Performance max campaigns
Google Performance Max campaigns, which were announced at Advertising Week in October 2020, are an automated campaign type that runs across all Google ad inventory. We are talking about one campaign that allows advertisers to reach across all Google networks. This includes Search, Display, Youtube, Discover, Gmail, and Maps. Google brought up the topic again during their Marketing Livestream last week (May 27, 2021). Further iterating that these campaigns have had great early success and will be pushed to all accounts by the end of this year.
Performance Max is something that all advertisers will have to take note of as it may signal the dawn of a new marketing trend towards integration of campaigns.
Key benefits of the new campaign
“Starting today, given the positive results from early testers, we’re expanding the Performance Max beta to thousands of additional advertisers globally,” Jerry Dischler, Google’s VP/GM, ads, said during the Marketing Livestream event, “And look out for that full launch later this year.”
Google laid out three benefits for using the Performance Max campaigns.
- Brings together all of Google’s ad inventory in one place.
- Drives the best performance against your goals.
- Deliver richer insight into automation.
For advertisers that have been using Performance Max, they can expect to see new reporting coming through the Insights page. As part of early feedback, Google has heard requests for more transparency, so there is a plan to begin to report on top-performing creatives, auction insights, and trending search categories. In addition, advertisers will be able to preview their best ads on each channel.
Personally, this sounds to me like an Optimus Prime of campaigns. I am excited to see how advertisers can set up this campaign. Because we will probably have to stack headlines, descriptions, logos, images, and videos all within one interface while letting machine learning understand and optimize for the best assets for every channel.
Why is this important?
As the online customer journey is no longer one linear line, it resembles more like a scribble you draw on paper. Advertisers should be prepared to meet their customers at every step of the way, even if they are not moving in a straight line towards the sale. Campaigns are increasingly more integrated now and less individually-focused.
Search ads can show on search partners and even display network (presuming there are remaining unspent budgets.) Smart Display campaigns are already a combination of prospecting and remarketing in one, forgoing the need of advertisers to segment a new campaign out for remarketing traffic. Gmail ads have been stripped and rebranded into Discovery campaigns, allowing advertisers to reach users across Google Discover, Gmail, YouTube Home, and Watch Next pages.
Everything is signaling possibly a new era of integration and consolidation of different Google networks. Instead of creating a new campaign to buy ads for Gmail and another for YouTube, you can reach both at once with a single Discovery campaign. Advertisers who prepare early will be able to take full advantage of the transition and achieve new successes for their clients and businesses.
