Google Ads is rolling out new metrics to provide advertisers with better insight into where their ads appear on the search results page.
The metrics currently available to advertisers are not as clear as they could be, Google explains.
For example, the average position metric does not indicate where an ad appears on the page, contrary to what’s commonly understood.
The average position metric describes the order that an ad appears versus other ads in the ad auction.
If an ad has an average position of 1, it does not mean the ad shows at the very top of the page. It means the ad shows ahead of all other ads.
In some cases, the ad may actually be displayed at the bottom of the page, but it will still have an average position of “1” if no other ads appear above the organic search results.
The new metrics Google is introducing will provide clearer insights on where ads appear on the search results page.
Google’s new search ad metrics include:
- Impr. (Absolute Top) %: The percent of ad impressions shown as the very first ad above organic search results.
- Impr. (Top) %: The percent of ad impressions shown anywhere above organic search results.
- Search (Absolute Top) IS: The impressions received in the absolute top location divided by the estimated number of impressions that were eligible to be received in the top location.
- Search (Top) IS: The impressions received in the top location (anywhere above the organic search results) compared to the estimated number of impressions that were eligible to be received in the top location.
For advertisers currently using average position to track the location of their ads on the page, Google recommends using Impression (Absolute Top) % and Impression (Top) % instead.
Those using average position to bid to a page location, should use Search (Abs Top) IS and Search (Top) IS instead.
