What’s new in Performance Max campaigns
Granular analysis and first look
Google has introduced several new features and enhancements to Performance Max campaigns on February 23, 2023 to help advertisers optimize their ad performance across all Google channels. These updates include account-level negative keywords, campaign-level brand exclusions, page feeds, experiments, and new tools for video creation and reporting.
Why this matters?
- Enhanced Control: Advertisers can now use account-level negative keywords and campaign-level brand exclusions to maintain brand suitability and exclude unwanted traffic.
- Improved Optimization: Page feeds and the new video creation tool help advertisers better guide AI and create high-quality video assets, enhancing campaign performance.
- Accurate Measurement: New experiment features and detailed asset group reporting allow advertisers to measure incremental conversion uplift and understand the impact of their campaigns more precisely.
Next Steps/Action Items
- Utilize Account-Level Negative Keywords: Add negative keywords at the account level to exclude unwanted traffic across all campaigns.
- Set Up Campaign-Level Brand Exclusions: Control which brands your campaigns match to and exclude specific brands as needed.
- Leverage Page Feeds: Upload page feeds to refine results and guide Google’s AI to prioritize important URLs.
- Experiment and Measure: Use experiments to test the impact of Performance Max campaigns on conversion uplift and make data-driven decisions.
- Enhance Video Assets: Use the video creation tool to produce high-quality video content in multiple formats and upload relevant assets.
- Monitor Asset Group Performance: Utilize asset group reporting to understand the contribution of each group to overall campaign performance.
- Optimize Budgets: Use budget pacing insights to uncover opportunities to optimize budget utilization and drive more conversions.
Helpful links for this Google update
Learn more about past Google updates
- Sep 2026 - September 2026 Google Ads Update – Demand Gen Adds Faster Paths to Conversion
- Sep 2026 - September 2026 Google Ads Update – AI Max Adds Languages and Journey Reporting
- Sep 2026 - September 2026 Google Ads Update – Agentic Holiday Commerce
- Sep 2026 - September 2026 Google Ads Update – New Measurement Tools
- Aug 2026 - August 2026 Google Ads Update – Demand Gen Adds New Ways to Drive Leads and Sales
- Aug 2026 - August 2026 Google Ads Update – New AI Max Testing Tools
- Aug 2026 - August 2026 Google Ads Update – Demand Gen VTC Bidding Changes
- Aug 2026 - August 2026 Google Ads Update – Language Targeting Simplified
- Aug 2026 - August 2026 Google Ads Update – New AI Tools Turn Insights Into Action
- Jul 2026 - July 2026 Google Ads Update – Holiday Demand Gen Tools
- Jul 2026 - July 2026 Google Ads Update – Video Campaign Group Controls
- Jul 2026 - July 2026 Google Ads Update – Google Expands AI Transparency Across Ads
- Jul 2026 - August 2026 Google Ads Update – Target Bidding Gets More Predictable
- Jun 2026 - June 2026 Google Ads Update – YouTube Brand Campaign Measurement Gets Stronger
- Jun 2026 - June 2026 Google Ads Update – Demand Gen Drop Adds AI Creative Tool
- Jun 2026 - June 2026 Google Ads Update – Financial Verification Expands Across Europe
- Jun 2026 - June 2026 Google Ads Update – YouTube Adds Gemini Creator Insights
- Jun 2026 - June 2026 Google Ads Update – Enhanced Local Services Ads for Home Listings bring homebuyers and local agents together
- Jun 2026 - June 2026 Google Ads Update – YouTube Shorts Earns MRC Brand Safety Accreditation
- May 2026 - May 2026 Google Ads Update – Ads Decoded Highlights AI’s Marketing Shift
- May 2026 - June 2026 Google Ads Update – Google Display Ads Move Into Demand Gen
- May 2026 - May 2026 Google Ads Update – Asset Studio Adds Multimodal Creative Tools
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