In our continuing series on Performance Max (PMax) campaigns, we now take a look at some new features coming in 2025. These new controls and reporting improvements are being introduced to help improve results and gain more transparency into what’s driving performance from these campaigns.
PMax campaigns already provide the full power of Google’s channels and AI, all in one place, but marketers have been wanting more data and controls to understand how these are working and what changes can be made.
The new developments coming this year include:
More campaign controls to steer AI
Campaign-level negative keywords rolling out to all advertisers – This is a feature that has been much requested by advertisers.
New customer acquisition goal with high value mode – It’s now possible to specify high-value customers and the long-term value they represent through Customer Match within the new customer acquisition goals settings.
Brand exclusions for different formats in retailer campaigns with product feeds – Previously, brand exclusions applied to both Search and Shopping ads. It’s now possible to apply brand exclusions to just Search text ads, while keeping branded traffic for Shopping ads. This can be especially useful if you want to show Shopping ads for brand terms, but may want to manage Search text ads for brand terms in a different campaign.
“URL contains” rules for campaigns with product feeds – “URL contains” rules, which are available in standard Performance Max campaigns, will be expanding to Performance Max campaigns with product feeds as well. “URL contains” rules can be used can be used to target traffic based on specific page categories on your website.
Demographic exclusions – age-based demographic exclusions will allow the exclusion of age brackets, such as “18-24” or “65+”
Device targeting – it’s now possible to customise targeting to computer, mobile or tablet traffic.
Deeper Search Reporting
Search themes usefulness indicator – Search themes let you indicate queries that you know your customers are using to look for you and are an additive to the queries and placements Performance Max predicts will perform well based on your assets, feeds and landing pages. Now search terms insights can be used to see whether queries are coming from PMax’s keywordless targeting or from the search themes that have been added.
Search terms insights source column – the new source column in search terms insights can be used to see where the search queries are coming from. There is now also an indicator next to the search themes that shows how useful the search themes are and whether they’d benefit from an update.
Improved asset group reporting
Ability to segment asset group performance – this is another useful feature that’s rolling out soon which allows more granular viewing of the results, by seeing conversions by device, time and more.
Ability to download asset group performance – this enables the ability to access and share this data outside of the Google Ads UI by downloading the data.
These new features are welcomed as they will enhance the transparency of PMax campaigns and, as a result, help advertisers to improve their performance.
If you want to know how these changes may impact your business’s PMAX performance, please get in touch.
You can also read our previous articles about Performance Max campaigns:
Insights on Google PMax and Search Campaigns’ Overlap
Exploring New Search Themes in Google Ads’ PMax
Brand Settings for Google Search and Performance Max Campaigns).