacing video streams, to thumbnail ads on the YouTube sidebar and ads placed in-between YT Shorts.
Note: Because YT Video ads require creativity in terms of video creation, you may consider waiting until you’re more adept with other Google Ads formats and campaigns before engaging with this type.
Why choose a video campaign?
- Video campaigns help you to make people aware of, or consider buying, your product and services
- The ‘Drive Conversions’ subtype available to YouTube Video campaigns helps you create action-focused video ads specifically designed to build conversions
- Video ads are a great way to expand your reach beyond Google Search into an arena in which your competitors may not even be operating!
9) Travel and Local Search campaigns
Last but not least, let’s look at Travel and Local Search campaigns. These are campaigns designed to drive location-specific traffic to your location-specific offering. For example, there’s no use in hosting a globally available YouTube Video ad or Search Ad if you run a local Italian restaurant in York, England—you could end up blowing your PPC budget on clicks from users who will never be in a position to visit your business.
Instead, Local Search and Travel campaigns help you to connect only with potential customers and clients who are either already in your area (Local Search) or are planning to visit it (Travel).
Why choose a travel or local search campaign
- Reach the millions of people who conduct local or travel-related searches on Google every single day
- Highlight the tours, attractions and activities you offer travellers across Google’s various relevant platforms (i.e., Search, Discovery, Maps)
- Highlight the products and services you offer local customers
- List holiday rentals on Google and connect with partners like online travel agencies to help you drive bookings
Recap: How to choose the right types of Google Ads for your business
There is no right way to take out a Google Ad. The type of Google Ads campaign you choose is up to you, and should be informed by your branding, your marketing goals, your budget and time resources.
As highlighted in this guide, there are plenty of unique tools—many of which are AI-led or fully automated—which can help you create a wining ads strategy without expertise in the field.
Of course, not every business has the capacity to manage a Google Ads campaign. That’s why the ‘busy bees’ at WebHummel specialise in helping businesses big and small to meet their goals with expert digital content creation and a tailored range of PPC bid management services.
Get in touch today to discuss your options and make sure you’re getting the most out of your next Google Ads campaign.
