Two changes to how top ads are displayed

Our product teams are constantly making adjustments to improve both the user and advertiser experience. As many of you may have already noticed, we've recently made two changes to the top AdWords ads that appear above search results on Google.com. Daniel Dulitz, Product Manager for the Google.com ads user interface, is here to tell us more:

Over the past few years, the sponsored links above the search results have been displayed in a box with a blue background that a user can click on in order to reach an advertiser's landing page. We've now made two changes to the way that we display these ads to improve the experience of our users and advertisers.

First, we thought it was time for a new look: after months of testing, we decided to switch the background color of the top ads from blue to yellow. Second, we've modified what counts as a click in this box to be consistent with what counts as a click for the ads on the right hand side. Instead of clicking anywhere in the box, users now need to click on the link in the top line of an ad in order to be taken to an advertiser's site. Together, these changes help decrease the likelihood that a user will unintentionally click on an ad, while making our highest quality ads more visible.

You may have already noticed these changes when Daniel and his team were testing the waters -- but starting today, you'll begin to see the new versions more often as we release these changes to all Google.com traffic over the next few days. If you have any feedback regarding this new display, please let us know so we can pass your comments on to Daniel and his team.

Posted by Judy, Inside AdWords crew