AdsLiaison

Official posts from Google's ads product liaison, @GinnyMarvin. Sharing insights on how Google ads products & policies work and helping Google hear feedback.

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

Long-time digital marketer turned ad industry journalist who couldn't quit campaigns. Now, my job is to bring marketers' insights & perspectives back to Google ads teams and to help improve understanding about how Google's ad products & policies work. Let me know how I can help!

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

Full rollout details here: https://t.co/HsInoeQ4iN

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

Less clicking, more insights.

We’re rolling out new updates to Google Ads and Google Analytics to help you pinpoint and act on performance shifts faster.

2 highlights:

📊 Customizable dashboards: Build visual reports in both Google Ads and Google Analytics using simple natural-language prompts and drag-and-drop elements.

🔎 Competitive benchmarking: Ask Google Analytics how you’re stacking up against your category competitors and get detailed insights and recommendations.

Powered by our Ask Advisor agent, these features (and new overview insights when you revisit your Ads and Analytics accounts) are designed to help you spot shifts and dig in quickly.

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

Hi Yoav, By default, your Google Ads campaigns are set to show ads "All day." This means your ads are eligible to appear throughout each calendar day. https://t.co/NpjK9fEeBd

When you set a target, Smart Bidding sets bids to find as many conversions/conversion volume as possible at the ROAS/CPA target you set, and keep your average CPA/ROAS equal to your target. With this update, advertisers can also expect this same behavior when campaigns using targets are budget-constrained campaigns. Some conversions may return a higher ROAS and some may return a lower ROAS, but altogether Google Ads will try to keep your average conversion value per cost equal to the target ROAS you set.

This lets you intentionally optimize for volume or value at targets that align with your goals and avoid unpredictable performance when budgets are changed.

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

Your top August 17 bidding update questions answered ▶️

1️⃣ What exactly is changing & why?

Campaigns that are limited by budget and over-achieving their targets will see performance adjust to their set targets.

This more closely aligns bids and targets, and the system will aim to achieve your CPA or ROAS target – regardless of whether a campaign is limited by budget (this already how campaigns with unconstrained budgets work).

That will also hold when making budget changes, where advertisers have often experienced performance fluctuations as the campaign adjusts to a different target.

2️⃣ What should you expect after this rolls out?

Performance should be more stable and predictable when making budget changes.

If you adjust the target in the campaign that is budget capped to its current average performance, you should expect to see similar conversion volume or conversion value. After a brief recalibration, the system will keep maximizing conversion volume or conversion value similar to the average performance that the campaign has been achieving.

If you take no action, the system will aim to find conversions or conversion value at the average target set in the campaign. That may mean entering different auctions than you previously competed in in order to achieve that higher ROAS or the lower CPA target.

In campaigns where the budget is not constrained, the target is already your spend and efficiency control (e.g. raising your ROAS target may lower spend as it seeks to find greater efficiency).

In budget constrained campaigns, the target will now be your efficiency lever.

3️⃣ What actions should I take?

- Review campaigns that are limited by budget and see if there is a gap between the set target and the actual CPA or ROAS.

- Determine whether to adjust targets to align with the business goals.

- We've rolled out notifications and a tool in accounts to help you review these campaigns and make any updates.

💡 Remember when to take the full conversion cycle into account when evaluating your current average target performance.

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

Local Services Ads are moving into the Google Ads UI – Your top anticipated questions answered 🙂

This has been a long-time ask, and while I’m out of the office and unable to respond to questions directly for a couple of weeks, I thought I’d schedule this post to tackle a few questions I thought might come up:

❓ Why is Performance Max with pay-per-lead goals the new option for Local Services advertisers in Google Ads? What changes should we expect?

PMax is the only campaign type that serves on both Search and Maps inventory, and LSAs will continue to *only* show on Search and Maps via this new goal type within PMax.

It is specifically designed to meet the needs of LSA advertisers.

With Performance Max with pay-per-lead goals, LSAs will continue to have the same billing model (only pay for leads), still bid on job types within your service areas (vs. keywords), and still be eligible for the same inventory on Search and Maps exclusively. There are no plans to change this.

❓ What’s the benefit to advertisers in moving from Local Services Ads to the Google Ads UI?

Ease of use is a big one. No more hopping back and forth between LSA and Google Ads accounts.

Local businesses will have a single platform to manage all their Google advertising – while keeping their existing LSA targeting and billing framework.

Businesses will be able to manage and reply to customer message leads from within Google Ads.

And any updates you make in GBP will now get reflected in your campaigns in real-time.

❓ Will advertisers be able to access historical data after their transition date?

Unfortunately this will not be possible. Advertisers won’t be able to access their historical performance reports or LSA dashboard after their campaign has transitioned to Performance Max for pay-per-leads.

We *strongly recommend* all advertisers download their historical data ahead of their transition timing. I’d start that process ASAP. Each advertiser will receive notification in advance of their transition.

❓ What’s the timing & what do I need to do?

The initial account integrations will start in August and roll out in structured phases over the subsequent months, prioritizing performance stability.

Campaign setups will pre-populate using Google Business Profile details and all existing Local Services Ads settings – including targeting parameters, budgets, and visual assets – will be preserved.

No action will be needed by advertisers. Just be sure to download your historical performance reports.

Check out the Help Center for more details. Let me know if you have any questions, and I’ll respond to them when I’m back on 8/3.

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

⛵ Hello marketers, I will soon be heading out for some family time and returning August 3.

I'll do my best to respond promptly to any questions when I'm back!

As always, please contact Support for account inquiries.

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

Don’t put off this account security action!

Passkeys are required to complete many sensitive actions in Google Ads.

You will need a passkey to take sensitive actions in your Google Ads account – such as add or manage users, add new customers or accounts, and update billing.

No passkey? No sensitive action.

While we’re rolling out this requirement in phases, there’s no need to wait to start using Passkeys for tighter account security now.

Passwords aren’t as secure as you may think.

Passkeys are much more secure against phishing and hijacking. Even if a hijacker tricks you to click a bad link, your passkey won't work there.

On top of that, passkeys are faster and easier to use than passwords.

Don’t wait to secure your account. It’s a cinch to create a passkey right now.

Go to g[dot]co/passkeys

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

@AnthonyHigman This only happens *within the same ad group*. https://t.co/zDbWiXTmhj

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

@rustybrick @SachuPatel53124 @gaganghotra_ @brodieseo We're testing ways to make ad labeling more consistent across search and shopping ads.

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

@gregfinn @gildner Hi Greg, Making sure you saw my response to Gil too https://t.co/wKyLx0JEy6

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

Hi Gil, It sounds like there is some confusion. DSAs were initially planned to migrate to AI Max in September, but we've extended that to Feb 2027. Automatically created assets and the campaign level broad match setting will still transition to AI Max as planned in September. Here's my post on the latest: https://t.co/96esIbjk0P
And the announcement here: https://t.co/3OqQuZI5NB
Hope that helps clarify!

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

@KurtHenninger @gildner Hi Kurt, Making sure you saw my reply here https://t.co/wKyLx0JEy6. And here's a Help Center article on migrating DSA ad groups to AI Max https://t.co/dPz2kb72Qv

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

Hi Gil, It sounds like there is some confusion. DSAs were initially planned to migrate to AI Max in September, but we've extended that to Feb 2027. Automatically created assets and the campaign level broad match setting will still transition to AI Max as planned in September. Here's my post on the latest: https://t.co/96esIbjk0P
And the announcement here: https://t.co/3OqQuZI5NB
Hope that helps clarify!

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

@gildner Right, that's not accurate. I'll pass this along.

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

Hey Barry, To be clear, "this *won't* result in campaign spend changes" is what I said. In response to the post claiming our advice is "to let the system spend more money," I clarified that this is definitely not our advice. I want to re-emphasize that this change *will not* lead to any changes in spend.

Of course as always, if you choose to raise the budget on a budget-constrained campaign, then it will likely spend more. But this update has no impact on budget settings.

Our guidance for those with budget-constrained campaigns currently over-performing on their target is to ensure the targets are in line with your goals. You can opt to adjust the target to continue to aim for the current average target the campaign is achieving.

Let me know if you have any questions.

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

@AnthonyHigman @darcyburk This has nothing to do with how ads match to queries. These kinds of annotations have been around and tested in various forms for ages. Here's one I covered for SEL 12 years ago, back in 2014, as just one example https://t.co/ehbE4swlI6.

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

It reflects clicks we see to the domain from ads and organic traffic within a 30-day rolling time period. There are a number of reasons why Google Analytics property may not line up with the site visit thresholds. It's also important to note that sessions in Google Analytics is a different metric than clicks. More here: https://t.co/YZysnjwBwB and https://t.co/Skqrs3LKwA

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

Time for an AI Max Q&A ▶️

In a recent AMA with Paid Search Association members, including Brad Geddes, Jeremy Krantz, and Sarah Stemen, and others I tackled pressing AI Max questions, including on the DSA migration to AI Max.

✅ Restructuring:
Should you restructure before migrating? We recommend preserving your current campaign structure and using the upgrade tools to preserve historical data and avoid a "cold start."

✅ Geo-targeting:
Getting mismatched locations with URL expansion? Use Ad Group level locations of interest to help ensure keywords and keywordless matches adhere to that specific location.

✅ Conversion Thresholds:
There is no minimum conversion volume threshold for opting campaigns using Smart Bidding into AI Max. Just ensure your campaign is not limited by budget so it has headroom to find more relevant queries and conversions.
I also tackle a rapid-fire round on text disclaimers, PMax vs. AI Max Ad Rank, and broad match overlap.

➡️ Watch the video for my full answers. And let me know if you've got questions about Google Ads for future Community Q&A segments.

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

It will depend on the business goals. If you need to maintain the same average ROAS, then a seasonality adjustment to inform Smart Bidding of the expected change in conversion rate is likely a better option.

Promotion mode is aimed at capturing additional demand and conversion volume by bidding more aggressively on an expanded query pool (without changing your targeting) during a peak seasonal period of 3-14 days. It also has the option of adding budget to capture the expected increased demand. Promotion mode is powered by Smart Bidding Exploration. You choose how much you’re willing to relax the ROAS target and trade efficiency for increased conversion volume.

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

3 important bidding and budgeting updates in Google Ads:

🔍 Smart Bidding Exploration (SBE) expansion
- SBE allows you to reach new users from queries currently out of reach, without changing your core campaign targeting.
- An update from GML, SBE is now available globally in all languages for PMax campaigns without a product feed (as well as Search campaigns).
- And the SBE beta for Shopping ads on both PMax campaigns with a product feed and Shopping campaigns is now open.

⚡ Promotion mode (Beta)
- Promotion mode lets you schedule temporary changes to your ROAS tolerance and add extra daily budget during peak periods.
- Ideal during seasonal events, flash sales, and product launches. It can also be combined with a campaign total budget.
- This beta is now available for Search and Performance Max campaigns.

📈 Bidding target optimization update (Coming Aug 17)
- Starting August 17, we're making backend bidding target optimization updates to help campaigns limited by budget see more predictable performance in line with CPA and ROAS targets, especially when budgets increase.
- When this goes into effect, we expect a brief calibration period when some advertisers will see minor performance fluctuations.
- To help you prepare well in advance, we will begin to show notifications in Google Ads accounts starting July 6 where you can review historical campaign performance and apply any updates.
- You may need to adjust your CPA or ROAS targets to make sure they reflect your business goals ahead of this change.

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

@AnthonyHigman You're welcome, glad to help! OK to hate them, love them, change your mind later -- I just want to be sure people understand how they do/don't work 😀

[AdsLiaison @adsliaison]

Every day, we’re testing new ways to improve the Search ads experience — and many of you are quick to spot these experiments in the wild! I wanted to pull back the curtain and share a bit of context on one we’re starting this week.

We’ll be running a small experiment with adding a "Strongest match" or "Strong match" label to certain Search ads.

The goal is simple: to help people instantly identify the most relevant information for their query, and help advertisers connect more effectively with high-intent audiences.

We work hard to ensure all the ads people see are relevant to what they’re looking for (that’s what makes them effective, after all) and this experiment uses existing ad quality and relevance signals to badge Search ads that are highly relevant.

Right now, this is just an initial experiment rolling out to a small percentage of users in the US to help us assess its value.

We’re always tweaking and testing things, so while I can't promise a preview for every new UI experiment, I thought it’d be fun to share the thinking behind this one before you start seeing it.

Let me know what you think if you spot it out there!