Those of us who have been working with AdWords for a large part of its 18-year lifetime will be forgiven for feeling a little nostalgic when we look back on the early days of the platform.
AdWords is barely recognisable from the platform we all fondly worked with many moons ago, but that doesn’t mean we need to hang on to it. Looking back on the clothes I wore in the late 90’s still gives me a warm fuzzy feeling but you sure won’t be seeing me dust off the shell-suit anytime soon.
Here are the key branding changes that have been announced;
- Google AdWords is to become Google Ads
- DoubleClick and Google Analytics 360 are to be merged into one platform; Google Marketing Platform.
- DoubleClick for Publishers and DoubleClick Ad Exchange are also merging into a new platform; Google Ad Manager
Given how far AdWords has evolved far beyond just ‘words’ it makes perfect sense to reboot
The idea that this will simplify AdWords may be exaggerated, as it’s the complex nature of what goes on underneath that often confuses people. The official line from Google shows the intention to make it, “..even easier to deliver valuable, trustworthy ads and the right experiences for consumers across devices and channels.”
With the permanent switch to the new AdWords interface only a few days away, changes are aplenty. Being flexible to change and adapting quickly is what will separate good management from those that will get left behind.
Mutterings from within the industry are signalling the end of the domination by search ads and the first indication that Google is steering towards multi-channel, automation advertising. Personally, I welcome the day when I can spend more time on analysing data & producing insightful reports but expect it to be a gradual process, nothing in this industry happens overnight and search ads in their current format will continue to play a fundamental role in Paid Advertising. LONG LIVE THE KING (For now).