Google Rolling Out Search App Engagement Ads With Deep Linking

Earlier this year, Google introduced app promotion ads on search, display and YouTube. In an AdWords livestream event today, the company announced the app engagement ads in search are now rolling out of beta.

Engagement ads launched on display last month. App install ads are already available on search as well.

A Google study with Ipsos CT found that 25 percent of smartphone app users use search to find new apps. The company said today that app-install ads have already generated hundreds of thousands of app downloads. That Ipss study also showed that, on average, users have 36 apps on their phones. A quarter of those apps on users phones are never used, according to the study.

That’s where Google’s new search app engagement ad comes in.  The format is designed for app developers to drive engagement with their apps when users search for related keywords on Google. The ads can then deep-link within the app to take users to the area that’s relevant to their search.

The newest ad unit is rolling out this week.

Google also highlighted several features already available, such as the TrueView video ad format that developers can use to show users how their app works on YouTube and interstitial video ads on AdMob, and announced the release of two best practice guides for running app install and engagement ad campaigns.

The big feature announcement, made at the end of the event, was the release of a new overhauled version of AdWords Editor.