Google Ads Video flashcards
Google Ads Video · Build recall with a focused review session.
32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- Video action campaign
- A YouTube campaign subtype optimized for conversions or clicks across YouTube and partner surfaces. It requires conversion tracking to bid for conversions; otherwise it can only optimize for clicks or view-based goals.
- Video reach campaign
- A campaign subtype built for efficient impressions and broad awareness. It is typically paired with view-based or impression-based bidding and with brand lift measurement rather than conversion optimization.
- Demand Gen campaign
- A campaign type that serves video and image creative across YouTube, Discover, and Gmail. It blends formats in one ad group, so asset variety and creative mix drive performance.
- Ad group audience theme
- A structural rule: each ad group holds one coherent audience theme because targeting and bidding are set at ad group level. Mixing unrelated audiences obscures which segment produced results.
- Frequency capping
- A campaign-level setting limiting how often one user sees an ad per day. It controls repetition for reach campaigns but cannot repair weak creative or poor targeting.
- Network exclusions
- Settings that keep delivery on chosen surfaces. YouTube Search results, YouTube videos, and Display expansion are controlled separately, so you can exclude Display and stay on YouTube.
- Primary conversion selection
- The conversion action a campaign bids toward. Secondary actions are tracked and reported but do not drive bidding, so misassigning primary versus secondary distorts optimization.
- Skippable in-stream ad
- A YouTube ad a viewer can skip after five seconds. A view is counted at 30 seconds, at completion if shorter, or on an interaction, and you pay per view.
- Bumper ad
- A non-skippable YouTube ad of six seconds or less, billed on impressions rather than views. It works as a short frequency and reminder layer alongside longer creative.
- In-feed video ad
- A video ad shown in YouTube feeds and search results that plays only when the user taps it. The thumbnail, headline, and description carry most of the click-through burden.
- Shorts ad
- A vertical, full-screen ad native to the YouTube Shorts feed. Creative must be shot or reframed vertically; horizontal assets letterbox and lose visual impact.
- Non-skippable in-stream ad
- A YouTube ad the viewer cannot skip, generally 15 seconds or less with regional variation. It is billed on impressions rather than cost per view.
- Five-second hook
- The opening seconds of a video ad. Because skippable and feed formats can be abandoned immediately, brand and core value proposition must land inside this window.
- Asset variety
- Supplying multiple headlines, descriptions, and video lengths per ad group. More combinations give the system room to learn which assembly performs, while a single asset caps that learning.
- Companion banner
- A banner shown beside in-stream ads on desktop that can carry a call to action. It does not appear with mobile in-stream ads, so mobile-only plans cannot rely on it.
- Affinity audience
- An interest-based segment describing a user's ongoing passions and habits rather than active purchase intent. It suits upper-funnel reach and awareness campaigns.
- In-market audience
- A segment of users showing active purchase intent in a category. It sits closer to conversion than affinity and performs well for action campaigns with conversion goals.
- Custom intent audience
- A segment built from keywords and URLs users searched or visited. Intent is explicit, which makes these segments among the strongest performers for conversion-focused video campaigns.
- Custom affinity audience
- A segment defined by interests, URLs, apps, and places rather than search behavior. It widens interest targeting beyond predefined affinity categories.
- Customer Match
- Targeting based on hashed contact lists uploaded to the platform. Match rates depend on list quality and user consent, and policy compliance is required.
- Placement exclusion
- Blocking specific channels, videos, or websites from receiving your ads. It is the fastest lever for cutting wasted spend on irrelevant or brand-unsafe content.
- Content versus user targeting
- Topic and keyword targeting describe what a video is about, not who is watching. Audience segments describe the viewer, so the two layers answer different questions.
- Audience expansion
- A setting letting the system reach beyond selected segments when it predicts better performance. Its results should be reported separately from the core segment's metrics.
- Target CPV bidding
- A bid strategy setting a ceiling on cost per view, used mainly for view-focused video campaigns. It suits awareness goals where views, not conversions, are the success metric.
- Maximize Conversions
- A bid strategy that spends the full budget to obtain the most conversions possible. It usually delivers more volume than Target CPA but with less cost stability.
- Target CPA
- A bid strategy that sets a cost-per-acquisition ceiling while seeking conversions. It typically trades some volume for efficiency and needs a learning window before evaluation.
- Learning period
- The adjustment window after a significant bid, budget, or targeting change, often one to two weeks. Judging performance before it ends produces unreliable conclusions.
- Daily average budget
- The campaign-level budget is an average, not a hard cap. On some days actual spend may reach roughly twice the average, which matters for monthly pacing forecasts.
- Shared budget risk
- A shared budget pools spend across campaigns. It works only when campaigns share one goal; otherwise a stronger campaign can consume the budget and starve the others.
- View rate formula
- Views divided by impressions. A low view rate points to creative and hook problems, while a healthy view rate with weak conversions points to audience or landing page issues.
- Brand lift
- A survey-based measurement comparing exposed and control groups on ad recall, awareness, consideration, and purchase intent. It needs enough impressions to reach statistical significance.
- View-through attribution
- Crediting conversions to a video ad a user saw but did not click, within the configured window. Compare click and view-through windows before drawing efficiency conclusions.