Google enables the use of display ads via the Google Display Network (GDN) to promote your company, products, or services.
So how can you use Google's Display Network advertising to target your customers where they live online?
Both Ad and the Display Network are part of the Google Network. Google Ads relate to Google Search and search partners such as YouTube. The Display Network consists of more than 2 million websites, apps, videos, blogs, and other online properties where your ads can appear that, according to Google, reach more than 90% of internet users in 30 languages and 100 countries.
This video explains how Google Display Advertising works.
Google Display Advertising Formats for Business
GDN allows advertisers to create four different types of ad formats including text, image, interactive, and video. Ads are placed on websites relevant to what you sell, and they also work on mobile devices.
Google Display Network Creates Ads for You to Use in Your Advertising.
If you already have ad creative such as banner ads or videos, you can use those with GDN. If you don’t, Google can create them for you via its Display Ad Builder tool that contains hundreds of professionally designed templates.
You can incorporate images from Google’s stock files, upload them from your computer, or pull them directly from your website. Using the ad builder is easy enough so that no special training is necessary. Use of the tool is free.
For existing Google Ads users, the tool provides pre-made image ads using copy from your text ads, which you can directly add to one of your campaigns or customize further.
Here are examples of ads developed use the display ad builder tool.
Match Your Ads to Websites When Using Google Display Network Advertising.
Google Display Network offers several ways to target those who see your ads.
Keywords and Topics– Using contextual targeting, Google Ads finds the best places for your ad across the Google Display Network, based on keywords you selected.
Specific Websites or Pages – Choose the websites or even web pages where you want your ads to appear using placement targeting. You can even block your ads from sites you don’t think are relevant.
Groups of People – Google enables you to target specific groups of people in one of three ways:
- Remarketing: Using a technology known as remarketing (also referred to as retargeting), Google can show your ads to people who previously visited your website or conducted a search.
- Interest categories: You can also reach groups of people based on interest categories such as sports or travel even when they visit a page related to a different topic.
- Demographics: Target people based on demographic information like gender and age.
Get Started Using Google Display Network Advertising.
Google offers a getting started guide for advertisers who wish to leverage its extensive network with display advertising.
Other Display Advertising Networks
Google is not the only display advertising network on the block. Four others to consider include:
AdRoll
Adroll bills itself as the retargeting (remarketing) experts and has access to more than 60 leading ad networks and exchanges, including Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and Yahoo. Priced to fit smaller budgets, Adroll also offers a two-week free trial.
Chitika
Chitika’s claim to fame is its network of 350,000 websites. The platform utilizes proprietary targeting, optimization, and data analytics technology to programmatically show the right ad to the right person at the right time.
Site Scout
A self-service advertising platform that uses real-time bidding technology to serve banner ads across its network of advertising exchanges.
ReachLocal
Focused on helping local businesses get found online, ReachLocal offers both search advertising via Google Ads and display advertising across a range of network partner sites.