The Power of Performance Max and Traditional Search

Anthony Quagliata, Search Marketing Manager

In 2021, Google changed the search landscape by introducing an AI-driven campaign called Performance Max. It would aim to use AI to optimize and deliver ads based on a range of signals. These signals include locations, budgets, search themes, audience intent, and historical performance, allowing Performance Max to be a tool for advertisers that aims for a broader reach beyond traditional search. Performance Max differs from traditional search in its ability to optimize ad placement across multiple inventories rather than focusing solely on keywords and more manual optimizations that land on search engine result pages (SERP). Those inventories include Search, YouTube, Display, Discover, Gmail, and Maps.

Performance Max leverages signals and AI, making it an excellent choice for advertisers looking for an easy, all-in-one campaign solution. Given this campaign’s automation, it can allow for more efficient campaign management, allowing more time for strategic decision-making and other optimizations. Additionally, it can be a powerful tool due to its ability to span across different inventories away from the SERP. It allows advertisers to reach consumers at various parts of their journey, from visual results like video to the SERP.

While it is a powerful tool that can act as a great multitouch point conversion driver, it was not met without question during its initial launch. At first, many advertisers considered it a black box because of its limited control and insights. Since then, Performance Max has undergone several updates that have improved its capabilities, making it a better tool for digital marketers. Those updates have included enhanced asset optimization, reporting and audience signal updates, and performance insights.

Despite the changes Performance Max has undergone, it may still not be the best solution for all advertisers. It typically performs best when an advertiser sets the campaign up with a clear goal, such as driving conversions. It also may not be the best fit for an advertiser who does not have vast creatives and needs significant control over a campaign, such as using specifically selected keywords and ad copy instead of signals and various ad formats. Additionally, Performance Max may not always capture every query that a traditional search campaign targeting keywords with specific intent would. For example, an advertiser may use a traditional search campaign with carefully selected keywords based on intent and match type to ensure ads serve people with specific focuses. On the automated side, Performance Max would use AI to decipher consumer behavior based on different factors like signals and the pages used, so it may not pick up specific search queries. 

Advertisers with clear goals who wants to take advantage of automation and manual targeting should consider using Performance Max to complement traditional paid search, as Google suggests, not as a replacement. 

When used together, the two campaign types offer a full-funnel approach, allowing advertisers to reach consumers at every part of the consumer journey. While Performance Max can reach consumers at the right parts of the user journey, traditional search ensures captured demand when consumers get further down the funnel with specific searches. A traditional search campaign setup allows for a more hands-on combination of keywords, ad copy, and landing pages that can cover a particular consumer intent instead of signals and AI that Performance Max may not always pick up. Inversely, running a traditional search campaign without leveraging Performance Max could result in missing out on reaching relevant consumers and building awareness through inventory like YouTube or Display.

As Google adjusts its campaigns, solutions like Performance Max that leverage AI across Google’s different inventories will continue to be crucial for success. While these AI-leveraged campaigns can be significant and provide substantial automation and scale, it is essential to remember they effectively complement traditional search rather than replace it. Combining the two allows advertisers to maximize their reach across Google while filling gaps with strategically selected keywords that Performance Max may not cover—truly offering the best of both worlds in automation and manual campaigns to ensure a full-funnel approach to the consumer journey.