LinkChecker script
Changes can happen, also on websites. However it’s very unfortunate when there are changes made which result in your final URL not working anymore. This is not only annoying for the users and their user experience, but this can also hurt your SEO/SEA efforts as this looks unprofessional. Luckily there is a Google Ads script which can help you with this. The LinkChecker script checks your webpages and makes sure that you are aware of those broken links. Because it would be a pity to send users to web pages that are not functioning anymore (and to pay for it!).
More info about the LinkChecker script and how it works can also be found in this article. Below you can find an updated version on how to set up this script (updated in 2023). Indeed, now there is an even more efficient way to set it up. You only need the template sheet and 5 minutes of your time.
LinkChecker script / How to set it up? - Update 2023
1. Go to this link
2. Choose “Copy the template spreadsheet”
- Make a copy of the Link Checker sheet
- Rename the sheet and bookmark it
- Give access to the email addresses that should have access and what’s important here is to also give access to “everyone with the link”
3. Go to your Google Ads account
- Go to Tools & Settings > Bulk Actions > Scripts
- Add a new script > Start from a template (you can find the Link Checker template there)
4. Linkchecker script
- You need to adapt two things in the script:
- On line 10: Enter the URL of the spreadsheet you just created instead of YOUR_SPREADSHEET_URL
- On line 13: Enter the email addresses that have to receive the notifications instead of YOUR_EMAIL_HERE (Important remark: the one that sets up the LinkChecker script will not receive the email. As they are the sender, it will be in their Sent mailbox.)
5. If this is done, you can run the script. When you click on “Run”, you will be asked to Authorize by just logging into Google Ads.
6. The only thing left to do is to put a frequency in Google Ads for how many times you want to schedule that the script has to run.
Redirect Checker
The LinkChecker script helps you to be aware of broken links and to avoid sending paid traffic to those broken links. Unfortunately this script does not check redirects. However, the latter could also negatively affect your performances. Indeed, redirects can slow things down which could impact your landing page experience, i.e. your quality score. This can in turn affect your ad rank. Next to that, it’s possible that with redirects you lose the tracking in your web analytics tool, which will cause a decrease in sessions for those pages.
Also to avoid this, you can implement a script in your Google Ads account.
Redirect Checker / How to set it up?
- Go the the Scripts section in your Google Ads account and choose the add a new script
- Copy paste the following script code there
- Create a new Google Sheet
- Add the complete URL of the spreadsheet to the script (line 14)
- Add your email address to the script (line 15)
- Preview
- Schedule to run weekly
With both of these scripts implemented, you’re set to avoid users being sent to non-functioning links or to be redirected. This is a time saver and can only be helpful to improve your performances.
Lisa De Sloovere
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