Google Upgraded URLs: the Deadline Approaches

The June 30th deadline to upgrade your AdWords URLs to the new Upgraded URLs structure is quickly approaching! As mentioned in our previous blog post, Upgraded URLs is a mandatory change to help advertisers track ads and execute updates more efficiently. With Upgraded URLs, you can now separately specify two pieces of information for your URL:

1. The landing page URL – where the user will go when they click an ad
2. Your tracking information – the values you’d like to track about your ad performance, which can be at the account level. As a result, you’ll no longer need to update ads, keywords, or sitelinks every time you need to add a tracking parameter to your URLs.

While many marketers have already put together an upgrade strategy for this transition, if you’re still figuring out how to handle your AdWords URLs – it’s not too late. Here are some options and resources to help ensure you’re covered for Upgraded URLs:

• Auto-migration: If you have very basic URLs (for example, you don’t use any tracking in your URLs), you can either perform the automated upgrade on July 1st, or earlier to get a head start. This method copies your current destination URLs to the new final URL field for all ads and keywords. The benefit of this approach is that you don’t need to do anything; all your ad stats will be maintained, and your ads will not be subject to policy review. However, if your URLs go beyond the basic URL structure, the automated upgrade may not structure your URLs according to best practices.
• Self-migration: If your URLs include any tracking parameters or use tracking templates, Google provides a self-migration feature. Depending on whether you go with their Basic or Advanced migration, you’ll be able to bulk upload local or shared tracking templates. The Basic migration allows you to create local tracking templates for each of your final URLs. The benefit of the Basic migration is that your ads won’t be subject to policy review, whereas those with Advanced self-migration may be. On the other hand, the Advanced migration allows you to manage shared tracking templates at the ad group, campaign, or account levels. Using the Advanced migration will enable you to try new ValueTrack and custom parameters during the upgrade.
• Platform help: If you’ve been considering leveraging a 3rd party platform to help you manage your ads, Upgraded URLs presents a great opportunity and reason to try one out. Platforms such as Marin have provided customers with migration resources to help alleviate the stress of making the upgrade, and to minimize any potential disruptions to workflows. Currently, for new customers, Marin is providing Upgraded URLs migration services as part of the onboarding process prior to July 1st. With this approach, you get the assurance that your URLs will be migrated according to best practices. And, you’ll be able to enjoy the benefits of platform support for ongoing management of your ads.

With all the options you have available for Upgraded URLs, it’s important to review your Google ads to determine which approach works best for your business.