Just when you thought Google had provided all the ad extensions any AdWords advertiser could need, there’s a new one: structured snippets.
Based on the auto-generated dynamic structured snippets released earlier this year, structured snippets are somewhat similar to callout extensions. They highlight an aspect of your product or services, however, whereas callout extensions are used to emphasise the points of difference. Both extensions are limited to 25 characters.
When creating a structured snippet, advertisers choose from a preset selection of headers (among them, amenities, brands, courses, destinations, shows, styles and types).
Whereas an hotel might use callout extensions to highlight its central location and direct booking rates, it might use structured snippets to detail its amenities (gym, pool, wi-fi, and so on).
Why should you care?
We’re all for brevity and conciseness. But we’ve long been of the opinion that AdWords’ character limits are challenging when trying to convey the benefits and features of a brand or product. That’s why we’re a big fan of ad extensions — the more, the merrier.
Ad extensions provide more options to get your messaging right. Used properly, they can help improve clickthrough rates while providing searchers with more information before they get to your website.
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Jeremy is a Partner and Senior Consultant at SureFire. Jeremy has been working in search since 1996, when he joined the Australian search engine, LookSmart. After relocating to San Francisco, he was instrumental in the development of the company’s paid search ad platform. At analytics company Coremetrics (now owned by IBM) he established an in-house search agency managing campaigns for Coremetrics clients such as Macy’s, Bass Pro and Lands End. At Acxiom he managed members of the pioneering SEO firm Marketleap and worked with clients such as Capital One, American General Finance and Kaiser Health. Joining SureFire in 2009, he is the head of Paid Search Advertising and oversees the delivery of AdWords and other PPC campaigns. He also helps clients make sense of their website data.
