Create an ad template

An ad template generates one ad for each unique value or combination of values in the inventory data selected by an ad group. The value or value combination you specify is called the ad multiplier.

Generating one ad per ad group

Depending on how granular your ad groups are, you may want each ad template to generate only one ad per ad group. In this case, you can choose an ad multiplier that you know will contain the same value for all products in the ad group. Or you can leave the ad multiplier unspecified. 

Either way, you'll need to make sure the formulas you use in the template are able to handle the possibility of different values for inventory attributes. For example, if you want your ads to include the title of a product but your ad group contains multiple products, you'll need to create a formula that chooses only one title for the one ad you're generating in the ad group, such as min(TITLE).

Coordinate ad templates with keyword templates

Make sure your ad copy and the ad multiplier complement the type of keywords you plan to generate in each ad group.

For example, if an ad group contains different types of shoes but all from the same brand, you probably want:

• An ad template that generates one ad and contains copy that focuses on the brand.
• Keyword templates that generate brand keywords, keywords for each type of shoe in the ad group, and keywords for each product name/item title.

In this scenario, users searching for a brand, type of shoe, or specific shoe model will all see an appropriate ad that focuses on the brand.

If instead you did the following:

• An ad template that generates an ad for each type of shoe in the ad group.
• Keyword templates that generate brand keywords, keywords for each type of shoe in the ad group, and keywords for each product name/item title.

In this scenario, you rely on the engine to make sure that searches for a specific type of shoe end up displaying an ad for the same type of shoe. 

Reuse ad templates across ad groups in the inventory plan

You can reuse an ad template in any ad group template throughout the inventory plan. This makes it easy to create a single ad template that reuses part of your ad copy for a group of similar products in your inventory plan.

For example, if you're running a back to school promotion, you can create an ad template that emphasizes your value proposition in the heading or description. Then you can use the template in one ad group template that advertises brands of sneakers and in another ad group template that advertises specific types or colors of sneakers. If the ad copy is flexible enough, you could use the ad template in different campaigns that advertise different types of products.

If you plan to reuse the ad template in multiple ad group templates, make sure that the data you need to generate your ad copy will be available in the various ad templates. (As a precaution, you can specify alternative, static copy for the template to use if data is missing.)

Use text parameters to dynamically change ad copy

To reduce the number of ads you may need to generate, and to avoid potential delays with the ad approval process, you can use text parameters to dynamically change ad text based on the keyword that matches a customer's query.

For example, you can dynamically insert the keyword text directly into your ad copy, or insert prices or other values that you define as part of a keyword's properties. 

To use text parameters, add the parameter values to your keyword templates, then add the parameters to your ad templates as part of the copy in the headlines or description fields. Learn more.

Responsive search ads

Responsive search ads are generated by combining ad copy you provide into text ads. Various combinations of your ad copy are tested to eventually show only the highest performing versions to potential customers. Responsive search ads will soon become the default text ad type displayed by Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising.

Expanded text ads

Expanded text ads are an ad format that presents more information about your products and services than standard text ads. Baidu only supports standard text ads.

For all engine accounts except Baidu, an inventory plan provides ad templates that generate expanded text ads. For Baidu accounts, an inventory plan provides ad templates for generating standard text ads.

Soon, you’ll no longer be able to create or edit expanded text ads in your Google Ads, Microsoft Advertising, and Yahoo! Japan Ads campaigns. The engines will continue to serve expanded text ads, and you'll still see reports on their performance going forward.

We strongly encourage you to transition to responsive search ads in your campaigns and ad builder and inventory management templates.

• Learn more about this change to expanded text ads in the Google Ads Help Center. 
• Learn more about this change to expanded text ads in the Microsoft Advertising Blog.
• Learn more about this change to expanded text ads in the Yahoo! Japan Ads Help Center.
• Learn more about this change to ad builder and inventory management templates in the Search Ads 360 Help Center.

Create ad copy

Enter settings for the new ad as described below. Note that headlines, descriptions, and paths support fallback text. The individual assets taken from headline and description are optimized to show the best performing creative, and the fallbacks are used only if the asset generated is too long.

• Headline: Between 3 and 15 are required, each with a limit of 30 characters. Each headline can have up to 7 fallbacks.
• Descriptions: Between 2 and 4 are required, each with a limit of 90 characters. Each description can have up to 7 fallbacks.
• Ad destination URL: The URL that your ad will direct customers to upon clicking your ad.
• Path and Path 2 (optional): The URL path that will appear in the ad. The path you specify here is combined with the domain name from the ad’s destination URL. This field gives potential customers an idea of where on your site they’ll land after clicking your ad. It doesn’t have to be the exact destination URL where they’ll land. Each path can have up to 7 fallbacks.
• Ad tracking URL template (optional): The Search Ads 360 URL template for the ad.
• Final URL suffix (optional): Parameters that are attached to the end of your landing page URL.
• Custom parameters (optional): Defines parameters and values you can add to the ad's landing page URL or URL template. If custom parameters defined at a higher level use the same name as the ones you define here, the parameter values here override the values from the higher level.

Create an ad template

Here's an overview of creating an ad template (the details are below):

1. Specify the ad multiplier and optional filters.
2. Enter formulas for ad copy and URLs. 
3. Preview some of the ads that will be generated.

If you've already created an ad template for another ad group template in the current plan, you can reuse the template.

1. Specify the ad multiplier and optional filters

To specify multipliers and filters for a new ad template:

1. Navigate to an advertiser.

   Steps for navigating to an advertiser

   1. Click the navigation bar to display navigation options.

   2. In the "Agency" list, click on the agency that contains the advertiser. You can search for an agency by name or scroll through the list.

   3. In the "Advertiser" list, click on the advertiser.

   4. Click Apply or press the Enter key.

   Search Ads 360 displays the advertiser page, which contains data for all of the advertiser’s engine accounts.

2. In the left navigation panel, click Templates.
3. Click the Inventory management tab and click the name of an inventory plan.
4. In a row that contains an ad group template, click + and select Responsive search ad or Text ad.
5. Enter a name for the template. The name appears in the reporting table for the inventory plan. You can also filter on the name to see performance metrics for all ads generated by the template.
6. Under Multiplier, click +Feed column and select a column from your feed that uniquely identifies the product or group of products you want in each ad. The list contains all of the product attributes defined in the inventory feed you selected for the inventory plan.
   
   To generate ads from a unique combination of values, click +Feed column and select another column.
   
   If you leave the ad multiplier unspecified, each ad group will contain only one ad.
    
7. Optionally enter a filter to generate ads for specific types of items in your inventory feed. For example, use a filter to generate ads only for "leather", "suede", "canvas", or "mesh" loafers in each ad group.
   
   To enter a filter:
   1. Under Feed filters click +Attribute or metric and select an attribute from the inventory feed.
      The list contains all of the product attributes defined in the inventory feed you selected for the inventory plan.
   2. Select an operator, such as Equals or Starts with.
      If you need complex filters, you can use regular expressions in the filter.
   3. Enter a value to match.
   4. You can specify additional filters. Ads will generate only for those items that match all of the attributes.
      For example, if you add Price Greater than $50 to the filter in the previous step, the template will only generate ads for items that cost more than $50.
   5. To remove a filter, click the X that appears at the end of the line.
8. Click the Preview button to see the list of products that match the filter.
9. Specify criteria for removing and pausing ads.
10. When you've selected the multipliers and filters you want, click Next.
    The editor for ad settings appears.

Status settings for ads

By default ads are created in the active state, and Search Ads 360 removes an ad when all of its inventory items no longer appear in the feed. In the Status section, choose any of the following settings:

• When items are no longer found in the feed, set the status to:
  • Removed: Search Ads 360 removes an ad when all of its inventory items no longer appear in the feed. For example, if you use the Product type level 5 inventory attribute as the multiplier and then you later remove a specific product type from the feed, the ad that was generated for the removed product type will be removed.

    Note that while you can include a removed ad in reports, the removed ad cannot be re-activated. When at least one inventory item matching the ad multiplier and filters is returned to the feed, Search Ads 360 generates a new ad. Performance data from the old ad is not applied to the new ad.

  • Paused: Search Ads 360 pauses an ad when all of its inventory items no longer appear in the feed. For example, if you use the Product type level 5 inventory attribute as the multiplier and then you later remove a specific product type from the feed, the ad that was generated for the removed product type will be paused.

    When at least one inventory item matching the ad multiplier and filters is returned to the feed, Search Ads 360 resumes the ad.

  • Current status: Search Ads 360 doesn't change the ad's status, even if all of its inventory items no longer appear in the feed.
• Pause ads when a condition is met: Pauses ads when an update to your inventory data matches conditions you specify in a formula. For example, you can pause ads when the availability of related inventory items falls below a quantity threshold you specify. Search Ads 360 resumes the ads if your inventory data no longer matches the conditions.

If you're using an ad template in more than one ad group template, be aware that these status settings apply to all ads generated by the template across all ad groups and campaigns.

Each ad group can contain up to three RSAs.

Occasionally, an RSA template might create too many RSAs in an ad group. To reduce the number of RSAs, do any of the following:

• Remove multipliers from the RSA template
• Move multipliers from the RSA template to the ad group template
• Merge the headlines and descriptions from the RSAs into one RSA.

2. Enter ad copy and URLs

1. After you specify the ad multiplier and optional filters, Search Ads 360 displays ad settings.
   1. Enter settings as you would for an ad in a manual campaign.
      • You can use functions, inventory attributes, and formula columns in any setting to generate unique values for each ad. You can also use text parameters to dynamically change ad text based on the keyword that matches a customer's query.
      • To use the same value for all ads, enter static text or numbers depending on the setting's data type.

      Use the following syntax for ad settings:

      • Static text and numbers can be entered directly into a template.
      • Dates always need to be entered in a function, such as the date function.
      • All functions, inventory attributes, and formula columns need to be surrounded by[ ] (square brackets) 
        To include the [ ] characters in your ad copy, escape them as follows:
        \[ \]

      Example: \[*EngineAccountType*\]) - Escapes a macro. 

      Here are some examples of basic settings:

      Setting	Value	Description
      Headline 1	[Item_brand]  fall fashions	Combines an inventory attribute with static text to generate headlines such as: ComfyWalkers fall fashions SpeedyShoes fall fashions
      Headline 2	Prices starting at  [to_string(min(Item_sale_price))]	Combines static text with a function. The function uses the min(ATTRIBUTE) function to select the lowest price from all products in the ad group.
      Description line 1	Sale ends [to_string(c:"sale ends date")]	Combines static text with a formula column that calculates the end of the sale.
      Ad destination URL	https://example.com	Uses static text to output the same destination URL for all ads generated by this template

2. Strongly recommended: Provide alternative copy to use if the generated ad copy is invalid. As an example, an alternate headline would be used if your formula generated a headline that was too long. You can provide alternatives in one of two ways:
   • Manually, by clicking +Fallback and entering your alternative copy.
   • Using multi-line paste, by pasting your ad copy in using the following syntax:
     
     "Headline1"
[fallback] "Headline1.1"
[fallback] "Headline1.2"
"Headline2"
[fallback] "Headline2.1"
[fallback] "Headline2.2"
"Headline3"
[fallback] "Headline3.1"
[fallback] "Headline3.2"
"Description1"
[fallback] "Description1.1"
"Description2"
[fallback] "Description2.1"
"Destination URL"
"Path"
     
     You can paste the block of copy into any of the text fields.
3. Click Next. 

3. Preview ad settings

1. After entering your settings (as outlined earlier), in the last step before saving the template, Search Ads 360 shows a preview window containing up to the first 50 campaigns that will be generated with the current settings and inventory data.
2. Look through the list of campaigns to make sure your formulas create the campaign names, budgets, and other output that you expect.
3. You can click the Previous button, adjust your formulas as needed, and return to the preview. 
4. When you're satisfied with the preview, click Save template.

Search Ads 360 saves the template and pauses it. The template won't be applied to the plan's inventory data until you change its status to Active.

Next steps

Create at least one keyword template, then change the plan's status to active. If you've already created one of these templates in the current plan, you can use the existing template instead of creating a new one.

Reuse an existing ad template

If you've already created an ad template for an ad group template in the current plan, do the following to reuse the template in another ad group template:

1. Navigate to an advertiser.

   Steps for navigating to an advertiser

   1. Click the navigation bar to display navigation options.

   2. In the "Agency" list, click on the agency that contains the advertiser. You can search for an agency by name or scroll through the list.

   3. In the "Advertiser" list, click on the advertiser.

   4. Click Apply or press the Enter key.

   Search Ads 360 displays the advertiser page, which contains data for all of the advertiser’s engine accounts.

2. In the left navigation panel, click Templates.
3. Click the Inventory plans tab and click the name of an inventory plan.
4. In the reporting table, click  (gear icon) next to the ad template.

   If the template isn't visible in the table, click ▶ next to the campaign template in which you originally created the ad group template, then click ▶ next to the ad group template.

   
5. From the Use in ad group template list, select one or more additional campaign templates in inventory plan.
6. Click Save template.

If the template is active, and if the newly selected ad group is active, Search Ads 360 automatically applies the template the next time it evaluates inventory data.