Targeting Settings

Page Summary

Targeting settings in Google Ads allow you to narrow your ads to specific audience segments or content.
The TargetingSetting field with an array of target_restrictions controls how criteria types are used for targeting, specifically with the bid_only option.
Setting bid_only to true enables "Observation" mode, allowing bidding adjustments without restricting traffic, while setting it to false enables "Targeting" mode, restricting traffic to targeted lists.
By default, bid_only is false ("Targeting"), but for audience segments in search or shopping campaigns, it is recommended to change it to true ("Observation") for observation.
You can check the targeting_setting on ad groups or campaigns by requesting the ad_group.targeting_setting.target_restrictions field in a search query.

Use the targeting setting in your ad groups or campaigns to specify whether to narrow your ads to only show to specific audience segments, or on specific content you've selected.

Set up the targeting setting

You can set up details on how your various criteria types are used for targeting by setting the TargetingSetting field with an array of target_restrictions. Each TargetRestriction lets you control whether a type of criteria uses the bid_only option or not.

When setting bid_only to true, the targeting setting will be set to "Observation", and the criteria won't be used to restrict traffic, but will allow you to bid differently for different users on your lists. Setting bid_only to false sets the targeting setting to "Targeting" and enables the criteria to restrict ad group traffic only to users on the targeted list.

Best practices

By default, bid_only is set to false, which means the targeting setting will be set to "Targeting". If you're adding audience segments to a search or shopping campaign, consider changing the targeting setting of bid_only to true to set it to "Observation".

If you're setting up a duplicate campaign for audience segments for search ads, keep the targeting of bid_only set to false.

Restrictions

You cannot add or update targeting_setting on an AdGroup if targeting_setting is set on the parent campaign. If the targeting_setting is set on the parent Campaign, you must first remove the targeting_setting on the parent Campaign. Likewise, you must first remove the targeting_setting on the AdGroup in order to set it on the Campaign.

Retrieve the targeting setting

To verify that your targeting is set up as you intend, check the targeting_setting on ad groups or campaigns by requesting the ad_group.targeting_setting.target_restrictions field from the ad_group resource in a search query.

Example

This example updates the targeting_setting on an ad group so that bid_only is true for TargetRestriction instances with a targeting_dimension of AUDIENCE, effectively ensuring that ads in the ad group are only shown to users in the specified audience segment.

First, retrieve all the ad_group.targeting_setting.target_restrictions from the ad group with the provided ID.

Java

String searchQuery =
    "SELECT ad_group.id, ad_group.name, ad_group.targeting_setting.target_restrictions "
        + "FROM ad_group "
        + "WHERE ad_group.id = "
        + adGroupId;UpdateAudienceTargetRestriction.java

C#

string query = $@"
    SELECT ad_group.id, ad_group.name, ad_group.targeting_setting.target_restrictions
    FROM ad_group
    WHERE ad_group.id = {adGroupId}";UpdateAudienceTargetRestriction.cs

PHP

$query = "SELECT ad_group.id, ad_group.name, " .
    "ad_group.targeting_setting.target_restrictions " .
    "FROM ad_group " .
    "WHERE ad_group.id = $adGroupId";UpdateAudienceTargetRestriction.php

query: str = f""" SELECT ad_group.id, ad_group.name, ad_group.targeting_setting.target_restrictions FROM ad_group WHERE ad_group.id = {ad_group_id}"""

update_audience_target_restriction.py

query = <<~QUERY SELECT ad_group.id, ad_group.name, ad_group.targeting_setting.target_restrictions FROM ad_group WHERE ad_group.id = #{ad_group_id} QUERY

update_audience_target_restriction

.rb

my $query = "SELECT ad_group.id, ad_group.name, " . "ad_group.targeting_setting.target_restrictions FROM ad_group " . "WHERE ad_group.id = $ad_group_id";

update_audience_target_restriction.pl

target_restriction: TargetRestriction for target_restriction in target_restrictions: targeting_dimension: TargetingDimensionEnum.TargetingDimension = ( target_restriction.targeting_dimension ) bid_only: bool = target_restriction.bid_only print( "\tTargeting restriction with targeting dimension " f"'{targeting_dimension.name}' " f"and bid only set to '{bid_only}'." ) # Add the target restriction to the TargetingSetting object as # is if the targeting dimension has a value other than audience # because those should not change. if targeting_dimension != targeting_dimension_enum.AUDIENCE: targeting_setting.target_restrictions.append(target_restriction) elif not bid_only: should_update_targeting_setting: bool = True # Add an audience target restriction with bid_only set to # true to the targeting setting object. This has the effect # of setting the audience target restriction to # "Observation". For more details about the targeting # setting, visit # https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/7365594. new_target_restriction: TargetRestriction = ( targeting_setting.target_restrictions.add() ) new_target_restriction.targeting_dimension = ( targeting_dimension_enum.AUDIENCE ) new_target_restriction.bid_only = True

update_audience_target_restriction

.py

ad_group.targeting_setting.target_restrictions.each do |r| # Prints the results. targeting_dimension = r.targeting_dimension bid_only = r.bid_only puts "- Targeting restriction with targeting dimension " \ "#{targeting_dimension} and bid only set to #{bid_only}." # Adds the target restriction to the TargetingSetting object as is if the # targeting dimension has a value other than AUDIENCE because those should # not change. if targeting_dimension != :AUDIENCE target_restrictions << r elsif !bid_only should_update_targeting_setting = true # Adds an AUDIENCE target restriction with bid_only set to true to the # targeting setting object. This has the effect of setting the AUDIENCE # target restriction to "Observation". # For more details about the targeting setting, visit # https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/7365594. target_restrictions << client.resource.target_restriction do |tr| tr.targeting_dimension = :AUDIENCE tr.bid_only = true end end end

update_audience_target_restriction

.rb

foreach my $target_restriction (@target_restrictions) { my $targeting_dimension = $target_restriction->{targetingDimension}; printf "\tTargeting restriction with targeting dimension '%s' and bid " . "only set to '%s'.\n", $targeting_dimension, $target_restriction->{bidOnly} ? "TRUE" : "FALSE"; # Add the target restriction to the TargetingSetting object as is if the # targeting dimension has a value other than AUDIENCE because those # should not change. if ($targeting_dimension ne AUDIENCE) { $target_restriction->{bidOnly} = $target_restriction->{bidOnly} ? "true" : "false"; push @{$targeting_setting->{targetRestrictions}}, $target_restriction; } elsif (!$target_restriction->{bidOnly}) { $should_update_target_setting = 1; # Add an AUDIENCE target restriction with bid_only set to true to the # targeting setting object. This has the effect of setting the # AUDIENCE target restriction to "Observation". For more details about # the targeting setting, visit # https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/7365594. my $new_restriction = Google::Ads::GoogleAds::V22::Common::TargetRestriction->new({ targetingDimension => AUDIENCE, bidOnly => "true" }); push @{$targeting_setting->{targetRestrictions}}, $new_restriction; } }

update_audience_target_restriction.pl

private void updateTargetingSetting( GoogleAdsClient googleAdsClient, long customerId, long adGroupId, TargetingSetting targetingSetting) { // Creates the ad group service client. try (AdGroupServiceClient adGroupServiceClient = googleAdsClient.getLatestVersion().createAdGroupServiceClient()) { // Creates an ad group object with the proper resource name and updated targeting setting. AdGroup adGroup = AdGroup.newBuilder() .setResourceName(ResourceNames.adGroup(customerId, adGroupId)) .setTargetingSetting(targetingSetting) .build(); // Constructs an operation that will update the ad group, using the FieldMasks utility to // derive the update mask. This mask tells the Google Ads API which attributes of the // ad group you want to change. AdGroupOperation operation = AdGroupOperation.newBuilder() .setUpdate(adGroup) .setUpdateMask(FieldMasks.allSetFieldsOf(adGroup)) .build(); // Sends the operation in a mutate request. MutateAdGroupsResponse response = adGroupServiceClient.mutateAdGroups( Long.toString(customerId), ImmutableList.of(operation)); // Prints the resource name of the updated object. System.out.printf( "Updated targeting setting of ad group with resource name '%s'; set the AUDIENCE " + "target restriction to 'Observation'.%n", response.getResults(0).getResourceName()); } }

UpdateAudienceTargetRestriction.java

private void UpdateTargetingSetting(GoogleAdsClient client, long customerId, long adGroupId, TargetingSetting targetingSetting) { // Get the AdGroupService client. AdGroupServiceClient adGroupServiceClient = client.GetService(Services.V22.AdGroupService); // Create an ad group object with the updated targeting setting. AdGroup adGroup = new AdGroup { ResourceName = ResourceNames.AdGroup(customerId, adGroupId), TargetingSetting = targetingSetting }; // Construct an operation that will update the ad group, using the FieldMasks utility // to derive the update mask. This mask tells the Google Ads API which attributes of the // ad group you want to change. AdGroupOperation operation = new AdGroupOperation { Update = adGroup, UpdateMask = FieldMasks.AllSetFieldsOf(adGroup) }; // Send the operation in a mutate request. MutateAdGroupsResponse response = adGroupServiceClient.MutateAdGroups(customerId.ToString(), new[] { operation }); // Print the resource name of the updated object. Console.WriteLine("Updated targeting setting of ad group with resource name " + $"'{response.Results.First().ResourceName}'; set the AUDIENCE target restriction " + "to 'Observation'."); }

UpdateAudienceTargetRestriction.cs

private static function updateTargetingSetting( GoogleAdsClient $googleAdsClient, int $customerId, int $adGroupId, TargetingSetting $targetingSetting ) { // Creates an ad group object with the proper resource name and updated targeting setting. $adGroup = new AdGroup([ 'resource_name' => ResourceNames::forAdGroup($customerId, $adGroupId), 'targeting_setting' => $targetingSetting ]); // Constructs an operation that will update the ad group with the specified resource name, // using the FieldMasks utility to derive the update mask. This mask tells the Google Ads // API which attributes of the ad group you want to change. $adGroupOperation = new AdGroupOperation(); $adGroupOperation->setUpdate($adGroup); $adGroupOperation->setUpdateMask(FieldMasks::allSetFieldsOf($adGroup)); // Issues a mutate request to update the ad group. $adGroupServiceClient = $googleAdsClient->getAdGroupServiceClient(); $response = $adGroupServiceClient->mutateAdGroups( MutateAdGroupsRequest::build($customerId, [$adGroupOperation]) ); // Prints the resource name of the updated ad group. printf( "Updated targeting setting of ad group with resource name '%s'; set the AUDIENCE " . "target restriction to 'Observation'.%s", $response->getResults()[0]->getResourceName(), PHP_EOL ); }

UpdateAudienceTargetRestriction.php

def update_targeting_setting( client: GoogleAdsClient, customer_id: str, ad_group_id: str, targeting_setting: TargetingSetting, ) -> None: """Updates the given TargetingSetting of an ad group. Args: client: The Google Ads client. customer_id: The Google Ads customer ID. ad_group_id: The ad group ID for which to update the audience targeting restriction. targeting_setting: The updated targeting setting. """ # Get the AdGroupService client. ad_group_service: AdGroupServiceClient = client.get_service( "AdGroupService" ) # Construct an operation that will update the ad group. ad_group_operation: AdGroupOperation = client.get_type("AdGroupOperation") # Populate the ad group object with the updated targeting setting. ad_group: AdGroup = ad_group_operation.update ad_group.resource_name = ad_group_service.ad_group_path( customer_id, ad_group_id ) ad_group.targeting_setting.target_restrictions.extend( targeting_setting.target_restrictions ) # Use the field_mask utility to derive the update mask. This mask tells the # Google Ads API which attributes of the ad group you want to change. client.copy_from( ad_group_operation.update_mask, protobuf_helpers.field_mask(None, ad_group._pb), ) # Send the operation in a mutate request and print the resource name of the # updated object. mutate_ad_groups_response: MutateAdGroupsResponse = ( ad_group_service.mutate_ad_groups( customer_id=customer_id, operations=[ad_group_operation] ) ) print( "Updated targeting setting of ad group with resource name " f"'{mutate_ad_groups_response.results[0].resource_name}'; set the " "audience target restriction to 'Observation'." )

update_audience_target_restriction.py

def update_targeting_setting( client, customer_id, ad_group_id, targeting_setting) # Constructs an operation that will update the ad group with the specified # resource name. ad_group_resource_name = client.path.ad_group(customer_id, ad_group_id) operation = client.operation.update_resource.ad_group(ad_group_resource_name) do |ag| ag.targeting_setting = targeting_setting end # Issues a mutate request to update the ad group. response = client.service.ad_group.mutate_ad_groups( customer_id: customer_id, operations: [operation], ) # Prints the resource name of the updated ad group. puts "Updated targeting setting of ad group with resource name " \ "#{response.results.first.resource_name}; set the AUDIENCE target " \ "restriction to 'Observation'." end

update_audience_target_restriction

.rb

sub update_targeting_setting { my ($api_client, $customer_id, $ad_group_id, $targeting_setting) = @_; # Construct an ad group object with the updated targeting setting. my $ad_group = Google::Ads::GoogleAds::V22::Resources::AdGroup->new({ resourceName => Google::Ads::GoogleAds::V22::Utils::ResourceNames::ad_group( $customer_id, $ad_group_id ), targetingSetting => $targeting_setting }); # Create an operation that will update the ad group, using the FieldMasks # utility to derive the update mask. This mask tells the Google Ads API which # attributes of the ad group you want to change. my $ad_group_operation = Google::Ads::GoogleAds::V22::Services::AdGroupService::AdGroupOperation-> new({ update => $ad_group, updateMask => all_set_fields_of($ad_group)}); # Send the operation in a mutate request and print the resource name of the # updated resource. my $ad_groups_response = $api_client->AdGroupService()->mutate({ customerId => $customer_id, operations => [$ad_group_operation]}); printf "Updated targeting setting of ad group with resourceName " . "'%s'; set the AUDIENCE target restriction to 'Observation'.\n", $ad_groups_response->{results}[0]{resourceName}; }

update_audience_target_restriction.pl

Targeting Settings

Page Summary

Set up the targeting setting

Best practices

Restrictions

Retrieve the targeting setting

Example

Java

C#

PHP

Python

Ruby

Perl

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Targeting Settings Stay organized with collections Save and categorize content based on your preferences.

Page Summary

Set up the targeting setting

Best practices

Restrictions

Retrieve the targeting setting

Example

Java

C#

PHP

Python

Ruby

Perl

{ }

) } tabindex="-1">Java

Python

Ruby

Perl

Java

C#

PHP

Python

Ruby

Perl

Targeting Settings

) }
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