What are Branded Searches conversions in Google Ads? (fka Attributed Brand Searches)

By: Jyll Saskin Gales, Google Ads Coach

Do you ever run YouTube ads and wonder if they're actually having an impact? You know you shouldn't measure success in terms of conversions or clicks, but somehow, just measuring views or impressions feels too wishy-washy?

Google announced at Google Marketing Live that they're providing a new way to help you understand whether your video ads are driving users to take action. By focusing on a new conversion goal called "Branded Searches" (previously called Attributed Brand Searches), Google is making it easier to connect the dots between your video ad campaigns and increased brand interest.

In this article, I'll explain everything we know so far about Branded Searches. Note that this post has already been updated multiple times as new information becomes available; be sure to save this for later, as I will continue to update it as Branded Searches roll out globally (it's currently in beta). We'll cover:

• What are Branded Searches as conversions in Google Ads? (formerly known as Attributed Brand Searches)
• How do Branded Searches conversions work in Google Ads?
• What's the difference between Branded Searches and Search Lift Studies?
• Should you use Branded Searches conversions in Google Ads?
• Branded Searches and the Bigger Picture: Incrementality Testing and the "4 S's"

Note that this feature was announced as "Attributed Brand Searches" but it is now called simply "Branded Searches." A confusing name, since branded searches can refer to all searches for your brand, not just those that Google attributes to your awareness advertising. Still, we'll move forward with Google's name and, for the rest of this article, refer to the feature as Branded Searches.

What are Branded Searches as conversions in Google Ads?

Imagine a potential customer sees your video ad for a delicious new organic snack bar. They might not click immediately, but the ad sparks their interest. Later, while they're browsing online, they remember your snack bar and decide to search for "your brand organic snack bar" on Google or YouTube. This is precisely what Branded Searches aims to track.

This new Google Ads feature is designed to give you a clear view of how many branded searches on Google and YouTube are directly influenced by users having seen one of your ads. It’s a way to measure if your visual content is effectively building brand awareness and driving action; though a new conversion action called "Branded Searches."

Note this technical detail: the Branded Searches conversion will attribute searches for your brand within 7 days of an impression served from Performance Max, Demand Gen and Video campaigns across Google-owned inventory: YouTube, Discover and Gmail.

How do Branded Searches conversions work in Google Ads?

In order to use Branded Searches as a conversion action with your Performance Max, Demand Gen or Video campaigns in Google Ads, you need to set up Brand Mapping. Note that this is only just started to roll out globally, and it's still in beta, so it may not be available in your Google Ads account yet.

Brand Mapping: The first step is to tell Google what your brand is. This isn't just your official company name. It's about mapping out all the different ways people might refer to or search for your brand. For instance, if you were Google advertising Google Ads, you might include "Google Ads," "AdWords," "YouTube" and "Performance Max" in your brand mapping. This comprehensive mapping helps Google accurately identify all relevant branded searches. Once brand mapping is configured, Branded Searches will automatically appear in your reporting and your Conversion Goals summary. As of right now, to set up brand mapping, you will need to work directly with a Google sales representative.

Attribution Window: While Google originally said that you'll get to choose an attribution window, it appears that the only Attribution choice is a 7-day view-through conversion. This window determines how long Google will "remember" that a user saw your video ad. If a user sees your video ad and then performs a branded search for your product or company within that chosen window, that search is counted as a "Branded Search" in your "All Conversions" and/or "Results" column. This helps you understand the delayed impact of your video ads on Google-owned properties, recognizing that not every search happens instantly.

Conversion Segments: Branded Searches is a new conversion action, but you cannot use it as a Primary goal, and your cannot use it for bidding optimization. Basically, you can't set "Branded Searches" as the actual goal of your campaign. Instead, by adding the "All Conversions" column to your campaign, ad group or asset-level reports, and then adding the Segment by Conversion action, you'll be able to see how many Branded Searches resulted from your ad impressions. It's an extra piece of useful data, but not a core campaign objective.

What's the difference between Branded Searches and Search Lift Studies?

Traditional search lift studies are generally only available to very large advertisers. Branded Searches, however, are designed to be more accessible to advertisers of all sizes.

In addition, Attributed Brand Searches are designed to be "always-on," whereas search lift runs with flighted campaigns.

Now, all advertisers, regardless of your budget size, can gain a better understanding of the value your video campaigns can deliver. It allows you to see if your video ads are truly driving people to seek out your brand.

Should you use Branded Searches conversions in Google Ads?

So, why is this specific metric so important for your Google Ads strategy?

• Proof of Brand Building: Branded Searches offer concrete evidence that your video ads are building brand awareness and recall. It moves beyond existing metrics like views and shows that your ads are making a tangible impression on your audience.
• Optimizing Upper-Funnel Investments: Video ads often serve as "upper-funnel" marketing, meaning they focus on awareness and interest rather than immediate sales. This metric helps you justify and optimize those investments by showing a direct link to increased brand interest, which, in turn, drives sales.
• More Informed Budget Allocation: By seeing which video campaigns lead to more attributed brand searches, you can make smarter decisions about where to allocate your Google Ads budget, focusing on the content and placements that truly resonate.
• Democratizing Insights: What was once a high-end feature for big budget advertisers is now available to a broader range of businesses. This is a significant step forward for any Google Ads specialist or small business owner looking to optimize Google Ads more effectively.

Branded Searches and the Bigger Picture: Incrementality Testing and the "4 S's"

While Branded Searches conversions are a powerful tool on their own, they also fit into a larger framework of how Google wants us to understand advertising effectiveness.

Incrementality Testing: Now available with just a $5k minimum

Branded Searches are related to the concept of incrementality testing. Incrementality is all about answering the question: "Would these results have happened anyway, even if I hadn't run this ad campaign?"

Google also recently announced that incrementality tests in Google Ads are becoming more accessible, too. The minimum budget threshhold to run an incrementality test used to be $100,000, and now, it will be just $5,000. This means more advertisers can conduct controlled experiments to prove the additional branded searches or additional conversions that their video ads are generating.

Branded Searches can be seen as an ongoing, accessible conversion metric that contributes to this broader understanding of incremental value. It's like a continuous pulse check on your brand's search interest driven by video, complementing more in-depth incrementality studies. 

The "Four S's": How Google Sees Consumer Behaviour

Google's focus on video and these measurement enhancements also aligns with their understanding of modern consumer behaviour, summarized by their "Four S's": Searching, Scrolling, Streaming, and Shopping.

• Streaming: YouTube is at the heart of streaming, offering vast opportunities for video advertising. Your ads are reaching people where they're already engaged with content.
• Shopping: The line between streaming and shopping is blurring. New "shoppable video ad" experiences mean viewers can go directly from watching to purchasing. Branded Searches help bridge that gap by showing if your video is driving pre-purchase research.
• Searching: YouTube is the world's second-largest search engine. People actively go there to find information, product reviews, and tutorials. If your video ad drives a branded search on YouTube or Google, it's a strong signal of intent.
• Scrolling: From short-form content feeds to long-form videos, consumers spend countless hours scrolling through platforms like YouTube. This constant engagement provides numerous opportunities for your video ads to capture attention and spark curiosity, leading to those valuable attributed brand searches.

By understanding and leveraging Branded Searches conversions, you can gain a much deeper appreciation for the influence of your video campaigns. You should definitely try it out once it hits your Google Ads account!

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