ATTENTION ALL ADWORDS ADVERTISERS: Google search ad content is about to double! 

Just last week Google released Expanded Text Ads, the updated format of Standard Text Ads. This may sound like a generic update, but it could be the change that takes your brand to the next level.
 

What’s changing?

To give you a refresher, let’s review what Text Ads are. 

Text Ads are Google’s simplest ad format which appear at the top, bottom and at the right hand side of search results. With the update however, they will only appear at the top and bottom. These ads are composed of three main parts: the headline, display URL and description.  

Here’s what’s new:

Upgraded components	Standard Text Ads (STA)	Expanded Text Ads (ETA)	Benefit
Headlines	25 characters	2x 30 characters	More prominent headlines and room for creativity.
Display URL	35 characters	2 paths x 15 characters	Domains are now automatically extracted from your final URL. Two URL paths can now be customised.
Description lines	2x 35 characters per line	80 characters	A single, consolidated description line improves the overall ad design.

 
 You can see the visual differences here:



Google has implemented these changes for three main reasons:

• Improved user experience.
• Mobile focussed design.
• Consistency across platforms/devices.

Google will cease to approve ads in STA format, and fully implement the ETA format by October 26, 2016.