Is the new Google Ads platform change easier for users? With all the recent changes Google has made to its Google Ads platform, that’s a tough question. We have seen things make a nearly 180-degree change from what the platform was in previous years. The reason for these changes we do not completely know.
Will we ever really know why Google does what it does from month to month and year to year? The answer is likely no. All we can do is roll with the punches, so to speak. We play with what cards they deal to us as they are dealt. With that said, are the changes to the Google Ads platform a benefit to us, or a benefit for Google? That could be answered in many ways by many people, including Google themselves. The question often asked about these changes to the Google Ads platform is: Is this any better than before?
What Changes Have Been the Most Different in The Google Ads Platform?
There have been so many changes within the Google Platform from year to year that this question could have lots of answers. With this most recent Google Ads platform, we could name quite a few changes that have made it quite difficult to deal with on a day to day basis. The two platforms appear to be complete opposites of each other.
Let us just touch on one of the major ones which would be the location of the menu tabs that house the campaign, ad group, keyword, etc. We often used to see these tabs in a horizontal row just above the main metrics view. They have been quite a task to learn but now the menu has totally shifted over to the left side of the platform page. It now contains hidden menu tabs. These require an extra click to be able to see what other items are within those menu tabs. This a big shift in the flow of the work environment. What used to take only a few seconds in the prior Google Ads platform now demands sifting and extra clicking on tabs just to see if what you need is in anyone of those tabs or not.
Time is Money, and Your Time is Valuable
For something as minor as checking a Google Ads search terms report, there is clearly a difference in the ease of use on the users’ end just to get to that tab. It takes more than just seconds to find 10 other tabs that are now hidden or have totally shifted to a new part of the platform. As minor as this sounds, the result is that it requires spending more time. What should be time spent applying strategy and looking over data to optimize, is now used just to find simple tabs that were clearly found in the previous interface or platform.
So, one must wonder just who all these changes benefit. It almost looks like all the benefits are Google’s. There have been so many Google Ad platform changes — far bigger changes than imaged by the common user. Even more, with all the various changes to the platform, Google has also made a massive push for Automation with its new and ever-expanding automated functions within the new Google Ads Platform.
Is the New Google Ads Platform and the Google Automation Push A Coincidence?
As we saw the big Google Ads Platform change not too long ago, Google has also been making a major effort to push their AI or automated bidding features within the platform. Not only automated bidding but basically trying to make the whole account automated. This basically means that they want you to give them full control of how they spend your money, when they spend your money, and how fast they want to spend your money.
When you look at the number of changes and the degree of changes that have taken place and pair them with the automation that Google has been hounding its users to start using, things can look kind of one-sided in who is actually benefitting from all of these changes. Because if they have done a complete 180-degree change on the Google platform, they know users are going to have a tougher time using the system as problem-free as they previously did.
In my opinion, they’ll think users will become frustrated with the platform and break down. Users will eventually opt to start using the heavily promoted automation part. In this way, they will not have the frustration of relearning the system. They also won’t take up more time than necessary in the Google Ads platform. This is just opinion of course but is not out of the realm of possibility.
Test Driving the New Google Ads Platform
Google recognized how big the platform transition was. They gave users a month or two to toggle from the old platform to the new one. This was something that felt like a “peace offering.” This was nice because you could see the huge difference in both platforms with just the toggle of a button. It also helped to get some optimization done versus having to hunt for simple functions in the new Google Ads platform. However, the forums, blogs, and complaints to Google began when they made the switch to the new Google Ads platform.
They had many complaints from forums of dissatisfied users. Google started adding a comment popup within the Google Ads platform asking, “How would you rate the new platform?” After you rated the new platform (by selecting one of only 4 choices), a popup comment box would appear. It would ask you why you rated Google the way you did, and what other comments you had for improvement. I have filled out multiple comments regarding the new platform change and have given them my honest opinion. I’ve shared why this has been a bad move as far as user-friendliness. I have mentioned the scope of the change and impact to all longtime users.
With all our comments and feedback to Google, we hope there will some impact. Hopefully, it encouraged them to think of the users regarding any future change. But in the end, it does look like Google wants as much of the optimization under their control and out of our hands. I hope this commentary was informative and was of use to you or your business.
