Google AdWords Manager Defined Spend (MDS)

Shimon Sandler posted about a feature he found in his Google AdWords account named “Manager Defined Spend,” or MDS. I emailed Google to find out more about this MDS feature, and this is the response they sent me:

Manager Defined Spend (MDS) is a new, simple way for My Client Center (MCC) account users to better control the budgets of their AdWords accounts. It’s been available for about a year for advertisers who meet the eligibility requirements, and as you can imagine, this is particularly helpful for agencies and SEMs who manage multiple AdWords accounts on their end clients’ behalf. If advertisers decide to move some or all of their managed accounts to MDS, they are able to create and modify those accounts’ budgets instantaneously via the MCC dashboard. They’ll be charged for these accounts with one Manager Order-level monthly invoice, eliminating the need to constantly renegotiate contracts.

This is not exactly a new feature, since it has been around for about a year. But it does seem to be a feature limited to a small portion of Google AdWords advertisers. The benefits seem clear:

* Better Control of AdWords Budgets
* Excellent Option for Agencies
* Quicker Access to Manage Budgets for all Accounts
* One Monthly Invoice as Opposed to One Per Account

Shimon explains the key points include:
– Create, Modify, & Allocate Budget Effectively
– Increased Efficiency
– Customer Flexibility and Control On Multiple Accounts
– 1 Service Agreement to Cover Multiple Accounts

Plus, Shimon rightly adds that upgrading to the MDS program will not impact your account because your account remains the same–it just adds a layer on top of your account.