The Complete Guide to Google Ads Lead Forms Extensions

Google Ads ‘lead form extensions’ can be an incredibly powerful tool when it comes to incorporating your search, display, YouTube and discovery campaigns. This is something that a lot of businesses should be using frequently as it is no secret that the activity of mobile users has surpassed that of desktop users in a range of different markets. 

It was in 2019 that Google originally announced its lead form extensions; however, it has only recently made updates that improve the experience of mobile users. A lot of marketing agencies are happy to see this change due to the fact Google is updating the way it works in order to benefit both B2B and B2C businesses. 

So, if you are a business, how can you make the most of the different opportunities that are presented by Google Ads lead form extensions? This article will discuss just that in more detail, as well as the pros and cons of using them and how you can get started. 

What Exactly Are Google Lead Form Extensions? 

To take it right from the horse’s mouth, Google confirms, “lead form extensions help you generate leads by letting people submit their information in a form directly in your ad.” They are easy to incorporate as a lead form extension can be created from your current Google Ads account and attached to the campaign that you see fit. 

It means that when a prospective consumer comes across your ad and decides to interact with it, the ad they click on contains the extension. When they click here they are prompted to put their information into the form, as opposed to being directed to the company website. 

Who Should Use a Google Lead Form Extension? 

The form extensions can benefit any business who is looking to capture a user’s information. Not to mention if you are a business that wants to improve your website experience, but don’t have the time, resources, expertise or money to do so just yet, the form extensions are a better option. 

What Are the Pros and Cons of Using Lead Form Extensions? 

Of course, as with every new tool that comes out, there are pros and cons to using it. These include the following: 

Pros 

The main benefits to using lead form extensions are they are easy to set up, can be used to download leads directly from the interface, are a great way to gain first-party data for remarketing and are much easier user experiences if your mobile site is lacking in usability. 

Cons 

There are also cons to using these new tools, which include the fact they are harder to automate lead sharing with CRMs, the traffic you generate from such ads won’t lead to clicks to your website, the attribution can be quite difficult and you must have spent a considerable amount of money (more than £50,000) over the lifetime of your ad account to qualify for Google Ad leads. 

The Requirements to Quality for Lead Form Extensions 

Not everyone can use these extensions, there are some requirements that are necessary in order to qualify for them. These include: 

• A strong history of compliance with Google’s policy; 
• A privacy policy for your business; and 
• (As previously stated) more than £50,000 spent in the lifetime of Google Ads. 

You also cannot use Google lead form extensions in all types of verticals. These include: 

• Sensitive verticals (such as explicit/sexual content); and 
• Sub-verticals of sensitive verticals. 

How Do You Set Up Lead Form Extensions? 

You may be surprised at just how little it takes to set up a new lead form extension, it doesn’t actually need that much time or energy invested in order to work. You are given the option to create a new extension when you are either on an existing campaign or are starting to create another one. All you need to do to get started is head over to the option that states “Ads & Extensions” on the left-hand side, you should then click the blue “+” sign and create a new lead form extension. After which you will need to: 

1. Add a headline, description and your business name (all of these fields are mandatory and need to be completed). 
2. You will then need to choose the questions that you would like to be filled out in the form. The questions you will be able to ask are all broken up into categories, which are:
   1. Auto
   2. Business
   3. Insurance
   4. Jobs/Experience
   5. Demographics
3. Finally, you will need to create a submission message that will come up after a user has successfully filled out the form. 

Optimising Your Lead Form

Now that the lead form has been created, you also have the option to optimise your form for either lead volume or lead qualification. How do you know which is the right option for you? Well, the right option will be based entirely on your business goals and the intention behind your campaign. 

If it is your goal to try and capture as many leads as possible, then naturally you will want to opt for lead volume. Whilst this can be a beneficial option, there is always the risk that it will not get you as many qualified leads. 

If your goal is to spend money as efficiently as possible and try to get your hands on as many qualified leads as possible, then you should optimise for the lead qualification option. This will give you a better quality of leads, but could come with a potentially higher cost per lead and fewer leads overall.

Conclusion

If your company is finding it difficult to generate leads thanks to poor user experience, you should consider using Google lead form extensions as these can generate great results due to the variety of options they can be used in. These options include, but are not limited to, Search, Display, YouTube or Discovery. 

These extensions are not too difficult to set up, but optimising them efficiently and incorporating the data in a way that benefits your marketing campaigns can be tricky. It is for these reasons that a lot of people opt for the assistance of Global Performance Marketing Agencies such as YouYaa. YouYaa are a marketing agency dedicated to helping businesses unlock their online potential and grow as a result. For more information on what they could do for your business, do not hesitate to get in touch.