Exciting news for both users and marketers – Google has launched the new ads format. It is called Gallery Ads and was first introduced in May 2019 during the conference Google Marketing Live, with the information that a beta version will be available later this year. The time has come and we can already benefit from the new format. Although not for all accounts, it is already active and available in 11 languages around the world.
For now, Gallery Ads are only eligible to show in the top spot in Google search results and only on mobile devices. Soon Google plans to introduce them to desktop users as well.

What is the format?

To set up a gallery ad you will need between 4 and 8 images (4 is the minimum required), a headline of up to 30 characters and a tagline of no more than 70 characters. For every image, you can have a different tagline that will change as you go to the next photo. There is no specific campaign type, so they can run along with your text ads. The format looks like an image carousel where the user can swipe through the gallery. You get charged in two ways – either on a cost-per-click basis when the user click on the headline to follow a link, or after the person swipes through three or more images.

Image source

Who will benefit from the new format?

The critics say that Gallery Ads are created only for consumer brands, but we are sure that both B2B and B2C businesses can build effective campaigns using the new format. Restaurants, hotels, travel agencies, gyms and everyone else who can visualize their products or services, or even different features of the same product, can come up with a stunningly creative and greatly improve their ad’s performance. If you sell software, for example, you probably don’t see the point in this kind of format, but we will disagree with your scepticism. Rather than showing the users your product, you can effectively illustrate the path of your user’s experience interacting with it. What kind of problems does it solve, in which situation it is useful? Your customers, no matter business clients or personal users, will appreciate the effort to make their journey more easily accessible and, not to mention – beautiful.

Why it is exciting news?

Images are far more appealing to the user than just plain text. Statistics show that people remember 80% of what they see and only 20% of what they read. This allows you to create a more lasting impression on our customers’ minds and drive more engagement for your ads. In addition, carousel ads were already proven effective by Facebook and Instagram, driving traffic to online shops and attracting more attention than standard posts. This is the main reason for the advice that we will give you:

Implement Gallery Ads Early

The user is already familiar with the format, seeing it in social media, so, the new opportunity will not take long to become something common. In the competitive digital world, it is worth it to jump and try the newest trend. It will definitely pay off to explore and gain an advantage over your competitors.