AdSense Text Ads Get Biggest Makeover In Recent Memory

By Pamela Parker

Published: December 5, 2012 at 2:53 pm

In a nod to consistency across platforms and the growth in mobile usage, Google has overhauled its AdSense text ads to be more mobile-friendly, adding a large arrow button to each ad that should make it easier for “fat fingers” to click effectively on tablets and mobile phones. The buttons will also appear on desktop versions of text ads on the Google Display Network.

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The new text ads also feature slight changes to font size, spacing and text layout. Google says its experiments with the new format indicate an uplift in clicks across publishers. No changes will occur on text ads displaying on Google.com or other search partners.

The changes will begin appearing automatically and will be based on the color palette publishers have chosen for their ad units. If the background of the ad units is white, the arrow icon will be grey. For other background colors, the arrow button will be a different shade of the background color. Google’s policies forbid any publisher from placing similar-looking arrows or images around their ad units.

Reaction from publishers to the new units seems to be mixed, with some saying the arrows are too big and ugly, and others praising the new look.

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About the author

Pamela Parker

Pamela Parker is Research Director at Third Door Media's Content Studio, where she produces MarTech Intelligence Reports and other in-depth content for digital marketers in conjunction with Search Engine Land and MarTech. Prior to taking on this role at TDM, she served as Content Manager, Senior Editor and Executive Features Editor. Parker is a well-respected authority on digital marketing, having reported and written on the subject since its beginning. She's a former managing editor of ClickZ and has also worked on the business side helping independent publishers monetize their sites at Federated Media Publishing. Parker earned a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University.