Search Template Troubleshooting Tips

Owned by Zan Jabara
Jan 05, 2023
4 min read

Ad Groups Not Activating!!

Auto Templates:

  • Check for errors on the Search Template tab

 

  • Check that the campaign connected to the template is eligible

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  • If they are referencing specific ad groups vs. all of them, make sure the filters are set appropriately

  • Download the preview data feed and make sure the inventory is correct when compared to filters/site. Note: backend location filters will affect auto templates and limit inventory to the location filtered in

  • Plug in the placeholders to their final URL and see if the page has inventory

  • Customizer Feed upload process to ensure it was done correctly. Common mistakes include uploading the ETA feed instead, and following the

ETA upload instructions instead of the RSA instructions.

  • If all of these items are correct, you may need to escalate the issue to configurations

 

Prebuild Templates:

 

  • Check that the campaign connected to the template is eligible

  • Check make filter and year range to make sure desired ad groups are included

  • Check that the library has all desired models

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Check that they have Responsive Search Ads in the template - Expanded Text Ads are not supported by Google anymore. Ads that existed before might still run, but if they reupload the template with only ETAs, there will be no ads.

  • Check that the ad groups are broken down far enough (ex. if models aren’t turning on, make sure the ad group isn’t just set to [make])

  • Plug in the placeholders to their final URL and see if the page has inventory

  • If they are using Google Ads Customizers, you may need to inquire about their RSA Ad Customizer Feed upload process to ensure it was done correctly. Common mistakes include uploading the ETA feed instead, and following the

ETA upload instructions instead of the RSA instructions.

  • If all of these items are correct, you may inquire about their upload process in Google Ads Editor. Further, you may need to escalate this issue to configurations.

 

Ad Copy:

  • You don’t want to use placeholders in your ad copy that 1) are not broken down in your ad group naming and/or 2) cause the number of ads created to exceed 3

  • For example: My ad group name is [Make] [Model] but I want to include year in my ad copy. I go ahead and create some headlines that contain the [year] placeholder without changing my ad group segmentation. The issue here is, for the Ford Escape, I have a 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020. Google limits ad groups to 3 responsive search ads. When the Hoot system replaces that [year] placeholder with the year value, there will be too many. This can cause ad groups to form that look like: Ford Escape (2017), and at worst can cause errors.

  • If a client already is using ad groups that have formed to be [Make] [Model] (year), altering the ad group segmentation could affect their reporting and might not need to be changed, so this is mostly a tip for creating ad groups.

 

Final URL issues:

 

Making a final URL work:

  • Even if an advertiser’s CMS is in the CMS guide, you should check that the final URL works when the placeholders are filled in. It is also valuable to look at the advertiser’s website and see how the filters change the URL. If the CMS guide URL and advertiser’s site URL are different but both work, I usually go with whichever one is the “cleanest” or allows for easier troubleshooting.

  • Sometimes for RV and Boat dealers, the names of their fields on the website may be different. For example, manufacturer often means make, and even “make” can mean model in car terms

  • Loom video on finding a final URL via advertiser’s site -

https://www.loom.com/share/45e27c019e644f3ea78c662e8ef84511

 

Adding Location/Year when there is an SRP filter:

  • Loom video -

https://www.loom.com/share/45e27c019e644f3ea78c662e8ef84511

Adding Location/Year when it is not an SRP filter:

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Sometimes a year or location filter can be added to a final URL even if the filter is not visible on the SRP. Using “&year=[year]” and “&location=*Dealership Name*” and “&dealership=*Dealership Name*” might work. Check other dealers in the same auto group or with the same CMS to see what parameters they use, and always test the final URL before using it.

 

 

 

Manual Push

  • If a client requests a “manual push” or daytime run of the Google Ads process, we can do that quickly without sending the request to configurations:

  • Go into the backend and find the advertiser

  • Navigate to the Hoot Scrapping Button on the Web Inventory Screen