When you take a second to think about it, it’s not all that surprising that Google has revamped Gmail Ads. I mean their tagline of Google reaches 1 billion users globally is enticing, but what are Google really offering here?
<h1>What Are Gmail Ads?</h1>
If you’re looking to grow your business then being part of Google’s Display Network certainly won’t hurt if you’re looking to build on your audience and raise awareness and recognition. For those of you who don’t know about <a href=”http://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2014/11/18/google-display-network-tips”>GDN</a>, it targets browsers as they’re searching and allows marketers to serve up appropriate Gmail ads to people’s inboxes and just to be clear Gmail ads are the shiny new version of Google’s Sponsored Promotions.
<h2>So, What Do They Look Like and What’s New About Them?</h2>
They look seemingly like emails from the outside and you’ll find them lurking in your promotions tab with their 25 character headlines and a minimum of a 100 words on clickthrough is this the <a href=”http://www.clixmarketing.com/blog/2016/05/19/how-to-boost-email-marketing-with-customer-match-gmail-ads/”>future of email marketing</a> without distributing direct sales emails?
The ad related reshuffle comes as Gmail takes up residence in AdWords meaning that now there’s a tangible revenue stream as the offer the thrust businesses need to get customers engaging with brands.
They’ve also stopped putting “missed opportunities” as the ad headline, sometimes the small things make a difference. But the best basic addition to the new interface has to be the ability to schedule/delay ads by day and options for streamlining ad rollout based on location and device type.
<h2>The Sales Drive and Targeting</h2>
If you’re new to Gmail ads or Google Sponsored Promotions feel like last decade check out the <a href=”https://www.sitepoint.com/the-complete-guide-to-gmail-ads/”>complete guide</a> to help you get serious about your ads and their potential. With a range of different ads templates to choose from, these image rich formats from the one picture to a whole catalog of images, so for the first time businesses really have the option to unleash their creativity with ease.
For search engine marketers many will already be acquainted with the targeting options available if they already run campaigns on the GDN, affinity or interests and topics. There’s also contextual keyword targeting, instead of focusing on specific GDN content on Gmail Ads you’ll be targeting users who’ve already received emails containing your keywords.
Sadly, the remarketing list seems to have disappeared as has the in-market segment. As you’ve already got your own domain ready to go, you can create a remarketing list based on your subscribers and previous purchases to give you something to go on, just remember to enter your domain the keyword tab.
<h2>The Takeaway</h2>
It’s important to remember that Gmail Ads themselves are native ads not primarily made to get people reaching for their bank cards immediately but rather aid the call to action in the hopes that the new customer Match function that powers the function and purpose of the new improved ads really does the business.
If marketers can leverage affinity to truly refine their demographic the costs of using elements like Customer Match are relatively inexpensive, while <a href=”https://support.google.com/adwords/answer/1726458?hl=en”>contextual keywords</a> are usually the most costly part of a GDN ad campaign in Gmail ads they see higher returns than usual. Many big brands who used to Gmail Ads during the holiday season saw clear profits from contextual keywords even when it wasn’t the primary aspect.
For the time being it’s clear ads fare best as an upper funnel component but as more features are added in time it could easily appeal to more marketers and their brands if the costs remain reasonable.
