Google AdWords offers a number of different ad formats and options in addition to the standard text-based ads. I’ve summarized these formats and options below.
Standard Text Ads
These are the regular text ads that we most commonly associate with Google's pay per click ad program. The ads consist of a single title, two description lines and one display URL. They have proven to be a very effective medium of driving advertising message to the end user. More information is available at Google AdWords.
Image/Flash Ads
Image ads are another format support by Google AdWords. These are your regular banner ads in a variety of shapes and sizes. To ensure maximum exposure on Google’s content network use all allowed sizes. More information about specific ad sizes is available at Google Adword Image Sample.
Mobile Text Ads
Millions of people are using their cell phones with Internet connectivity to find products and services on the web. You can offer users the choice to connect to a business via telephone or you can direct them to a mobile web page. If you enter a business telephone number, a call link will appear at the end of your ad. Ideally, business phone numbers are local or toll-free calls. You are also able to add a phone number to the ad and have people call via “click-to-call” technology, which means the user clicks on a phone icon in the ad, and then enters his/her phone number. The system then calls the advertiser. Since cell phones screens are small, so only 18 characters are allowed with mobile text ads. But they are an effective way to get started in mobile advertising. Learn more about mobile text ads at Google’s Mobile Page.
Click-to-play Video Ads
These look very similar to YouTube videos with an intuitive “Play” button in the middle of the screen. These ads are a great way to deliver multimedia information to an end-user. A business is only charged if somebody clicks on the video and lands on the site. No charge for playbacks. Learn about various sizes at Google AdWord Video Ads.
Local Business Ads
Local business ads are Google Maps’ listings. Whenever you search for local businesses, Google will identify advertisers nearby with active local business ads and will provide you with a list. Local business ads are great for driving foot traffic and, and as a result, should be part of your Google AdWords campaign. Learn more about local business ads at Google’s Local Ads page.
Text Link Ads
These ads are currently available only through pay-per-action campaigns. They are simple text links (up to 90 characters long) that are distributed across Google’s massive content network. Text link ads are great simply because they can easily blend with the rest of the content on the page. More information is available at Google AdWords Support.
Gadget Ads
These are the newest and perhaps the most exciting ads. Gadget ads are rich media ads that are mini-websites within websites. An example of a rich media ad is the one that has multiple actions in it including movie clips, RSS feeds, text, images and outside links. The beauty of these ads is to be able to create an interactive experience with an end user and generate significantly more interest in your products/services. More information about gadget ads is available at Google Gadget Ads.