Lead Form Assets in Google Ads: A Practical Guide

What a lead form asset is

Google's About lead form assets page explains the idea: "You create a lead form in Google Ads and add it to a campaign. You can add lead forms to Search and Performance Max campaigns." When someone interacts with the ad, "they can open the form and submit their contact information (such as an email address or phone number) to express interest in your services."

The difference from a form on your own site is where the form lives. Google hosts it, Google stores the answers, and you collect them from Google Ads. That saves building a landing page, but it also means the person never sees your website before they send their details, and your follow-up has to be fast and clear. If you are new to the platform, start with our Google Ads basics guide.

Who can use lead forms

Google's Lead form requirements policy lists three basics:

• "A good history of policy compliance."
• An account in an eligible vertical. "Sensitive verticals or sub-verticals (for example, sexual content) aren't eligible for lead forms."
• "A privacy policy for your business." You link to it when you create the form, and it "appears at the end of the lead form".

The same page names topics that are not allowed in lead form ads at all, including alcohol, gambling, healthcare and medicines, and political content. It also says "Only first-party advertisers or third-party agencies with a well-established, direct relationship with the products and / or services being offered, can use lead form ads", and that affiliate networks and lead generation businesses will not be allowed. Using personal information "in ways that users have not consented to is strictly not allowed".

Some formats need more. Adding a lead form to a Video or Display campaign, or a Search campaign "where the ad's headline directly opens to a lead form", requires "More than $50,000 USD total spend in Google Ads". The policy adds that "Reputable advertisers spending more than $1,000 USD per account (or more than $15,000 USD across all accounts) may also be eligible", subject to further checks and the advertiser verification programme. Lead forms are also only available in supported countries.

Because the privacy policy link is required, write that page first. Our website privacy basics guide covers what it usually needs to say, including how you use enquiry details.

Setting up a form

Google's Create lead form assets page walks through the steps for a new campaign. In short:

1. Create a campaign with Leads as the objective and add the "Submit lead form (Google hosted)" conversion goal.
2. Choose Search or Performance Max, enter the settings, then open the lead form editor (under "Ads" for Search, under "Assets" then "More asset types" for Performance Max).
3. Add a headline, business name and description.
4. Choose the contact questions (such as name, email or phone number). "You must select at least one option to continue." You can also add custom questions.
5. Add your privacy policy URL.
6. Write the message people see after they submit, and pick a call-to-action type.
7. Optionally set how you want to receive the leads, then accept the terms of service the first time and save.

You can also add an existing form to a campaign, but "The campaign that you choose needs to have 'Leads' as the campaign goal." You can add only one lead form at the account level. Editing a form can trigger a new policy review, and "your associated campaigns will pause until the updated form is approved". A removed form "can't be restored", though its leads from the last 30 days can still be downloaded.

Google's best practices for lead form assets mention a "30-character headline" and a 30-character call-to-action description, so keep both short and specific. The same thinking as for any web form applies: ask only what you need to reply. Our website forms UX guide goes through choosing fields.

How the form shows in your ads

A form being approved does not mean it will show. The About page lists the criteria for an active form to serve in a lead form ad format: the campaign "should use a conversion-focused bidding strategy", it "must be optimized towards a Google lead form conversion goal", and "Responsive search ads creatives are eligible to serve. Expanded text ads are ineligible."

Google's page on lead forms in responsive search ads adds that "Only one lead form can be added per campaign" and explains that the goals decide the format:

• "Submit lead form (Google hosted)" as the only goal: clicking the ad's headline opens the lead form.
• That goal plus other goals: the headline opens your website, and the lead form shows as an asset next to other assets.

A form added at campaign level always overrides an account-level one, but "if a campaign-level asset is disapproved, the account-level asset will serve instead". To stop a campaign serving lead form formats, you remove the lead form conversion goal from it. If the bidding side is unfamiliar, see our guide to Google Ads budgets and bidding.

Volume or quality

Google offers two form designs. "More volume" is the default and "uses a lead form design with fewer steps to submit", which "may result in more leads" that "may include people who are less interested". "More qualified" uses more steps, which "may result in fewer leads, but those leads generally have a greater interest". You can switch between them at any time.

There are extra tools for lead quality, mostly for Search. Phone number verification adds a one-time password step by SMS and is "Currently supported for Search campaigns only". Qualifying responses let you mark answers to a multiple-choice question that signal a strong prospect. Matching submissions are "automatically tagged as a qualified lead", and those questions "can't be marked as 'optional'". You can make other questions optional, but people must still give either an email or a phone number.

Getting the leads out

This is the step most often missed. Google's Download leads page says "Since leads expire after 60 days, ensure you download them frequently", and the About page adds that a CSV download only covers "leads from the last 30 days". If nobody checks the account, leads simply disappear.

Your options, as Google lists them:

• CSV with full question names as columns, or CSV for CRM with short field names for importing.
• Email notifications: "You'll receive an email for each lead" once you enter an address in the form's "Notifications" section.
• Webhook to send each lead straight to your CRM.
• Third-party integrations. Google names LeadsBridge, HubSpot, Salesforce, Adverity and Driftrock, and notes "A paid account may be required". Zapier works through the Google Ads API rather than a webhook.
• Google Ads API, which can export up to 60 days of lead data.

Downloading needs "Standard" or "Admin" access, and a manager account can only download a client account's leads if the client account gives it ownership. If you work with an agency, check this before the campaign starts.

Sending leads to your CRM

For quick follow-up, Google's best practices recommend a webhook or Zapier "to route leads directly into your CRM system". Its webhook setup page explains the two parts: a webhook URL that receives lead data "through an 'HTTP POST' request immediately after a form is submitted", and a webhook key "used for validating the leads sent". You add both in the form's "Export leads from Google Ads" section, then press Send test data and check that your CRM receives it. Google treats any reply other than "HTTP 200" as an error state.

Google's CRM integration best practices add two points worth building in from the start: "A single lead may be delivered more than one time. Use lead_id to dedupe leads", and test with a small-budget campaign before scaling up. Our CRM and website integration guide covers field mapping, duplicates and consent records, which apply here too. To report on which leads became customers, see Google Ads conversion tracking.

A checklist

• Check your business is not in a vertical that lead forms exclude.
• Publish a privacy policy that covers ad enquiries, and link it in the form.
• Use a Leads campaign on Search or Performance Max, responsive search ads and a conversion-focused bid strategy.
• Add the "Submit lead form (Google hosted)" goal, alone if you want the headline to open the form.
• Ask for as little as you need; choose "More volume" or "More qualified" on purpose.
• Set up email notifications plus a webhook or integration, and send test data.
• Dedupe on lead_id, and never rely on leads sitting in Google Ads past 60 days.
• Make sure whoever follows up has Standard or Admin access, or gets the leads another way.

FAQ

Do I need a website to use lead form assets?

You need at least a privacy policy page, because Google requires a link to it in every lead form and shows it at the end of the form. Google hosts the form itself, so the rest of your site is optional for the form, though people may still look you up before they reply.

How long does Google keep my leads?

Google says leads are stored for 60 days, and a CSV download from Google Ads only covers the last 30 days. Set up email notifications and a webhook or CRM integration so you are not relying on downloads.

Which campaigns can use lead forms?

Google's current setup pages describe adding lead forms to Search and Performance Max campaigns with Leads as the objective. Video and Display lead forms, and Search ads whose headline opens the form directly, carry extra spend and verification requirements in the lead form policy.

Why is my approved lead form not showing?

Google lists conditions for a form to serve: a conversion-focused bid strategy, the Google lead form conversion goal in the campaign, and responsive search ads. Lead forms are also only available in supported countries.

Can an agency or lead generation company use lead forms?

Google allows first-party advertisers and third-party agencies with a well-established, direct relationship with the products or services offered. Affiliate networks and lead generation businesses are not allowed, at Google's discretion.

Want enquiries from your ads to land in your CRM, with a privacy policy and contact pages to match? See our website development service and all our services, or email [email protected].