Custom formula column examples

This article provides custom formula column examples for both visual and text mode.

To access the custom column editor:

1. Sign in to your new Search Ads 360.
2. From the page menu on the left, click a page with a reporting table, such as Campaigns, Ad groups, Ads, or Keywords.
3. In the upper right corner of the table, click the columns icon , then select Modify columns.

To re-create the examples in visual mode (the default mode), follow the step-by-step instructions under “Visual mode (step-by-step).”

If you prefer to copy and paste the example formulas:

1. Switch to text mode by clicking the text mode iconin the custom column editor.
2. Copy the formulas with a green background under “Text mode” in this article.

Learn more about creating a custom formula column.

Formula column examples

• Average daily cost (last 7 days)
• Daily performance meets threshold
• Report on specific conversion
• Lost impression share due to budget
• Device click summary

Average daily cost (last 7 days)

This reports the average cost per day for the previous 7 days (not including today), regardless of the table or report’s overall date range.

Visual mode (step-by-step)

1. Click + Column, expand Performance, and select Cost.
2. Click the oval labeled “Cost”, expand the “Date range” section in the filter panel on the right, and select + Add Filter.
3. Expand Select date range, select Last 7 days, and click Apply.
4. Click after the oval, then type / 7.
5. Your formula should resemble this image:
6. In the “Data format” dropdown in the upper right, select Money, and then click Save.

Text mode

cost.date_range(last_7_days) / 7

Select True/False in the “Data format” dropdown in the upper right before saving.

Daily performance meets threshold

This displays true or false, depending on whether the table row meets the conditions in the formula. In this example, this custom column will display true if the average number of clicks per day is greater than or equal to a value that you feel is appropriate for your business (the placeholder value used in the example below is 100), or false otherwise. The “report_days_count” function provides the number of days between the start and end date in your table or report. In this example, dividing “Clicks” by “report_days_count” gives us the average number of clicks per day over the date range of the table or report where the custom column is used. Notice “Clicks / report_days_count()” is wrapped in parentheses so that it’s computed before comparing it to the value. Learn about available functions

Visual mode (step-by-step)

1. Type (Clicks and select Clicks from the dropdown.
2. Type / report_days_count() to divide clicks by the number of days in your table or report’s date range.
3. Close the first parentheses by typing ). We’re wrapping the division in parentheses so it’s computed before comparing the value.
4. Type >= which means “greater than or equal to”.
5. Enter a number to compare against average daily clicks.
6. Your formula should resemble this image:
7. Select True/False in the “Data format” dropdown in the upper right before saving.

Text mode

(Clicks / report_days_count()) >= 100

Select True/False in the “Data format” dropdown in the upper right before saving.

Example output in a table: True

Report on specific conversions

This reports the number of conversions for all selected conversion actions. If you select multiple conversion actions, this custom column will show the total number of conversions across all of them.

Instead of creating a custom formula column to report on specific conversions, consider creating a custom conversion column instead.

The “All conversions” metric is used instead of “Conversions” because “Conversions” includes only conversion actions that have their “Include in conversions” setting checked. Learn more about conversion actions

Visual mode (step-by-step)

1. Click + Column, expand Performance, and select All conversions.
2. Click the oval labeled “All Conversions”, and expand the “Conversions action” section in the filter panel on the right.
3. Select all the conversion actions you want to include.
4. Your formula should resemble this image:

Text mode

All_conversions.conversion_action("Example conversion action", "Other conversion action")

Replace "Example conversion action" and "Other conversion action" with the names of conversion actions in your account. To add more than one conversion action, separate each with a comma.

Example output in a table: 68

Lost impression share due to budget

The “Search Lost IS (budget)” column shows the percentage of time that your ads weren't shown on the Search Network due to insufficient budget, while the “Display Lost IS (budget)” column shows the same information for the Display Network. This data is available at the campaign level only. The or function can be used to return a true value if either column is greater than zero. Learn more about impression share

Visual mode (step-by-step)

1. Type if. Select the suggested function.
2. Replace “condition” by typing or. Select the suggested function.
3. Replace “x” by typing Search Lost IS Budget > 0. When you type “Search Lost IS Budget”, select it from the dropdown so that it turns into a column oval.
4. Replace “y” by typing Display Lost IS Budget > 0. When you type “Display Lost IS Budget”, select it from the dropdown so that it turns into a column oval.
5. Replace “if_true” with a message to display if the condition is met, such as "Impr. limited by budget".
6. Replace “if_false” with a message to display if the condition is not met, such as "No lost impr. share due to budget".
7. Your formula should resemble this image:
8. Select Text in the “Data format” dropdown in the upper right before saving.

Text mode

if(or(Search_lost_IS_budget > 0, Display_lost_IS_budget > 0), "Impr. limited by budget", "No lost impr. share due to budget")

Select Text in the “Data format” dropdown in the upper right before saving.

Example output in a table: Impr. limited by budget

Learn more: if and or are examples of functions. Learn about available functions

Device click summary

This displays custom text that summarizes a breakdown of clicks by two device types: mobile phones and desktop.

Visual mode (step-by-step)

1. Type concat("Mobile: ", to_text(value), " Desktop: ", to_text(value)).
2. Highlight the first instance of “value” in the formula, select + Column, expand Performance, and select Clicks. Repeat for the second instance of “value”.
3. Click the first oval labeled “Clicks”, expand the “Device” section in the filter panel on the right, and select Mobile phones.
4. Click the second oval labeled Clicks, expand the Device section in the filter panel on the right, and select Desktop.
5. Your formula should resemble this image:
6. Select Text in the “Data format” dropdown in the upper right before saving.

Text mode

concat("Mobile: ", to_text(clicks.device(mobile)), " Desktop: ", to_text(clicks.device(desktop)))

Select Text in the “Data format” dropdown in the upper right before saving.

Example output in a table: Mobile: 57; Desktop: 46

Learn more: concat and to_text are both examples of functions. concat combines 2 or more pieces of text together, while to_text takes a numeric value (like Clicks) and converts it to text. Learn about available functions