Wanting to combine a new global website redesign with relevant local messaging, Google engaged us for UX research across 14 global markets to deliver insights that would increase engagement worldwide.
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hen Google undertook its biggest comms refresh in years, it turned to Each&Other to deliver the UX insights that would help its redesigned Ads site attract and retain more customers. This was a global project with enormous scope, covering 14 countries across EMEA, APAC and the Americas. Here’s what brought one of the world’s biggest technology companies to our door.The challenge was this: Google had a strategic target to help more SMB marketers to engage with, and sign up for, Google Ads. It wanted to do this with a single centrally managed website design that worked for its global audience while also addressing local market needs and nuances. Google’s team was conscious that those local requirements would have to be fully tested before implementing the revised design.
Let’s remind ourselves of the context: Google’s Ads business generated revenues of $237.8 billion in 2023; more than 80% of global businesses use it for their PPC campaigns. Even by Google’s standards, this was a significant overhaul of its marketing communications, with many internal stakeholders and multiple strategic partner vendors in every capacity.
The US team commissioned the project, and the creative elements were developed by another vendor. Working from Ireland, we were the global research partner, playing a key role to test designs in 14 local markets.
We have worked with Google as a strategic research partner for more than eight years. For this project, we were entrusted with delivering timely, actionable insights and recommendations based on high-quality research at global scale and reach, while making sure great UX was front and centre. Crucially, we could commit to delivering fast. In the world of traditional market research, it’s not uncommon to wait months for a study, but by then, the results risk being stale, or worse, out of date.
Our agility enabled us to set up a worldwide qualitative study in just three weeks and eight weeks later, the results were complete. We delivered actionable insights from the study in a series of tight sprints aligned to the overall plan, which meant that Google could take those recommendations and engage its design team to start iterating for the next stage.
User research is the foundation of everything we do in our UX practice. We designed, scaled and centrally managed the study in 14 countries across EMEA, APAC and the Americas, carrying out in-depth interviews in local languages. We coordinated the local research teams and recruiters, and engaged with local product marketing managers throughout the programme.
Through the research process, we got close to the customers and prospective users, talking to them in the context of their business, their sophistication in online marketing and the tools they use. We wanted to uncover any areas that might be causing friction in acquiring potential customers.
Google’s team engaged us to test key pages of the new website design that were important in terms of key messaging that described the benefits of Google Ads, and to present back the voice of the customer in local markets. We focused on validating the messaging, content, layout, visuals, and support options available to new and existing users.
We asked a series of questions around imagery and messaging, but we were careful to leave room in the interviews for the unprompted, unscripted things that a user will tell us. In our experience, that’s often as interesting and insightful as any questions we’ve planned in advance. We collated the customer feedback into a tight framework document that allows us to easily parse the sentiment across all markets. The insights we delivered impacted on both the written and visual aspects of the site, giving Google real and actionable information to work with.
Let’s take a step back for a moment to talk about the process of working with a large organisation like Google that’s moving at speed. One of the strengths in a good working relationship is flexibility. Priorities can sometimes change in the middle of a project. Where we succeeded is in changing as the client’s needs evolve. This calls for a willingness to be flexible and responsive and a mindset that says: this can be done.
That approach doesn’t just go for Google but for all the partners in the project. An undertaking like this is a team effort, and we make a point of playing well with others. We worked hand in glove with the other creative partners in the project, respecting the process. Mindful of the timelines we were all working to, we aimed to deliver our insights speedily. We made sure that our feedback said more than ‘this feature isn’t working’; we applied our UX principles and design expertise so the message was always ‘here’s what we recommend’.
Because Ads is Google’s primary revenue channel, this project had an enormous impact on the bottom line. In each market, the site needed to capture the right customers at the right time.
By taking users through key pages, we were able to make actionable recommendations to make it easier for users to discover, learn, and understand the different solutions Google has to offer, showcasing more helpful information to users in a clear and approachable way.
In this major global project with significant stakes, we balanced the needs of a wide and dispersed group of stakeholders. Insights from the rich qualitative data we provided guided decisions on UX changes the project team could make centrally, with the results rolled out in some of the largest markets around the world.
With a more cohesive global website, Google can now communicate the benefits of Ads in a clear and targeted way, aligning with their prospects’ needs and goals. And speaking of goals, the redesigned and improved site delivers on Google’s strategic objective to reach a wider audience and turn them into paying customers for Google Ads.