What Responsive Display Ads Are + How to Create Them [Step-by-Step]

Imagine spending time and resources creating an ad campaign only to get meager results. It can be daunting, but it can also be difficult to judge.

Wouldn’t it be great if you could mix and match different ad components and see which one performs the best without spending more time and resources?

With responsive display ads, you can.

Learn how they work, what to get started, and how to start one in Google Ads.

Benefits of using responsive display ads

One of the biggest advantages of using responsive display ads is that you can use it to reach a wider audience.

Since you can customize various elements in your ad, you can maximize where they will be seen by your audience.

Additional benefits include the following:

• You can use video – If you use responsible display ads, you can add videos and use them in place of images if necessary.
• It’s a time saver – You don’t have to keep creating new ads, you can let Google Ads create combinations based on its algorithm and the best results.

It’s ideal for small businesses that may not have the in-house team or resources to create multiple ad images, sizes, etc. Responsive display ads do the work for you.

The biggest downside to using responsive display ads is that you lose control. Google chooses the ad combination and it may not fully represent your brand.

For example, your ad may have little to no branding and appear generic, which also means it may have a harder time standing out and getting clicks.

What you need to create a responsive ad in Google Ads

Before you can run your responsive ad, you must first upload your assets: your visuals and your text. Let’s get to the specifics of each one.

1. Images

With responsive display ads, you can use up to 15 images in your ads.

Google Ads recommends at least five images as this can lead to higher conversions. Here are some more tips about image ads:

• Do you have high definition sizes.
• Use the most common sizes:
• 300 x 250
• 728 x 90
• 160 x 600
• 320 x 50
• 300 x 600
• Use HTML5 to create interactive or animated images.

If you don’t upload a logo (you can add up to five), Google Ads will provide a neutral logo, which can be an icon or the first letter of your brand name. As for the aspect ratio, upload 1: 1 and 4: 1 versions with a transparent background.

If you’re not uploading a video, you can choose the advanced format option where Google will create a video based on your saved image and text elements.

Image source

2. Text

1. Headlines – You can use up to five short headlines with a maximum of 30 characters for your ad. You can also use a long heading of up to 90 characters. Note that your heading will not always appear with your description. Therefore, it should be compelling enough to attract clicks.
2. Descriptions – You can create up to five descriptions which will be displayed based on the results from Google.
3. Call to Action – Your CTA should be action-oriented (ex: Join Now) or value-oriented (ex: start learning today).
4. A company name – This should be your brand name, correctly spelled and capitalized.
5. A url – This is where users land after clicking on your ad. Google Ads lets you add tracking or custom parameters to your URL to improve reporting.

If your ad is dynamic, you can also add promotional text and a price prefix to potentially increase conversions.

Your ad may be disapproved if:

• You have text that covers more than 20% of the image.

• They have the following content:
• Irrelevant
• Misleading
• Sexual
• Your images are of poor quality.
• You are not following the trademark use guidelines.

Responsive ads are a great way to diversify your ads in a cost effective way. Whether you’re a small business with limited resources or a larger brand with a low ROAS, this strategy is worth considering.