Google removing paid ads from right side of desktop results

Google has officially started rolling out a major change to its paid search layout. They will begin phasing out the paid ads to the right of its search results. Instead, Google will only show 1-4 ads above the fold and some at the bottom of the results.

What does this mean for advertisers?

Mobile traffic:

If you’re like most of our clients, you are most likely driving your traffic to a landing page where mobile traffic is high – upwards of 80%.

Initially only two PPC text ads would show on mobile searches. Now, mobile searchers will often see three or four text ads for some queries. Google has reported that they may expand the space for ads if they are particularly relevant.

Cost (CPCs):

We can still only speculate, but with less ad space, cost-per-clicks (CPCs) will most likely increase now that there will be even more competition and demand for the top spots. Time will tell, and this is something we’ll be monitoring closely for our clients.

Check out Search Engine Land’s FAQ: All About The Changes To Google’s Ad Layout On Desktop Search Results for more details.

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