Google Ads

Google Ads Glossary (266+ terms explained)

0 · by Dennis Moons · Updated on 20 February 2023

Google Ads can be overwhelming, eve for seasoned advertisers. So in this resource, you can find and overview of the most important terms and definitions of Google Ads, as well as some resources to dive deeper into the topic.

A

Account

Your Google Ads account is the place where you create and manage all of your campaigns

Account level negative keywords

This is a negative keyword list that’s applied to all of the campaigns in your account. That includes Search but also Performance Max campaigns.

Action optimization

Action optimization is a conversion setting that allows you to select for each conversion action whether it’s a “Primary” or “Secondary” conversion. Many advertisers make the mistake of having duplicate conversions set as the Primary action used for bidding optimization.

Ad assets

Ad auction

Google Ads works via an ad auction. Google sees which advertisers want to show for a specific ad slot, they consider how much they’re willing to bid for a click and the quality of the advertisement (= quality score). They use this information to determine which advertisers to show, and what order to show them in, the ad rank.

Also see: ad rank, cost per click, quality score

Ad customizer

An ad customizer allows you to add dynamic content to a headline or description of a Search Ad. Options are a countdown

Also see: countdown timer, dynamic keyword insertion

Ad group

Ad group bid

Ad Preview and Diagnosis Tool

Ad Rank

Ad Relevance

Ad

Also see: quality score, landing page experience, expected CTR

Ad relevance

Ad Rotation

Ad Scheduling

Ad Status

Ad strength

Ads

AdSense

Advanced bid adjustments

Advertising Policies

Adwords

Adwords is the old name for Google Ads. Google changed the name in 2018.

Affinity audiences

AI

All conversions

Asset combinations report

Asset details report

Asset group

Assets

Assist Clicks and Impressions -> update

Assisted Conversions

Attribution

Attribution Model Comparison

Auction insights

Audience Manager

Audience segments

Audiences

Auto apply recommendations

Auto-tagging

Automated Rules

Automatic Bidding

Automatic Payments

Automation

Avg cost

Avg CPC (Cost per click)

Avg CPE (Cost per engagement)

Avg CPM (Cost per thousand)

Avg CPV (Cost per view)

Avg target CPA

Avg target ROAS

B

Below First Page Bid

Bid adjustments

Bid strategy

Billing Threshold

Bounce Rate

Brand exclusions

Brand exclusions is a Brand list that you can add to a Performance Max campaign to prevent ads from showing for search queries related to those brands.

Brand lists

A brand list is a list of brands that you can use as an exclusion list.

Also see: brand exclusions


Broad Match

Broad Match Modifier

Broad match modifier was a keyword match type where you added a plus sign in front of a keyword. It was discontinued in 2021. Existing keywords using modified broad match are now behaving as phrase match.

Also see: keyword match types, broad match, phrase match, modified broad match

Budget Order

Bulk Edit

Bulk Uploads

C

Call assets

Call Only Campaigns

Call Tracking

callout assets

Campaign

Campaign layers

Campaign Status

Change History

Click-through conversion window

Clicks

Close Variant

Consolidated Billing

Content Exclusions

Content Suitability

Contextual Targeting

conversion rate

conversion tracking

Conversion value

Conversion value

Conversion value / Cost

Conversion Window

Conversions

Cookie

Cost

cost per click

Cost-per-thousand Impressions (CPM

Cost-per-view (CPV)

Countdown timer

CPI
CTR
Custom columns
Customer ID
Customer Match

D

Daily Budget
Data driven attribution
Dayparting
Demand Gen
Demographics
Detailed demographics

Dennis Moons

Dennis Moons is a Google Ads expert, the founder of Store Growers and lead instructor on all of our courses.

Dennis Moons


Description
Destination URL
Discovery
Display Network
Display Partners:
Display path
Display Planner:
Display URL
dynamic ad target
Dynamic Keyword Insertion
Dynamic Remarketing
dynamic search ads

E

Earned subscribers
Earned Views
End Date
Engaged-view conversion window
Engagement rate
Engagements
Enhanced conversions
Enhanced CPC (ECPC)
Exact Match

Expected CTR
Experiments

F

Final URL
First Page Bid Estimate:
First Position Bid Estimate
Flexible Bid Strategy
Fraud
Frequency
Frequency Capping

G

GCLID
Generative AI
Geo-Targeting
Google Ads API
Google Ads Editor
google ads scripts

Google Ads course

Google Analytics 4
Google Forwarding Phone Number
Google Merchant Center
Google My Business
Google Shopping
Google tag
Google Tag Manager

H

Headlines
Household income

I

Image Ad
Impressions
In-feed
in-market audiences
Insights tab
Instream
Interaction rate
Interactions
Invalid click rate
Invalid clicks
Invalid interaction rate
Invalid interactions
Inventory Filters

J

K

keyword match types
Keyword Planner:
Keyword Status
Keywords

L

Labels
Landing Page Experience:
Language Targeting
Limited by Budget
Listing group
Location asset
Location Targeting
lookalike audiences
Low Search Volume

M

Machine learning
Manager Account
manual bidding
Manual CPC
max conversion value
max Conversions
Max CPC
Maximize Clicks
Measurable impressions
Measurable cost
Measurable CPM
Measurable rate

Modified broad match

Modified broad match was a keyword match type where you added a plus sign in front of a keyword. It was discontinued in 2021. Existing keywords using modified broad match are now behaving as phrase match.

Also see: keyword match types, broad match, phrase match, modified broad match

N

negative dynamic ad target
Negative Keyword List
Negative Keywords
negative match types
New customer acquisition
New customer lifetime value
non-Measurable impressions
Non-Viewable impressions

O

Opportunities
Optimization
Optimization score
Organic search
Overdelivery

P

Parental Status
Performance Max
Performance rating
Phrase Match
Pinning
Placement Exclusions
Placements
POAS
portfolio bidding strategy
PPC

Price assets


product feed
product feed attributes
product feed optimization
Product Group
Product Listing Ad
product title
promotion asset

Q

Quality Score

R

Radius Targeting
Recommendations
Recommended Daily Budget:
Remarketing
Remarketing Lists for Search Ads
Responsive Display Ads
Responsive Search Ads
Results
Results value
ROAS
ROI

S

Search absolute top Impression share
search categories
Search Impression share
Search lost Impressions share
Search Network
Search Partners
search terms
Search Terms Report:
Search themes
Search top Impression share
Shared budget
Shared Library
Shorts feed
Similar audiences
Single keyword ad groups
Smart bidding
Standard Shopping
Start date

Store Growers

Store Growers is the number one platform to learn how to use Google Ads as an ecommerce business.

The company was founded in 2014 by Dennis Moons and today offers free articles as well as paid courses.


Structure

Structured snippet assets

T

Target CPA
target ROAS
Top of Page Bid Estimate
Tracking Template

U

UTM parameter

V

Value based bidding:
ValueTrack
Video played to
View rate
viewable CPM
Viewable impressions
viewable rate
viewhtrough conversion
Views

W

Watch time

X

Y

YouTube
YouTube Shorts

Z

Dennis Moons

Dennis Moons is the founder and lead instructor at Store Growers.

He's a Google Ads expert with over 12 years of experience in running Google Ads campaigns.

During this time he has managed more than $5 million in ad spend and worked with clients ranging from small businesses to global brands. His goal is to provide advice that allows you to compete effectively in Google Ads.

Follow him on Twitter or LinkedIn.

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