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Google is giving the ad ecosystem a shot in the arm as they have pledged to give $340 million in Google Ads credits to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) to enable them to stay in touch with their customers during the global pandemic. The donation is part of their larger commitment of $800 million to support SMBs, health organisations and governments and health workers during the coronavirus outbreak, which was announced at the end of March.
Other companies, such as The Mail, have also followed in Google’s footsteps and are offering £3 million worth of free ad space to help support small businesses. This positive news has, of course, been welcomed enthusiastically by publishers that have been hit hard by reduced ad spend in the last couple of months. The injection of cash will generate auction pressure and hopefully lift CPMs up off the floor.
Who is eligible to receive free Google Ads credits?
Small and medium-sized businesses that have spent money on Google ads, either directly or through a partner, in ten out of twelve months of 2019, and in January and / or February this year. Whether a business qualifies as either small or medium-sized is pre-determined by Google’s global teams that work with these customers daily. Eligible SMBs must have complied with Google’s advertising policies.
New customers will not benefit from these ad credits, which is out of the ordinary for Google who usually tend to offer free ad credits as a way to attract new advertisers. This program is clearly designed to encourage Google Ads customers, who have pulled back their spend and paused their campaigns, to start spending again.
How can you receive and spend the Google Ads credits?
Google will start rolling out the ad credit in phases from the end of May. Eligible customers will be notified once the ad credit has been assigned to their Google Ads account. The ad credit will be applied to future ad spend across the Google Ads platform. Ad credit can be used throughout this but will expire after 31 December 2020.
How much Google Ads credit will eligible customers receive?
Whilst we still haven’t been given specific figures, we do know that ad credit amount will vary depending on the following three factors:
- Previous ad spend on Google Ads
- Country
- Currency
Final thoughts
Undoubtedly, this gesture of goodwill will also benefit Google in a few ways. Firstly, many businesses have pulled back on ad spend, so giving away free Google Ads credits will encourage businesses to resume spending and trying out new campaigns. In turn, this will also get ad operations running again and whilst also shedding some positive light on Google’s reputation in the process. Nevertheless, any money going into the online ad ecosystem is positive news for publishers and will provide some relief to those who have been hit hardest by low CPMs and reduced ad spend.
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