Google Add Read-Only Access to Adwords Accounts

Google have finally given advertisers the ability to assign different levels of access to users of their Adwords accounts. The new Roles and Permissions Beta being introduced across all countries and languages, allows advertisers to offer three levels of access to users - Administrative, Standard, and Reports. Google explain the Beta in the below email, which I received this morning.......

Roles and Permissions Beta

We are excited to test a new Beta Feature for the Google AdWords
Program that helps you manage your AdWords account security and
privacy.

With this test, advertisers and agencies will have the ability to
assign three different user access levels for each AdWords account -
Administrative, standard, and reports. These new access levels increase
security by allowing you to assign or remove the level of access from
anyone you want. Also, these new access levels maintain privacy by
ensuring recipients get email appropriate to the user's access level.

This is a positive move by Google, although it's not before time. Yahoo, who have traditionally been the slower of the two engines to offer innovative features to advertisers, included this feature in their new Panama interface. Google have been quite slow in offering a feature that many advertisers, particularly agencies whose clients often request access to their accounts, feel is vital to the smooth running of a campaign (and harmony between clients / account managers!!). Still, Adwords now has read-only account access, and this can only be a good thing.