2022 Google Ads Changes & Trends

Stay up to date on the latest changes and trends on the Google Ads Platforms. 

New year means all new trends and changes on the Google Ads platform. 

But first, let's review PPC and why your business might benefit from it.

Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising is a paid marketing technique. PPC ads appear across many online platforms and search engines. Advertisers only pay the publisher when a user clicks the ad. Several different types of PPC advertising include display, search, social and retargeting ads, and each has its uses depending on campaign goals.

PPC is a great advertising option for businesses in the financial service industry. Some benefits of Pay Per Click Advertising are:

• Cost-effective advertising 
• Personalized budgets to fit your spend
• Results tracked in real-time
• Higher website traffic
• Increased brand recognition
• Specific audience targeting

The Google Ads platform continuously improves and changes to serve advertisers better and search engine users. PPC advertisers must stay updated on the latest trends expected to hit in the new year. 

In honor of the first week of the year, we've outlined four trends and changes you can expect from Google Ads in 2022. 

Buyer Intent

Google user intent has been an up incoming trend in the last months of 2021 and will continue into 2022. Buyer Intent is the likelihood of purchasing and actions that lead to it. Businesses need to understand the intent of consumers so they can market effectively. Intent can be derived from the languages in user searches or the messaging they respond best to. 

Search language is a large part of determining intent. Prepositions, adjectives, pronouns, and how users form a question hold intent. Once advertisers predict search language, they can produce better-informed keywords, ad copy, and landing pages. When buyer intent, keywords, ad copy, and landing pages are aligned, that is when a campaign is successful. 

Google Ads knows the value in intent which is why it will prioritize ads that speak to specific user intent. SEO and PPC tools offer insight into the purpose of keywords and search terms. Effectiveness is the name of the game in 2022 Google Ads. Advertisers will have to prove relevance to receive the best results in their campaigns. Google wants advertisers to get even more specific in their targeting to reach the right customers. 

Keyword Changes 

Currently, keywords have continued to be the bedrock of Google Search and Display advertising. Keywords are built into a campaign to trigger advertisements when user searches match the keyword. Because Google is now focusing on user intent, it is more important than ever for advertisers to understand their target audience's language in a search engine. Once one can understand jargon and language, one can curate keywords to reflect buyer intent. 

Although keywords regain supreme in their Google ads importance, many leaders in the industry are predicting their downturn beginning in 2022. According to Cardinal Digital Marketing, keywords may start to lose their significance any day now. Google has already gotten rid of the broad match modifier and emphasized Performance Max campaigns. Soon keywords may be edged out to be replaced by machine learning and specific targeting. They are making it more critical than ever to understand customers' language and nailing down first-party data. 

First-Party Data

First-party data is the information that a company collects about its customers. Things like names, emails, addresses, and more are managed by a company when a consumer purchases or signs up for something. First-party data can also be information collected from people that visit your website, even those that engage with the brand on social media. First-party data is essential because it is how a business directly understands their customers. Google is looking to do away with cookies in the next two years, making the information collected by your own company all the more critical. 

Data Policy Changes

We cannot write about 2022 Google ads trends and changes without mentioning data policy updates. As said above, Google is getting rid of cookies entirely by 2023 and limiting third-party data shares. Third-party data is collected and distributed by businesses that do not directly interact with customers. Internet users are becoming more aware of their data being distributed and sold without permission. VPNs (software to hide an individual's online activity) are the most famous pieces of consumer software. According to Cloudwards, one in three internet users worldwide uses a VPN. Google sees consumers want privacy and is pivoting against private data release. 

It is important to remember that the Google Ads platform is constantly changing and shifting. They are making it essential to have an advertising manager that understands changes and stays up to date on all trends.

Do you need help managing your business's Google ads or other digital advertisements?

Connect with the team at DaBrian today!