DocumentationAdvertisingAdvertising Search, Social, & Commerce Guide

Manage ads

Last update: August 1, 2026

CREATED FOR:

  • User

Beta feature

Google Ads, LY Ads, Microsoft Advertising, Yandex, and existing Baidu accounts only

An ad belongs to an ad group and contains the content that’s displayed to users — such as the headline, description, image, or other creative elements — depending on the ad network and ad type.

Once you make an ad network account accessible via an API connection and Search, Social, & Commerce has synchronized the account data with the ad network, you can create ads for a supported campaign type. You also can edit and change the status of ads.

For details about the functionality available for each ad network, see “Supported Inventory.”

About the Ads view ad-view-about

The Manage > Ads view lists all ads in the filtered view for the selected advertiser account.

Available actions

Available ad types ad-types

You can create and manage supported ad types for ad groups within a synchronized ad network account:

  • Text ads or expanded text ads for an ad group in a campaign that targets the search network. Text ads may include optional tracking parameters that override the ad group- or campaign-level parameters. Depending on the ad network, you may be able to create either expanded/extended text ads or standard text ads.

  • Cross-device, native audience ads for Microsoft Advertising campaigns on the Microsoft Audience Network. You have two options for audience ads, based on the campaign settings:

    • If the campaign is linked to a merchant center store, then let the ad network automatically generate feed-based ads for the campaign, using the store’s product information. You don’t need to create feed-based ads for the campaign, but you must create ad groups with user targeting.

    • If the campaign isn’t linked to a merchant center account, then create image-based audience ads using the responsive ad format, which includes multiple text and image assets. The ad network assembles the ads using the most effective combinations of ad elements and displays them on sites like MSN, Outlook.com, and Microsoft Edge.

  • Call-only ads for Google Ads campaigns on the search network. Call-only ads are text ads that include a telephone number. You optionally can use a Google Ads-assigned forwarding number for advanced call reporting.

    note
    NOTE
    You can’t currently create or edit call-only ads. You can view, change the status of, or delete an existing call-only ad.

  • Expanded dynamic search ads (now called just “dynamic search ads” on the ad networks) for Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising dynamic search ad groups in search campaigns. Dynamic search ads use content from your website, instead of keywords, to decide when to show your ads. The ad network dynamically generates the headline, chooses the landing page URL and display URL, and automatically generates the final URL.

    For more information about dynamic search ads, see the Google Ads documentation and Microsoft Advertising documentation.

  • Multimedia ads for Microsoft Advertising search campaigns. Multimedia ads are large image ads that are shown in prominent mainline and sidebar positions, and only one multimedia ad is displayed per page. They can include multiple text and image assets, like responsive ads, and the ad network assembles the ads using the most effective combinations of ad elements. Multimedia ads don’t replace your text ad placements.

  • Promotion lines for Microsoft Advertising product (shopping) ads on the shopping network. Shopping ads use products in your existing Microsoft Merchant Center product feed, instead of keywords, to decide how and where to show your ads. The ad copy and landing page URLs are generated automatically from your product information in the feed, but you can optionally set up promotion lines to include for the ad group.

    For more information about product ads, see the Microsoft Advertising documentation.

  • Responsive search ads for Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising campaigns on the search network. The ad network dynamically assembles text-based responsive search ads from a set of ad titles and descriptions, favoring combinations that perform well together. The ad includes up to three headlines, two descriptions, and a customizable URL from the base URL and optional path1 and path2 fields. You can optionally pin ad titles and descriptions to specific positions.

    note
    NOTE
    Google Ads doesn’t provide data outside of its native editors about the text combinations that were displayed as ads. For more information about reporting for each text combination, see the Google Ads documentation.

Ad-level performance data

Ad-level data is available for most ad types.

However, it isn’t available for Google Ads dynamic search ad (DSA), performance max, smart shopping, and YouTube campaigns. Expect discrepancies between the total ad-level data for a campaign and the total data for the campaign.

Ad Network/Campaign/Ad Type
Data Availability
Google Ads dynamic search ad (DSA)
Campaign, ad group
Google Ads performance max
Campaign
Google Ads shopping, smart shopping
Campaign, ad group
Google Ads YouTube
Campaign, ad group

Create an ad ad-create

NOTE
  • You don’t need to create product ads for shopping campaigns; the ad network creates them automatically. For Microsoft Advertising shopping campaigns, however, you can optionally define promotion lines to include in ads.
  • You can’t create Google Ads call-only ads.
TIP
To create a large number of ads at once, use campaign bulksheets.

  1. In the main menu, click Manage > Ads.

  2. Click Create Ads.

  3. In the Basic Settings step, select the network, the account, the campaign, the ad group, and the ad type.

    For more information about the available ad types, see “Available ad types.”

  4. Specify the remaining settings for a Baidu text ad, Google Ads expanded dynamic search ad (called just “dynamic search ad” in Google Ads), Google Ads responsive search ad, Microsoft Advertising expanded dynamic search ad, Microsoft Advertising multimedia ad, Microsoft Advertising product ad, Microsoft Advertising responsive (audience) ad, Microsoft Advertising responsive search ad, or Yandex text ad settings.

    note
    NOTE
    (Campaigns with Adobe Advertising conversion tracking) If the account or campaign settings specify tracking only at the keyword level, then Search, Social, & Commerce doesn’t generate tracking for ads.

  5. Click Review and Save.

  6. If necessary, click Edit Edit and change the ad settings.

  7. Click Create.

  8. (Shopping ads in campaigns with Adobe Advertising conversion tracking; optional) To track clicks on the ad, manually add a tracking URL to the account, campaign, or product group settings.

Rename an ad ad-rename

Quickly rename an ad without opening the full ad settings.

  1. In the main menu, click Manage > Ads.

  2. Hold the cursor over the ad row and click … > Rename.

  3. Edit the name, and then click Apply.

Edit ad settings ad-edit

NOTE
  • The following ad types are mutable, which means that you can change the ad copy or image and retain the same ad ID: all Google Ads ad types except for dynamic search ads, and Microsoft Advertising expanded text ads.
  • All other supported ads are non-mutable, which means that changing the ad copy or image deletes the existing ad and creates a new one. Performance for the new ad may be volatile for a couple of weeks while Search, Social, & Commerce gathers enough data for optimization.
  • You can’t edit the content of a product ad, except for the promotion line for Microsoft Advertising product ads. You can, however, pause or delete an ad.
  • You can’t edit Google Ads call-only ads. You can, however, pause or delete one.
  • You can edit only one ad at a time.

  1. In the main menu, click Manage > Ads.

  2. Select the check box next to the ad.

  3. In the bulk actions toolbar, click Edit.

  4. Edit the remaining settings for a Baidu text ad, Google Ads expanded dynamic search ad (now called just “dynamic search ad” in Google Ads), Google Ads responsive search ad, Microsoft Advertising expanded dynamic search ad, Microsoft Advertising multimedia ad, Microsoft Advertising product ad, Microsoft Advertising responsive (audience) ad, Microsoft Advertising responsive search ad, or Yandex text ad settings.

  5. Click Review and Save.

  6. If necessary, click Edit Edit and change the ad settings.

  7. Click Update.

Change the status of an ad ad-status

Quickly change the status of an ad without opening the full ad settings.

You can pause any active ad on a supported ad network to disable bidding on it. You can later resume bidding by changing the status back to active.

You also can delete any active or paused ad. Deleted ads are deleted from the ad network. They’re still visible when you include them in the data filter, but you can’t change them.

Activate or pause an ad

  1. In the main menu, click Manage > Ads.

  2. Select the check box for the ad row.

  3. In the bulk actions toolbar, change the status:

    • To activate a paused ad, click Activate.

    • To pause an active ad, click Pause.

Delete an ad

  1. In the main menu, click Manage > Ads.

  2. Select the check box for the ad row.

  3. In the bulk actions toolbar, click Delete.

  4. In the confirmation message, click Confirm.

Manage data view reports from the Ads view ad-reports

Generate a report that includes the data rows for one or more ads in the Ads view, and then download the report as a Microsoft Excel worksheet file (XLXS format). The report includes all visible columns in the view.

You can delete any generated report.

See also “(Legacy UI) Download data from a campaign management view” and “(Legacy UI) Delete a performance data report or bulksheet file from the Downloads menu.”

Generate a report with the filtered data rows

  1. In the main menu, click Manage > Ads.

  2. Specify the ads whose data you want to download:

    • To download data for specific ads, select the check boxes next to the ads.

    • To download data for all ads, you don’t need to select any check boxes. All ads are included by default.

  3. In the toolbar above the data table, click Download Report Reports.

  4. In the Grid Reports settings, enter a unique report name, and then click Generate.

    By default, the file is named “ad_YYYYMMDD_NNNN,” where “NNNN” is the sequential job number (such as "ad_20250402_1326).

    The file is added to the Recently Generated list.

  5. (Optional) To download the file once it’s completed, click Download next to the file name.

    The file is downloaded according to your browser’s normal procedure.

Download a completed report

  1. In the main menu, click Manage > Ads.

  2. In the toolbar above the data table, click Download Report Reports.

  3. In the Recently Generated list in the Grid Reports dialog, click Download next to the file name.

    The file is downloaded according to your browser’s normal procedure.

Delete a completed report

  1. In the main menu, click Manage > Ads.

  2. In the toolbar above the data table, click Download Report Reports.

  3. In the Recently Generated list in the Grid Reports dialog, click Delete next to the file name.

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