Pimp Your Ads: Guide to AdWords Ad Customizers

Updated:: July 17, 2017
Published:: November 4, 2014

Remember the sheer TV genius that was MTV’s Pimp My Ride? When it came to customizing cars, there was not a paint job too outlandish or shag carpet too tacky for Xzibit and his crew at West Coast Customs. Well, move over Xzibit – Google’s new Ad Customizers are giving you a run for your money! As exciting as Ad Customizers are, they can be a bit scary. That’s why we put together this rundown on what exactly they are, how they work and a few examples of how you can put them to use. Think of this as an Ad Customizer FAQ.

If at any point you feel your inner Kevin O’Leary from Shark Tank coming out, feel free to say “Stop the madness!” and scroll down to the examples (with images) provided below. Seeing these bad boys in action can really make it all come together.

What Are Ad Customizers?

Think Dynamic Keyword Insertion on steroids: Using a series of parameters, Google automatically updates your ad, in real-time, by inserting a keyword, countdown timer, or any other information that you want. That means you upload one ad and get nearly unlimited variations, automatically. Pretty cool right?

Where Can I Use Ad Customizers?

You can use Ad Customizers in any text ad on the Google Search or Display Networks. They can be used in any part of the ad except for the display URL.

How Do They Work?

Ad Customizers work using parameters that sit within brackets {like this}. These parameters get replaced in real-time by information that you have previously designated using Ad Customizer Data, COUNTDOWN functions, or both.

How Are The Parameters Structured?

Parameters are made up of two parts; a data sheet reference and a column reference.

If you’re using a Countdown, refer to the section “How Do Countdowns Work?”

What Is Ad Customizer Data?

Ad Customizer Data is a spreadsheet that you upload into the Business Data section of your Shared Library within your Adwords account. (You can download Google’s CSV template here). The spreadsheet must be uploaded as a .csv, .tsv, .xls, or .xlsx file.

What Goes In The Data Sheet?

The Data Sheet is made up of columns containing information like price, models or any other relevant data. You tell Google how to format the data by listing one of four attributes in parentheses next to your column headers: text, number, price, or date.

What Kinds Of Things Can I Use As Customizers?

Here are the Ad Customizer standard attributes. Of course, you can add any type of data you want, but these are the essentials.

How Do I Target My Ad Customizers?

Google locates the appropriate Ad Customizers by referencing specific keywords, ad groups, campaigns or your entire account. You set this in advance by including targeting columns like “Target Keyword” in your Data Sheet. If you want your customizers to apply to your entire account simply leave out the targeting columns.

How Do Countdowns Work?

Countdowns work two ways depending on whether you are counting down to one event or multiple. If you are counting down to a single event, simply use the COUNTDOWN function:

{=COUNTDOWN("YYYY/MM/DD 09:00:00")}

UPDATE: Google has launched a tool that allows you to more easily create a one time countdown timer. In order to use this feature you must create the ad in Google AdWords native. When you get to the point in the ad where you want to insert the countdown, simply start typing code like this: {= Once you do this, a drop down (like the one below) will appear then you just fill in the details. If you have multiple one-time countdown ads to create you can then import changes to Google Editor and copy and paste the ad you just created wherever you want.

If you are counting down to multiple events, you’ll need to upload a data sheet with all of the dates and then use the countdown parameter like this:

{=COUNTDOWN(Discounts.CountdownDate)}

How Long Do Countdowns Run?

Countdowns run 5 days in advance of the end date by default and stop afterwards. Start dates can be changed by adding the desired number of days after the function. In the example below, I changed a countdown function to start 3 days in advance of the end date:

How Do Countdowns Interact With Timezones?

Countdowns can either adjust to the user’s timezone (using the COUNTDOWN function) or they can end at a universal point in time (using the GLOBAL_COUNTDOWN function)

COUNTDOWN example – If you’re running a sale that ends at 11pm Eastern and someone in Atlanta sees your ad at at 9pm, they’ll see “Sale Ends In 2 Hours” while someone in LA would see “Sale Ends In 5 hours”.
GLOBAL_COUNTDOWN example – In the example above, the user in Atlanta and LA would both see “Sale Ends In 2 Hours”.

What Happens If A Customizer Breaks or a Countdown Ends?

Google requires you to have one text ad without customizers enabled in any ad group with ad customizers. This serves as a backup in case something goes wrong, a countdown ends or has not started yet.

How Do I Set Up Ad Customizers?

Open the Ad Customizer Data CSV Template.
Define your custom attributes – make sure you include an attribute type (text, number, price or date).
1. Google recommends not using spaces in the attribute names.
Define your targeting (if you’re targeting by keyword, ad group and/or campaign or entire account).
Enter your data & upload to AdWords – Shared Library – Business Data (.csv, .tsv, .xls, or .xlsx).
Write your ad using appropriate parameters (character limits still apply to the final ad).
Upload a standard text ad in the same ad group that has no ad customizers.

How Do I Celebrate The Launch Of My Ad Customizers?

Oh you just uploaded your first Ad Customizers? Celebrate like Ric Flair!

Examples & Use Cases

Example 1: Keyword-Targeted Sale Countdown

Problem: You have a large inventory and want to show specific product details based on keywords. You also want to countdown to the end of a sale.

Solution: Upload a data sheet with details about each product then create one ad with a countdown and customizers that reference specific columns of the sheet.

Example 2: Campaign & Ad Group-Targeted Ad

Problem: Your account is structured with category specific campaigns and brand specific ad groups. You want to highlight your selection of products.

Solution: Customize your ads by ad group by using the “Target Campaign” & “Target Ad Group” columns.

Example 3: Countdown to Multiple Events

Problem: You host a wrestling match featuring a pro wrestler at your sketchy, run-down warehouse several times a month and want to run countdowns for each one.

Solution: Upload a data sheet (in this case we’ll call it “Matches”) with all scheduled dates and any text you want to replace.

Example 4: Countdown to a One-Time Event

If there is a one-time event that you’d like to run a countdown for, there’s no need to upload customizer data. Simply include this function in your text ad:

{=COUNTDOWN("YEAR/MO/DY 09:00:00”)}