Account Re-Structure?

[jebernier]

Hello,

I recently started at a new position and am working on the companies AdWords account.

The account has been active since 2005 and is an organizational mess.

I don't want to start over, so what is the best way to organize the campaigns/ad groups? Can I rename Campaigns/Ad Groups without losing any ranking?


Thanks

[buckworks]

Welcome to Webmaster World, Jebernier!

I've never noticed any change in how the ads ranked when I renamed a campaign or ad group.

However, be aware that Google Analytics will see a renamed campaign or ad group as new, and its stats will start over on the Analytics side of things.

I try to name campaigns and ad groups so it's clear what they're about and what audience they're targeting.

Campaigns might be named something like this:

Blue Widgets - UK - search
Blue Widgets - US - search
Yellow Widgets - US - content

Ad groups within those campaigns might be named something like this:

2012 blue widget banners
Blue widget text ads
Yellow widget text ads

Keep in mind that good descriptive names will also make it easier to understand the stats on the Analytics side.

[RhinoFish]

near history outweighs far, the account will recover QS quickly if you improve it, whether or not you replace or edit existing. so the choice should be based on the situation, not the concept of 'losing rank'. i've started over, patched, and mixed the two together. pretend it's a house and decide if it's easier to tear down and rebuild, just remodel, or remodel some plus add a new wing. make sure it's better than your neighbors house when you're done, and those driving by won't care about the past.
:-)

[buckworks]

Rhino, that's a wonderful analogy! :)

[jebernier]

Thanks for the assistance. I'll try to fix what's there