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This guide explains how to use custom intent audiences, now called custom segments, in Google Ads. It covers how they work, why they were renamed, and how to set them up and optimize them.
Google’s advertising tools continue to evolve, and one of the most powerful features for targeting users with high buying intent has undergone a name change. What used to be known as Custom Intent Audiences is now called Custom Segments. In this guide, we’ll explore what that means, how it works, and how to maximize your ROI using these features.
Custom intent audiences were introduced to help advertisers reach people further along in the buying cycle. Think users actively researching a product or service. Unlike broad affinity audiences, these focus on people with immediate commercial intent.
Custom intent refers to the signals and behaviors that indicate a user is planning to make a purchase or take action soon. These are users Googling reviews, comparing products, or browsing categories relevant to the purchase of your goods or services.
These factors help shape your intent list which ensures your ads reach users most likely to convert.
Custom audiences allow advertisers to define who they want to reach by inputting keywords, URLs, or app names. They are more flexible than predefined audience segments and are designed to reach a more specific audience.
In 2021, Google blended custom intent and custom affinity audiences together into what is known today as “Custom Segments”. While this was a few years ago, many people still use the older terms to refer to these features.
The desire to rebrand was mainly because of the name. They wanted the name itself to reflect a more flexible method of segmenting audiences. No you don’t have to choose between website audiences as much because you can build one custom segment and let Google do what it does best - determine user signals.
Custom segments help advertisers reach people based on important behaviors like search history, visited websites, apps they’re utilizing, geographical location, etc. When you enter data into the platform like keywords, apps, website domains, etc., Google will use all of the data you provide to identify and track people most likely interested in your offering.
You determine custom intent by putting yourself in the shoes of your target audience. What are your customers searching for in Google, which websites are they spending time on, who are your competitors, what often leads up to your audience realizing they need or want your products or services? Questions like these will help you when you first start fleshing out custom intent, which can then be leveraged to build your audience segments.
When you build custom segments in Google ads, you first have to create a display, discovery, or video ad campaign. Then once you’re inside the settings you can navigate to the audience segment section and choose to create a new custom segment. From there, enter relevant keywords that reflect what your audience searches for, URLs they frequent, apps commonly used, etc.
Considering this was just a brief high-level overview of how to create custom intent audiences, you can learn more by reading our in-depth walkthrough on how to create your own custom intent audiences if you need more guidance.
Each input serves a distinct purpose. Keywords represent what users are searching for. URLs give insight into the types of sites they visit. Apps signal the mobile tools and platforms they rely on. Google’s system takes these cues to find users with similar patterns and intent.
Before the rebrand from custom audiences to custom segments, custom intent audiences were focused only on display ads and required manual input of keywords and URLs. With the shift to custom segments, Google unified targeting signals and added support for apps. Now, advertisers can use custom segments across Display, Discovery, and YouTube ads for more consistent targeting and better reach.
It’s important to ensure your audience is large enough to be targeted effectively. Google may slightly expand your input criteria using its machine learning systems. Be intentional with your keywords by aligning them with user behavior that suggests high intent. You can do this using Keyword Planner or by leveraging third-party tools like AHrefs, Semrush, Mangools, etc.
Also, consider segmenting your audiences by funnel stage so that you can serve the right message to the right group at the right time.
To make the most of your custom segments, use a focused set of inputs and data. Spend time carefully curating your list of keywords, relevant competitor URLs, and meaningful app names. This time spent will yield dividends over a list without as much preparation. Revisit and update your segments every few months to ensure your ads remain relevant and on top of your audience. It’s also smart to separate your B2B and B2C audiences to avoid confusion and ensure relevance. You also want to carefully monitor the prpogress and performance of your segments to ensure you have everything adjusted properly.
You should use custom segments when users are in the middle of the funnel and are actively deciding between different options. Custo segments also work well in B2B campaigns where decision-makers are searching for something specific.
A real world example of custom intent targeting would be a real estate brokerage or agent targeting users who have used keywords like “homes for sale near me”, used websites like Zillow and other competing websites.
The best way to get better performance with your custom segments would be to use flexible ad formats like responsive display ads. Ads like this automatically adjust to various placements. Also, you can test your ad creatives across various segments to see which messages resonate the most. You can adjust bidding strategies based on any data discovered as well.
If your segments aren’t performing well, they may be too broad or not clearly defined. The keywords might not reflect strong buyer intent, or the ad copy might not align with what users are expecting. It's also possible the landing page users are taken to doesn't deliver on the promise of the ad, which can cause them to leave without converting. Generally speaking, enhancing these landing pages with the use of Geotargeting is a great decision as it has been proven the more relevant the copy, the more likely the sale. Meaning, if you spend the time ensuring each user who lands on your landing pages sees the most relevant version of your copy for them, they’ll be that much more likely to convert.
Custom segments are best used to bridge the gap between broad awareness campaigns and more focused conversion efforts. They allow you to reach niche groups that might not be covered by standard segments. Custom segments tend to work especially well in display campaigns, YouTube ads, and discovery ads where traditional keyword targeting isn’t available.
With GeoFli, you can dynamically change website content based on user location. What this means is that your ads, landing pages, and website in general will feel much more hyper-relevant to your prospects than your competitors. Learn more about how you can leverage this to optimize the traffic generated by your ads!
