Google Ad Manager Tutorial for Beginners (Step-by-Step Guide)

Google Ad Manager (GAM) is an ad management platform that allows website or app owners to manage, schedule, and optimize their advertisements.

How Google Ad Manager (GAM) works (in brief):

• An ad space (ad unit) is created on the website.
• Advertisers or ad networks (such as Google AdSense or Google Ad Exchange) submit advertisements.
• Google Ad Manager selects and displays the ad that generates the highest revenue.
• Visitors view or click on the ads.
• The website owner earns revenue from the advertisements.

In simple terms:

AdSense = Earning revenue solely by displaying ads.
Google Ad Manager = A system for simultaneously managing multiple ad sources and direct ads.

If your website has significant traffic, Google Ad Manager offers more advanced options than AdSense.

What is the purpose of Google Ad Manager, and what can be done with it?

The primary purpose of Google Ad Manager (GAM) is to manage, serve, track, and generate reports for advertisements on websites, apps, or other digital platforms. Simply put, Google Ad Manager is an “Ad Management System” where you decide which advertisement appears—and where, when, and to whom it is shown.

First, what is Google Ad Manager?

Suppose your website receives 50,000 visitors daily. A local company asks you: “Run our banner for 30 days.” Now, you need to:

• Display the banner
• Change the banner
• Count clicks
• Count impressions
• Generate reports

This is exactly what Google Ad Manager does.

Flow Chart

Advertiser
│
▼
Google Ad Manager
│
▼
Website (samacharlive.in)
│
▼
Visitor

Purpose of Google Ad Manager

• Displaying advertisements on the website.
• Managing advertisements comprehensively.
• Viewing reports on impressions, clicks, CTR, etc.
• Running advertisements from various advertisers.
• Managing both direct (private) ads and programmatic ads.
• Tracking advertising revenue.

What can be done on Google Ad Manager?

Google Ad Manager is a platform that allows you to easily manage advertisements on your website or app. It enables you to add ads, determine their timing and placement, run advertisements from various companies, and utilize both AdSense and private ads. It provides data on impressions, clicks, CTR, and performance reports for each ad. Additionally, it offers features such as campaign creation for different advertisers, ad rotation, targeting, scheduling, and revenue tracking, making ad management easier and more effective.

How to create an account on Google Ad Manager and set up ads?

Step 1: To create a Google Ad Manager account, you need a Google account (i.e., Gmail). First, create a Google AdSense account using that Gmail account, and then create a free Google Ad Manager account using the same Gmail address.

• Then, create a free account in Google Ad Manager.
• The free version is called
• Google Ad Manager Small Business
• It is sufficient for getting started.

Step 2: Add Website

• After creating the account, go to Inventory > Sites > Add Site > (Your Website URL)

Step 3: Create Ad Unit.

• Inventory > Ad Units > New Ad Unit

Example: Homepage Top Banner (Size, 728×90) Save

Homepage Top Banner
Size
728×90

Sidebar
300×250
Save

Footer
970×250
Save

Header

Sidebar

Footer

Article Middle

Article Bottom

Step 5: Now, create an advertiser.

• Delivery > Advertisers > New Advertiser

Example

ABC Mobile
Contact
Phone
Email
Save

Step 6: Create an order.

• Delivery > Orders > New Order

Example

ABC Mobile
July Campaign

Banner
728×90
Priority
Standard

728×90
JPG
PNG
GIF
HTML5

Step 9: Approve > Save > Activate

That’s it! The ad will now go live.

What will the visitor do?

• The visitor will open the homepage.
• Google Ad Manager
• It will display a banner.
• One impression will be counted each time.

Where will the reports appear?

• You will find them under Reports > Historical or Reporting.

Impressions
Clicks
CTR
Revenue (IF IT IS SET)
Ad Unit
Country
Device
Browser

Example: If 1,000 visitors came to your website, all of them saw the banner…then,

Impressions
1000

If 40 people clicked than…

Clicks
40

40 / 1000
=
4%

✅ Impressions

✅ Clicks

✅ CTR

✅ Fill Rate

✅ Viewability

✅ Country

✅ Browser

✅ Device

✅ Operating System

Do I need to provide a report to the advertiser?

Suppose ABC Mobile purchased an advertisement. After 30 days, you can download and provide the report.

Example

Impressions
258,452
Clicks
5,428
CTR
2.10%

header.php
sidebar.php
single.php
footer.ph

The easiest initial setup for your website:

• Create a free Google Ad Manager account.
• Add your website.
• Create ad units for the homepage, sidebar, and articles.
• Implement GAM ad tags in WordPress.
• Upload a banner for your private advertiser (e.g., a local business).
• Activate the campaign (Order + Line Item + Creative).
• Check impressions, clicks, and CTR in the reports.
• Export reports to PDF or Excel and send them to the advertiser if needed.

Conclusion:

If you are a complete beginner, focus initially on the basic aspect of Private Banner Ads rather than trying to learn every feature at once. First, ensure that:

• The ad appears in the correct location on the website.
• Impressions are increasing.
• Clicks are being recorded correctly.

Once you have grasped this, move on to advanced topics such as Targeting, Frequency Capping, Programmatic Ads, Header Bidding, etc.

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