On this page
The short answer
Oppy reads where the account's Display, video and Demand Gen ads ran recently and groups the places by type: websites, phone apps, YouTube channels and videos. It is printed because almost nobody has looked, not because something is necessarily wrong.
Why it matters
This is the Display version of the search terms report. It turns 'our Display is not working' into a list of specific places, most of which the advertiser would not have chosen and some of which they would.
Phone apps are called out apart, because they are the biggest waste source on Display and the least likely to be deliberate. An accidental tap inside a game is not an interested visitor.
How Oppy decides
The check reads the placements report for recent weeks, with cost and conversions.
Checks that weigh money or clicks judge what they find on your own account's numbers, not on one figure applied to every account, so what counts as a problem on a small account is not the same on a large one. Checks on settings read how the account is set up.
When there is too little to go on, the check says so instead of guessing. A finding always comes with the rows behind it, so you can read the evidence before you decide.
| This check | |
|---|---|
| Step of the audit | Spend |
| What it reads | Where Display and video ads ran |
| Needs trustworthy conversions | No. It does not wait for the tracking step. |
| What happens next | Reported in the audit with the rows behind it. The decision stays with you. |
Check it yourself in Google Ads
- In Google Ads, open Campaigns, then Insights and reports, then When and where ads showed, on the Where ads showed tab, for the last 30 days.
- Add the Cost and Conversions columns and sort by Cost.
- Group the list by placement type: websites, mobile apps, YouTube.
- Mark the places you would have chosen and the ones you would not.
What to do about it
Exclude the places that spent and do not fit, in a shared exclusion list. Start with app categories you never chose, covered in the phone apps check.
For the places that converted, consider targeting them on purpose in a managed placement campaign, with their own bids.
Terms on this page
Other checks in this area
The checks next to this one in Wasted spend, each with its own page.