Google Ads: The new old Adwords Interface
Miguel Nicolás
08/08/2019
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Everything changes in the digital environment, even some things that seemed fixed like Google Adwords. Discover the changes!
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If something seemed stable in the Internet world and Google was Adwords. The thing is that the aspect of this platform did not undergo any significant change in the last 18 years. But in 2018, almost unexpected, Google launched a new interface for Adwords, in addition to the fact of changing its name.Many movements in new directions that, however, do not just convince many. Let's see these changes.
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Google Adwords becomes Google Ads
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Let's start at the end, at least chronologically. At the end of June 2018 the search engine announced a change in the naming of its services and marketing and advertising platforms. Thus, three new brands were born :
- Google Ads: Under this brand, the tools for advertising management in the search network continue to be together. This is where the "adwords" nomenclature originally comes from(ads + words), but in that time it went growing to include the Display network, Shopping and video ads or in mobile applications.
- Google Marketing Platform: As its name indicates, here are the marketing resources, but also of analytics, from Analytics 360 º to the specific functions for DoubleClick advertisers.
- Google AD Manager: Under this service we will now find all the necessary features to monetize a website: DoubleClick for Publishers and DoubleClick Ad Exchange.
What is the reason for all this brand change in Adwords when the user is so accustomed to the current interface?
Google's argument is that platforms have been transformed since their origin and that, initially were text-based creatives on searches, has turned much more deep and complex.For all these reasons, Google believes that the old name limits them and does not reflect the features currently offered by Google Advertising services.Despite the relevance of this change, it has been more something operational rather than rebranding. In fact, it has been transparent to the user because there has been no migration: it has simply changed from one day to another without much more difference than a different logo. -
The new Google Ads interface
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All this leads to a topic that is being much more thorny than Google could expect.For months, there is a new version of the advertising platform or, rather, a completely redesigned interface coexists with the classic one. The first was the one that had to start working as soon as a transition period finishes which users dislike very much today.The main reason is that it is really a radical change in the organization of the tools, the visualization of data and even the structure of menus.Let´s see an example for clarifying.Here we have the classic look of Adwords:
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And this is how we would see the content of the same account with the new Google Ads interface:
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In terms of design, the new version is cleaner and perhaps much more visual. It keeps the double browsing with the tool menu at the top and those of the campaigns on the right side.Any decision that has to do with the visual is a matter of opinion, but the truth is that the change goes further and goes fully into matters that do have an impact on the way we work.
The most notable is that the system of labels to which users were accustomed disappears moving to the side menu.On the other hand, some tools that were on the side go to the top menu within the tools menu that now includes 5 different subcategories.
Now this is where the campaigns, ad groups, keywords and everything related to the configuration and operational part of the campaigns are located. And it becomes a double side navigation when you open a second bar, for example when you enter ad groups.
Planning: Ads preview, as well as keyword planners and Display .
Block actions: rules, scripts and any other aspect that is performed globally.
Measurement: Here are the conversions and access to Analytics.
Setting: All data corresponding to the account, from those of billing to those of access to the account or linked accounts.
Shared library: From audience manager to share budgets or negative keyword lists. -
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Also, tools themselves have been redesigned, for example, one of the most used by SEM and SEO managers: the Keyword Planner. The redesign tries to simplify the way of interacting, although the options are basically the same.We move from this interface:
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To this other in the new version of Google Ads KeywordPlanner:
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The most clear changes are, of course, produced when using the tool. Here we move to something more visual, with the graphs of average seasonality by monthly searches adding the tendencies segmented by mobile and desktop devices... Things that are just a face wash.
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What is the acceptance?
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The truth is that it is not convincing too much even though Google tends to get right with redesigns.No long time ago, they did the same with Gmail (and it went well) or with Google Search Console, a change that has actually been a success and has added new functionalities that have been very well welcome by the community, being the product of Google that has left the beta phase fastest.But this is not the case with the new Google Ads interface. It does not end jelling mainly because it directly affects productivity.Users has been accustomed to doing things in a certain way and finding everything in one click for almost 20 years;
But now, we are required to re-learn to do the same, with the frustration that this lead to.
However, as much as there are complaints on the part of the users, Google will not probably go back on their word. In fact, they are trying to force the use of the new interface by limiting some features and extensions in the old version.It has not been a quiet transition but it seems that we will have to get used to. -
And what about you, what do you think about these changes in the old Google Adwords? Have they affected your productivity or that of your team? We would love to know about your experience.
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Images | Google Ads.