Ad Assets (Extensions)
Additional information shown with your ads — phone numbers, sitelinks, callouts, and more — that increase visibility and CTR.
Definition
Ad Assets (formerly called Ad Extensions) are additional pieces of information that can be shown alongside your Google Ads — including phone numbers, links to specific pages, promotional callouts, business hours, location information, and more. Assets increase your ad's visual footprint on the search results page, typically improving CTR by 10–20% without increasing CPC.
The Practitioner's Perspective
Google now automatically combines your assets in different ways for different queries and users (similar to RSA logic). The most impactful assets for healthcare practices: Call Assets (show your phone number directly in the ad, enabling tap-to-call on mobile), Sitelink Assets (links to specific service pages like 'Rhinoplasty', 'Financing', 'Before & After Gallery'), Callout Assets (short non-clickable highlights like 'Board Certified', 'Free Consultation', 'Same-Week Availability'), and Structured Snippet Assets (lists your services, procedures, or specialties).
Location Assets (linked to your Google Business Profile) are critical for healthcare practices targeting local patients. They show your address, map pin, and distance from the searcher directly in the ad. Studies show ads with location assets significantly outperform ads without them for 'near me' and geographically-modified searches — which dominate healthcare search behavior.
Image Assets are increasingly important as Google expands visual elements in Search. You can upload procedure photos or practice images that Google may display alongside text ads in certain positions. For aesthetic practices (med spas, plastic surgery, cosmetic dentistry), high-quality before/after imagery in image assets can meaningfully improve CTR by showing rather than telling the outcome.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Ad Assets cost extra?
No — assets are free to add and don't increase your CPC. They only increase your ad's size and information density. Google shows assets when they're predicted to improve performance, so adding more relevant assets almost always helps.
Which Ad Assets are most important for healthcare?
Call Assets (tap-to-call), Sitelinks (procedure-specific pages), Location Assets (Google Business Profile linked), and Callout Assets (board certified, free consultation, etc.). These four together can double the visual size of your ad and significantly improve CTR.
How do I add Ad Assets in Google Ads?
In your Google Ads account, go to Campaigns → Assets (in the left nav). You can add assets at the account, campaign, or ad group level. Account-level assets apply everywhere; campaign-level assets apply to all ads in that campaign; ad group-level assets are most specific.
Related Terms
Put the theory into practice
VortiHQ manages Google Ads for healthcare and aesthetics practices on a performance-based model — you pay us when you close patients, not just when they click.