Since the introduction of Performance Max (PMax) campaigns in 2021, Google has consistently shown a strong commitment to this new campaign format. Initially, many tools were designed to streamline the “upgrade” of existing campaigns, such as Shopping, Dynamic Search Ads, or Display, to PMax.

Recent months have brought numerous updates to the Performance Max campaign framework, primarily focused on creative assets and targeting options. This article will explore some of these recent updates (though not a complete list) and discuss their implications for your Performance Max campaigns.

Contents

• Updates to Performance Max creative assets
• Performance Max targeting updates
• What these Google Ads Performance Max updates mean for advertisers

Updates to Performance Max creative assets

Creatives serve as the initial point of contact for our brands and customers. With Performance Max campaigns running across all Google platforms, the potential variations in your ads are vast, depending on the provided assets. Google’s emphasis on high-quality creatives is increasingly evident. Here are a couple of recent updates (announced jointly) that reflect this focus. Get an instant read on your Google Ads Performance Max campaigns with our free Google Ads Grader!

1. Ad strength now influenced by creative quantity and diversity

From the outset, Performance Max ads allowed for multiple image, video, and text assets to enhance your creatives, with performance largely hinging on the quality of these assets.

However, as announced in early 2024 (see above), the quantity and variety of assets now factor into ad strength. While ad strength shouldn’t be your sole KPI, it’s crucial to acknowledge its significance as a metric that Google now prioritizes.

Importantly, this change doesn’t affect the competitiveness of your Performance Max Asset Groups. The goal is to enhance Google’s diagnostic tools and aid your ad optimization efforts. Google Ads Liaison, Ginny Marvin, clarified that ad strength components remain unchanged. Low ad strength might hinder impression share but won’t preclude auction participation. However, if competing with another advertiser (if my understanding is correct), all else being equal, their superior ad strength due to greater creative diversity could win the auction. If you’ve relied on a minimal creative strategy, now’s the time to invest more in this area, start to stand out from the competition and boost your ad strength. For a comprehensive list of asset formats compatible with Performance Max campaigns, here’s the best resource from Google provides a detailed overview of usable assets and their specifications.

2. New asset creation tools are coming soon

Google acknowledges that creatives pose a significant challenge for many brands. Alongside the ad strength announcement, they unveiled new and upcoming updates to Performance Max asset creation, offering tools for improved text and image assets, potentially reducing reliance on dedicated creative teams.

Firstly, we have Gemini, Google’s most powerful AI model yet, supporting text generation for extended headlines and sitelinks.

Secondly, Imagen 2, leveraging Google’s advanced text-to-image technology, will enable advertisers to create lifestyle imagery from a few simple prompts. These tools will significantly streamline asset expansion in Performance Max, minimizing the need to involve designers. Importantly, they retain the option to review assets before publishing to maintain brand safety and suitability. Moreover, Google is simplifying the integration of external sources into the creative mix. Their expanding Canva partnership includes an integration app allowing you to publish assets from Canva directly to your Performance Max assets. Additionally, a preview function is planned for all team members, irrespective of Google account status, facilitating creative review and collaboration. These collective updates highlight Google’s emphasis on user experience and their commitment to ensuring advertisers showcase their most compelling creatives. For more ideas to improve your Google Ads strategy, check out our free guide on hacking Google Ads!

Performance Max targeting updates

Initially, Performance Max campaigns operated with fully integrated targeting—essentially a black box. Ads were known to run across Google-owned properties, but insights beyond that were limited, as were control options for targeting. Recently, Google has relaxed this approach, providing more transparency and control over ad placement. Not all of these updates are from the latest announcements, but they are all crucial for advertisers to optimize PMax campaign performance.

3. Brand exclusion lists

A major challenge with Performance Max’s Search component was the tendency to overspend on brand terms, potentially cannibalizing traffic from existing branded campaigns or bidding on brand terms undesirable for certain companies.

Brand exclusion lists now empower advertisers to curb Brand bidding and revert to non-brand prospecting through PMAX. Easily implemented at the account level, these lists can even accommodate sub-brand exclusions.

4. Ability to exclude sites from Performance Max (now encompassing search partners!)

Beyond brand keywords, Google enabled the exclusion of display placements from Performance Max campaigns by utilizing account-level placement exclusion lists. This valuable update significantly enhanced control over Performance Max campaigns.

For clarity on which placements to exclude, Google introduced a report displaying impression counts for campaigns on each site. While imperfect due to the lack of conversion data, it provided some transparency.

March of 2024 brought further improvements. In this help article explaining placement report creation, Google announced the inclusion of search partner sites alongside display placements for Performance Max. Furthermore, excluding a search partner site at the account level now applies to ALL campaigns, including both Performance Max and Search. Simultaneously, Google has removed the ability to opt out of the Search Partner Network altogether for Performance Max campaigns, a change initially intended to be temporary to address the backlash they got from an Adalytics report claiming the content was inappropriate.

What these Google Ads Performance Max updates mean for advertisers

Despite numerous updates over the past three years, Google’s current focus is evident: transparency and control over placements and Performance Max creative assets. Whether you’re just starting and seeking Performance Max best practices or you’re a seasoned PMAX user, staying informed about these two key trends and adapting your campaigns accordingly is essential. To gain further insights into maximize your Google Ads campaign performance, explore how our solutions can be beneficial!