Extra Space Storage offers millions of square feet of storage space nationwide. The brand wanted to make sure customers knew about its unique rentable space, so it implemented expanded text ads and price extensions across its Search campaigns, driving clicks and conversions on mobile.
Goals
Increase click-through rates (CTR)
Decrease cost-per-acquisition (CPA)
Expand mobile presence
Approach
Transitioned to expanded text ads
Tested price extensions across 49 campaigns
Focused on California market
Results
18% increase in CTR
20% decrease in CPA
As the second largest operator of self-storage rental units in the U.S., Extra Space Storage knows the value of real estate—from its 106M square feet of rentable space to the digital footprint of its online marketing campaigns. The brand runs Search ads across more than 35 U.S. states and territories with tailored promotions to help drive online sales.
Over 80% of Extra Space Storage customers interact with the company online before renting a unit. To bolster its presence in search and drive more conversions, especially for mobile, the company transitioned to expanded text ads and began testing price extensions.
Making a mark with mobile-first ads
To make the most of its mobile presence, Extra Space Storage decided to take full advantage of the two 30-character headlines and one 80-character description line offered by expanded text ads, which are optimized for the most popular smartphones. Extra Space Storage's new ads featured more information about its storage facilities and unique amenities to help potential renters make more informed decisions before clicking ads.
Since Extra Space Storage's customers often use their smartphones to compare local facilities and prices before leasing, the company also added price extensions to its campaigns. These ad extensions provide additional information in an easy-to-read format that highlights advertisers' products or services, their descriptions, and their price, and includes links to relevant landing pages. By featuring specific facility locations, unit sizes, and their prices, Extra Space Storage could help customers consider their leasing options without needing to leave the mobile search results page.
"Price extensions allow us to provide a better customer experience and lay the foundation for what customers can expect to pay from the very first touch point," said Stephanie Christensen, paid acquisition analyst at Extra Space Storage.
Moving the needle on search performance
Extra Space Storage delivered impressive results across its 49 California test campaigns. The company saw an 18% increase in CTR for expanded text ads appearing with price extensions, compared to standard mobile text ads. It also saw a 20% decrease in CPA for its brand ads.
"We've seen an 18% lift in CTR when price extensions show with our expanded text ads."
"Our mission is to help consumers find the right units for their self-storage needs, so we were incredibly excited to see the success of price extensions in our campaigns. By including the unit sizes and prices customers can expect to see upon visiting our website, we've seen an 18% lift in CTR when price extensions show with our expanded text ads," concluded Mike Smith, senior marketing manager at Extra Space Storage.
Extra Space Storage looks forward to applying this strategy across additional Search campaigns, and plans to test additional products and locations, such as climate-controlled units in specific neighborhoods.
