A Guide To Using Google Ads Assets For Better Visibility

The primary advantage of using assets is the increase in ad real estate. When Google displays your ad, it chooses a combination of available assets that it predicts will improve performance. This means your ad could show a phone number for a mobile user, a location pin for someone searching near your physical store, or specific site links that lead directly to your product pages. Because these elements make your advertisement more informative, they often result in higher click-through rates. A higher click-through rate can influence your Quality Score, which is a key metric in the auction process. By providing more context before the user even clicks, you filter out irrelevant traffic and attract users who are more likely to be interested in your offer. For example, a retail brand running a seasonal sale might use promotion assets to highlight a discount, ensuring that users see the deal clearly before deciding to click.

Another benefit is the improved user experience provided by these additional details. If a user is searching for a local service, seeing a phone number or a physical address immediately builds trust and provides a direct path to conversion. You do not need to pay extra to add these to your account, as they are part of the standard platform functionality. The system automatically rotates them based on what it expects will perform best for a specific query or user profile. This automation helps maintain a consistent message while allowing the system to adapt to different search intentions. Because you can manage these at the account, campaign, or ad group level, you have the flexibility to tailor the information to the specific audience segment you are targeting with your advertisements.

Choosing the right assets depends on your business model and your goals. If you operate an e-commerce store, you should focus on assets that highlight your products and specific offers. Sitelink assets, for instance, are essential for directing traffic to categories like ‘New Arrivals’ or ‘Best Sellers’. Structured snippet assets are also helpful for listing specific features or types of products you carry, such as ‘Brand: Nike, Adidas, Puma’. For local service providers, location and call assets are critical. These ensure that customers can find your office or reach you by phone immediately. Lead generation campaigns often benefit from lead form assets, which allow users to submit their contact information directly from the search results page without visiting a landing page. Using a combination of these elements ensures that your ad remains informative across different devices and user intents.

• Sitelink assets: Direct users to specific pages on your website like ‘Contact Us’ or ‘Shop Now’.
• Call assets: Add a phone number to your ad to encourage direct calls from mobile users.
• Location assets: Show your business address and distance to the user to drive foot traffic.
• Structured snippet assets: Highlight specific aspects of your products or services, such as models or styles.
• Callout assets: Add short, descriptive text like ‘Free Shipping’ or ’24/7 Support’ to highlight value.
• Promotion assets: Display a specific sale or discount code directly within the ad text.
• Lead form assets: Collect user information directly within the search ad interface.

To start using these features, log into your Google Ads account and navigate to the ‘Ads & assets’ menu located in the left-hand navigation bar. From there, select ‘Assets’ to view a list of all available types. Clicking the blue plus button allows you to create a new asset. You will be prompted to choose the level at which you want to apply the asset: account, campaign, or ad group. Applying them at the account level is the easiest way to ensure basic information, like a phone number, is included across all your campaigns. However, if you have different campaigns for different products, you should create assets at the campaign level to ensure the messaging remains relevant to the specific product being advertised.

Once you have selected the asset type and the level, fill in the required fields. For instance, if you are setting up a sitelink, you will need to provide the link text, two description lines, and the final URL. Always check that the URLs are correct and lead to a working page on your site. After saving, the system will start the review process to ensure your assets comply with advertising policies. This is a standard procedure, and it typically takes less than one business day. After approval, the assets will be eligible to show with your ads. You can monitor their performance by checking the ‘Assets’ table, which displays impressions, clicks, and conversion data for each individual item, allowing you to see which ones drive the best results.

At Alien Road, our approach to using assets involves a thorough audit of the client’s current setup. We start by reviewing the existing ad copy to identify gaps where additional information could improve the user journey. For a typical e-commerce client, we prioritize setting up promotion assets during high-traffic seasons to highlight discounts, while keeping sitelinks updated to match the current product inventory. We believe in providing enough information to help users make a decision, which is why we often add at least four callout assets per campaign to emphasize unique selling points like free returns or fast delivery. Our team monitors the performance data in the dashboard monthly to remove underperforming assets and replace them with new, relevant ones.

We also focus on alignment between the asset text and the landing page content. If an asset promises a discount, the landing page must clearly show that discount immediately upon arrival. This consistency reduces bounce rates and improves the overall quality of the traffic. For local businesses, we ensure location assets are linked correctly to a Google Business Profile, which helps display accurate maps and distance information. We track the conversion impact of these assets by using conversion tracking tags on the website, allowing us to attribute specific actions to the ads that featured these elements. By maintaining a clean and updated asset library, we ensure that our clients’ ads remain relevant and useful to their target audience throughout the campaign lifecycle.

One common error is using generic or irrelevant text in callout assets. Since you have a limited character count, you must be specific. Instead of using ‘Great Service’, use ’24/7 Customer Support’ or ‘Certified Technicians’. Another mistake is failing to update promotion assets after a sale ends. This can lead to frustration for users who click on an ad expecting a discount that is no longer active. Always set start and end dates for promotion assets during the setup process to avoid this issue. Additionally, do not overcrowd your ads by adding too many assets at once. While the system chooses the best ones, having dozens of low-quality assets can make it harder to manage and analyze performance.

• Avoid using duplicate information in your sitelinks and descriptions.
• Ensure all URLs are active and do not lead to 404 error pages.
• Check that your phone numbers are accurate and verified in your call assets.
• Set end dates for temporary offers to prevent misleading ad copy.
• Use unique text for different callouts to provide a variety of information.
• Monitor the performance tab to identify assets that are not receiving clicks.
• Keep your location information updated if your business moves or changes hours.

Performance analysis should be a regular part of your routine. In the ‘Assets’ view of your dashboard, you can see a table that breaks down metrics for each item. Look for the ‘Table’ view to compare impressions and clicks. If an asset has a low click-through rate, consider rewriting the copy to be more compelling or relevant to the ad group. It is also useful to look at the ‘Association’ column to see which campaign or ad group is using which asset. This helps you understand if certain assets work better for specific products or service categories. Do not feel pressured to delete assets just because they have low impressions, as the system might be prioritizing others that it deems more relevant for the current auctions.