An image asset is a picture you add to Google Ads so it can appear with your ads. In Search campaigns it sits beside the text of a search ad, a feature previously called an image extension; in Performance Max, Demand Gen and Display campaigns, image assets are part of the core creative Google assembles into ads.
How image assets work
In Search, image assets are one kind of ad asset, added at account, campaign or ad group level. When Google predicts that showing one will improve the ad and fits the space, the image appears next to your responsive search ad. It does not show every time, and usually only when the ad is in one of the top positions.
Google asks for specific shapes. Square (1:1) and landscape (1.91:1) are the core ratios, with portrait (4:5) accepted in some visual campaigns. Upload good-quality versions of each, as Google crops and scales them for different placements.
Images follow their own policy. They must be clear and in focus, and they must not carry overlaid text, logos, buttons or collages; your logo belongs in the separate business name and logo asset. Google has also set eligibility conditions on which Search accounts can use image assets, based on account history and policy record, so check the current requirements if the option does not appear.
Google can also generate images automatically, or pull them from your landing page, through automatically created assets. These are controlled in account and campaign settings.
Why it matters
A search results page is mostly text. An ad with a clear photograph takes up more space and stands out, particularly on a phone. For businesses where the product or result is visual, such as a kitchen fitter, a florist, a hotel or a restaurant, a strong image shows the searcher what they will get before they click.
In Performance Max and Demand Gen, the stakes are higher. Images are a large part of what people see on YouTube, Gmail and Discover, and weak or generic photos lead to weak ads. A UK retailer running Performance Max with only automatically pulled website images is handing a lot of creative judgement to Google.
Common mistakes
- Adding text, prices or a logo on top of the photo, which leads to disapproval.
- Uploading only a landscape image, so Google cannot show the ad in square placements.
- Using stock photography that says nothing specific about the business.
- Leaving automatically created images switched on without reviewing what Google produces.
- Judging an image after a handful of impressions. Images show only part of the time, so give them enough exposure first.
How to act on it
Choose three to five real photographs that show what you sell or the result of your work, taken in good light with one clear subject. Crop each into square and landscape versions with nothing important near the edges. Add them at campaign level so they apply to the ads that match the image.
After a few weeks, open the assets report and look at impressions and the performance rating for each image. Replace any that rarely show or are rated low, and keep trying new photographs alongside the best performer.
Choosing and testing assets is part of how I build Google search campaigns that win the click as well as the auction.