What Is Ad Rank?

Ad Rank is a metric used by Google Ads to determine the position of your ads on the search engine results page (SERP). Ad Rank is calculated based on a combination of your bid amount and the quality of your ads, including ad relevance, expected click-through rate, landing page experience, and ad format.

When a user searches for a keyword that you are targeting with your ads, Google Ads uses Ad Rank to determine which ads are shown and in what order. Ads with a higher Ad Rank are typically shown in higher positions on the SERP and are more likely to be clicked on by users.

Ad Rank is a dynamic metric that can change over time, based on changes in your bids, the quality of your ads, and the competitive landscape for the keywords you are targeting. By focusing on improving the quality of your ads, such as by increasing ad relevance and expected click-through rate, and optimizing your bids and budgets, you can improve your Ad Rank and the performance of your Google Ads campaigns.

 

What Determines Ad Rank:

• Quality Score

Ad quality is mostly determined by three variables: Expected click-through rate (CTR), ad relevance, and landing page experience. Quality score, which can be tracked in the Google Ads account, is a summary of Google’s evaluation of the advertisement’s effectiveness. Advertisers are more likely to run effective campaigns if they understand how to improve quality scores and put it into practice. In addition, good experience on landing pages, including quick page loads and mobile friendliness, helps to improve the quality score. 

 

• Bidding

The bid refers to the highest cost per click (CPC) you are prepared to pay. A higher CPC will probably be given greater weight in the ad rank calculation by Google, but as seen, it is not the single determinant of ad rank. 

 

• Context of the Search

The context is important in the ad auction. The same keyword could be searched for by two users in entirely different contexts. Google considers the user’s search words, location, device type, time, other advertising and organic results on the page, and other user signals when determining ad rank.

 

The Expected Impact from the Ad Assets

It is better to provide more details in your ads, such as phone numbers, and more extensions like site links or callouts. Google Ads makes an estimation of the performance of your ad based on the assets and other formats because these assets affect the click-through rate. 

 

What Is Google’s Ad Rank Formula?

Actually, the precise formula for ad rank calculation is regrettably unknown to the general public. But it does not mean it is impossible to understand how Google determines ad rank. Google, on the other hand, has been relatively transparent about the causes behind it. Google’s ad rank methodology simply took into account two variables:

 

• Maximum Cost Per Click (CPC): The highest bid you are ready to pay for a keyword
• Quality Score

 

Note that Google’s ad rank formula takes into account a lot more than just two of these. Here is an example:

	Max Bid	Quality Score	Ad Rank
Advertiser I	2	9	18
Advertiser II	4	4	16
Advertiser III	6	2	12
Advertiser IV	10	1	10

 

Probably, advertisers will pay a lower actual CPC because of the high-quality score. As can be seen, simply bidding high does not improve ad rank. 

 

How to Improve Ad Rank? 

 

• Improve Your Ad Relevance 

Ensure that your ad copy and keywords are highly relevant to the user’s search query. Use targeted ad copy that matches the user’s intent, and include keywords in your ad copy that match the user’s search terms.

 

• Provide as many Google Ads extension assets as possible

Ad extensions, like sitelinks, callout text, and structured snippets,  are essential to improve ad rank. More extensions mean higher CTR. Therefore it helps increase your ad rank. But, extensions unrelated to the keywords and other ad texts may cause your ad rank to drop. 

 

• Make Landing Page User-friendly

Important factors include page loading speed, cross-device compatibility, easy scanning, and error-free page loading. 

 

• Relevant keywords

Choose relevant keywords that are related to your business and target audience. Use keyword research tools to find keywords with high search volume and low competition.

 

• Quality Score

Google Ads uses a Quality Score to determine ad rank. To improve Quality Score, make sure your ads are relevant, useful, and have a high CTR.

 

• Bid amount

Bid amount also affects ad rank. Make sure to bid enough to compete with other advertisers, but not so much that it becomes unprofitable

 

• Increase expected click-through rate (CTR):

Improve your ad’s expected click-through rate by using targeted ad copy and including relevant ad extensions. Experiment with different ad copy and extensions to find what works best for your campaigns.

 

• Regular optimization

Regularly monitor and optimize your ads to improve ad rank. Use performance data to determine which ads are performing well and make changes as needed.

 

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