Test ChatGPT ads properly
💼 ChatGPT ads are getting image placements and better measurement, so here's a simple way to test them without wasting budget.
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💼 A simple plan to test Chatgpt ads before Q4 budgets lock
On October 5, Digiday reported two changes coming to ChatGPT ads.
First, OpenAI will test image ads in the US later this month. They'll appear while people are generating images, clearly labeled as ads.
Second, OpenAI is adding measurement partners and early tests that compare regions with ads against regions without them.
That second change matters most. Until now, you could only judge ChatGPT ads by the conversions ChatGPT reported itself, and new channels usually look better that way than they really are.
Know the limit first
ChatGPT has far less ad space than Google. Digiday's reporting puts it at about 2.5 billion prompts a day against Google's 15 billion searches, and there's only one ad placement.
So treat this as a small test, not a new main channel.
Step 1: Pick one product line
Choose the line that already gets the most visits from chatgpt.com in your analytics. If two are close, pick the more visual one, since image ads are coming.
Step 2: Choose two ad types
- Text ads: match them to questions buyers already ask, such as "best rug for a home with dogs."
- Image ads: once you have access, show the product in a real setting. Someone generating a picture of a living room is already imagining a space.
Step 3: Set a small, fixed budget
Spend about 3% of your search budget for six weeks. That figure is my judgment. It's big enough to see a result and small enough not to hurt Q4.
Keep your search and social budgets steady during the test, so any change comes from ChatGPT.
Step 4: Measure real lift
Use one of these two methods:
- Region test: if your account qualifies for ChatGPT's measurement partners, run ads in half of your matched regions and none in the other half. Compare total sales for that product line in each half.
- On/off test: if not, run ads for four weeks, pause for two, and compare that product line's sales to the same weeks last year.
Judge the result on total sales, not on ChatGPT's own conversion numbers.
Step 5: Decide with a simple rule
- If each dollar returns more than your paid search does, grow the budget in January.
- If it comes within 20% of search, test again with new creative.
- If it falls further behind, pause and check back next year, when there should be more ad space.
Launch the text ad test this week. When image ads open later this month, you'll already have a baseline to compare them against.
Partnership with SurveyMonkey
Make the Next Decision With Real Feedback
You need to know why customers aren’t buying. But commissioning research takes budget, and running it yourself adds work to a team already chasing targets.
SurveyMonkey does the research work for you. You choose what to test and who to reach. It recruits respondents through its paid panel and analyzes their answers, giving you findings to guide your next decision.
Here’s what that looks like:
- Tweezerman validated 10 product ideas with SurveyMonkey Audience, gathering consumer feedback in days to guide product launches.
- Greyhound reduced weekly customer-feedback analysis from 3 hours to 3 minutes, freeing station managers to act on the findings.
- Helix Sleep cut product-development time by 50% using survey insights. Its resulting pillow sold out in the first month.
Put your next product idea or pricing decision through customer research. You’ll have evidence to decide what needs changing before committing to the rollout.
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🥳 Events
🔥 When “We Can’t Measure It” Becomes the Wrong Reason to Cut Spend
October 15 | Virtual Event
AirOps COO Matt Hammel and Bain’s Zak Prauer break down where traditional attribution undercounts AI search, why recommendations can matter more than citations, and what proof leadership should expect before increasing or cutting budget.
Can't attend the session live? Register anyway, and you’ll get the recordings in 24 hours.
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