Migration from Google AdWords Connector to Google Ads Connector

[Sonja_Bauernfeind]

A new connector for Google Ads will be released in Qlik Sense and in the March 2022 release of Qlik Web Connectors. The new Google Ads Connector is using the latest API from Google and it is replacing the Google AdWords Connector, as this will be deprecated (and stop working) when its underlying API is sunset by Goggle on April 27.

If you have apps using the Google AdWords Connector you will have to migrate to the new Google Ads Connector before April 27 in order to get the data loaded properly. We recommend you review the Google documentation on what is New and Improved in the Google Ads API, including general migration guidelines.

Environment:

Qlik Web Connectors 
Qlik Cloud 
Qlik Sense Business 

The new connector provides access to the same data in your Google Ads environment, although it is somewhat differently organized via the new API. The connector has two tables available, Accounts and Reports. The Accounts option lists all customer accounts related to a selected manager account (Customer ID), and the Reports option allows you to specify a report query using Google Ads Query Language (GAQL).

The previously available AdWords Query Language is deprecated with the API and cannot be used with the new connector, and you have to migrate to the Google Ads Query Language. To assist with that Google has an online Query Migration Tool, which can easily be used to paste an old query into and get the new query version back. There is also a Google Ads Query Builder available.

 Additionally, there are significant differences in labels and column names.

 First, when using the two table options in the Google Ads connector you must select a manager account (Customer ID) in a drop-down in the same way as in the Google AdWords connector. However, with the new API it only presents the IDs instead of the full account name. The IDs remain the same, but if you only know the name the ID has to be looked up. This is the same also for the sub-manager account (Client Customer ID), which must be filled out in the Reports option.

Secondly, the data tables returned will not have the exact same columns as with the AdWords API. The column names are changed and there are sometimes additional columns included in corresponding results. Google documentation provides field mapping tables mapping AdWords API fields to their equivalents in the Ads API. This can be helpful while mapping the new column names into existing fields in the Qlik Sense apps.

For additional details see the online help for the Qlik Google Ads Connector.

Here is an example on how to migrate an existing connection definition and a basic load script based on Google AdWords/Ads Report query.

1. Create the new connection to Google Ads
   
   
2. Review the AdWords load script
   

   LIB CONNECT TO 'Google_AdWords';
   LOAD keywordID as [AdHocReportFromAWQL.keywordID],
                         keyword as [AdHocReportFromAWQL.keyword],
                         adGroup as [AdHocReportFromAWQL.adGroup];
   SELECT keywordID,
                         keyword,
                         adGroup
   FROM AdHocReportFromAWQL
   WITH PROPERTIES (
   clientCustomerId='1642730002',
   awqlQuery='SELECT Id, Criteria, AdGroupName
   FROM KEYWORDS_PERFORMANCE_REPORT
   DURING LAST_7_DAYS'
   
   );

3. Find the clientCustomerId from the AdWords load script in the id column of the Accounts table in the Google Ads connector, and record the Customer ID value from the resourceName column
   
   
   
   
   
4. Paste and translate the awqlQuery from the AdWords load script into the Google Query Migration Tool, and copy the resulting GAQL query
   
   
   
   
   
   
5. Select the Reports table in the new Google Ads connector and select the Customer ID (from step 3) and paste in the customers/[Client Customer ID] from the AdWords load script (step 2), and the GAQL (from step 4)
   
   
   
   
   
   
6. Preview data and generate the load script
   

   LIB CONNECT TO 'Google_Ads';
   
   LOAD adGroup_resourceName as [Reports_adGroup_resourceName],
                         adGroup_name as [Reports_adGroup_name],
                         adGroupCriterion_resourceName as [Reports_adGroupCriterion_resourceName],
                         adGroupCriterion_keyword_text as [Reports_adGroupCriterion_keyword_text],
                         adGroupCriterion_criterionId as [Reports_adGroupCriterion_criterionId],
                         keywordView_resourceName as [Reports_keywordView_resourceName];
   SELECT adGroup_resourceName,
                         adGroup_name,
                         adGroupCriterion_resourceName,
                         adGroupCriterion_keyword_text,
                         adGroupCriterion_criterionId,
                         keywordView_resourceName
   FROM Reports
   WITH PROPERTIES (
   CustomerId=’customers/2009934216’,
   clientCustomerId='customers/1642730002',
   awqlQuery= SELECT ad_group_criterion.criterion_id, ad_group_criterion.keyword.text, ad_group.name
   FROM keyword_view
   WHERE segments.date DURING LAST_7_DAYS '
   );​

7. Adjust column names to the column/filed names used in the Qlik Sense app
   
   
8. Optionally, make use of additional information available with the Google Ads API

If you are looking to download the Standalone Qlik Web Connectors:

1. Go to the Qlik Product Download site
2. Select Value Added,
3. then Qlik Web Connectors (Standalone),
4. the March 2022 release 
5. and finally Service Release 1.