Average position is a frequently used and often understood metric. Are my search ads at the top? Can I improve your positions? It's one of the things I think about most often with regards to google ads. For the searches that matter to me and my business, am I appearing and appearing prominently?
La average position It has been used by advertisers to try to approximate where their ads are displayed on the page. However, that position only reflects the order of the auction results, not its location. For example, an ad position of “1” means that your ad is shown before other ads, even if there are no ads above the search results. Your position 1 is exciting of course, but it may appear below the organic search results.
Well, Google recently revealed four new metrics which are more useful than average position for understanding where your ads are actually placed on the page. In fact, I think that once you get comfortable with using these new prominence metrics, you can stop using average position.
Meet your new best friends
These new metrics address the limitations of the average position. A key limitation comes with it. For example, the average temperature in California in September is about 80 degrees Fahrenheit. This average is less useful if you live in San Francisco (average 70) or Vacaville (average 91). When you go for a walk, you just want to know if you should bring a jacket. California's average temperature that month is not what you're really looking for.
It is important to understand the two “hot” places in the results page with a higher CTR: absolute stop, which is what people often confuse with position one. And above, which is above the organic search results.
Print (Top abs.)%
This is the percentage of your impressions that appear in the first position in the results divided by all your impressions. It tells you how often your ad is the first result a searcher sees above organic search results.
Print (Upper part) %
They are all your impressions about the organic search results divided by the total number of your impressions. Along with Impression % (Top Abs), this metric is a specific indicator of page placement.
Search (Top Abs.) IS
By dividing your Absolute Top impressions by all possible top impressions, you can see where there is the greatest chance of being the first result a search engine sees. Average position might tell you that you are at position 3 and there is room to reach position 1, but it doesn't tell you when the only reachable position 1 is at the bottom of the page and may not be as valuable to you. Absolute Top Impression Share considers whether it is even possible for someone to reach the top of the page.
Search (Top) IS
This is what you get when you divide your impressions at the top of search results by all possible impressions at the top. Both top and absolute top impression shares tell you how it's doing across all eligible auctions.
These metrics are available to view at the campaign, ad group, and keyword level. Two of these metrics will even be available at the search term level and in the Auction perspectives.
But I like the middle position!
Maybe you like the average position, and maybe you don't. Any average position reflects the order of your ad compared to other ads. That is. It's not enough to know the actual location of your ad on the page. These new metrics are specific and reliable indicators of page placement, which is much more valuable.
(And I should also note that having featured ads doesn't mean your job is done. You should also maximize what you do when your ads are in those prominent spots. Great ads and ad extensions help you generate the most clicks possible) Once you are in the places that matter most to you.
In case you don't want to take my word for it, Hal Varian, chief economist at Google, explained the average position in 2011. Below is a brief review:
Average position relates to the auction, not the placement on the results page.
As a result, if you're trying to elevate your ad placement, avoid bidding for average position. Sometimes the average position can decrease as bids increase. Higher bids may allow you to enter more competitive auctions in a worse position.
The new metrics give you what you really wanted from the average position. If you want to bid on the page location, you can use Search (Abs. Up) IS and Search (Up) IS. If you're focused on a prominent location, you can improve ads and offers until you're breaking the 80% search mark (above).
What's the point of being position 1 if everyone is at the bottom of the page anyway due to low ad relevance? Must fight to be at the top of the page whenever possible and profitable. That's what these new metrics help you do.
Life after middle position
Once you buy into the real benefits of these new impression metrics, start using them. To get started, swap the average position as a column in all your reports for Print. (Top)% and Print (Abs.Top)%.
If you're automatically bidding to get your ads featured, keep an eye out for the new bidding strategy. Target Impression Share. You will have an option to target the top or absolute part of the page. That will be in the next few weeks. Alternatively, if you want to keep your existing automated rules, scripts, and APIs, swap the average position with Search (Abs. Up) IS or Search (Up) IS in any of your rules.
If you're a performance-based marketer, nothing really changes much. Target CPA and ROAS bids are still the way to go.
Conclusion
Average position has long been a distant proxy for how prominent your ads really are. The four new metrics discussed above will help you meaningfully evaluate your ad placement and its impact on performance.
