Mutate Best Practices

Temporary resource names

GoogleAdsService.Mutate supports temporary resource names that can be referenced later on in the same request. This lets you, for example, create a campaign and its associated ad groups, ads, keywords, etc. all in a single request.

You can do this by specifying the new resource's resource_name to use a negative ID. For example, if you create a campaign and specify its resource name as customers/<YOUR_CUSTOMER_ID>/campaigns/-1, then when you are creating the ad group in a later operation, you can reference it by that resource name and the -1 you specified will be replaced by the actual ID of the created campaign automatically.

Here are some things to keep in mind when using temporary resource names:

• A temporary resource name can only be used after it's been defined in a resource. In the example below, the ad group operation would have to appear after the campaign operation in the list of operations.
• Temporary resource names are not remembered across jobs or mutate requests; to reference a resource created in a previous job or mutate request, use its actual resource name.
• For a single job or mutate request, each temporary resource name must use a unique negative number, even if they are from different resource types. If a temporary ID is reused in a single job or mutate request, then an error is returned.

Example

To give a more concrete example to the situation mentioned above, suppose you want to add a campaign, an ad group, and an ad in a single API request. You would create a structure for your request analogous to the following:

mutate_operations: [
  {
    campaign_operation: {
      create: {
        resource_name: "customers/<YOUR_CUSTOMER_ID>/campaigns/-1",
        ...
      }
    }
  },
  {
    ad_group_operation: {
      create: {
        resource_name: "customers/<YOUR_CUSTOMER_ID>/adGroups/-2",
        campaign: "customers/<YOUR_CUSTOMER_ID>/campaigns/-1"
        ...
      }
    }
  },
  {
    ad_group_ad_operation: {
      create: {
        ad_group: "customers/<YOUR_CUSTOMER_ID>/adGroups/-2"
        ...
      }
    }
  },
]

Notice that a new temporary ID is used for the ad group, since we can't reuse the -1 that we used for the campaign, and we also reference this ad group when creating an ad group ad. The ad group itself references the resource name we established for the campaign in an earlier operation in the request, while resource_name in ad_group_ad_operation is not necessary since no further operation is referencing it.

Group same-type operations

When using GoogleAdsService.Mutate, it is important to group operations together according to their resource in the repeated operations array. This mutate method essentially serves as a way to automatically sequentially call each individual resource's own mutate method. To do this, it reads in operations until it finds one for a different type of resources, then batches all the same-type operations together in one request.

For example, if you have 5 campaign operations, followed by 10 ad group operations in the repeated operations field in your Mutate call, then the system will perform two total calls in the backend, one to the CampaignService for 5 operations, and the next to the AdGroupService for 10 operations. However, if you were to group them differently, performance could be a lot worse. If you only create 2 campaigns and 2 ad groups, but weave them so the operations are ordered as [campaign, ad group, campaign, ad group], then this will result in four total calls in the backend. This will result in slower API performance and in extreme cases can even lead to timeouts.

Key Point: Group all operations on the same type of resource together in your GoogleAdsService.Mutate calls.

Retrieve mutable attributes from the response

If you set the response_content_type of your mutate request to MUTABLE_RESOURCE, the response will contain the values of all mutable fields for every object created or updated by the request. Use this feature to avoid an additional search or searchStream request after each mutate request.

Note: The additional information returned when you request the MUTABLE_RESOURCE response type will increase the size of the response payload. Only use this feature when your application needs the additional information returned.

If you do not set the response_content_type, then the Google Ads API defaults to RESOURCE_NAME_ONLY and the response will only contain the resource name of each created or updated resource.

Here's an example of retrieving a mutable resource from an API call:

Java

private String createExperimentArms(
    GoogleAdsClient googleAdsClient, long customerId, long campaignId, String experiment) {
  List<ExperimentArmOperation> operations = new ArrayList<>();
  operations.add(
      ExperimentArmOperation.newBuilder()
          .setCreate(
              // The "control" arm references an already-existing campaign.
              ExperimentArm.newBuilder()
                  .setControl(true)
                  .addCampaigns(ResourceNames.campaign(customerId, campaignId))
                  .setExperiment(experiment)
                  .setName("control arm")
                  .setTrafficSplit(40)
                  .build())
          .build());
  operations.add(
      ExperimentArmOperation.newBuilder()
          .setCreate(
              // The non-"control" arm, also called a "treatment" arm, will automatically
              // generate draft campaigns that you can modify before starting the experiment.
              ExperimentArm.newBuilder()
                  .setControl(false)
                  .setExperiment(experiment)
                  .setName("experiment arm")
                  .setTrafficSplit(60)
                  .build())
          .build());

  try (ExperimentArmServiceClient experimentArmServiceClient =
      googleAdsClient.getLatestVersion().createExperimentArmServiceClient()) {
    // Constructs the mutate request.
    MutateExperimentArmsRequest mutateRequest = MutateExperimentArmsRequest.newBuilder()
        .setCustomerId(Long.toString(customerId))
        .addAllOperations(operations)
        // We want to fetch the draft campaign IDs from the treatment arm, so the easiest way to do
        // that is to have the response return the newly created entities.
        .setResponseContentType(ResponseContentType.MUTABLE_RESOURCE)
        .build();

    // Sends the mutate request.
    MutateExperimentArmsResponse response =
        experimentArmServiceClient.mutateExperimentArms(mutateRequest);

    // Results always return in the order that you specify them in the request. Since we created
    // the treatment arm last, it will be the last result.  If you don't remember which arm is the
    // treatment arm, you can always filter the query in the next section with
    // `experiment_arm.control = false`.
    MutateExperimentArmResult controlArmResult = response.getResults(0);
    MutateExperimentArmResult treatmentArmResult = response.getResults(
        response.getResultsCount() - 1);

    System.out.printf("Created control arm with resource name '%s'%n",
        controlArmResult.getResourceName());
    System.out.printf("Created treatment arm with resource name '%s'%n",
        treatmentArmResult.getResourceName());

    return treatmentArmResult.getExperimentArm().getInDesignCampaigns(0);
  }
}
CreateExperiment.java
      

C#

/// <summary>
/// Creates the experiment arms.
/// </summary>
/// <param name="client">The Google Ads client.</param>
/// <param name="customerId">The customer ID for which the call is made.</param>
/// <param name="baseCampaignId">ID of the campaign for which the control arm is
/// created.</param>
/// <param name="experimentResourceName">Resource name of the experiment.</param>
/// <returns>The control and treatment arms.</returns>
private static (MutateExperimentArmResult, MutateExperimentArmResult)
    CreateExperimentArms(GoogleAdsClient client, long customerId, long baseCampaignId,
        string experimentResourceName)
{
    // Get the ExperimentArmService.
    ExperimentArmServiceClient experimentService = client.GetService(
        Services.V15.ExperimentArmService);

    // Create the control arm. The control arm references an already-existing campaign.
    ExperimentArmOperation controlArmOperation = new ExperimentArmOperation()
    {
        Create = new ExperimentArm()
        {
            Control = true,
            Campaigns = {
                ResourceNames.Campaign(customerId, baseCampaignId)
            },
            Experiment = experimentResourceName,
            Name = "Control Arm",
            TrafficSplit = 40
        }
    };

    // Create the non-control arm. The non-"control" arm, also called a "treatment" arm,
    // will automatically generate draft campaigns that you can modify before starting the
    // experiment.
    ExperimentArmOperation treatmentArmOperation = new ExperimentArmOperation()
    {
        Create = new ExperimentArm()
        {
            Control = false,
            Experiment = experimentResourceName,
            Name = "Experiment Arm",
            TrafficSplit = 60
        }
    };

    // We want to fetch the draft campaign IDs from the treatment arm, so the
    // easiest way to do that is to have the response return the newly created
    // entities.
    MutateExperimentArmsRequest request = new MutateExperimentArmsRequest
    {
        CustomerId = customerId.ToString(),
        Operations = { controlArmOperation, treatmentArmOperation },
        ResponseContentType = ResponseContentType.MutableResource
    };


    MutateExperimentArmsResponse response = experimentService.MutateExperimentArms(
        request
    );

    // Results always return in the order that you specify them in the request.
    // Since we created the treatment arm last, it will be the last result.
    MutateExperimentArmResult controlArm = response.Results.First();
    MutateExperimentArmResult treatmentArm = response.Results.Last();

    Console.WriteLine($"Created control arm with resource name " +
        $"'{controlArm.ResourceName}.");
    Console.WriteLine($"Created treatment arm with resource name" +
      $" '{treatmentArm.ResourceName}'.");
    return (controlArm, treatmentArm);
}
CreateExperiment.cs
      

PHP

private static function createExperimentArms(
    GoogleAdsClient $googleAdsClient,
    int $customerId,
    int $campaignId,
    string $experimentResourceName
): string {
    $operations = [];
    $experimentArm1 = new ExperimentArm([
        // The "control" arm references an already-existing campaign.
        'control' => true,
        'campaigns' => [ResourceNames::forCampaign($customerId, $campaignId)],
        'experiment' => $experimentResourceName,
        'name' => 'control arm',
        'traffic_split' => 40
    ]);
    $operations[] = new ExperimentArmOperation(['create' => $experimentArm1]);
    $experimentArm2 = new ExperimentArm([
        // The non-"control" arm, also called a "treatment" arm, will automatically
        // generate draft campaigns that you can modify before starting the
        // experiment.
        'control' => false,
        'experiment' => $experimentResourceName,
        'name' => 'experiment arm',
        'traffic_split' => 60
    ]);
    $operations[] = new ExperimentArmOperation(['create' => $experimentArm2]);

    // Issues a request to create the experiment arms.
    $experimentArmServiceClient = $googleAdsClient->getExperimentArmServiceClient();
    $response = $experimentArmServiceClient->mutateExperimentArms(
        MutateExperimentArmsRequest::build($customerId, $operations)
            // We want to fetch the draft campaign IDs from the treatment arm, so the easiest
            // way to do that is to have the response return the newly created entities.
            ->setResponseContentType(ResponseContentType::MUTABLE_RESOURCE)
    );
    // Results always return in the order that you specify them in the request.
    // Since we created the treatment arm last, it will be the last result.
    $controlArmResourceName = $response->getResults()[0]->getResourceName();
    $treatmentArm = $response->getResults()[count($operations) - 1];
    print "Created control arm with resource name '$controlArmResourceName'" . PHP_EOL;
    print "Created treatment arm with resource name '{$treatmentArm->getResourceName()}'"
        . PHP_EOL;

    return $treatmentArm->getExperimentArm()->getInDesignCampaigns()[0];
}
CreateExperiment.php
      

Python

def create_experiment_arms(client, customer_id, base_campaign_id, experiment):
    """Creates a control and treatment experiment arms.

    Args:
        client: an initialized GoogleAdsClient instance.
        customer_id: a client customer ID.
        base_campaign_id: the campaign ID to associate with the control arm of
          the experiment.
        experiment: the resource name for an experiment.

    Returns:
        the resource name for the new treatment experiment arm.
    """
    operations = []

    campaign_service = client.get_service("CampaignService")

    # The "control" arm references an already-existing campaign.
    operation_1 = client.get_type("ExperimentArmOperation")
    exa_1 = operation_1.create
    exa_1.control = True
    exa_1.campaigns.append(
        campaign_service.campaign_path(customer_id, base_campaign_id)
    )
    exa_1.experiment = experiment
    exa_1.name = "control arm"
    exa_1.traffic_split = 40
    operations.append(operation_1)

    # The non-"control" arm, also called a "treatment" arm, will automatically
    # generate draft campaigns that you can modify before starting the
    # experiment.
    operation_2 = client.get_type("ExperimentArmOperation")
    exa_2 = operation_2.create
    exa_2.control = False
    exa_2.experiment = experiment
    exa_2.name = "experiment arm"
    exa_2.traffic_split = 60
    operations.append(operation_2)

    experiment_arm_service = client.get_service("ExperimentArmService")
    request = client.get_type("MutateExperimentArmsRequest")
    request.customer_id = customer_id
    request.operations = operations
    # We want to fetch the draft campaign IDs from the treatment arm, so the
    # easiest way to do that is to have the response return the newly created
    # entities.
    request.response_content_type = (
        client.enums.ResponseContentTypeEnum.MUTABLE_RESOURCE
    )
    response = experiment_arm_service.mutate_experiment_arms(request=request)

    # Results always return in the order that you specify them in the request.
    # Since we created the treatment arm second, it will be the second result.
    control_arm_result = response.results[0]
    treatment_arm_result = response.results[1]

    print(
        f"Created control arm with resource name {control_arm_result.resource_name}"
    )
    print(
        f"Created treatment arm with resource name {treatment_arm_result.resource_name}"
    )

    return treatment_arm_result.experiment_arm.in_design_campaigns[0]
create_experiment.py
      

Ruby

def create_experiment_arms(client, customer_id, base_campaign_id, experiment)
  operations = []
  operations << client.operation.create_resource.experiment_arm do |ea|
    # The "control" arm references an already-existing campaign.
    ea.control = true
    ea.campaigns << client.path.campaign(customer_id, base_campaign_id)
    ea.experiment = experiment
    ea.name = 'control arm'
    ea.traffic_split = 40
  end
  operations << client.operation.create_resource.experiment_arm do |ea|
    # The non-"control" arm, also called a "treatment" arm, will automatically
    # generate draft campaigns that you can modify before starting the
    # experiment.
    ea.control = false
    ea.experiment = experiment
    ea.name = 'experiment arm'
    ea.traffic_split = 60
  end

  response = client.service.experiment_arm.mutate_experiment_arms(
    customer_id: customer_id,
    operations: operations,
    # We want to fetch the draft campaign IDs from the treatment arm, so the
    # easiest way to do that is to have the response return the newly created
    # entities.
    response_content_type: :MUTABLE_RESOURCE,
  )

  # Results always return in the order that you specify them in the request.
  # Since we created the treatment arm last, it will be the last result.
  control_arm_result = response.results.first
  treatment_arm_result = response.results.last

  puts "Created control arm with resource name #{control_arm_result.resource_name}."
  puts "Created treatment arm with resource name #{treatment_arm_result.resource_name}."

  treatment_arm_result.experiment_arm.in_design_campaigns.first
end
create_experiment.rb
      

Perl

sub create_experiment_arms {
  my ($api_client, $customer_id, $base_campaign_id, $experiment) = @_;

  my $operations = [];
  push @$operations,
    Google::Ads::GoogleAds::V15::Services::ExperimentArmService::ExperimentArmOperation
    ->new({
      create => Google::Ads::GoogleAds::V15::Resources::ExperimentArm->new({
          # The "control" arm references an already-existing campaign.
          control   => "true",
          campaigns => [
            Google::Ads::GoogleAds::V15::Utils::ResourceNames::campaign(
              $customer_id, $base_campaign_id
            )
          ],
          experiment   => $experiment,
          name         => "control arm",
          trafficSplit => 40
        })});

  push @$operations,
    Google::Ads::GoogleAds::V15::Services::ExperimentArmService::ExperimentArmOperation
    ->new({
      create => Google::Ads::GoogleAds::V15::Resources::ExperimentArm->new({
          # The non-"control" arm, also called a "treatment" arm, will automatically
          # generate draft campaigns that you can modify before starting the
          # experiment.
          control      => "false",
          experiment   => $experiment,
          name         => "experiment arm",
          trafficSplit => 60
        })});

  my $response = $api_client->ExperimentArmService()->mutate({
    customerId => $customer_id,
    operations => $operations,
    # We want to fetch the draft campaign IDs from the treatment arm, so the
    # easiest way to do that is to have the response return the newly created
    # entities.
    responseContentType => MUTABLE_RESOURCE
  });

  # Results always return in the order that you specify them in the request.
  # Since we created the treatment arm last, it will be the last result.
  my $control_arm_result   = $response->{results}[0];
  my $treatment_arm_result = $response->{results}[1];

  printf "Created control arm with resource name '%s'.\n",
    $control_arm_result->{resourceName};
  printf "Created treatment arm with resource name '%s'.\n",
    $treatment_arm_result->{resourceName};
  return $treatment_arm_result->{experimentArm}{inDesignCampaigns}[0];
}
create_experiment.pl