With view-through conversion (VTC) optimization, view-through conversions are now leveraged in the bidding systems to drive more conversions and improve return on investment (ROI).
Note: VTC optimization is currently in Open Beta and eligible to all interested advertisers. It’s currently supported for Youtube only.
On this page
- Benefits
- When to use view-through conversion optimization
- How to manage view-through conversion optimization
- Reporting in Google Ads
- FAQs
Benefits
- Unlock scale and performance: Scale your campaigns with more conversions and budget utilization.
- Faster early stage conversions: Get first few conversions in a shorter amount of time.
- Consistent with the industry: Many other ad platforms already support view-through optimization.
When to use view-through conversion optimization
VTC optimization is a powerful solution to drive performance for customers. We’d recommend that you use view-through conversion optimization if you:
- Want to scale your campaigns with enhanced performance through Google Ads.
- Leverage VTC optimization on other advertising platforms and want to optimize more comparatively.
View through conversions may not be the best option for customers if you:
- Only care about click through conversions performance.
- Evaluate Demand Gen campaigns outside of Google Ads and can’t measure VTCs.
A view is counted when at least 1 pixel of an ad is on-screen for any time. A “View-through conversion” is counted when an advertiser sends a conversion request and we’re able to match it to a view within the conversion window the advertiser sets, which is typically 24 hours. The conversion hierarchy is clicks, engagements, and then views. Learn more About view-through conversions.
How to manage view-through conversion optimization
You can always adjust your settings for VTC optimized bidding. For VTC optimized bidding, you can turn the setting on or off during campaign construction or while editing the settings of an existing campaign.
To manage VTC bidding optimization at the campaign-level, follow the instructions below:
- Go to Campaigns within the Campaigns menu.
- If you’re creating a new Demand Gen campaign, follow the steps on how to Create a Demand Gen campaign.
- If you have an existing Demand Gen campaign, click the gear icon
next to the campaign name.
- Select the Conversions Optimization drop down, then check the “Include view-through conversions” checkbox to enable VTC optimization.
- To disable VTC optimization, uncheck the checkbox.
- Click Save.
Note: New and existing campaigns will have VTC optimization disabled by default. VTC optimization will only be applied to YouTube traffic for both images and videos. Additional inventory will be available soon.
Reporting in Google Ads
To check VTC-optimized conversions reporting, follow the instructions below:
- Go to Campaigns within the Campaigns menu.
- Above the statistics table, select Segments, hover over “Conversions”, then select Ad event type. You’ll find VTC-optimized conversions listed as “Impression”.
FAQs
What is the difference between an engaged-view conversion (EVC) and a view-through conversion (VTC)?
EVC is triggered when a user watches an ad for more than 10s(for video bumpers, its video completion) and then makes a conversion. VTC is triggered as long as the user views the ad, and then makes a conversion if there is no click on the ad before converting. For example, if the user views the ad and the user doesn’t have an engaged view or click in the set conversion window, the conversion will be recorded as a VTC.
EVC is only for videos, VTC is for all creative text, image, or video. To view the difference in Google ads Reporting, segment your report by “Conversions” then select Ad event type. Impressions is VTC, engaged-view is EVC and clicks is click-through conversions (CTC). A conversion will be recorded only once to the highest ranking ad event type, click first followed by engaged-view finally an impression.
Learn more About Engaged-view conversions.
How to set up VTC Conversion Windows for VTC optimization?
We recommend that advertisers review their VTC conversion windows before activating VTC Optimization. The recommended window for primary VTCs is 1 day. If you set it at a higher window, you can expect a surge in primary VTCs reported.
