Improving user experience and reporting for phone numbers in ads

One of the easiest ways to receive a quick answer on the go is by clicking on a number from your phone and calling a business directly.  In fact, we’re seeing users make millions of calls a month through AdWords Call Extensions; advertisers display their national or local number in an ad and receive detailed reporting on these calls to help inform marketing decisions.  

But what happens for phone numbers that are entered in an ad, but not via a clickable Call Extension? Previously our system wasn’t able to provide separate reporting for clicks to phone numbers from a URL click so these numbers were not clickable. Now advertisers can view detailed reporting on click-to-call activity by segmenting traffic by click type. As a result, we will be making an upcoming change to ads where any phone number in an ad will be clickable on a mobile device.  

(Left): Previously, numbers in ad were non-clickable and customers users couldn’t directly call a business from the ad.

(Right): Now, phone numbers in ad text will become clickable. Users can call a business directly from an ad, and full AdWords reporting is available for all calls placed.

Calls stemming from clicks to these numbers will now be the same cost as a click to your website. Moreover,  potential customers are now able to click on your number while on their mobile devices, and you’ll be able to leverage the power of Adwords reporting by segmenting your campaign reports by click type. 

However, to get the most value from click-to-call, we recommend that you remove your phone number from your ad creative and manually create a Call Extension.  There are two primary benefits to this. First, your number will appear as an additional line of ad text which frees up space in your ad creative for other messages. In addition, you’re able to take advantage of other powerful enhancements such as Vanity Numbers, call-only creatives, and Call Metrics reporting. To get started with these call based features, visit the ‘Ad Extensions’ tab in your account to create your first Call Extension . 

We are committed to providing our users with the best mobile web experience and encourage you to learn more about the different ways you can connect with customers via the phone by visiting our Help Center.

Posted by Surojit Chatterjee, Product Manager, Mobile Ads

Improving user experience and reporting for phone numbers in ads
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