For the most part, we know how prospective students are searching for programs. Have you ever wondered who exactly is searching on Google for your program?

Google AdWords provides a wealth of information on search activity by time of day, device (mobile vs. desktop vs. tablet), location, and of course the actual term keyed into the search engine (search terms report). But how much do we know about who is on the other end of that computer screen? Until recently, the answer was ‘not much’.

To start pulling the curtain back on this dilemma for search advertisers, Google has rolled out a new feature called Demographics for Search Ads—or DFSA. You can find this option by navigating to the ‘Audiences’ tab, and selecting the ‘Demographics’ tab—from there you will be able to view your data by Gender and Age groups.

Much like the ‘locations,’ ‘device,’ and ‘ad schedule’ tabs within AdWords Settings, DFSA will begin reporting data on clicks, impressions, conversions—you name it—by age and gender. This is big.

So how does Google know your age and gender? This is where we must take some caution when drawing conclusions about data by age and gender. If you are logged into Google and have indicated your age and gender, AdWords can then assign you to DFSA groups. This is the ideal way to attribute demographic data, but it’s not the only method Google uses.

Google also uses several data-collection methods to make an educated guess about your age and gender—including previous search behavior. It is also worth noting that as of May 2016, Google is only able to assign an age and gender to about half of its users.

Although this limitation does pose a few questions about the reliability of DFSA metrics, this is data that has not been available to advertisers historically and is a monumental step towards uncovering the profile of your highest-intentioned digital audience. Google will only continue to get better at capturing this type of demographic data.

Until we are at a point where we can group users into DFSA groups with a high level of certainty, the best way to use DFSA is by setting bid adjustments on your top performing demographic groups. In other words—we do not recommend excluding entire groups searching for your keywords, as these groups are not perfectly refined.

Instead, look at which of your demographic groups are seeing strong click-through and conversion-rates, and adjust your bids to target those groups more aggressively. You can also take a proactive approach and bid more aggressively on certain demographic groups at the onset of your campaign launch based on what you know about your audience.

Need help with a digital strategy for your program? We can help. Learn more about our Digital Advertising services and reach out with questions.

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