Choose a Bid for Your Display Network Campaign
Google Display Network bids let you get the most value from your ads by setting just the right price for your ads on the Display Network. Learn how you can use Display Network bids when you target both the Search Network and the Display Network.
Search ads and display ads reach people at different moments. When people are actively looking for something, your search ad may be the answer they need. However, people who see your ad on the Display Network may simply be browsing a favorite blog or watching videos — not activel searching for what you offer.
Clickthrough rates (CTRs) are often lower on the Display Network, because it can be harder to get a reader’s attention. That’s why Display Network bidding exists: to let you set a Maximum CPC bid for clicks that happen just on the Display Network. You get more control over your costs and you can make sure your bids fit the value you get from your ads.
Remember
For campaigns that you’re targeting to the Display Network only, you shouldn’t set a Display Network bid because AdWords will use that bid instead of individual keyword bids (if you have them). Instead, use your basic ad group bid or enabling custom bids — if they’re available in your ad group — for one of your targeting methods.
Learn about setting custom bids.
Tip
With enhanced campaigns, you can also set bid adjustments for better control over when and where your ad appears. Bid adjustments can be set at the campaign level (for mobile devices, times, days, and locations) and can also be used to bid more competitively for specific targeting methods, like placements or interests, in your ad groups.
Choosing your first bid
To find the right Display Network bid, you can make a starting bid, see what happens, and then edit it. If you don’t set a specific Display Network bid, AdWords will use your ad group’s default bid.
The Display Network may give you results that are better or worse than search ads, depending on your business and the ways you advertise. If you sell cameras, for example, a blog for photographers may be a very good spot for your ads, with an audience that’s excited about what you sell.
After you make your first bid, wait for a few days and then go to your account, and on the “All campaigns” view, find the “Totals” row for the Display Network. There, you’ll see the number of impressions, clicks, and costs for your ad. You might ask yourself not just “do I get a lot of clicks?” but “do those clicks lead to the results I want?” Continue to monitor impressions and clicks, but you should wait a couple weeks before making too many changes. If you edit your bids too frequently, you might not be able to assess your performance accurately.
AsWords recommend enabling Conversion Tracking because it can help you see which clicks are getting you good results on your site.
Tip
Your ad performance on the Display Network does not affect your rank for search ads. And lower CTR on the Display Network doesn’t affect the Quality Score of your ads for search.
Setting a Display Network bid
If your campaign targets the Search and Display Networks, you can follow these steps to set your own Display Network bid:
- Click the campaign name.
- Click the Ad groupstab.
- Look for the column titled “Display Network Max CPC.”
- Each ad group row will have one of the following:
- an existing bid (if you’ve set one)
- the ad group bid (which appears greyed out, if you’ve set manual bidding for your campaign but have not set any specific bids)
- the word “auto” (if the campaign has an automated bidding strategy, such as Conversion Optimizer)
- Click directly on the bid, and a box will open where you can type your new bid. Keep in mind that you can’t click an ad group bid or a bid that has been set to “auto.”
- Enter the bid, then click Save.
Some ad groups in your campaigns might show the “Bidding” drop-down menu above the statistics table on the Display Network tab. If you see this menu, you’ll be able to enable custom bids for one targeting method in your ad group. This lets AdWords know what bid you’d like to use.
Tip
If you can’t click the word “auto,” that means you’ve selected “automatic bidding” in your campaign settings. Edit your bidding and budget settings to choose your own bids.
If you’re creating a brand new ad group, you’ll see the “Display Network bid” field near the end of the process. You can enter your bid there.