Over the last two years, I’ve been guiding companies and organizations in their shift away from sunsetted expanded text ads (ETAs) to responsive search ads (RSAs), and this blog post includes answers to the most common questions I hear.
This article is for you if you’re:
- Curious about best practices for RSAs
- Still running ETAs that need to be converted to RSAs
- Looking for tips on how to enhance responsive search ad content using Google’s AI capabilities
Keep reading to discover how responsive search ads work, explore their pros and cons, and learn how to use RSAs to maximize your digital advertising ROI. Plus, get actionable insights from a mini case study that reveals how one of TBH Creative’s clients boosted responsive search ad conversions.
Understanding responsive search ads
Here’s a little history to set the stage. You might remember that Google announced its plan to roll out RSAs (to much hullabaloo) in the summer of 2018.
Then, just as promised, the tech giant made responsive search ads the default core paid ad type for standard search campaigns in 2021 and discontinued advertisers’ ability to create new expanded text ads in 2022.
If you’ve been running Google Ads for years, you might still be running expanded text ads through your account if you created these assets before the 2022 end date and haven’t made any edits to your ETAs since.
What are responsive search ads (RSAs)?
Responsive search ads are a type of Google text ad that appears in search results. This ad format allows you to show users variable content based on perimeters you give Google to use to adjust messaging content and format automatically.
In the simplest terms, think of it this way: As an advertiser, you can give Google multiple headlines and descriptions. Then, Google’s AI takes what it knows about the user who is searching (and its analysis of your ad performance data) to show what it thinks is the most effective combination for the person making the query.
How are RSAs different from ETAs?
With the release of responsive search ads, Google began its move towards more adaptive and intelligent advertising solutions. Here are three notable ways in which RSAs differ from expanded text ads:
Content Options
ETAs
- Headlines: Allowed a minimum of one and maximum of two, each up to 30 characters
- Descriptions: Allowed one, up to 90 characters
RSAs
- Headlines: Allows a minimum of three and a maximum of 15, each up to 30 characters
- Descriptions: Allows a minimum of two and a maximum of four descriptions, each up to 90 characters
Adaptability
ETAs
- Displayed the same content for each search query
- Depended on initial setup and manual updates for performance
RSAs
- Automatically adapts content to match the search query
- Utilizes continuous learning to optimize ad performance over time
Keyword usage and targeting
ETAs
- Required precise keyword matching for effective ad targeting
- Offered limited dynamic keyword insertion capabilities
RSAs
- Benefits from AI-driven dynamic keyword insertion and selection
- Effectiveness can vary based on campaign goals, audience targeting, and industry, requiring strategic planning for optimal relevance and impact
Why choose RSAs?
Given that an effective Google paid ads campaign—delivering the right message to the right audience at the right time—can lead to a return of at least $2 for each $1 spent, it’s unsurprising that on-the-ball CMOs and marketing directors are focused on crafting the best possible responsive search ads to reach marketing goals with digital advertising.
The catch is that this work is ongoing. Each ad’s initial setup process—during which you identify your audience, create a strategy, and set up your RSA in Google Ads—is only the beginning. To be successful, you also have to find each ad’s “bullseye,” which isn’t always where you think it is.
Only ongoing monitoring, assessment, and strategic adjustments can ensure the best chance of keeping (and growing) conversions from responsive search ads.
Pros of using RSAs
The most straightforward advantage for advertisers considering switching to RSAs from ETAs is that Google prefers this text ad type.
Some of the other benefits of responsive search ads include:
Easier setup and increased flexibility
RSAs automatically resize and format to fit different ad spaces, optimizing them for various devices and screen sizes by dynamically adjusting content (headlines and descriptions) to better match user search queries, increasing relevance and engagement.
Example: An RSA for a travel agency may show a concise headline to mobile users like “Dream Vacations Await” and then expand to a variation such as “Explore Our Tailored Dream Vacation Packages” for those doing searches from desktop computers.
RSAs often also have higher potential reach because they can match more search queries than standard ads. Your ad will have a greater chance of appearing in front of relevant audiences because of the ad format’s flexibility.
Example: A single RSA touting a local sweet shop’s goodies could be customized to reach the greatest number of potential new customers and appear with a message matching various users’ needs, e.g., showing up for searches ranging from “birthday cakes” to “fresh pastries near me.”
Simplified testing and optimization
Because RSAs allow advertisers to launch any new ad with up to 15 different headlines and four descriptions, extensive A/B testing to identify the most effective combinations is faster and simplified. With this kind of variety as a possibility, you can test different messages from within a single ad set.
Better performance—with less work
Google Ads’ AI-driven algorithm is your friend. Using machine learning, it determines how to optimize your RSA to boost click-throughs. It does this for you by choosing the best combinations of headlines and descriptions for each user’s search query. This means that, over time, your RSAs become more and more effective.
Example: For an RSA created to promote a fitness app, the Google Ads algorithm might display “Get Fit at Home” with “Download Now” for searches like “home workouts” but pair “Track Your Fitness Journey” with “Try for Free” for users looking for fitness tracking solutions.
Cons of using RSAs
While RSAs are powerful, there are some drawbacks to this type of ad, including:
Less control
With responsive text ads, advertisers have less control over which headline and description combos get shown to users. Some companies and organizations have brand guidelines that require tighter messaging oversight.
Example: A pharmaceutical company might be cautious with RSAs due to regulatory requirements for advertising and opt only to use specific and approved language in its paid advertising campaigns.
With RSAs, because you’ve given up a lot of control to Google, your ad’s success relies heavily on its machine learning, and—sometimes—this doesn’t always align with your (usually more nuanced) understanding of your audience and its needs.
As such, Google can sometimes misinterpret the intent of certain products or services your company or organization offers, leading to suboptimal ad performance.
Example: A niche B2B software solution might find that Google’s algorithm doesn’t pair its complex offerings with users making the most relevant queries, potentially reducing ad effectiveness.
More complex reporting
When using RSAs, it’s harder to tell what’s what because Google continuously tests multiple combinations of headlines and descriptions to maximize conversions.
This is a plus in ensuring you get the greatest ROI from paid advertising. However, without access to info on which ad combinations performed best with your RSAs, you can’t extract clear, actionable insights to inform planning for future marketing strategies.
Example: If a car dealership runs an RSA with headlines like “Affordable Financing” and “Latest Models Available”—two very different value propositions—it can be frustrating not to know which of these messages resonates more with potential customers because there’s no clear-cut reporting available.
Four tips for setting up strong RSAs
Here are some high-level best practices to consider when creating a new RSA in Google Ads for better outcomes.
Copywriting
Create diverse and compelling headline and description options that clearly convey your product or service’s unique selling points.
Keep in mind that Google will vary the combinations it shows to different users. If you’re integrating dynamic keywords as part of your headlines, weigh the importance of time savings against your need for precise messaging.
Image selection
Did you add images to your RSA? If not, you should!
Keep in mind, when you’re choosing images to go with RSAs, that it’s a good idea (to get the best possible engagement) to prioritize visuals that are not only aesthetically appealing, relevant to your ad’s messaging, and a strong match with your potential target audience’s intent.
Monitoring
If you’ve previously managed paid advertising campaigns for ETAs, you are probably already used to reviewing performance metrics regularly.
This regular work is also critical for RSAs. Pay close attention to metrics like click-through rates and conversions to better understand target audience engagement.
Optimization
The rule of thumb to change only one thing at a time definitely applies to RSAs, so it’s clear how any update influences performance. But, beyond that tip, you should remove headlines that Google doesn’t show often. This is a sign it’s not performing.
If it’s an important message to share with users, consider rewriting it to see if a change helps move the needle on impressions.
Responsive search ads case study
Using an existing ad campaign, we updated its ad copy to full RSA and left the budget the same, only changing the ad copy options.
Results and analysis
After three months collecting data, here’s what we learned:
- The client’s views/impressions increased marginally by 1.2%. This minor growth was expected since the campaign’s budget remained the same.
- While the ads were only shown 1.2% more often, they were clicked on at an 8.05% increase, meaning even though the increase was small, we saw a bigger increase in the number of users clicking on the new RSA ads.
- On top of the increased click-through rate, the RSA ads also generated more contacts at a 25.93% increase.
FAQs about transitioning to responsive search ads
Explore the answers to these common questions about transitioning to RSAs from ETAs and implementing this powerful ad type as part of your paid advertising initiatives.
Why did Google get rid of expanded text ads?
Google decided to phase out ETAs in favor of RSAs for several reasons, the most notable of which is that responsive search ads perform better because of their flexibility and greater relevance to individuals searching.
What control do I have over RSA content?
This can be a tricky question to answer. That’s because sometimes it really is best to let Google’s bots completely have control and do their thing. But, in other instances, you might want to lock down what’s shown as part of your RSA to have a greater say in how your ads appear in searches.
For instance, if you’re launching a new RSA to support a campaign to raise brand awareness, choosing an unrestricted responsive search ad format—because of its greater adaptability and reach—might be the best choice. However, if you plan to run an ad to support a campaign with a hyper-specific call to action, the precision of a more manually crafted ad might be a better fit.
Always consider your end goal to determine which setup is best.
How does Google determine the best ad combination in RSAs?
It’s all about the algorithm! It’s always learning and using insights—culled from users’ interactions with different content variations—to tweak your RSA continuously over time to increase engagement.
*Note: I’ve seen with most of our clients that Google’s AI bidding strategy for RSAs normally needs about two weeks to gather and analyze enough data before it settles itself out and knows which combos are your top performers.
Are RSAs more cost-effective?
They can be! RSAs automatically test combinations to find the best performers. For some, responsive search ads’ AI-driven efficiency might reduce the time and resources you’ve needed to spend doing manual ad tests in the past to support a campaign.
Google assigns an ad’s quality score based on its relevance and effectiveness. The better your score, the more often it will be shown and the lower your cost-per-click.
Related, RSAs’ quality scores are often higher than those of ETAs’ quality scores because—due to their dynamic (and often more relevant) content—responsive search ads tend to get more engagement, saving you money on this part of your paid advertising campaign.
How exactly does Google use dynamic keywords to create headline combinations for an RSA?
Dynamic keywords are a great way to improve your RSA’s relevance, and increased relevance often leads to better ad performance and lower costs.
How this process works from the back end is based on many different things—from the dynamic keywords you’ve chosen for your RSA’s headlines and the rest of your ad’s content to each user’s search query.
Google’s algorithm also relies on what it’s learned from historical data. This information helps its AI tool better predict which headline combinations included in your RSA setup are likely to perform best.
How do I know if including dynamic keywords in my RSA headline options is a good idea?
Dynamic keywords can be great if your RSA supports a general campaign targeting a broad audience. However, more manually tailored ads might be the right choice for your RSA if you’re in a niche market. It’s so complex that there’s no definitive answer. You need to be agile to spot problems before they become bigger issues.
That said, a professional with years of paid advertising experience will be able to guide you through this complex decision-making process.
While using dynamic keywords can save time in ad creation, it does come at the cost of control over your ad’s exact wording. Weigh the importance of time efficiency against the need for precise messaging.
Dynamic keywords in RSA headlines
It’s easier to demonstrate how dynamic keywords can sometimes cause problems than it is to explain their potential for causing trouble.
For this example, pretend that you’re at an orthopedic practice using the dynamic keyword “Knee Pain” as a headline as part of its set-up for an RSA to convince people seeking knee pain care to visit their knee service line page and make an appointment with their providers.
In some cases, what Google’s AI generates as headline options might work well, but because “knee pain” is such a broad term as a dynamic keyword, it’s likely to waste ad spend by getting shown to people who aren’t part of the healthcare organization’s target audience. See below for a sample of how this scenario might play out for the following ad set-up.
“Knee Pain” | Anytown’s Best Knee Doctors | Orthopedic Org Name
Dynamic keyword swaps that work—
- “Knee Pain Relief” | Anytown’s Best Knee Doctors | Orthopedic Org Name
- No issues; it completely matches the intent and landing page messaging.
- “Knee Pain Surgery” | Anytown’s Best Knee Doctors | Orthopedic Org Name
- No issues; completely matches intent and landing page messaging
- “Knee Pain Specialist Near Me” | Anytown’s Best Knee Doctors | Orthopedic Org Name
- There are no issues, per se, but the second headline is repetitive.
Iffy dynamic keyword swaps—
- “Knee Pain Doctors” | Anytown’s Best Knee Doctors | Orthopedic Org Name
- Even more redundant than the “knee pain specialist near me” example, this variation repeats what’s shown in the second headline.
- “Knee Pain Braces” | Anytown’s Best Knee Doctors | Orthopedic Org Name
- This dynamic keyword replacement might be okay, but it’s definitely got a very limited audience. It might not include people in the healthcare organization’s target audience if someone with a minor injury wants to treat their knee at home by shopping online for a supportive brace.
Problematic dynamic keyword swaps—
- “Fast Cure for Knee Pain” | Anytown’s Best Knee Doctors | Orthopedic Org Name
- If the service page is focused on surgical solutions for major injuries or chronic conditions, this will be a mismatch for someone (like an athlete with a minor sprained knee looking for a fast cure)! When headline messaging doesn’t sync up with the landing page for an RSA, users can be turned off.
- “Icy Hot Max Knee Pain” | Anytown’s Best Knee Doctors | Orthopedic Org Name
- This dynamic keyword insertion misfires in two ways: it pulls in another company’s trademarked product name and is unrelated to the healthcare organization’s services.
- “Get Rid of Dry Skin Knee Pain” | Anytown’s Best Knee Doctors | Orthopedic Org Name
- This dynamic keyword insertion might make sense for a skincare company selling hydrating lotions or a dermatology practice treating conditions causing dry skin on patients’ knees. Still, it doesn’t really relate to the care an orthopedic practice would specialize in treating.
- “<< Competitor’s Name >> Knee Pain” | Anytown’s Best Knee Doctors | Orthopedic Org Name
- Yikes! This user is clearly searching for the competition, so not only does including their name in your ad (then pointing the user to your landing page) create a poor user experience, but you may also get a “cease and desist” from their lawyers for allowing their name to be included as part of your RSA headline ad copy.
These are just some examples of why it’s critical to be extra thoughtful and spend ample time setting up negative keywords if you have Google use dynamic keywords to generate RSA headlines.
Advice for using dynamic keywords with RSA headlines
Get more effective dynamic keyword headline insertions by:
- Sticking with only selecting keywords for your headlines that are closely related to your RSA’s content and offerings
- Taking a closer look at your dynamic keywords list to see which search terms are triggering your ad to show and adjust as needed to improve insertions and performance
Why hire RSA experts to help with paid search advertising campaign setup and management
Creating and optimizing responsive search ads is a big task that takes significant time to do right. If you are interested in advertising on Google or need help managing ads you’ve already set up, TBH Creative can help.
We won’t just set up your RSAs and then leave you hanging. Our experienced content promotion team will help you create a strategy and then monitor and refine your assets to ensure they convert at the highest levels so you can reach your marketing goals.
