Google AdWords

Chapter 7. Writing Ads

Ad Text Requirements

For many AdWords advertisers, writing ads is the least favorite account management activity. Yet ad text is critically important. The searcher is looking for an answer to a question, a solution to a problem, a way to fulfill a need or desire. If you’ve got what the searcher needs, the ad text is your opportunity to convince him to visit the website.

It’s difficult to present a compelling case for your product or service within the meager 130 character limit (95 if you don’t count the Display URL). You not only compete against other AdWords advertisers, you compete against the organic results, and sometimes local business results (Google Places or Google+ Local). On a crowded search results page with many options, your ad needs to set you apart and convince the searcher that your website has what he’s searching for.

This chapter reviews technical and editorial specifications, and then provides tips for writing and testing ad variations.

AdWords text ads include four distinct lines. The first line is the headline or title of the ad. It allows up to 25 characters, including spaces. The next two lines, called Description Line 1 and Description Line 2, allow up to 35 characters each, including spaces. The fourth line, called the Display URL, allows up to 35 characters. There is one additional field to complete, the Destination URL. This specifies where an ad click “lands” on the website; sometimes this page is called the landing page.

Ad text specifications ...