Tag Archives: Google Ads

Introducing the new Search Ads 360

A lot has changed since Search Ads 360 was developed more than ten years ago. The ways people search and the expectations for the ads they see have evolved and expanded. As a result, advertisers are managing more complexity than ever before and turn to platforms like Search Ads 360 to simplify campaign management, measure performance and grow their business.

Today we’re introducing the new Search Ads 360 to help advertisers be ready for what’s next. We’re making the platform easier to use with a new user interface, and adding support for more search engine features and campaign types based on feedback from advertisers who told us they want an easier and more convenient way to build campaigns across advertising platforms. You’ll now have immediate support for most new Google Ads features and improved support for other channels and search engines, like Microsoft Advertising and Yahoo! Japan. We’ve also built new enterprise features that are only available in the new Search Ads 360 which will give you new ways to centralize and scale your day-to-day tasks across engines and accounts. As a result, now you’ll be able to get more of your work done from one place, which will save you time and help you drive better results.

Rebuilt on a Proven Platform

In order to help advertisers keep up with today’s demands, we redesigned and rebuilt Search Ads 360 using the same technology that powers Google Ads.

With this new common technology in place, the new Search Ads 360 will be able to manage and process more data than ever before — while still conforming to strict latency guidelines to deliver a fast user experience — which will unlock new enterprise innovations to help you centralize and scale your work. Second, it’ll offer immediate management support for most new features in Google Ads like Performance Max and Discovery campaigns.

It’s a total game-changer that most Google Ads content is now available for management. This not only extends productivity and automation, but unlocks the ability to activate things like Value Based Bidding in a way that was never before possible. Brent Ramos
Product Director, Adswerve

Let’s take a look at some of the key changes in the new Search Ads 360.

New Look, Faster Navigation

The refreshed look and feel of Search Ads 360 introduces a familiar user experience that closely resembles search engine tools like Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising — platforms that many Search Ads 360 users are familiar with — making navigation faster and easier for enterprise marketers to manage campaigns and drive performance.

I found the new simplified user interface easier to navigate and use. The new budget forecasting capabilities, reporting features, and reduced complexity allowed me to streamline workflows and minimize my workload by at least 20% last month.* Elizaveta Markina
Search Specialist, OMD NZ
Gif of the new interface

The new Search Ads 360 interface

Improved Search Engine Support

With a more modern infrastructure, the new Search Ads 360 is also able to offer better support across multiple advertising channels and search engines, including third-party partners. This means advertisers can access more features from other search engines than ever before. For example, the new Search Ads 360 introduces support for a number of new Yahoo! Japan features, like Dynamic Ads For Search and sitelink extension scheduling, as well as over ten additional Microsoft Advertising features including responsive search ads, call extensions, local inventory ads and additional Microsoft audience types like customer match.

The new user interface in Search Ads 360 help Media.Monks account teams identify optimization opportunities on a more streamlined basis. In fact, since we started using the new experience, the team is saving 2-3 hours per week. Jorie Fox
Director, Media.Monks (formerly MightyHive)

This added support will enable less task switching between advertising platforms so you can focus on getting more of your work done all in one place. We’ll continue to add more features and channel support in the coming quarters, and we encourage you to continue sharing feedback on what you’d like to see added.

Advanced Enterprise Innovations

We’ve also added a number of features unique to the new Search Ads 360. For instance, the new Search Ads 360 takes enterprise workflows to the next level by giving you new ways to centralize and scale your day-to-day tasks and key activities — like campaign management, automated rules and labels — and you'll now be able to make these changes across multiple advertisers at the same time.

"The new Search Ads 360 has unlocked value for our team: from the ability to manage new extensions for Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising, to cross-engine performance overviews, and editing campaigns from multiple accounts in a unified and familiar interface. All of these improvements have enabled us to manage paid search much more easily."
—Rodrigo Pozos, SEM Manager, Aeromexico

Gif of the rules builder UI

Automated rules builder in the new Search Ads 360

Current Search Ads 360 customers use automated campaign building features like inventory management and ad builder to efficiently manage their marketing at scale. In the new Search Ads 360 these will become a single unified feature called “Templates.” We expect this to become available later this year, at which point you’ll be able to activate business data across client accounts to automatically build and update your ads at scale using your own data feed.

Another great feature in the new Search Ads 360 is “Performance Center” — an improvement to budget management — that will take you beyond simply managing budgets. We expect this to become fully available later this year, at which point you’ll be able to incorporate enterprise planning capabilities like improved forecasting across search engines where you can explore different hypothetical scenarios to plan your media budgets.

Gif of the Performance Center UI

Performance Center in the new Search Ads 360

If you’d like to learn more about these and other new features in the new Search Ads 360, please reach out to your account representative or contact the support team.

The Road Ahead

This is an exciting new chapter for Search Ads 360 that paves the way for the next generation of enterprise innovations to optimize workflows and help you maximize performance. We look forward to building the future of enterprise Search together, and we encourage you to share your feedback so we can continue improving Search Ads 360.

Over the next couple of months, current Search Ads 360 users can expect to start gaining access to the new Search Ads 360. To get started, we recommend diving into the new Skillshop learning pathGet Started with Search Ads 360 for an in depth overview.

*Individual results may vary

Get ready for Smart Shopping and Local campaign upgrades

New year, same trend: Consumers continue to tap into an ever-growing number of places to get inspiration and find what they need. This past holiday season, 54% of shoppers used five or more channels, like video and social media, to shop over a two-day period.[ec0303]

Performance Max uses Google’s automation to help advertisers reach shoppers as they browse for things they love — online and in stores.[053cc9]It builds on Smart Shopping and Local campaigns to deliver the same foundational features, while adding brand new inventory and automation insights. Starting in April, you can begin upgrading your Smart Shopping and Local campaigns to Performance Max to access additional inventory and formats across YouTube, Search text ads and Discover.[d34fff]Based on early testing, advertisers who upgrade Smart Shopping campaigns to Performance Max see an average increase of 12% in conversion value at the same or better return on ad spend (ROAS).[7cb4f9]

Performance Max allows you to grow online, offline or omnichannel sales by unlocking all of Google’s ad inventory from a single campaign with a product feed. For example, you can transform your Video ads into your digital storefront and highlight your top products on YouTube — right where valuable customers are watching relevant video content every day.

Learn how to upgrade Smart Shopping and Local campaigns to Performance Max

Here’s a preview of the upgrade process so you know what to expect and how to plan ahead to set your campaigns up for success.[c7f14c]

Keep these key milestones in mind as you prepare for the upgrade:

  • Create new campaigns with Performance Max: You can continue using your existing Smart Shopping and Local campaigns until you’ve upgraded them to Performance Max later this year. For any new campaigns you create in Google Ads, start using Performance Max. You’ll access ad inventory that’s already available in Smart Shopping and Local campaigns plus new inventory and formats — including across YouTube, Search text ads and Discover.[d34fff]
  • Upgrade with a one-click tool: Starting in April, you can easily upgrade your Smart Shopping campaigns with a new “one-click” tool in Google Ads. You’ll be able to upgrade your Local campaigns with the tool starting in June. The tool gives you flexibility to upgrade specific campaigns or all of your campaigns at once.[076e64]Learnings from your existing campaigns will be used in your new Performance Max campaigns to maintain consistent performance.
  • Upgrade automatically: From July through September, your Smart Shopping campaigns will be automatically upgraded for you. Your Local campaigns will be automatically upgraded from August through September. You will no longer be able to create new Smart Shopping and Local campaigns once your existing campaigns are automatically upgraded. The automatic upgrade process will conclude by the end of September to ensure you’re well prepared to use Performance Max for the 2022 holiday season.

Leading e-commerce partners like Shopify, WooCommerce and BigCommerce are already working to support Performance Max so more merchants can benefit from new inventory and formats to connect with their customers. All merchants and partners will be able to upgrade their Smart Shopping and Local campaigns through the Google Ads API later this year. Learn more about the process in our developer blog.

Prepare for campaign upgrades with new resources

Tune in to our upcoming webinar in February, where product experts will demonstrate the one-click upgrade tool and dive into best practices for creating new Performance Max campaigns. They’ll also explain the new technology used in your campaign upgrades to help you get better results, faster.

Meanwhile, our updated Performance Max best practices guide has new recommendations geared towards achieving your online and offline goals. You can also explore the infographic below to understand how to use Performance Max with other Google Ads campaigns.

Infographic of how to use Performance Max together with other campaign types based on advertiser objectives: Lead Generation, Online Sales, Offline Sales (omnichannel) or Offline Sales (offline-only). The guidance is for advertisers to maximize performance in their Search campaigns first. At the bottom, it shows three options for how to grow performance across other channels. Advertisers can test Performance Max to access all Google Ads inventory from a single campaign, upgrade to Performance Max later this year if they’re currently using Smart Shopping or Local campaigns, and/or use Video, Display or Discovery campaigns if they want to increase performance on specific channels or reach specific audiences.

In the coming months, we’ll share tools and tips to help you at each milestone and make your upgrade process as smooth as possible. In the meantime, share your questions and comments and we’ll address them in our upcoming webinar. You can also follow @AdsLiasion to stay updated throughout the process.

“Disapproved Ads Auditor” tool

Posted by Nir Kalush, Dvir Kalev, Chen Yoveg, Elad Ben-David

Ads Review Tool

This tool flags (and optionally deletes) policy violating ads across your accounts. Advertisers can learn from the output to ensure their ads are compliant with Google Ads Policies at all times.

Business Challenge:

Advertisers operating at scale need a solution to holistically review policy violating ads across their accounts so they can ensure compliance with Google’s Ad Policies. As Google introduces more policies and enforcement mechanisms, advertisers need to continue checking their accounts to ensure they comply with Google’s Ads Policies.

Solution Overview:

“Disapproved Ads Auditor” is a tool that enables advertisers to review at scale all disapproved ads across their Google Ads accounts. This view allows advertisers to proactively audit their accounts , analyze the ad disapprovals holistically and identify learnings to minimize and reduce submission of potentially policy violating ads.

The tool is based on a Python script, which can be run in either of the following modes:

  • “Audit Mode”- export an output of disapproved ads across your accounts
  • “Remove Mode” - delete currently disapproved ads and log details.

There are a few output files (see here) which are saved locally under the “output” folder and there is an optional feature to export on BigQuery for further data analysis (“Disapproved Ads Auditor” dataset).

Skills Required:

Google Products Used:

  • Google Ads
  • BigQuery

Estimated time to implement the solution: ~2h

Implementation instructions: View on github

Impact:

“Disapproved Ads Auditor” tool automates auditing ads across your accounts to provide you insights into non compliant ads. You can take the learnings from the output to ensure ads are compliant with Google Ads Policies and avoid creating non compliant ads. Moreover, you can optionally remove disapproved ads.

An update on our Privacy Sandbox commitments

For further background on this topic, please see our blog from June.

Since we announced our Privacy Sandbox commitments earlier this year, we have continued to work with the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to address feedback that was raised as part of its public consultation process. We have also continued to update and seek feedback from the market and the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) on our proposals.

We are determined to ensure that the Privacy Sandbox is developed in a way that works for the entire ecosystem and, as part of this process, we have now offered revised commitments, which can be found in full on the CMA’s website.

These revisions underline our commitment to ensuring that the changes we make in Chrome will apply in the same way to Google’s ad tech products as to any third party, and that the Privacy Sandbox APIs will be designed, developed and implemented with regulatory oversight and input from the CMA and the ICO. We also support the objectives set out yesterday in the ICO’s Opinion on Data protection and privacy expectations for online advertising proposals, including the importance of supporting and developing privacy-safe advertising tools that protect people’s privacy and prevent covert tracking.

The revised commitments incorporate a number of changes including:

  1. Monitoring and reporting. We have offered to appoint an independent Monitoring Trustee who will have the access and technical expertise needed to ensure compliance.
  2. Testing and consultation. We have offered the CMA more extensive testing commitments, along with a more transparent process to take market feedback on the Privacy Sandbox proposals.
  3. Further clarity on our use of data. We are underscoring our commitment not to use Google first-party personal data to track users for targeting and measurement of ads shown on non-Google websites. Our commitments would also restrict the use of Chrome browsing history and Analytics data to do this on Google or non-Google websites.

If the CMA accepts these commitments, we will apply them globally.

We continue to appreciate the thoughtful approach and engagement from the CMA and ICO as we develop our Privacy Sandbox proposals. We welcome, and will carefully consider, any comments that people provide during the consultation process.

An update on our Privacy Sandbox commitments

For further background on this topic, please see our blog from June.

Since we announced our Privacy Sandbox commitments earlier this year, we have continued to work with the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to address feedback that was raised as part of its public consultation process. We have also continued to update and seek feedback from the market and the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) on our proposals.

We are determined to ensure that the Privacy Sandbox is developed in a way that works for the entire ecosystem and, as part of this process, we have now offered revised commitments, which can be found in full on the CMA’s website.

These revisions underline our commitment to ensuring that the changes we make in Chrome will apply in the same way to Google’s ad tech products as to any third party, and that the Privacy Sandbox APIs will be designed, developed and implemented with regulatory oversight and input from the CMA and the ICO. We also support the objectives set out yesterday in the ICO’s Opinion on Data protection and privacy expectations for online advertising proposals, including the importance of supporting and developing privacy-safe advertising tools that protect people’s privacy and prevent covert tracking.

The revised commitments incorporate a number of changes including:

  1. Monitoring and reporting. We have offered to appoint an independent Monitoring Trustee who will have the access and technical expertise needed to ensure compliance.
  2. Testing and consultation. We have offered the CMA more extensive testing commitments, along with a more transparent process to take market feedback on the Privacy Sandbox proposals.
  3. Further clarity on our use of data. We are underscoring our commitment not to use Google first-party personal data to track users for targeting and measurement of ads shown on non-Google websites. Our commitments would also restrict the use of Chrome browsing history and Analytics data to do this on Google or non-Google websites.

If the CMA accepts these commitments, we will apply them globally.

We continue to appreciate the thoughtful approach and engagement from the CMA and ICO as we develop our Privacy Sandbox proposals. We welcome, and will carefully consider, any comments that people provide during the consultation process.

Read Article

Our commitments for the Privacy Sandbox

Google proposes a set of commitments for Privacy Sandbox to the U.K.’s competition regulator

Read Article

Power your holiday strategy with helpful insights

This year’s holiday shopping season is shaping up to be one of the biggest yet. In fact, 53% of consumers plan to shop online more this year compared to last year.[1b9db3]To help you prepare, check out the Google Shopping Holiday 100, featuring our predictions for the most popular categories and products in the U.S. this holiday season.

The Holiday 100 is a great way to help you understand what people are shopping for. The Insights page in Google Ads was designed to keep businesses up to date on similar trends and insights, which is especially useful during the holiday season. In the coming weeks, you’ll see four new features roll out on the Insights page globally to help you drive results this holiday season and beyond.

Demand forecasts (beta): Previously, the Insights page focused on historical performance — trends that explained why your ads performed the way they did. Now, you’ll see more forward-looking trends with demand forecasts (beta). By combining machine learning technology with past seasonal search trends, these forecasts predict emerging search interest over the next six months. These insights are personalized to your business, meaning that you’ll see trends based on the categories where you advertise.

For example, let’s say you’re a beauty retailer. You might see a prediction that search interest in "perfumes & fragrances” will start to trend in the middle of November with an increase of 27%. Interest then peaks to 93% on Black Friday and tapers off in the following weeks. To help you understand this forecast, you’ll see trendlines for predicted search interest, actual search interest, and your clicks (the amount of traffic you’ve already received from this trend).

On the right side of the page, you can view trend details to see the specific searches that are predicted to increase — like “clean perfume” or “sandalwood.” These insights help you better prepare your budgeting, marketing and merchandising plans to meet the rise in consumer demand.

A desktop screen showing increasing interest for "perfumes & fragrances" on a line graph
Our clients find strategic value in demand forecasts, especially as we approach Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Some of our clients are even using this data to help inform inventory and product development. Aaron Levy
Head of Paid Search, Tinuiti

Consumer interest insights (beta): Are you interested in learning how people search for your business? Consumer interest insights (beta) aggregate and anonymize the top-performing search query themes that drive performance in your campaigns. You’ll see the number of people who searched for each theme, its growth, and how it performed in your account.

As that beauty retailer, you might see that the top themes in the “perfumes'' category are “affordable” and “floral,” and that your overall impressions for the theme increased by 12%. These themes can be found in the search themes section of the page, and can help you update your marketing and product feed copy to include similar words and phrases.

A desktop screen showing a "consumer spotlight" page for a beauty retailer

Audience insights (beta): With audience insights (beta), you can understand more about the interests and affinities of your customers, including what creative resonates the most with them. As the beauty retailer, for example, you might discover that people interested in beauty products prefer the headline “10 must-buy winter fragrances” — and that the audience took part in 57% of the conversions in your campaign.

A desktop screen showing a page titled "understand who is engaging with your campaign," with different boxes for audience insights

Change history insights and auction insights (beta): Now, you can find both change history insights and auction insights throughout the Insights page. This can help you understand how shifts in auction competition or changes you made in your account impacted performance.

Many businesses are already using the Insights page to drive growth. Etsy saw an increase in searches for “Sweatshirts & Hoodies” on the Insights page and used that information to help inform their website merchandising, content strategy and ad copy. This contributed to a 49% lift in sales for Google Search and Shopping campaigns in that sub-category.

These updates will launch in the coming weeks at both the campaign and account level. In the meantime, visit the Insights page on Google Ads to check out the latest trends for your business.

Power your holiday strategy with helpful insights

This year’s holiday shopping season is shaping up to be one of the biggest yet. In fact, 53% of consumers plan to shop online more this year compared to last year.[1b9db3]To help you prepare, check out the Google Shopping Holiday 100, featuring our predictions for the most popular categories and products in the U.S. this holiday season.

The Holiday 100 is a great way to help you understand what people are shopping for. The Insights page in Google Ads was designed to keep businesses up to date on similar trends and insights, which is especially useful during the holiday season. In the coming weeks, you’ll see four new features roll out on the Insights page globally to help you drive results this holiday season and beyond.

Demand forecasts (beta): Previously, the Insights page focused on historical performance — trends that explained why your ads performed the way they did. Now, you’ll see more forward-looking trends with demand forecasts (beta). By combining machine learning technology with past seasonal search trends, these forecasts predict emerging search interest over the next six months. These insights are personalized to your business, meaning that you’ll see trends based on the categories where you advertise.

For example, let’s say you’re a beauty retailer. You might see a prediction that search interest in "perfumes & fragrances” will start to trend in the middle of November with an increase of 27%. Interest then peaks to 93% on Black Friday and tapers off in the following weeks. To help you understand this forecast, you’ll see trendlines for predicted search interest, actual search interest, and your clicks (the amount of traffic you’ve already received from this trend).

On the right side of the page, you can view trend details to see the specific searches that are predicted to increase — like “clean perfume” or “sandalwood.” These insights help you better prepare your budgeting, marketing and merchandising plans to meet the rise in consumer demand.

A desktop screen showing increasing interest for "perfumes & fragrances" on a line graph
Our clients find strategic value in demand forecasts, especially as we approach Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Some of our clients are even using this data to help inform inventory and product development. Aaron Levy
Head of Paid Search, Tinuiti

Consumer interest insights (beta): Are you interested in learning how people search for your business? Consumer interest insights (beta) aggregate and anonymize the top-performing search query themes that drive performance in your campaigns. You’ll see the number of people who searched for each theme, its growth, and how it performed in your account.

As that beauty retailer, you might see that the top themes in the “perfumes'' category are “affordable” and “floral,” and that your overall impressions for the theme increased by 12%. These themes can be found in the search themes section of the page, and can help you update your marketing and product feed copy to include similar words and phrases.

A desktop screen showing a "consumer spotlight" page for a beauty retailer

Audience insights (beta): With audience insights (beta), you can understand more about the interests and affinities of your customers, including what creative resonates the most with them. As the beauty retailer, for example, you might discover that people interested in beauty products prefer the headline “10 must-buy winter fragrances” — and that the audience took part in 57% of the conversions in your campaign.

A desktop screen showing a page titled "understand who is engaging with your campaign," with different boxes for audience insights

Change history insights and auction insights (beta): Now, you can find both change history insights and auction insights throughout the Insights page. This can help you understand how shifts in auction competition or changes you made in your account impacted performance.

Many businesses are already using the Insights page to drive growth. Etsy saw an increase in searches for “Sweatshirts & Hoodies” on the Insights page and used that information to help inform their website merchandising, content strategy and ad copy. This contributed to a 49% lift in sales for Google Search and Shopping campaigns in that sub-category.

These updates will launch in the coming weeks at both the campaign and account level. In the meantime, visit the Insights page on Google Ads to check out the latest trends for your business.

Helping European small businesses grow and succeed

Today marks the beginning of the European SME week, a time to recognize the contribution that millions of small and medium-sized businesses make to Europe’s economy, as well as an opportunity to explore how they can be supported to continue to grow and thrive.

This time of year is especially critical for small businesses. Shoppers really care about supporting their local communities, with 56% of holiday shoppers in Europe, the Middle East and Africa saying they will intentionally shop more at local small businesses this festive season.

Small businesses are the key to recovery from the pandemic, and our digital tools have helped them sustain their business through lockdowns and enable new jobs, growth and exports. That’s why we rapidly adapted products to improve support and provided training to help them make the most of digital technology. Supporting small businesses is a group effort, though — and the right skills and tools need to be underpinned by the right policies.


Providing helpful tools to connect with customers

The past year and a half has underlined the importance of technology in all parts of life — and small businesses are no exception. Research has found that small businesses in Europe with a sophisticated use of digital tools were able to build a ‘digital safety net’ during the pandemic, resulting in 80% better sales and 60% better revenue.

One example of this is the German company, das schöne leben. Opened in 2016, the store specializes in exceptional food and designer products for everyday living. When the pandemic hit, the founders of the store started advertising online alongside their in-store sales, and set up a Business Profile on Google Search and Maps to help existing and potential customers find them. Das schöne leben now has customers of all ages throughout Germany and has tripled their direct online orders with their first in-house search campaign.

A smiling picture of Manon Weßels, the owner of das schöne leben

Manon Weßels, owner of das schöne leben

Particularly for smaller businesses, Google Ads is the key for visibility and findability online. We would never have reached so many suitable new customers without the advertisements. Manon Weßels
Owner, das schöne leben

The example of das schöne leben and countless others show that online ads help businesses of all sizes find audiences they otherwise may lack access to, help them enter new markets and help build brand awareness.

At Google, we continue to innovate and invest in making all our products and tools more helpful — launching more than 200 features since March 2020 to help businesses connect with their customers in this shifting landscape.

We're also making it even easier for small businesses to manage their presence and connect with customers online. Businesses in Europe can now easily claim and verify their Business Profile directly on Google Search or the Google Maps app, and respond to messages directly from Search. Having more complete information online can have a huge impact for businesses: in Germany, for example, complete Business Profiles receive an average of over five times more calls compared to an incomplete profile. Moving forward, we recommend small businesses manage their profiles directly on Search or Maps. To keep things simple, “Google My Business” is being renamed “Google Business Profile.”


Ensuring that SMBs have the skills to get ahead

We know that providing the right tools is only helpful if businesses are able to use them. To make the most of the digital opportunities available to them, business owners need the right skills. Research has found that 22% of small business owners feel they lack the skills and knowledge to increase their use of digital tools.

Today, we are delighted to kick off our first-ever ‘Google.org Skills Week’ to help support select nonprofits mentoring thousands of underserved small business owners in Europe through scaled tech solutions. As a recent study highlights, medium, small and micro-enterprises — especially those led by women, young people, ethnic minorities, and migrants — were significantly impacted by COVID-19 with 70-80% facing major financial difficulties.

During this week, Google volunteers and product experts will share their skills and best practices through workshops, design sprints and 1:1 mentorship, to help educate select nonprofits that provide mentorship to underserved SMB owners. This week of training touches on many different skills including product management, design, marketing and AdGrants, Artificial Intelligence, YouTube, impact measurement, and aims to better equip the nonprofits to help small businesses improve their online presence.

A video about helping small businesses
10:25

We have seen how powerful these skills can be in helping to grow and scale businesses across Europe.

For Andrea Li Puma, the owner of the food truck Pastammore based in Bucharest, access to digital skills was essential to reach new customers and grow his business. The pandemic meant that Andrea had to take his food business online and pivot to deliver Pastammore’s homemade pasta directly to consumers at home. With support from Google.org-funded nonprofit Digital Nation, Andrea was able to develop an online marketing strategy, optimize his website, and launch new advertising campaigns that helped Pastammore survive through the tough period and even grow with sales increase by 15%.

A picture of Andrea Li Puma, the owner of the food truck Pastammore based in Bucharest, in a white coat in front of his truck

Andrea Li Puma, owner of food truck Pastammore in Bucharest

Since 2015, over 18 million people across Europe, the Middle East and Africa have participated in our Grow with Google training, resulting in more than four million people getting a new job, growing their career or growing their business*.

To make sure our programs best help tackle the barriers to digital success, we developed partnerships with training experts, public agencies and policy makers. For example, in France we collaborate with FFAC — French Association of Local Stores — in supporting 30,000 local shop owners everywhere in France in their digital transition.


A more inclusive economic recovery

The pandemic has been disruptive and small businesses have been at the sharp end of this change. While challenging, this past year and a half has also underlined how resilient small businesses can thrive through partnership, openness and innovation. Europe has a great opportunity to build a digital, inclusive, and sustainable recovery that works for everyone. We are excited to play our part in this.

*Analysis by Google based on internal data and a survey by Ipsos from Sep 2016 to Sep 2021 amongst EMEA residents trained via Digital Workshop.

Helping European small businesses grow and succeed

Today marks the beginning of the European SME week, a time to recognize the contribution that millions of small and medium-sized businesses make to Europe’s economy, as well as an opportunity to explore how they can be supported to continue to grow and thrive.

This time of year is especially critical for small businesses. Shoppers really care about supporting their local communities, with 56% of holiday shoppers in Europe, the Middle East and Africa saying they will intentionally shop more at local small businesses this festive season.

Small businesses are the key to recovery from the pandemic, and our digital tools have helped them sustain their business through lockdowns and enable new jobs, growth and exports. That’s why we rapidly adapted products to improve support and provided training to help them make the most of digital technology. Supporting small businesses is a group effort, though — and the right skills and tools need to be underpinned by the right policies.


Providing helpful tools to connect with customers

The past year and a half has underlined the importance of technology in all parts of life — and small businesses are no exception. Research has found that small businesses in Europe with a sophisticated use of digital tools were able to build a ‘digital safety net’ during the pandemic, resulting in 80% better sales and 60% better revenue.

One example of this is the German company, das schöne leben. Opened in 2016, the store specializes in exceptional food and designer products for everyday living. When the pandemic hit, the founders of the store started advertising online alongside their in-store sales, and set up a Business Profile on Google Search and Maps to help existing and potential customers find them. Das schöne leben now has customers of all ages throughout Germany and has tripled their direct online orders with their first in-house search campaign.

A smiling picture of Manon Weßels, the owner of das schöne leben

Manon Weßels, owner of das schöne leben

Particularly for smaller businesses, Google Ads is the key for visibility and findability online. We would never have reached so many suitable new customers without the advertisements. Manon Weßels
Owner, das schöne leben

The example of das schöne leben and countless others show that online ads help businesses of all sizes find audiences they otherwise may lack access to, help them enter new markets and help build brand awareness.

At Google, we continue to innovate and invest in making all our products and tools more helpful — launching more than 200 features since March 2020 to help businesses connect with their customers in this shifting landscape.

We're also making it even easier for small businesses to manage their presence and connect with customers online. Businesses in Europe can now easily claim and verify their Business Profile directly on Google Search or the Google Maps app, and respond to messages directly from Search. Having more complete information online can have a huge impact for businesses: in Germany, for example, complete Business Profiles receive an average of over five times more calls compared to an incomplete profile. Moving forward, we recommend small businesses manage their profiles directly on Search or Maps. To keep things simple, “Google My Business” is being renamed “Google Business Profile.”


Ensuring that SMBs have the skills to get ahead

We know that providing the right tools is only helpful if businesses are able to use them. To make the most of the digital opportunities available to them, business owners need the right skills. Research has found that 22% of small business owners feel they lack the skills and knowledge to increase their use of digital tools.

Today, we are delighted to kick off our first-ever ‘Google.org Skills Week’ to help support select nonprofits mentoring thousands of underserved small business owners in Europe through scaled tech solutions. As a recent study highlights, medium, small and micro-enterprises — especially those led by women, young people, ethnic minorities, and migrants — were significantly impacted by COVID-19 with 70-80% facing major financial difficulties.

During this week, Google volunteers and product experts will share their skills and best practices through workshops, design sprints and 1:1 mentorship, to help educate select nonprofits that provide mentorship to underserved SMB owners. This week of training touches on many different skills including product management, design, marketing and AdGrants, Artificial Intelligence, YouTube, impact measurement, and aims to better equip the nonprofits to help small businesses improve their online presence.

A video about helping small businesses
10:25

We have seen how powerful these skills can be in helping to grow and scale businesses across Europe.

For Andrea Li Puma, the owner of the food truck Pastammore based in Bucharest, access to digital skills was essential to reach new customers and grow his business. The pandemic meant that Andrea had to take his food business online and pivot to deliver Pastammore’s homemade pasta directly to consumers at home. With support from Google.org-funded nonprofit Digital Nation, Andrea was able to develop an online marketing strategy, optimize his website, and launch new advertising campaigns that helped Pastammore survive through the tough period and even grow with sales increase by 15%.

A picture of Andrea Li Puma, the owner of the food truck Pastammore based in Bucharest, in a white coat in front of his truck

Andrea Li Puma, owner of food truck Pastammore in Bucharest

Since 2015, over 18 million people across Europe, the Middle East and Africa have participated in our Grow with Google training, resulting in more than four million people getting a new job, growing their career or growing their business*.

To make sure our programs best help tackle the barriers to digital success, we developed partnerships with training experts, public agencies and policy makers. For example, in France we collaborate with FFAC — French Association of Local Stores — in supporting 30,000 local shop owners everywhere in France in their digital transition.


A more inclusive economic recovery

The pandemic has been disruptive and small businesses have been at the sharp end of this change. While challenging, this past year and a half has also underlined how resilient small businesses can thrive through partnership, openness and innovation. Europe has a great opportunity to build a digital, inclusive, and sustainable recovery that works for everyone. We are excited to play our part in this.

*Analysis by Google based on internal data and a survey by Ipsos from Sep 2016 to Sep 2021 amongst EMEA residents trained via Digital Workshop.

Connect with local holiday shoppers

The holidays are quickly approaching and 40% of U.S. consumers have already started their holiday shopping. Supporting local businesses is top of mind this year. In fact, 60% of U.S. consumers who are planning to shop for the holidays say they will shop more at local small businesses.

If your stores are open for in-store shopping or dining, you know it's important to make sure your customers can easily find you online. We’ve unwrapped new local solutions plus a local holiday guide to help you stand out on Google and connect shoppers to your stores.

Engage with customers using your Business Profile

Starting this week, you can easily claim and verify your Business Profile directly on Google Search or the Google Maps app. Search for your business by name and you’ll see an option to claim and verify the associated Business Profile. Once your business is verified, you can edit your business’ information, including the address, store hours, photos and more.

A search results page on both desktop and mobile. Both show the Business Profile for “Mo’s Diner.” Options shown in clickable boxes with the titles “Get verified,” “add photo,” and “add business number.”

Update your Business Profile and engage with customers directly from Search and Maps.

We’re also adding new ways to get even more out of your Business Profile. You can now message customers directly from Search, and merchants in the U.S. and Canada can use call history to see which inbound customer calls came from their Business Profile on Google.

Mobile phone screen shows the call history for a business. The top of the screen shows “Calls” and below is a box with a time period that can be changed via a drop down. Below that are two large numbers, the first is the number of answered calls (shown in black) and the second is the number of missed calls (shown in red). Below that, the calls are in list format in order of how recently they occurred. Some show just a phone number while others show a contact name.

View your call history from your Business Profile.

Moving forward, we recommend small businesses manage their profiles directly on Search or Maps. To keep things simple, “Google My Business” is being renamed “Google Business Profile.” And in 2022, we’ll retire the Google My Business app so more merchants can take advantage of the upgraded experience on Search and Maps. The existing Google My Business web experience will transition to primarily support larger businesses with multiple locations, and will be renamed “Business Profile Manager.” We’ll share more details on these changes in the months ahead.

Show your local inventory

Holiday shoppers want to know what’s available before they get to your store. In a recent survey, more than half of U.S. holiday shoppers said they’ll confirm online that an item is in stock before going to buy it. There are a few ways to make sure your business shows up when holiday shoppers search for the products you offer.

We recently announced the new “in stock” filter on Search so shoppers can see only the nearby stores that have a specific item. To make sure your products show up, retailers in the U.S. and Canada can sign up for Pointy from Google — free of charge and right from your Business Profile on Search. Pointy helps you automatically upload all your in-store product inventory by connecting directly to your existing point of sale system. If you already have a local inventory feed, you can submit your feed through Google Merchant Center. To showcase individual products, you can also manually add them to your Business Profile on Search.

Mobile phone screen shows a GIF of a customer’s shopping journey on Google Search. The first image is a Google search results page for “kids bike helmets near me.” The user sees a map with various stores that sell bike helmets. The user clicks the “in-stock” button and is shown a list of stores that have kids bike helmets currently in stock. The user clicks the first store listing for “Mike’s Bikes” and then views pictures and prices of the helmets they have in stock.

Shoppers can now use the “in stock” filter on Search to see only the nearby stores with a specific item on their shelves.

Promote your nearby store locations

If you want to focus on store-specific goals, like promoting in-store products or seasonal menu items, you can promote your location to nearby shoppers using Local campaigns. Easily connect with shoppers searching for businesses like yours across Google Maps, Search, Display or YouTube, and help them find what they need at your local store, restaurant or dealership.

Now it's even easier to plan your Local campaign budgets heading into the holidays using Performance Planner. This tool helps you create plans for your local advertising investment, and see how changes to those plans might affect your outcomes and performance.

Laptop computer screen shows the Performance Planner forecast within the Google Ads UI. A line graph shows “spend” on the X axis and “conversions” on the Y axis. A gray point on the graph shows the “existing settings” and a blue point above it shows the “planned settings.” There is a blue line drawn through the blue dot going up to the right, indicating the increase in forecasted conversions you’d receive if you grow your investment. The text at the top of the graph says “you could get an estimated 1.5K conversions at $26.66 CPA for $40K.”

Local campaigns Performance Planner can help determine how much to invest this holiday season and beyond.

Even franchises like Wendy's use Performance Planner to more easily determine the appropriate investment for their Local campaigns to drive their store-level business goals.

Because the holidays are a critical time of year for your business, you should continue using Local campaigns to reach shoppers this season. However, when the time is right for your business, you can also start testing Performance Max campaigns before next year’s campaign upgrades. Performance Max allows you to promote your business across all Google Ads channels to help you drive more foot traffic to your physical locations — and includes new inventory and formats not currently available in Local campaigns.

For more on how to make this season even merrier — and easier — for local shoppers, check out the Local holiday guide or the Google for Small Business holiday checklist.