Responsive display ads: what they are and how to use them in B2B

Responsive display ads are ads on the Google Display Network for which you supply separate building blocks (images, headlines, descriptions and a logo), and Google automatically combines those into the format that fits every available ad slot. In short: you deliver the parts, the system assembles the ad and adapts it to each place where it appears. That sounds convenient, and it is, but in B2B this is rarely your first choice for direct leads. It works best for remarketing and brand awareness. In this article you will read what responsive display ads are exactly, how Google combines your assets, and when to use them and when not to.

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What exactly are responsive display ads?

Responsive display ads (RDA) are a variant of regular Google Display ads, with one important twist: they automatically adapt their size, styling and format to the available space. Does your ad show up on one site as a wide banner and on another as a small text block? Then Google makes sure it looks tidy in both cases.

The difference with a classic display ad lies in the method. With a static banner you design every format yourself. With a responsive display ad you supply separate assets and Google builds the combinations. According to the Google Ads documentation on responsive display ads, you upload up to:

• 15 images
• 5 headlines
• 5 descriptions
• 5 logos

The Display Network then combines those assets into a wide range of ad units for every available format. So you do not need to have dozens of banners produced, which makes it attractive for a small team. Do you want to understand the basics of paid advertising first? Then read our explainers on PPC and SEA. Display is part of the broader family we describe in our guide to online advertising.

How does Google combine your assets automatically?

Behind the scenes runs a system that tests your headlines, descriptions and images against each other and shows the best performing combinations more often. It is literally automated: you supply the ingredients, the algorithm picks the recipe per impression and per user.

A few rules determine what appears together. It pays to know them, because they influence how you write your copy:

• Headlines never appear together. Every headline stands on its own. So you can create different versions without worrying about repeating yourself.
• Descriptions belong with a headline. A description is never shown on its own, always as an addition to a headline. Make sure your description does not repeat the headline word for word.
• Headlines can appear without a description. Depending on the space, Google sometimes shows only a headline. So write your headlines in a way that convinces on their own too.
• Copy that is too long gets truncated. Text fields have character limits. Put the most important information up front, so your message lands even if the rest falls away.

The fields you work with are, according to Google: short headlines (up to 30 characters), long headlines (up to 90 characters), descriptions (up to 90 characters) and a business name (up to 25 characters), complemented by your visual assets. For images, Google supports two ratios: landscape (1.91:1) and square (1:1). At least one of your images has to be 1.91:1.

Why would you use responsive display ads?

The benefits are obvious, as long as you understand what this format is meant for. The main ones:

• Fast and easy to set up. You do not have to design a full banner set. You upload your assets and Google optimises the rest. For a small team that saves a lot of work.
• Broad reach. Because your ad fits every available format, it gets a chance in more places. The Display Network is enormous (see below).
• Versatile. The same campaign appears on one site as an image banner and on another as a text ad.
• Suitable for personalisation and dynamic remarketing. You can show content based on a feed you manage yourself, which fits well with remarketing.
• Affordable. Because you can do a lot yourself, production costs stay low.

And yet “easy and broad” is exactly where the pitfall sits. Broad reach sounds great, but reach is not a goal. An impression on some random news site does not get you a customer. That is why our position is clear: do not steer on impressions, clicks or click-through rate as a goal, but on qualified enquiries and ultimately revenue. Display is a means, not a scoreboard.

Do responsive display ads work for B2B lead generation?

Honest answer: rarely as a first choice. B2B is not a webshop. You are not selling to an impulse buyer who happens to see a banner, but to a decision maker who weighs things up, often together with colleagues, about a purchase that runs for weeks or months. Someone who sees a banner on some random site is usually not in a buying moment.

For direct lead generation in B2B, search campaigns usually perform better, because there you reach people actively looking for a solution. How to approach that you can read in our guide to the Google Ads campaign and in our offering around Google Ads. You run display alongside it, not instead of it.

Where responsive display ads are genuinely strong for B2B:

• Remarketing. Someone visited your website but did not enquire. With display you stay visible while that person keeps browsing. That is not cold reach, but a warm reminder of a brand that is already familiar. This is where most of the B2B value of display sits.
• Brand awareness. Do you want a well-defined audience to come across your name more often before they start searching? Then display helps you stay top of mind.
• Support for your funnel. Display warms up and keeps warm; your search and lead campaigns do the work further down the funnel.

So do not expect a stream of enquiries straight out of a display campaign. Judge it on its role: how many previous visitors does it bring back, and does it contribute to enquiries that come in elsewhere.

How do you keep a responsive display ad campaign under control?

The system does a lot automatically, but that does not mean you can sit back. A few practical points keep the quality up:

• Choose your images deliberately. Use visuals that immediately show what you offer, and that stay sharp whether they are displayed large or small. Test them in different formats before you upload them.
• Watch your logo. Do not add white space around your logo to meet the aspect ratio; when scaled down it becomes unreadable. Better to make a square and a landscape version.
• Create multiple variants. Different headlines, descriptions and visuals give the system material to test with. Keep your top variants and pit them against new versions.
• Make your landing page match your ad. Same tone, same message, same look and feel. A visitor who clicks through has to feel immediately that they are in the right place.
• Measure what counts. Connect your campaign to real conversions, not to impressions or clicks. Look at how many qualified enquiries your audience produces and what a lead costs.

Display can also be combined with moving image, by the way. Do you want to go deeper into video ads? Then read our guide to YouTube ads in Google Ads.

Frequently asked questions about responsive display ads

Where are responsive display ads shown?

On the Google Display Network (GDN), according to Google a collection of more than 2 million websites, videos and apps where Google Ads can appear. So your ad can pop up in very diverse places.

Are responsive display ads better than regular text ads?

They are different things for different goals. Responsive display ads are visual and scalable and aim for reach and repetition. Text and search ads reach people who are actively searching. For direct B2B leads, search is usually stronger; display is better for remarketing and awareness.

How does Google actually assemble the ad?

Google uses an automated system that combines the headlines, descriptions and images you supply and shows the best performing variants more often, tuned to the available space and the user.

Is display suitable if I mainly want leads?

Not as your only channel. For lead generation in B2B you are better off starting with search campaigns. You run display alongside it for remarketing and brand awareness, so you stay visible to people who already know you.

How many assets do I need to supply?

You can supply up to 15 images, 5 headlines, 5 descriptions and 5 logos. More and more varied assets give the system more room to test, but quality weighs heavier than quantity.

Ready to use display smartly?

Responsive display ads are a handy and affordable instrument, but no miracle cure for leads. The gain sits in the right role: remarketing and brand awareness that strengthen your search campaigns, steered on customers and revenue instead of on impressions. Do you want to know how display fits into your B2B mix, without wasting budget on reach that never becomes a customer? We are happy to think along about a set-up that steers on qualified enquiries.

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