Google AdWords: Learning Center

Before we begin exploring how to target your ads to users, it's useful to know how Google handles user targeting. This can help you choose how you want to target your ads to Google users.

We determine the location and/or language by the user's Internet Protocol (IP) address, Internet domain, query parsing, and language preference settings.

IP address: Google can sometimes use an IP address to determine a user's general physical location. An IP address is the unique number assigned to each computer connected to the Internet (such as 10.32.20.135).
Internet domain: Google has over 100 country-specific domain extensions to which AdWords ads can be targeted. The Internet domain is the suffix attached to each web address, such as .com, .fr, and .es (i.e., the .com in www.google.com). Google.com is targeted to users in the US, Google.fr to users in France, and Google.es to users in Spain.
Query parsing (US Only): Query parsing lets Google evaluate a user's search query to determine when to show ads targeted to a specific region or city, regardless of the country of origin of the IP address.
User language preference: Users can click the Preferences link on a Google home page to change their user preference settings. Users have the option to change the language they want to use for Google search pages.

Learn more: Visit Topic: How AdWords Targets Users to learn how to select the right languages for your campaign.

Google offers many language targeting options, and you can target one or more of them per campaign. This option targets a user based on the language preferences she's chosen for her Google searches. For example, if you choose French as your target language, your ad will be shown only to Google users who have selected French as their search language.

Learn more: Visit Topic: Language and Country Targeting to learn how to select the right languages for your campaign.

Follow these steps ...

Review the list of available languages and select the appropriate language(s) for users you want to reach.

For the best performance from your campaigns, you should only target Google users who can purchase your products or use your services. For example, if you don't ship your products outside of Europe, then you should only select European country targets. If you're advertising a day spa in Paris, France, you may prefer to target only the Paris area. On the other hand, if you think a sufficient number of Europeans may want spa services while visiting Paris, you might consider targeting France or other countries or regions.

Follow these steps ...

To set your location targeting:

Select your targeting option. Countries, Region and City, or Customized. These options are outlined in the rest of this topic, below.
Click Continue. You'll choose locations for your selected targeting option on the next page.

This option allows you to select one or more countries from a list. Ads for your campaign will be shown to all of these countries regardless of the written language of your ad text. For example, selecting All Countries (with English as your targeted language) will show your ads to users around the world who have their Google language preference set to English. Choosing the country 'United States' will show your ads only to users in the U.S.

Learn more: Visit Topic: Language and Country Targeting to learn more about country targeting and whether it's the right option for your campaign.

Follow these steps ...

You should have previously selected Countries as your location targeting option. To choose your country targets:

Select and add one or more countries from the list.
Click Continue. You'll then move on to the next step in the ad group creation process.

Region and city targeting allows you to target your ads to specific users of small geographic areas. You can also change your ad text to suit the region or audience in these locations. Region and city targeting is not available for all countries, so be sure to review the available options when setting up your campaign.

Learn more: Visit Topic: Region and City Targeting to learn more about region and city targeting and whether they're the right option for your campaign.

Follow these steps ...

You should have previously selected Region and City Targeting as your location targeting option. To choose your region or city targets:

Select the country for the region you want to target.
Select and add the region or cities you want to target. You can also type a city name into the provided text box.
Click Continue. You'll then move on to the next step in the ad group creation process.

With this option, you define a target area by entering a physical address, selecting the area on a map, or specifying latitude and longitude points. If you select this option, your ads will only be seen by users who search for results within (or located within) the distance you choose for your customized target area.

Learn more: Visit Topic: Customized Targeting to learn more about customized targeting and whether it's the right option for your campaign.

Follow these steps ...

You should have previously selected Customized Targeting as your location targeting option. To choose your region or city targets:

Define a location:
- Enter a physical address: Enter a street or business address (U.S and Canada only.) Enter the radius distance you want for the address you've entered.
- Select a point on the map: Instead of an address, double click anywhere on the map to place the marker for the target region. You can also enter latitude and longitude points for the region manually.
- Multi-point (or polygon): Click three or more points on the map to outline the target region. You can also enter latitude and longitude points for the region manually.
Enter the radius distance for the new region.
Click Continue. You'll then move on to the next step in the ad group creation process.