Google Ads is taking away more and more data from PPC managers. However, there are many ways to access valuable insights in your ad account.
But, there is a way to recover some of this hidden/lost data.
The answer is Segments!
Seasoned Google Ads specialists probably know all of the below tricks, but for a starter, the tips below might be a game changer.
What are Segments, and why use them?
Let's see what Google has to say about them:
With segments, you can split your data into rows, and isolate exactly what you want to see. Your segment choices vary depending on which table of your Google Ads account you're viewing, but may include periods of time, click type, or device.
It's a quick way to analyze specific things in your account. For example, with the help of segments, you can find out how your sitelinks are performing compared to the rest of the ad. (more about this later.)
On the main Campaign view, you will find the "Segments" button at the top of the table.
This tab is available almost on every level (Campaign, Ad group, AD, Ad assets, and other parts of the Google ads account). However, it's important to mention that some segments will only show data if you apply the correct columns to them.
Now you know what segments are and where to find them!
Let's find out those magic tricks I was talking about :D
1. Keyword text - Find out what is the best RSA keyword combination
The "Keyword text" segment lets you see which keywords trigger your ads and how they perform.
This extra data can help optimize your RSAs and increase your CTR and QS. Go to your Ad group and select Segments > Keyword text
It will reveal all the keywords per ad and the performance of those keywords.
Some keywords work better with particular ads, so this gives an excellent extra data set for you to help you with your RSA test and optimization.
Use case
Let's say you are A/B testing 2 RSAs in one Ad group. These RSAs are split by topic. So one is focused on the sale and the other on creating urgency.
You want to know which keywords work together with which type of RSA, giving you a better way to evaluate the test and further optimize it.
2. Extension performance - Do your sitelinks deliver clicks?
This segment can clear up many things even veteran Google Ads specialists get wrong.
If you go to Assets > Sitelinks, then go to Segments and select This extension vs Other.
It will show you the performance of that particular sitelink compared to the rest of the Ad (the ad itself and all the other extensions.)
This will also work with other extensions (price, promotion, etc.)
3. Match type segment - Which match type dominates your ad group?
With the rise of Broad match this segment comes in really handy. You can see which match type was served more for a particular keyword.
Go to Ad Group level > Keywords and then from the Segments > Search term match type.
You will get a breakdown per match type. Even the graphic will change so you can spot trends if a Broad match or Phrase starts to dominate.
It's a fantastic and quick way to see how loose the targeting is. Since Broad match start to perform a lot better, this might come in handy to spot when the algorithm gets too loose and it's time to go back to only Exact or Phrase.
4. Video Conversions - Did the video ads really work?
This solution is a quick way to determine what kind of conversions the video ads generated.
Go to > Video campaigns > Segments > Conversions > Ad event type.
Make sure to have to "Conversions" column added to the table.
You will get an excellent overview of the kind of event type the video ad generated: Click-based or Engaged-view conversions.
5. Performance Max device segment - Where did my ad show up?
We can't get too much info from a PMax campaign, but we can see which device dominates our campaign with this segmentation.
Go to your Performance Max campaigns > Segments > Device
You will have a nice breakdown per device. When you see "TV Screens" among devices, you can be almost 100% sure that that was a video ad :).
6. Ad destination - Where did the user end up after the click?
I imagine you want to know where your user landed after interacting with one of your ads. But, unfortunately, only looking at the clicks won't always tell you the whole story.
Here comes the Ad destination segment to help you out.
Go to Campaigns > Segments and select > Ad destination.
In this overview, you will see where the user landed or clicked.
As you can see in the example below, some clicks went to the Map direction, and some became a click on the Call extension.
7. Value rule segment - What effect did my value rules have?
This segment is only handy if you use value-based bidding and you are working with value rules.
With the help of this segmentation, you get a quick breakdown of how your value rules impacted the conversion value.
Go to Campaigns > Segment > Conversions > Value rule adjustment.
You can see a breakdown of the applied value rules.
See a quick example of why this segment is helpful:
Let's say you sell $50 USD of books to customers in New York and $100 USD of books to customers in California. You set up a value rule to multiply value by 2 for customers from New York, so your total conversion value is $200 USD (2 x 50 + 100).
Your "Original value (rule applied)" = $50 USD of books sold to customers in New York.
Your "Original value (no rule applied)" = $100 USD of books sold to customers in California.
Your "Location" adjustment = $50 USD adjustment increase to the value of customers in New York. (Source google. )
Conclusion
Segments are helpful; you can find a lot of "hidden" data if you use segments in Google Ads. Combining them with the right set of columns will give you a lot of new data.
Let me know which one you liked the most and which one you already used.
If you have any questions feel free to reach out.