How Google Ads Fits into AI Overviews and AI Mode

“Marketing Live” is Google’s annual virtual event showcasing new products, formats, and tips. This year’s program took place last month, when Google announced over 40 updates to Ads, YouTube, and data measurement, all of which were mostly AI-driven.

I will focus this post on changes to Google Ads within AI Overviews and AI Mode.

AI Overviews, AI Mode

AI Overviews is Google’s generative AI feature that answers queries entirely in search results. Google introduced the feature in 2024. AI Overviews summarizes solutions from across the web and occasionally cites those sources for further research. For example, searching “how to clean an oven” could trigger an AI Overview that includes a list of external sites with bullets, videos, and other formats.

To date, AI Overviews have summarized mostly organic listings. At last month’s Marketing Live, Google announced that Overviews would show more ads. For instance, a “how to clean an oven” search could trigger ads for cleaning products.

A search for “how to clean an oven” could trigger Shopping ads in AI Overviews. Image from Google.

AI Mode extends Overviews to anticipate searchers’ intent and likely follow-up questions beyond the initial query. Google refers to these additional responses as “fan-out” results.

Google increasingly generates search results based on users’ intent, not their keywords. AI Overviews and AI Mode follow this trend.

AI for paid search

At Marketing Live, Google execs stated that both Overviews and AI Mode can include ads. Searchers’ intent triggers those ads, not keywords alone. I’ve repeatedly addressed this evolution. Google continues to promote broad match keywords with campaign types that lessen reliance on keywords, viewing such words and phrases as broad themes.

For example, Google’s newly created AI Max for Search campaign type (i) requires only broad match keywords, (ii) generates dynamic ad copy, and (iii) selects an advertiser’s landing page likely to yield the best performance.

Google’s AI aims to answer searchers’ needs. Advertisers can help by providing audience signals such as first-party data and custom segments.

Site content

Engaging, quality website content has always driven conversions. It’s now more important than ever for paid search because Google displays the text in the ads.

A Google Ads setting in most campaign types allows it to automatically create assets based on the content from (i) landing pages, (ii) the site’s domain, and (iii) existing ads.

The setting is optional, but advertisers should opt in to take full advantage of AI.

Most advertisers already focus on organic search optimization and produce quality content. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel.

The presentations at Marketing Live reinforced our understanding that ads in Google are dynamic. Advertisers still need to write compelling copy, but AI will tailor those ads to each user. The stronger the site content, the better the ads.

Google’s AI Max Ads Hone Search Intent

I wrote in December that Google would launch keywordless Search ads in 2025. I based my prediction on Google’s evolving assessment of searchers’ intent. Keywords used to be the sole factor. Now, they are one of many variables that dictate the ads a user sees.

Last week, Google introduced a campaign type called “AI Max for Search.” Keywords are present but as themes instead of the leading indicator.

Artificial intelligence drives the new campaign type. Performance Max campaigns and smart bidding already rely on AI. AI Max moves beyond query matching to capture signals of what searchers seek.

The main features of AI Max are already available in Search as options to turn on or off. With AI Max, advertisers go all in. Google determines:

• Ads that show from the initial broad match keyword list.
• Ad text to convert the most searchers.
• The URL for top performance.

Let’s review each of these components.

With AI Max, Google determines the ad text and the final URL. Click image to enlarge.

Search term matching

Existing Search campaigns include an option for broad match keywords solely — pausing phrase and exact match. Google claims the combination of broad match and smart bidding will improve targeting and thus performance.

Search term matching is a logical iteration of pairing queries with ads. A keyword list is only the beginning. Google’s AI analyzes the keywords, assets, and landing pages to determine the ads to show.

Search term matching is akin to “you might like” suggestions on Netflix based on a user’s viewing history. The same principle applies here. Google will show an ad if it’s relevant to a searcher, regardless of the advertiser’s keyword.

Text customization

Formerly called automatically created assets, text customization allows Google’s AI to use the verbiage from ads, landing pages, and assets to produce customized headlines and descriptions.

For example, an advertiser selling picture frames may write a headline of “All Sizes of Picture Frames.” Google may instead show “4 x 6 Picture Frames” if it determines the searcher wants that dimension and the advertiser carries it.

Advertisers can view Google’s headlines and descriptions via “asset performance” at the account or campaign level and filter by “automatically created” to see the exact assets that showed. Advertisers can remove an asset as needed.

Advertisers can filter by “automatically created” at the account or campaign level to see the exact assets.

Final URL expansion

Google has long altered advertisers’ URLs in Performance Max and Dynamic Search Ads campaigns. Like text customization, Google changes the final URL to improve performance. Combined, the two features produce an entirely new ad.

Advertisers can now provide URL inclusions and exclusions. Inclusions instruct the AI what URLs to target, such as those manually submitted or in a page feed. URL exclusions can target blog pages, for example, if an advertiser doesn’t want to pay for that traffic.

Other features

Google’s announcement of AI Max for Search included a slew of additional features. One is brand settings, wherein advertisers can include or exclude brand names from their ads.

For example, an advertiser selling only Nike and Adidas shoes could designate a brand inclusion for those names and a brand exclusion for “Reebok” queries.

Google is upgrading reporting transparency, a much-needed improvement after the launch of Performance Max campaigns, which did not include a search term report. AI Max campaigns correct this by including an “AI Max” column in the report to show the query and the combination of query, assets, and the final URL.

In short, Google Ads continues to evolve. Keywords are no longer the primary targeting method. AI has and will reshape the platform and performance.

SMB Ads Unchanged by Google Antitrust Ruling

Google’s recent advertising antitrust loss is much ado about nothing for small- and medium-sized businesses.

On April 17, 2025, U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema found that Google had “willfully acquired and maintained monopoly power” in two digital advertising markets: display ad servers and ad exchanges.

Google offers these technologies in Ad Manager, its advertising management platform, once called DoubleClick for Publishers. Ad servers enable advertisers to upload ads and show them on third-party websites. Google’s ad exchange, AdX, is a marketplace where advertisers and publishers buy and sell inventory.

Significance

The loss is significant for Google. It marks the third time the U.S. Department of Justice has won an antitrust ruling in district court against Alphabet, Google’s parent company. The cases are at various appeal phases and include a $700 million fine for alleged Play Store violations, the potential divestiture of Chrome for monopolizing “queries on the internet,” i.e., search, and now for ad tech.

It is also significant because Google Ad Manager — the ad server and AdX — is far and away the most popular advertising platform for enterprise-level publishers such as NBCUniversal, Disney, and Hearst.

This illustration from the DOJ’s filing against Google shows the three parts of Google’s ad business: ad servers on the left, the ad exchange in the middle, and ad buying tools on the right. Click image to enlarge.

In fact, according to the 2023 DOJ filing that initiated the case, Google had a 90% share of the ad server market and a 50% share for AdX.

Thus it’s not surprising that many in the industry predict seismic changes in how digital display ads are bought, sold, and served.

Little Change for SMBs

Despite the hubbub, there are at least three reasons this ad-focused antitrust case will have a minimal impact on smaller brands, including retail, direct-to-consumer, and B2B.

Google’s appeal

Google will almost certainly appeal the ruling, which could take months or years and prevent meaningful changes to Ad Manager or digital advertising generally.

During the appeal, Google’s lawyers have a strong argument.

The DOJ had initially claimed that Google had a complete ad tech monopoly over ad servers, ad exchanges, and the tools used for buying ads. But the court did not agree, stating that Google did not control the online ad buying despite the dominance of Google Ads.

Hence the very advertising tool many ecommerce SMBs use (Google Ads) is not included in the ruling and likely won’t change much, even if Google loses other aspects of the case.

Multiple platforms

Rarely does an ecommerce marketing team depend solely on Google Ads for paid traffic. Most invest in Google Ads, Meta Ads, and others, such as X, Reddit, and Pinterest.

Thus any court-mandated changes to Google Ads (via an Ad Manager ruling) would represent only a portion of most advertisers’ activities.

Moreover, Google announced on April 22, 2025, that Chrome will not include a “user choice” prompt for third-party cookies. The proposed prompt had been part of the company’s Privacy Sandbox initiative. European Union regulators had expressed concerns that the Privacy Sandbox would give Google a monopoly over ad targeting.

Third-party tracking cookies remain largely functional in Chrome.

Unbroken

The courts could force Google to sell its ad-serving capabilities or AdX — or not.

The very publishers the court sought to protect are dependent on a stable and predictable supply of advertisers. Any rapid or destructive change to the ad tech status quo would significantly harm these companies.

Many industry observers predict a legal outcome of fines and rules. The rules might transfer some control to Ad Manager’s competitors and require Google to share its ad technology.

So, again, Google’s antitrust outcome won’t likely change how SMBs buy ads.

Ad prices won’t fluctuate much either. Some reports have stated AdX charges a 30% fee per transaction. Yet all ad exchanges impose fees, often 50% or more.

In short, don’t expect a drop in ad prices.

Google Ads Recommendations Worth Doing

Google Ads utilizes artificial intelligence and machine learning to recommend tactics across seven categories:

• Ads & Assets
• AI Essentials
• Automated Campaigns
• Bids & Budgets
• Keywords & Targeting
• Measurement
• Repairs

I view Google’s recommendations cautiously. Implemented correctly, some can improve performance. Others may not align with an advertiser’s goals or even hurt the results.

Moreover, beware of Google Ads optimization score. It’s an estimate of how an account will perform. Implementing Google’s recommendations will increase the score but not, in my experience, the actual performance. It’s a vanity metric, in other words.

In this post, I’ll suggest recommendations worth examining.

Ads & Assets

Ads & Assets addresses ad copy and assets (formerly extensions). Many of the recommendations suggest implementing missing items such as call assets and lead form ads. But lead form ads do not make sense for advertisers seeking visitors and on-site form completions. Dismiss the recommendation if that’s your scenario.

Yet recommending missing assets is helpful for ads with legitimate shortcomings, such as Search ads with fewer than 15 headlines and four descriptions or demand generation ads with missing text or images.

Advertisers seeking visitors and on-site form fills likely should dismiss lead form ads. Click image to enlarge.

AI Essentials

These recommendations are the core tactics Google wants all advertisers to implement. Many of the recommendations overlap in other categories. For example, “adding images” also appears in Ads & Assets.

The critical recommendations in AI Essentials are:

• Adding broad match keywords
• Updating bid strategies
• Using consent mode

I’ve addressed the importance of broad match keywords because it uses most audience signals and thus helps scale conversions. Likewise, smart bidding is mandatory for me as it’s more effective than manual. And consent mode is critical to respect users’ privacy and recover lost conversions from searchers with tracking disabled.

Google considers Performance Max a priority and includes it in AI Essentials, even if the campaign type isn’t a fit for all advertisers.

Google includes Performance Max recommendations in AI Essentials. Click image to enlarge.

Automated Campaigns

Google’s primary recommendation for automated campaigns is to create a Performance Max campaign, stating, “According to Google Data… advertisers who use Performance Max achieve, on average, over 18% more conversions at a similar cost per action.”

Other Automated Campaign recommendations include updating both Dynamic Search Ads and Display campaigns to Performance Max.

Bids & Budgets

Bids & Budgets recommendations are helpful when analyzed correctly. The first addresses budget-constrained campaigns wherein Google recommends weekly changes to improve conversions.

I find those recommendations useful even for higher spends. Be sure to match the recommendations with specific campaigns, as it’s not always obvious, and ensure each aligns with your goals. For example, increasing budgets for top-of-funnel Display campaigns may not apply.

Google could also recommend in Bids & Budgets a different bid strategy, such as moving from a tCPA to a tROAS.

Google’s recommendations for optimizing budgets are useful even for higher spends. Click image to enlarge.

Keywords & Targeting

In this category, Google recommends adding broad match keywords and suggests new keyword ideas and removing non-serving terms (for example, those with low search volume). The idea is to provide new keyword opportunities while cleaning up non-performers.

Keywords & Targeting also includes recommendations for (i) audience targeting, (ii) Customer Match automating, and (iii) optimized targeting in Display campaigns. The latter gives Google more leeway for showing Display ads, which I tend to dismiss owing to poor performance.

Measurement

I implement Google’s Measurement recommendations because they impact user privacy and help recover lost conversions. I also implement enhanced conversions. Users who disable tracking prevent visibility if they convert.

By updating conversion tracking, advertisers can collect first-party data, hash it, and then send it back to Google to close the conversion gap. Hence enhanced conversions allow more accurate performance reports.

Repairs

The Repairs category alerts advertisers of disapproved and missing items. Example alerts include rejected sitelinks or missing ad group keywords. Advertisers can run scripts for these notifications. Most Repairs recommendations are straightforward and worth implementing.

Check out Google’s post “Types of recommendations” for a complete list for each category.

Create Google Ads Scripts via GenAI

I’ve addressed the benefits of Google Ads scripts to automate aspects of account management. Producing custom scripts is now much easier with generative AI platforms.

Scripts can go beyond automation to solve problems. For example, it’s not always evident when an account stops serving ads. The payment method may fail, or Google could reject them. The “Account Down” script runs hourly and sends an email when an account hasn’t seen an impression in a designated period.

I’ve struggled with campaigns that set a higher target cost per acquisition than the budget. It’s not always obvious. A budget might be $500, but the tCPA is $600. The tCPA should be at least three times the budget in my experience.

AI for Ad Scripts

Here’s where AI comes in. Tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude (my favorite) can generate scripts quickly.

Generative AI platforms such as Claude can produce scripts quickly.

Here’s my prompt in Claude to create a script:

Please write a Google Ads script that reviews all campaigns and sends an email alert when the tCPA is higher than the campaign budget.

Here’s Claude’s response:

Google Ads tCPA Alert Script

This script:

1. Iterates through all enabled campaigns in your Google Ads account
2. Identifies campaigns using Target CPA bidding strategy
3. Compares each campaign’s tCPA value against its daily budget
4. Creates a list of campaigns where tCPA exceeds the budget
5. Sends you an email alert with details if any campaigns meet this condition

I pasted the script into Google Ads and received an error.

3/5/2025 3:47:20 PM TypeError: campaign.bidding(...).get is not a function
at main (Code:39:40)
at Object. (adsapp_compiled:20555:54)

I then prompted Claude to fix the error. Here’s Claude’s response:

Google Ads tCPA Alert Script – Fixed

I’ve fixed the error by correcting how the script retrieves the target CPA value. The issue was with the line `var bidding = campaign.bidding().get();` which was using an incorrect method call.

Key changes made:

1. Replaced the problematic method chain with a direct call to `campaign.bidding().getTargetCpa()`

2. Added error handling with try/catch blocks to gracefully handle different API versions and bidding strategy configurations

3. Added support for retrieving tCPA from shared bidding strategies (which have a different access method)

4. Added validation to ensure tCPA was successfully retrieved before comparing it to the budget

The script — download it here — now runs in Google. I solved a problem through a series of prompts.

Not perfect

My next AI task was to obtain a script that identified all active ad groups in live campaigns with no impressions in 21 days. The alert would trigger me to investigate the cause.

Claude’s script worked, but it had two errors:

• It defaulted to any period, not 21 days.

• It included custom experiments that ended 21 or more days previously. Experiments run only for a designated period, but the script included them as normal campaigns.

After sharing these errors and receiving replacement scripts, Claude produced new errors for invalid inputs. I ended the session without securing the script I wanted.

It’s a handy reminder that AI is not always as productive as humans. A developer could likely set up this script without the extended back-and-forth.

Claude’s script for tCPA conflicts worked. The no-impressions script did not.

Monitor the unexpected

The final script I created addressed rejected ads. Advertisers should monitor not just the ads but rejected keywords and audiences, which occur occasionally.

Any script in Google Ads times out after 30 to 60 minutes. I first prompted Claude to identify disapproved ad assets (sitelinks, callouts, and more). Fearing a timeout, I opted for two separate scripts.

The follow-up script and response focused on “limited” statuses.

Here’s the prompt for the non-asset disapproval.

Please update this script so it only looks at disapproved ads, keywords, and audiences. Entities with “limited” status should not be included.

And Claude’s response:

I’ll update the script to only include items with “DISAPPROVED” status and exclude those with “LIMITED” or any other non-disapproved status. Here’s the modified version:

Google Ads Script for Disapproved Items Only. Click to open code.

The key changes I made to the script:

1. Changed the condition checks for ads from:

```javascript
if (ad.getPolicyApprovalStatus() != 'APPROVED') {
```

to:

```javascript
if (ad.getPolicyApprovalStatus() == 'DISAPPROVED') {

Download the script.

No limits

My example scripts above alert advertisers via email, but I could have prompted Claude to output to a spreadsheet instead. I could have included paused entities. The possibilities are seemingly limitless.

Essential Google Ads Settings for 2025

As innovative as Google Ads can be, success hinges on getting the fundamentals right.

In this post, I’ll address five critical settings for individual campaigns. I won’t cover account-level settings, such as conversion tracking. Others, such as negative keywords and URL tracking templates, generally apply holistically to accounts and campaigns.

Networks

Channel-specific campaigns should show ads only for those networks. Search campaigns should show only on the Search Network, and Display campaigns on the Display Network. When advertisers create new Search campaigns, Google includes them in its search partners and the Display Network.

Uncheck both options.

Uncheck options for search partners and the Display Network.

Google search partners are third-party sites that show ads from Google. The partners include other search engines such as Ask.com and ecommerce sites such as Target. I used to enable this option but recently encountered poor traffic and lead quality. Plus, search partners drain much of the budget away from more profitable traffic on Google.com.

Campaigns on the Search Network and Display Network operate differently. Goals, metrics, ad creative, and strategy differ by the network. Search campaigns tend to be intent-based, while Display typically casts a wider net. In my experience, Search campaigns in the Display Network frequently underperform, despite Google’s encouragement otherwise.

Again, uncheck “Include Google search partners” and “Include Google Display Network.”

Conversion Goals

Google sets all new campaigns to “account-default,” meaning all conversion types. Optimizing for every goal sounds good in theory, but it deemphasizes conversion priorities.

For example, a purchase is more important than a newsletter signup. But when it optimizes for all conversions, Google will seek the most easily achieved — the newsletter signup. Advertisers must explicitly tell Google which conversion(s) to optimize for.

Bidding

Every campaign should have its own bid strategy corresponding to the conversion goals. Some campaigns may set a bid strategy to maximize conversions, while others may set a target return on ad spend. Avoid a blanket bid strategy for every campaign.

However, advertisers can use portfolio bid strategies for campaigns with the same goal. For example, campaigns A, B, C, and D with a common tROAS goal of 200% can utilize a portfolio strategy.

Locations

“Location options” is crucial for advertisers with geographic targeting. The default setting is “Presence or interest: People in, regularly in, or who’ve shown interest in your included location.” The other option is to show ads by “Presence: People in or regularly in your included locations.”

Choose the second option.

Select “Presence: People in or regularly in your included locations.”

Say I’m an electrician who services only Manhattan residents. With the default “Presence or interest” setting, someone in Greenwich, Connecticut, who searches for “local electricians” could see my ads since the two cities are adjacent, more or less. The click is wasted spend, as I don’t service outside of Manhattan. The “Presence” option ensures that ads only show in the locations I’ve designated.

Brand Exclusions

Brand exclusions are relatively new to prevent ads from showing on brand searches. This feature works well in non-brand campaigns.

Say Wayfair creates a non-brand campaign for chairs. It can add “Wayfair” as an exclusion to prevent the ads from showing for “chairs from Wayfair” searches, for example.

I’ve seen many brand queries in search query reports for non-brand campaigns. Brand exclusions prevents it while also funneling traffic to brand campaigns. The feature is similar to negative keywords but excludes the brand altogether rather than variations.

Ad Strategies for Competitor Keywords

Bidding on competitor terms has always been controversial in pay-per-click advertising. IBM could bid on “Amazon Web Services,” for example, although it cannot use the trademarked terms in the ad copy. It could say “Compare to IBM” but not “AWS alternative.”

Though Google allows competitor keyword bidding, two factors have stopped advertisers from doing it. First, competitor keywords typically produce poor Google Ads Quality Scores.

Google assigns a Quality Score to all keywords. A QS measures the keyword’s relevance to the search query, ad copy, and the landing page. A keyword’s relevance is low when not used in the ad copy. Low QSs result in higher costs per click. Thus competitor keyword bidding does not typically make economic sense.

The second reason is ethics. Is it ethical to bid for competitor keywords? Why not bid solely on one’s own products or brands?

In my experience, it is ethical and applicable within commonsense boundaries. Competitor keyword bidding gives searchers options. Let the best ad win.

Competitor queries

Competitor ads likely show without bidding on those keywords owing to Google’s relaxed matching. For example, queries for “Amazon cloud” and “AWS cloud computing” could trigger IBM ads if it bids on, say, “cloud computing” or if Google’s algorithm projects a user searching for “Amazon cloud” could click IBM’s ad. Hence competitor ads will likely show for related queries unless the advertiser excludes them via negative keywords.

Advertisers should create specific campaigns to control the ads and landing pages for competitor queries. However, it’s essential to have realistic expectations. Competitor-specific campaigns will likely have poor Quality Scores and higher CPCs.

Framework

When planning competitor campaigns, create the landing page first. The goal is to convince searchers to choose a different option. The landing page must reinforce this messaging, informing visitors of the unique benefits unavailable elsewhere.

Consider the landing page below from Five9, a call-center software provider. A competitive keyword — “Genesys contact center” — triggers an ad that links to the page. The page initially highlights Five9’s accomplishments (not shown below) and then a table comparing features among its competitors. It’s compelling and persuasive.

Five9’s landing page table compares features among its competitors.

Five9’s comparative landing page includes two competitors — Genesys and Nice — but it could focus on one or the other based on volume and response.

The page’s contact form has just three fields, which encourages conversions. When requesting information from prospects, less is more.

The quote form has just three fields, encouraging conversions.

Ad copy

Poor Quality Scores cause ads from competitor keywords to show less and cost more. Moreover, a competitor’s ad will likely include the brand name, reinforcing its relevance to searchers. That ad will almost certainly be in one of the top three positions — above the organic listings. Furthermore, brand ads tend to deploy multiple assets, which occupy more search space. Hence an ad triggered from competitor keywords may show but not necessarily stand out.

Advertisers cannot include competitors’ names in ad copy but can imply a better alternative. If Five9 bids on “Nice AI,” the ad headline might be “Make Your Switch To Five9.”

Regardless, consider the searcher’s mindset when composing the ad copy.

“Pinning” headlines and descriptions ensures specific messaging appears in every ad. Pinning is critical in competitor campaigns but can produce low Quality Scores. That’s acceptable, however, since control over the copy matters.

It’s worth noting that Microsoft Bing shows image-based Multimedia Ads from searches on competitors’ terms. Below is an example of a Docusign ad triggered by a search for Signeasy, a competitor.

A search on Bing for “signeasy” triggers Docusign’s image ad. Click to enlarge.

Ad groups and keywords

Consolidating campaigns allows Google to collect aggregate data for better bid strategies.

Accounts generally need just one search campaign for all competitor ad groups and keywords. One competitor per ad group is typically sufficient unless search volume dictates otherwise.

For example, IBM could place multiple competitors’ keywords with little search volume into one ad group, with keyword-level URLs if each competitor had its own landing page.

Potential buyers

In short, Google’s ad platform has evolved, and so has bidding on competitor keywords. Keywords influence the ads that show, but other signals — search history, predicted performance, user location — also matter. Ads already show for competitor queries. Those searchers are potential buyers who will convert more with optimized experiences.

Keywordless Search Ads Are Coming

I’ve run pay-per-click campaigns for nearly 20 years and witnessed significant change. Tactics I once considered cutting-edge are now outdated. Exciting new strategies have emerged, which I enjoy learning and testing.

In this post, I’ll share a momentous change I believe we’ll see in 2025.

Keywordless Search Campaigns

The “death of the keyword” prediction isn’t new. It suggests that keywords will go away as an optimization tactic, replaced by audiences and other factors.

Yet Search campaigns without keywords already exist. Dynamic Search Ads and Performance Max campaigns match user queries to a site’s content. Advertisers can see the queries, but there are no keywords to bid on. It’s a holistic shift to keywordless campaigns and hints at the future.

Google has redefined how broad match works. Queries that do not relate to keywords can trigger ads based on other factors, such as previous searches and the user’s location. For example, an advertiser bidding in broad match on the keyword “office desk accessories” could trigger an ad for “coffee mugs” if the user’s previous searches indicated an interest in desk items.

Based on that logic and how Google triggers ads for phrase and exact match, true match types no longer exist. Google decides which queries are relevant. Keywords are a component, not the sole focus.

Google says broad match uses the most audience signals and is thus the most effective for advertisers. I disagree, at least partially, because I still see better performance with phrase and exact match. But the writing is on the wall: Match type isn’t critical.

Per Google, broad match uses the most audience signals and performs best for advertisers. Click image to enlarge.

A campaign beta in Performance Max called “search themes” confirms the direction. Instead of submitting keywords, advertisers enter themes related to their product or service. Advertisers selling recliners, for example, could enter “recliners,” “recliner chairs,” and “sofa recliners.”

Keywordless search allows Google to cast a wider net with more data and rely on machine learning to show the right ad.

Same Structure

Despite the absence of keywords, I don’t see the structure of Search campaigns changing. Campaigns organized by topics with ad groups in sub-topics will continue. Ad copy will reflect the ad group. Targeting will be a mix of audience signals, including search themes, and enhanced by first-party data.

Still, an advertiser might question the removal of keywords from Search campaigns when Performance Max targets the Search network. Why bother with a Search campaign if the targeting options are the same as Performance Max?

I see a couple of reasons.

First, advertisers cannot choose the networks in Performance Max campaigns. Ads show across all of Google’s properties. The setting is fixed, not changeable. Hence advertisers interested only in the Search network should not choose Performance Max — Search campaigns are a better option.

Second, search has been the core of Google for nearly 25 years. Removing the Search campaign type — even without keywords — would be too disruptive to advertisers who view Performance Max as not viable.

Therefore Google will likely not force advertisers to transition from Search. Google will encourage keywordless campaigns but will not make them mandatory.

Dynamic Search Ads Tap Informational Queries

Dynamic Search Ads have a long history of helping advertisers show for queries they haven’t bid on. Merchants with thousands of constantly changing products cannot realistically create ads for every item. DSAs fill this gap by allowing Google to crawl websites and display dynamic ads when they are relevant to a search query.

For instance, a merchant may bid on the keyword “window curtains” but not “blue rod pocket curtain panel,” as this query is specific and presumably has a low search volume.

I first addressed DSAs in 2021. They often attract unqualified traffic, regardless of how the campaigns are optimized. Google decides which queries trigger the ads, rather than advertisers selecting specific keywords. Fortunately, the cost-per-click for DSA campaigns is generally lower than traditional Search.

Lower CPCs enable more clicks for a given budget, ideally resulting in more conversions and revenue. While DSA campaigns may not be as efficient as Search, they can nonetheless generate conversions unavailable through other channels.

Versatile DSAs

Utilizing DSAs to focus on the depth of product pages is essential. However, there is another strategy that can lead to both short- and long-term success. By targeting blog and resource pages, we can drive top-of-funnel traffic. The approach can garner newsletter and other soft conversions to nurture potential buyers.

A Wayfair DSA campaign, for example, could promote its inventory of household sinks and target pages with “sinks” (or equivalent) in the URL.

A Wayfair DSA campaign could target pages with “sinks” (or equivalent) in the URL.

But Wayfair publishes additional sink-related content beyond product detail pages. Its “Ideas & Advice” section answers common questions and includes articles on different types of sinks. Users in research mode could find the articles extremely valuable. Hence Wayfair should consider a separate campaign to promote that content.

A campaign targeting pages containing an “ideas-and-advice” keyword could promote blogs and similar informational sections.

The original DSA campaign targeting “sinks” in the URL required a negative target for any pages containing “ideas and advice” in the URL. This tells Google not to direct traffic to those informational article pages in the product-based campaign. The goal is to ensure that informational queries only lead to the articles. It’s crucial for any DSA campaign to monitor the search query report for appropriate negative keywords.

Informational queries do not have buying intent, but the articles and guides should direct searchers to the next steps. Wayfair’s pages include links to other resources and product pages (for purchase). For example, a Wayfair article titled “What Is a Drop-In Sink?” describes the materials and links to product pages of stainless steel and porcelain sinks.

Furthermore, visitors landing on article pages are retargeting candidates. Having provided those visitors with helpful info, an advertiser can convert them to customers via retargeting ads. That’s why blog pages should include a newsletter signup call-to-action. Upload email lists to Google and then target those subscribers.

Wayfair’s article “What Is a Drop-In Sink?” links to product pages of stainless steel and porcelain sinks.

Thinking Ahead

Advertisers must find new strategies when search saturation occurs. One effective tactic is to target broader informational queries. Display and programmatic ads, while essential for brand growth, do not typically deliver strong initial returns. Combining informational DSA campaigns, landing page newsletter CTAs, and focused remarketing can drive additional revenue.

Google Ads Automated Rules for Better Management

Performance fluctuations in Google Ads occur for various reasons. The causes are often challenging to pinpoint, but automated rules can help.

Google Ads automated rules send notices or implement changes based on predetermined criteria. For example, an advertiser could set a rule to schedule a campaign or receive an email when a keyword has 75 clicks and zero conversions.

Automated rules are similar to scripts but more turn-key. Scripts are more dynamic and comprehensive than rules, such as alerting when an ad group doesn’t have a responsive search ad.

To set up an automated rule, navigate to the left navigation bar and click “Tools > Bulk Actions > Automated Rules.” Then set up rules for the account, campaigns, ad groups, keywords, and more.

Here are my four top automated rules.

Disapproved Ads or Keywords

A frequent reason for performance swings is Google’s disapproval. Disapproved entities at the ad or keyword level can produce drastic changes. Google’s notification option is in the top navigation bar, but it’s easy to miss. I’ve spent hours diagnosing a performance drop only to realize it was due to a disapproved ad. Setting separate rules to notify you when an ad or keyword is disapproved is easy and saves time.

The rules can apply at the account, campaign, or ad group levels. I prefer the account level to capture all campaigns. For ad rules, set the conditions to review disapproved status for all ads in active campaigns and ad groups. You can preview a rule before saving it.

Set the condition such as “Disapproved” status and then the action such as “Send email.”

The action is to send an email. Daily emails are suitable for disapprovals — I elect to receive them only for changes or errors. Thus I’ll receive an email only when an ad is newly disapproved.

Select the email frequency and the prompt, such as “Only if there are changes or errors.”

The process for keyword disapprovals is nearly identical. The only difference is selecting “disapproval” in the keyword status reason to get alerted. Keyword-level URLs may result in disapproved links.

Limited by Budget or Bid Strategy

Monitoring restrictions for multiple campaigns and bid strategies can be challenging. For example, a profitable campaign may hit its daily budget by noon each day, or a bid strategy with a too-high ROAS target could restrict traffic. A rule can identify such limitations.

The rule is set at the campaign level and requires setting a status condition. Google provides 20 potential statuses to check, but the first five tend to be enough in my experience.

Choosing the first five statuses is likely sufficient.

The associated actions are to change budgets or send an email notification. There is no action to adjust the bid strategy. I prefer receiving a notification rather than Google automatically changing budgets. I can then view the campaigns and bid strategies and decide the next steps. As with the disapproved rule, I run the restrictions rule daily and opt to receive an email only for an issue.

Threshold Rules

Threshold rules identify ineffective tactics at any account stage. For example, a threshold rule can review all campaigns with 200 clicks and no conversions over the last 60 days, or ads with ROAS lower than the goal and a conversion rate under 1%. The possibilities are endless and depend on how you gauge performance.

Here are a couple of scenarios.

Action: Pause Keywords when “Keyword status: Enabled,” “Keyword clicks > 100,” and “Keyword conversions < 1 using data from the last 60 days.”

Set a threshold rule by designating the target, the condition, and the action. Then select the action’s frequency and prompt.

Action: Send email when “Campaign status: Enabled,” “Campaign Search impression share < 20%” using data from yesterday.

This example applies the action to “selected accounts,” sets the conditions, and chooses the action. It then shows the action’s frequency and prompt.

Remember that a metric may naturally be lower on a weekend when running rules based on yesterday’s data. For example, a campaign may have an impression share of over 20% daily except for Sunday. Thus a 20% impression rule would generate an email on Monday.

No Activity

Ad groups sometimes stop showing impressions because an ad or keyword is disapproved. Yet occasionally ads and keywords have no impressions because a negative keyword blocks traffic or Google has declined payment methods.

The solution is to create a rule for the ad group when impressions were zero the day before. No impressions do not imply an error, especially with ad groups containing low-volume keywords, but the rule at least alerts you to check.

Setting the no-activity rule at the campaign level will only notify you if an entire campaign saw zero impressions instead of individual ad groups.

I sometimes set a trigger for less-than-normal impressions. For example, if an ad group typically sees at least 50 daily impressions, I might create a rule to alert me when impressions drop below that number.