Car insurance Channel

For those of you who use the AdWords API, we are happy to announce the launch of the latest version of the API, v2009. This version offers more speed, scale, and flexibility to developers, at a lower cost. Since v2009 is a production beta, developers can sign up for access and will be whitelisted on a rolling basis. For full details on what you'll find in v2009 and how to get started, visit the AdWords API blog.

Posted by Dan Friedman, Inside AdWords crew

We're pleased to announce today that the click measurement systems in Google AdWords has now been accredited by the Media Rating Council (MRC). MRC accreditation certifies that Google's click measurement technology adheres to the industry standards for counting interactive advertising clicks and that its processes supporting this technology are accurate.

The industry guidelines were developed over the past three years in an effort coordinated by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and the MRC. We're proud to be one of the founding members of this group, which established the first ever industry guidelines governing how interactive advertising clicks are counted and how invalid clicks are detected and handled. The audit against these guidelines was conducted by a CPA firm engaged by the MRC to perform the audit. You can view the IAB / MRC Click Measurement Guidelines here.

We look forward to continuing to work with the rest of the industry in promoting rigorous standards and practices in click measurement and analysis. As ever, our Ad Traffic Quality team continues to work hard on protecting advertiser ROI. To read more about our work in this area, please visit our Ad Traffic Quality Resource Center.

Posted by Amanda Kelly, Inside AdWords crew

A few of the changes we've made in the new AdWords interface improve how you manage your campaign settings. In today's post, we'll cover these changes.
Posted by Dan Friedman, Inside AdWords crew

The basics of AdWords, such as bids, budgets, and Quality Score, haven't changed with the new interface. Still, every once in a while, you might find yourself asking, "Where did that go?" Here's a set of pointers to help you pick up where you left off in the previous AdWords interface.
Posted by Trevor Claiborne, Inside AdWords crew

If you're new to Conversion Tracking, a "conversion" happens when a visitor to your site completes a desired action (such as making a purchase or requesting a quote). A conversion is very similar to the concept of a Goal or Transaction in Google Analytics, and is crucial to assessing the ROI from your online advertising spend.

Last week we shared tips on how you can get ready for the new AdWords interface. We now have another resource to help you prepare for the change. Starting this week, we're holding weekly webinars about the new interface.

The first webinar is this Friday, June 19th at 11 AM PDT. The free 1-hour webinar will be led by Ariel Bardin, Product Management Director for the new AdWords interface. Ariel will walk you through the new interface, show you how to use the new features, and answer your questions.

You can register for the webinar here: New Interface Webinar Registration. Also, we have set up a Google Moderator page where you can send us your questions and vote for the questions you want answered. You can visit this page to submit your questions.

And, remember you can always visit the new interface microsite for additional help. We hope to see you on Friday.

Posted by Trevor Claiborne, Inside AdWords crew

Starting today, all AdWords Seminars for Success will be taught using the new AdWords interface. So, if you've been wanting some in-person instruction on how to best use the new AdWords interface or how to generally grow your campaigns, check out the seminars we're hosting in the next couple months:

AdWords 101: Beginner and AdWords 201: Intermediate

• June 15-16: San Diego, CA

AdWords 301: Advanced Account Optimization and AdWords 302: Advanced Conversion Optimization

• June 24-25: Boston, MA
• July 16-17: Minneapolis, MN
• August 4-5: Denver, CO
  

Analytics: Introduction and Analytics: Advanced

• June 17-18: Dallas, TX
• June 25-26: Washington D.C.
  
• July 7-8: Edmonton, Canada
• July 7-8: Sao Paulo, Brazil

Website Optimizer

• June 19: Dallas, TX
• February 11: San Jose, CA
• July 9: Sao Paulo, Brazil
  

If you sign up for seminars at least seven days in advance, you'll receive a $50 AdWords credit (view the terms and conditions).

For more information about Seminars for Success, including registration details, course outlines, and past attendees' comments, please visit http://www.google.com/awseminars.

Posted by Amanda Kelly, Inside AdWords crew

On Saturday, June 13th, 2009, the AdWords system will be unavailable from approximately 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. PDT due to system maintenance. While you won't be able to sign in to your accounts during this time, your campaigns will continue to run as usual. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Posted by Dan Friedman, Inside AdWords crew

Today on New Interface Thursdays, we'll take a quick look at the Ads tab in AdWords. The Ads tab lets you view and edit all of your ads, as well as check their status and performance. In the new AdWords interface, you have access to the Ads tab within individual ad groups, whole campaigns, or for your entire account.

Like in the other tables in the new interface, you can make edits right in the table, customize columns, and filter your ads within the Ads tab. One feature we've added to the new interface is the ability to see which ads are pending approval. While in the previous interface you could only see when ads had been disapproved, the new interface allows you to see if they're pending review or have been approved. This will take the guesswork out of determining when your ad is eligible to start running on the Google Network.

You can use filtering to quickly identify all ads that are pending review. Click on Filter and views and select Filter Ads. From the drop-down, select Approval Status, and then check the box for Pending. Click Apply and the table will only show ads that are pending approval.

(click to view larger image)

You can do the same with disapproved ads. If you have a disapproved ad, you can click the bubble icon in the Status column to learn why it was disapproved

We've also recently added the Display Ad Builder to the new interface. You can get to the tool by clicking New ad and then selecting Display ad builder. If you've wanted to expand your campaigns beyond text ads but haven't had the time to create a display ad from scratch, the Display Ad Builder is a great tool to try.

We hope you find the Ads tab helpful in managing your AdWords campaigns.

Posted by Dan Friedman, Inside AdWords crew

We'd like to share with you some upcoming, free Google webinars in June, ranging from general AdWords topics to topics geared specifically toward the travel and auto industries:

AdWords ongoing UK webinar series
Along with a number of on-demand webinars that you can watch any time, every month we also run live webinars hosted by UK AdWords specialists. Due to the timing of these webinars, they may be most suitable for UK and East Coast advertisers. Coming up in June we have:

• June 3rd at 3pm British Summer Time (9am EST): Website Optimizer: Test & Enhance your Website
  
• June 10th at 3pm British Summer Time (9am EST): AdWords Editor I
  
• June 17th at 3pm British Summer Time (9am EST): AdWords Editor II
  
• June 18th at 11am British Summer Time (5am EST): ROI Maximization for the Education Industry
  
• June 18th at 3pm British Summer Time (9am EST): Back to School for Retailers
  

For more details please see our webinar calendar.

We also have two specific webinars focused on the travel and auto industries:

A Look into Destination Shopping Behavior
As consumers plan and book travel to destinations around the world, understanding their online and offline research and purchase process is key. Using a detailed online behavioral analysis and in-depth survey of traveler perspectives, Google and Compete are partnering to present a new study exploring how consumers shop for and book destination-based travel.

Register today and join us on Tuesday, June 16th at 10am PST to learn:

• How do consumers split their time researching and shopping across online and offline resources?
• How long do consumers spend doing research before booking destination travel and what's the timing of particular research activities?
• What do consumers value when comparing destinations and planning leisure vacations?
• When do consumers use search in their process of researching and booking destination travel and how can travel sellers leverage this?

The Role of Search in the Auto Insurance Shopping Experience
Consumers are turning to the web in increasing numbers to research a variety of financial services products. In order to maximize your online marketing ROI, it's important to understand their behavior.

Join Google and Compete as we present findings of a recent study that analyzed consumers’ auto insurance related shopping and purchase behavior, with an emphasis on the role of search.

Register today and join us on Thursday, June 18, 2009 at 11am PST to learn:

• What leads consumers to shop for a new auto insurance policy?
• How important are various research channels for consumers during their auto insurance shopping process?
• What role does search play in driving online auto insurance quote volume?
• How do consumers search before requesting a quote and what keywords are driving conversions?
• What's the role of brand and generic search terms in the purchase process?
• What's the effect of key word types on conversion rates?
• What's the time frame from beginning research to eventual application?

This webinar will run approximately 30 minutes, followed by a 15-minute question and answer session. We look forward to having you join us.

Posted by Amanda Kelly, Inside AdWords crew