If you’re a blogger that runs Google’s AdSense ads on your website, then you’re probably aware that Google gives you two options for ads: text and display ads. For each ad unit that you run, you have the option to select to run it as a display ad, a text ad, or either.
Magazine-Style Ads
Now, however, Google is offering something new. The company has launched a new ad unit that will bring text ads to sites that would typically just run display ads.
The ads are called “magazine-style” ads. They’ll feature text with “a design aesthetic suitable for display,” according to Google.
If you’re familiar with Google’s ad display units, then you already know that the company offers several ads with larger dimensions (e.g., 728×90 pixels). The new ad format displays nothing but text in one of the larger display units, but surrounds it with plenty of whitespace so it stands out.
The Rationale
Why is Google offering this service? Because it gives text advertisers the option to compete for space on websites that currently run display-only ad units. It also gives publishers the option to run text-like ads on their sites when they typically only offer display ads.
To maximize revenue, Google recommends that publishers run both display and text ads on their sites. This recommendation has often been met with some resistance by many publishers who think that text ads don’t appear professional. As a result, they often run the display-only ad units.
The text ads will run in lieu of display ads when the advertisers behind the text ads outbid the advertisers behind the display ads. The good news for publishers is that they earn more revenue as a result of the magazine-style ads. Of course, that’s good news for Google as well, as the company stands to profit from the higher bids.
Google needs the additional revenue because the company’s ad prices have seen downward pressure recently. This is because of competition with mobile marketing and also because the company is moving into emerging markets, where ad prices are understandably lower.
This new ad strategy won’t be the “silver bullet” solution to Google’s sagging ad revenues, but it’s a step in the right direction.