The ranking position of the advertisements (average position) of Google is one of the most important metrics, as it decisively influences the user's click. In every search, Google served ads related to the search terms above, below and to the right of the organic results.
- Speaking of numbers, the Click Through Rate of a top-ranking desktop ad is 19.3%, while on mobile and tablets, it's 27.7%.
- Accordingly, on computers, the Click Through Rate of the second ad is 11.4% and on mobile devices only 9.2%!
Conversion rates decrease even more as the ad "loses positions" and surely every advertiser would prefer to see their business ad in the main body of results, i.e. above or below the organic results and not on the side! This was the case until yesterday, because Google, as of Monday, February 22, 2016, is mainly withdrawing the ads of the right column and adding one more position at the top, where now a total of 4 ads are served and 3 total at the bottom of the page. The specific change initially concerns "highly commercial search queries", e.g. "sports shoes" or "airline tickets"
What could this possibly mean?
It is most likely that the reduction of positions on the first page will lead to an increase in Cost per Click and a need to improve the quality of the ads. Advertisers budget may need to increase as competition increases. But this will also lead to more selective advertising and a more properly planned and targeted campaign in order to optimize the investment. Of course, the above changes may lead advertisers to the Display Network, Facebook or other advertising channels. These changes, according to Google, concern the advertising network worldwide and all languages, and other changes in the way ads are displayed are expected in the near future.
