A brief guide to Google Dynamic Search Ads

What are Dynamic Search Ads campaigns?

Dynamic Search Ads, or DSAs, are a type of Google campaign that is very similar to classic text campaigns. However, DSAs have a big difference compared to the latter: they do not use keywords in ads, but the content of a site or a product feed to automatically generate the ad creativity. Not using keywords for a search engine campaign might sound a bit strange, but thanks to Google’s artificial intelligence, this is now possible.

With DSA it will no longer be necessary to identify the list of keywords to bid: according to the data of the Google organic index, it will be the artificial intelligence to associate each user query to the page of the site that it deems most responsive to the specific query.

In a nutshell, dynamic campaigns are a paid boost to organic positioning: what is already indexed is pushed up the SERP within the self-generated Ads snippet.

How it works is very simple: Google’s artificial intelligence matches users’ search queries to the most suitable content on the site or feed and displays a dynamically generated tailored ad. The campaign will then be displayed on the Google Serp and will not be distinguishable from a classic text campaign.

So if your site is properly optimized for search engines, the DSA will generate itself, as it will be easy for Google to associate search terms with your content. The other side of the coin is that if the site is not optimized properly, has few pages and poor text content, the DSA campaign will not be able to do a good job for you.

Why are these Google Ads campaigns used?

If you have a very structured site, with thousands of content or products, DSA campaigns are the right choice for you. Putting Google Shopping aside for a second, with this type of site it would be very complex to implement, structure and optimize classic search campaigns. In situations of this type, DSA campaigns help a lot, as they use the site’s content for ad targeting, thus being able to identify new associations between content and search terms.

What are the differences compared to classic search campaigns?

In addition to the use of keywords, another difference between a DSA campaign and a normal text ad campaign is the title of the ad displayed on the search engine results page, which in this case is dynamically created by Google. Advertisers, therefore, only have to write a descriptive line for the ad. As you can imagine, having a specific and tailored title for a single product is a best practice for optimizing search campaigns: DSAs do it automatically for you.

How ADV DSA campaigns work

When a user searches Google for terms closely related to the most used headlines and phrases on your website, Google Ads selects the most relevant landing page from your website and generates a title for your ad, in real time!

When choosing your landing pages as a target, always remember that you are responsible for the final text that appears in the ad. The most important indicator, among the many used to generate the ad title, is the HTML title of your page (title tag).

How to optimize a DSA campaign

The rules for optimizing DSA campaigns are the same as for optimizing classic search campaigns:

• Create the right campaign structure
• Establish product categories and their complexity
• Search for keywords to exclude and include: DSAs are managed by Google’s algorithm, but they are not perfect. Add negative keywords to give relevant queries more breadth
• Highlight your offers or promotions
• Use smart offers
• Works in synergy with the SEO department

Advantages and disadvantages of DSA campaigns