Google testing People Also Consider label on branded search ads

The 'People Also Consider' badge is a new feature Google is trialing on ads within branded search results. It appears as a grey box positioned underneath the company name, logo, and URL. As of now, the badge is not clickable, and its exact purpose remains unclear to PPC marketers.

PPC marketers are confused by the 'People Also Consider' badge because its purpose is not immediately clear since it is not clickable. There is speculation that it might be related to Google's practice of matching branded terms to keywords, potentially leading to companies being included in their competitors' ad auctions without consent.

If Google starts forcing companies into their competitors' ad auctions, there could be several negative implications:

• Brand Confusion: Customers might see competitors' ads when searching for a specific brand, which can be misleading.

• Lost Sales: The visibility of competitors' ads could result in the original brand losing potential sales.

• Lower Ad Value: Ads on competitor brand searches may not reach high-value customers since these customers are searching for a specific brand, not a general service.

• Poor User Experience: The overall user experience could deteriorate as customers may not find what they are specifically looking for.

Both the 'People Also Consider' and 'Related to your search' badges appear as grey boxes underneath the company name, logo, and URL in Google Ads. However, they were spotted in different contexts. The 'People Also Consider' badge is associated with branded search results, while the 'Related to your search' badge was seen in a separate test by Google. The specific differences in functionality or purpose between the two badges have not been detailed by Google.