Google Ads assets (formerly ad extensions) can make your adverts stand out more than competitors so that you get the clicks first.
Google Ads assets are pieces of content and additional information that can make your adverts more useful, noticeable and relevant.
They can include headlines, descriptions, images, links to specific website pages, telephone numbers, prices, promotions and location information.
Some types of assets were previously known as Google Ads extensions or ad extensions. Although people still commonly search for and use the former term, Google now refers to them as assets.
Assets are the individual pieces of content that Google can use when assembling and displaying an advert.
For example, a Google Search advert might include:
Google selects which eligible assets to display according to factors such as the search, device, available advertising space and predicted performance.
Not every asset will appear every time an advert is shown.
Ad extensions are now called assets, but the term “assets” has a broader meaning.
Historically, ad extensions referred mainly to extra information displayed alongside a standard text advert, such as sitelinks, telephone numbers and callouts.
Google now uses assets to describe both:
Therefore, someone looking for information about Google Ads extensions will now normally find the relevant controls and reporting within the Assets section of Google Ads.
Assets can make an advert larger, more informative and more useful to the person viewing it.
Their potential benefits include:
Sitelinks, images, prices and other assets can help an advert occupy more space within the search results and attract more attention.
Assets can answer important questions before someone visits your website, such as where you are located, how to telephone you or whether you offer a particular service.
Someone might click through to a specific service page, telephone your business, view an offer or get directions to your location.
Using assets that closely reflect the searcher’s needs can make the advert more useful and help direct people towards the most appropriate information.
A more prominent and informative advert may encourage more suitable searchers to click or interact with it.
Assets do not guarantee improved results, however. They need to be relevant, accurate and connected to an appropriate advert and landing page.
The assets available depend on the campaign type, advertising objective, country and other eligibility requirements.
Common Google Ads asset types include the following.
Headlines are among the most prominent parts of an advert.
Responsive Search Ads allow advertisers to provide multiple headlines. Google can then test different combinations and select headlines it predicts will be relevant to each search.
Descriptions provide more information about the product, service, offer or business.
As with headlines, advertisers can provide several descriptions for Google to combine and test.
Sitelinks add links to specific pages on a website.
For example, a business could link directly to pages covering:
Each sitelink should lead to a genuinely useful and relevant destination rather than simply repeating the main advert link.
Callouts are short pieces of text that highlight benefits or important information.
Examples might include:
Callouts are not normally clickable. Their purpose is to strengthen the advert’s message.
Structured snippets allow a business to present a list of products, services, brands, destinations or other defined categories.
For example, a heating company might use a services structured snippet to list:
Structured snippets help people understand the range available before clicking the advert.
Image assets allow relevant images to appear with eligible adverts.
They can help the advert stand out visually and give potential customers a clearer impression of the product, service or business being promoted.
Images should be clear, relevant and representative of the landing page and offer.
Call assets allow a telephone number or call button to appear with an advert.
On suitable devices, someone may be able to telephone the business directly from the advert.
Call reporting and conversion tracking can also help advertisers understand how many valuable calls their campaigns generate.
Location assets can display information connected to a physical business location, such as:
They are particularly useful for businesses that want people to visit a shop, office, showroom or other physical location.
Affiliate location assets can help manufacturers and suppliers show nearby retail locations where their products are available.
They are intended for businesses whose products are sold through locations they do not directly own.
Price assets can present particular products or services together with prices.
They help potential customers understand the available options and can take them directly to a relevant page.
Prices should be accurate and consistent with the information shown on the landing page.
Promotion assets highlight a special offer, discount or sales event.
They may include details such as:
These assets can make a time-sensitive offer more noticeable.
Lead form assets allow interested users to provide information through a form connected to the advert.
Depending on eligibility and campaign settings, this can help businesses collect enquiries without requiring the person to complete a conventional form on the website.
Lead quality and follow-up processes should still be monitored carefully.
App assets provide a link through which people can download a business’s mobile app.
They are primarily relevant when increasing app installations is an important campaign objective.
Business information assets can help advertisers display details such as their business name and logo.
Using consistent and recognisable branding can help searchers identify the organisation behind an advert.
Where available and eligible, message assets can allow someone to start a conversation with a business through a supported messaging service.
Availability and setup requirements may vary, so advertisers should check what is offered within their own Google Ads account.
These are assets that the advertiser creates, uploads or connects directly.
Examples include:
Supplying your own high-quality assets gives you greater control over the information and creative material available to Google.
Google may create or display certain assets automatically when its systems predict that they could improve the performance of an advert.
These may be based on information from sources such as:
Automatically created assets should not simply be ignored. Advertisers should understand which automation settings are active and regularly review what Google is displaying.
Depending on the asset type, assets may be associated at different levels of a Google Ads account, including:
An account-level asset may potentially be used across multiple eligible campaigns, whereas a campaign-level or ad-group-level asset can be made more specific.
The most appropriate level depends on how widely the information applies.
For example, a general business telephone number might be suitable across an account, while a sitelink promoting a specialist service might only be relevant to one campaign.
You do not need to add every possible asset without considering its purpose.
Instead, select assets that help potential customers understand your offer or take the next appropriate action.
Questions to consider include:
Google encourages advertisers to provide a strong range of relevant asset types. However, relevance and quality matter more than adding information merely to fill the available spaces.
Every asset should relate closely to the campaign, advert and landing page with which it is associated.
Avoid adding generic information that does not help the searcher make a decision.
Sitelinks should take people to the page that best matches the wording of the link.
A “Boiler servicing” sitelink, for example, should lead directly to the boiler servicing page rather than the website’s homepage.
Do not use headlines, callouts, structured snippets and sitelinks to repeat exactly the same message.
Use each asset to provide different and useful information.
Check telephone numbers, locations, prices, promotion dates and page links regularly.
Outdated assets can waste advertising spend and damage trust.
Someone searching for emergency assistance may benefit from a call asset, while someone comparing a complex service may be more interested in prices, case studies or detailed sitelinks.
Supplying several strong headlines, descriptions, images and supporting assets gives Google more suitable combinations to test.
However, each variation should remain meaningful. Avoid creating numerous weak versions simply to increase the quantity.
Check which automatically created assets are enabled and what information Google has generated.
Automation can be useful, but it should still be monitored to ensure that the resulting adverts remain accurate and appropriate.
Telephone numbers, messages, short headlines and location information may be particularly important for people using mobile devices.
Check that landing pages are also easy to use on smaller screens.
Google Ads provides reporting that can help you evaluate the performance of assets and their associations.
Depending on the campaign and asset type, you may be able to review information such as:
Asset reporting must be interpreted carefully.
An asset can sometimes receive credit when it appeared within an advert that generated a click or conversion, even if the user did not interact directly with that particular asset.
Performance should therefore be considered alongside the wider advert, campaign and conversion data rather than judging every asset in isolation.
Adding an asset does not mean that Google will show it every time.
Whether an asset appears can depend on:
Google may also display different combinations of assets for different searches.
This means that an advertiser controls which assets are provided or permitted, but Google generally determines the final combination shown for each eligible advert impression.
Relevant assets can improve an advert by making it more informative, prominent and useful.
They may help increase clicks, telephone calls, visits, enquiries or other interactions. They can also help potential customers reach a more appropriate page rather than always arriving at the homepage.
However, adding assets cannot compensate for poor campaign targeting, irrelevant keywords, weak advert messaging or an ineffective landing page.
Assets work best as part of a properly structured Google Ads campaign with:
Google Ads assets are the content and additional information used to build and enhance adverts.
The term includes headlines, descriptions, images and videos, as well as features previously known as ad extensions, such as sitelinks, callouts, telephone numbers, locations, prices and promotions.
Using a suitable range of accurate and relevant assets can make adverts more useful and give potential customers additional ways to engage with a business.
Assets should be reviewed regularly, measured alongside wider campaign results and updated whenever the business, offer or website changes.