On February 6th 2013, Google introduced AdWords Enhanced Campaigns, a major change and update to the way that PPC campaigns are created and managed in relation to device types, location and time of day. Enhanced Campaigns will be rolling out almost immediately, so please view or download our POV for initial commentary and observations.

1. Jellyfish POV
AdWords Enhanced Campaigns:
Overview and Implications
February 7th 2013
© Jellyfish Online Marketing Ltd 2013

2. Jellyfish POV
AdWords Enhanced Campaigns
Introduction
th
On February 6 2013, Google officially announced what is arguably the most
significant change to the AdWords platform since….well, since AdWords began!
The update is officially called AdWords Enhanced Campaigns, and in this POV,
we’ll provide a brief overview of the update, key features, and implications for
PPC in 2013 and beyond.
Note that this initial analysis is based on a preliminary presentation delivered
by Google to select agency partners earlier this month – as full documentation
is released, we’ll be providing further information and analysis.
What are Enhanced Campaigns (EC)?
According to Google, EC will simplify the complexity of creating and executing
campaigns that target multiple devices across locations, time of day etc.
Instead of creating device specific campaigns for mobile, tablet and desktop,
all devices will be served within the same campaign. Yes, you read that
correctly!
In a bit more detail, desktop and tablet campaigns are treated as a singular
entity. Bid strategy will be aligned and we will not be able to (for example)
specify budget for specific device types.
Within the EC structure, there will be a ‘weighted’ bid modifier for mobile (so
that you can opt to decrease mobile bids by -100%, or by up to +300%), but
you cannot categorically opt out of serving to mobile devices. And you
definitely cannot serve to mobile only.
So, to re-cap, all existing desktop / tablet / mobile campaigns will be merged
into a single EC. Also, there will be no device specific targeting……
Some Google products are conceptually similar to EC; for example, you can’t
choose which search partners you serve your ads on; it’s all or none. Or the
ability to opt out of session-based matching has never been an option. But the
difference here is that the quality of search partner traffic does not vary a
great deal. Mobile and tablet traffic and interactions do vary by significant
degrees.
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3. Jellyfish POV
AdWords Enhanced Campaigns
EC details…so far
EC includes three main features:
Smart ads – EC campaigns will be able to serve customized messaging based
on context, location and device, which applies to ad headline, text, URL,
extensions. The mechanics of this are to be confirmed, but presumably
dynamic components will be assigned based on rules set up by advertisers.
The big question is of course how these rules around content, location and
device and customized messaging will be controlled by you, the advertiser. Ad
copy testing protocols are also tbc at this stage. Other features of smart ads
include the ability to schedule ad extensions, plus improved control over site
links.
Bid adjustments – will be based on time, location, device, but within the new
EC structure, and with its inherent pros and cons – see above.
Advanced reporting – EC will deliver a range of improved reporting features
including ‘advanced’ call tracking (no details on this), cross device conversion
tracking (no date on this), app download reporting and in store conversion
tracking (for example, using coupon codes and relevant offer ad extensions –
US only to start).
How soon will EC roll out?
Selected brands will receive direct communications from Google on Thursday
th
February 7 . Once full support and best practice documentation is released,
EC will begin to roll out immediately, and advice from Google is not to create
any new campaigns that are split out by device type from now on. There will be
a six month grace period, so by Q3 2013, all existing campaigns will require
migration to this new structure.
EC in practice – some scenarios to consider
Flash content on landing pages – you’ll no longer be able to stop tablet
users from visiting your pages via non-flash compatible devices e.g.
iPad. It may be that your ads would be served less frequently on tablets
over time as Google detects that the landing page may not be suitable
for that device type, but to what lengths they do this remains to be
seen.
The impact of amalgamating tablet and desktop at campaign level
brings into question how historic strategies based on position will
migrate effectively from currently device specific campaigns. For
example, a campaign targeting solely tablets can be managed to
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4. Jellyfish POV
AdWords Enhanced Campaigns
appear in the top 3 positions, avoiding the issue of appearing at the
very bottom of the SERPS even though your average position is 4.
Whereas your desktop strategy might allow for an average position of 5
or even 6 as the traffic and performance metrics appearing on the right
hand side of the desktop SERPs may allow for this. Managing these two
associated variables is now possible; how will EC allow for this in the
future?
You may have different goals for mobile compared to desktop. Perhaps
serving customized content because a mobile user might be more likely
to be in an information gathering stage as opposed to the buying stage,
or you simply get very different ROI on mobile because it’s more
difficult to navigate through a purchase process on a small screen. With
EC, it will be more difficult to bid manage accordingly, hence
potentially wasting money on mobile traffic.
If you only sell mobile products like ringtones, your ads will be showing
on desktop whether you want them to or not.
Consider location targeting. How will this be affected by these
changes? If you have extremely targeted campaigns for specific geo-
targeted locations and Google is essentially choosing where and when
your ads are displayed, are you investing in the locations that bring you
the most return?
Note that the scenarios listed may seem rather negative, but could be negated
/ managed depending on the efficiency of the optimization engine that we
assume will ‘power’ EC. Stay tuned for more…
The analytics viewpoint - ensure correct integration between AdWords and
Google Analytics
With the forthcoming changes, it’s never been more important to ensure you
have correct implementation of your Google Analytics and AdWord accounts.
There’s a wealth of information Google Analytics provides. Integration can
offer the additional benefits of specific audience information, such as mobile
and tablet device used to drive the conversion. With the use of segmentation in
Google Analytics, even the most granular of detail can be displayed.
Upon integration, conversion data is present within its own report. This can be
correlated with Ecommerce data to gauge sale performance by paid keyword
to gain a true understanding of contribution.
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5. Jellyfish POV
AdWords Enhanced Campaigns
For those that would like to go the extra mile, it is possible to greatly enhance
visibility by utilizing third party products, such as Infinity Call Tracking. This fills
the missing gap between users who have entered via a paid keyword and
generated a phone lead. Infinity operates by producing a unique number
dependent on paid keyword. Integration with Google Analytics is now also
available to view call data directly in the interface itself.
Summary and observations
What is Google trying to achieve, and what does this mean for advertisers?
EC will make the creation and roll-out of multi-device campaigns
quicker and easier – no need to replicate across device types. With
burgeoning device proliferation in mind, and the convergence of user
journeys across tablets, laptops, desktops, this may be a good thing
from a scale and simplicity perspective.
Current levels of control over device / location specific campaigns will
be eroded as Google takes over / automates optimization. This will (in
theory) encourage advertisers to ‘think mobile’, and to ensure that a
multi-device strategy is implemented from the get go. So, for example,
expect the deployment of responsive design content to climb up digital
agendas very quickly!
Overall campaign efficiencies may decrease if brands cannot deliver
competitive and well-optimised mobile / tablet experiences - you’ll be
paying for the traffic, whether you like it or not!
EC may encourage new advertisers into the market, possibly smaller
brands who have been previously discouraged by the apparent
complexity of context / device and location aware targeting.
Overall, it feels like EC could be great news for brand and engagement focused
PPC campaigns, and / or less sophisticated agencies and brands. From an
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6. Jellyfish POV
AdWords Enhanced Campaigns
acquisition perspective, EC seems less good, and may remove significant
control and granularity from complex high-budget activity.
About Jellyfish
Jellyfish was born at the same time as PPC advertising back in 1999. In our early
years, we concentrated exclusively on paid search and we got pretty good at it.
We focused our efforts on perfecting paid search in publishing and by 2005 we
had billings of $8 million and were dominating the sector.
By 2011, our billings increased to over $40 million and we were employing more
than 80 staff across three continents. We expanded our service offering as a
response to our clients' needs and the ever changing digital landscape.
Today we are at the forefront of digital marketing, pushing boundaries and
getting results. Our success is down to great people, innovative ideas and lots
of hard work.
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