What a promotion asset shows
You choose a monetary or percentage discount, name the product or service, add a final URL, and can add a requirement such as a promo code or a minimum order amount. An optional occasion, such as "Back-to-school" or "Mother's Day," appears as a bold label next to the promotion text, and the asset can show up to 2 lines of promotion details. Promotion assets are free to add: a click on one costs the same as a click on the ad headline, and Google won't charge for more than two clicks per ad impression.
Where it shows and how it's set up
Google lists Search ads and Performance Max Shorts and in-stream surfaces on YouTube. With a Performance Max campaign for store goals, promotions can also show in Maps on mobile, and QR code and barcode promotions serve only on Maps. You can add the asset at account, campaign or ad group level, and the most specific level is used. Occasion promotions must be created or edited within 6 months of their start date to serve, and ones left unmodified for 6 months are paused automatically.
Promotion assets vs Merchant Center promotions
Offers on Shopping ads come from a different system. Merchant Center promotions are submitted through a promotions data source, Google reviews and approves them, and their destinations include Shopping ads, free listings and local inventory ads. With no destination specified, a promotion shows in Shopping ads and free listings by default. Google's promotion asset help page doesn't list Shopping ads among the places the asset appears. So for a retailer, the Shopping offer is set in Merchant Center and the text-ad offer is set in Google Ads, and we usually set up both for the same sale.
Common questions
Do promotion assets show on Shopping ads?
Google's promotion asset page lists Search ads, YouTube Shorts and in-stream ads, and Maps, not Shopping ads. Offers on Shopping ads come from Merchant Center promotions, which show in Shopping ads and free listings by default.
Do promotion assets cost extra?
No. They are free to add, and a click on the promotion costs the same as a click on the ad headline. Google won't charge for more than two clicks per ad impression.
Can I add a promo code to a promotion asset?
Yes. In the promotional details you can add a requirement such as a promo code or a minimum order amount, alongside a percent or monetary discount.
Why did my promotion asset stop serving?
Occasion-specific promotion assets must be created or edited within 6 months of their start date to be eligible. Ones that haven't been modified in the last 6 months are paused automatically.
If I add promotion assets at several levels, which one shows?
The most specific. Ad group promotion assets show instead of campaign or account ones, and campaign-level assets override account-level ones.