Google announced its latest AI innovations designed to optimise your ROI At DMEXCO, one of Europe’s top digital marketing events, on September 18, 2024.
Most advertisers use Google Ads to connect with customers — no matter where they are on their purchase journeys. With the new AI-powered features for Performance Max campaigns, they can deliver big results for businesses large and small.
Debbie Weinstein, vice-president of Google and managing director of Google UKI, spoke to the UK press ahead of the event, and stressed on how the goal of Google’s ‘Gemini era’ is “to organise the world’s information and to make it universally accessible and useful.” She added, “It has been the thing that drives us forward and is behind all the innovation that we’re doing.”
Brendon Kraham, vice-president of search and commerce for Global Ads Solutions revealed that 80% of Google’s search customers are already using some form of automation. “Our north star, from a product strategy perspective, is to connect advertisers – basically all of our partners – with consumers that are looking for their products and services. And again, AI will help supercharge that efficacy.”
He added, “It’s the generative side that is really moving the ball forward and further.”
Google’s Top 5 Updates On AI-Powered Features & Controls
With Google’s new generative AI tools, advertisers can tailor outputs to their unique brand voice and identity. Recognising the need for greater control and insights when using AI in advertising, these tools give you more flexibility in shaping creative assets that resonate with your audience.
Here are the top five highlights from the event:
1. Build Better Search Campaigns with Gemini Models
Gemini models are helping businesses to create more effective Search campaigns across multiple languages. The advanced generative AI technology will automatically create compelling headlines, images, and other content for your search campaigns.
Initially available in English, Google plans to soon expand the conversational experience feature to German, French, and Spanish.
Small business advertisers using the conversational experience have seen a significant improvement in their ad performance and are 63% more likely to result in an increase in campaigns with ‘Good’ or ‘Excellent’ ad strength.
Using the conversational capabilities of these models, advertisers can:
- Enhance Campaign Relevance: Tailor ads to specific customer intent and preferences.
- Improve Ad Strength: Create more compelling and engaging ad copy.
- Drive Higher ROI: Achieve better results by connecting with customers at the right moment.
- Expand Global Reach: To make this powerful technology accessible to a wider audience, Google Ads is expanding the conversational experience to:
- German
- French
- Spanish
This expansion will enable businesses in these regions to benefit from the same advantages enjoyed by English-speaking advertisers.
2. Fuel Your Creative Vision with Generative AI
Recent MMM studies by TransUnion found that Performance Max campaigns drove 19% higher ROAS compared to leading AI-driven social media campaigns by share of spend among Retail & Consumer Electronics advertisers in the U.S. in 2023.
Consumer purchase journeys are anything but predictable, and your ad strategy needs to be equally nimble. With AI-powered tools, you can optimise your budget and multiply conversions across Google’s full range of channels and audiences.
Here are some of the top benefits for advertisers:
Capture Demand with Demand Gen Campaigns
- Reach New Audiences: Demand Gen campaigns target consumers who may not be actively searching but are open to discovery.
- Get Personalised Messaging: Customise your AI strategy by channel, audience, and creative to tailor messages to your ideal customers.
- Increase Conversions: Advertisers who added Demand Gen to their campaigns saw an average of 14% more conversions.
Enhance Creative Assets with AI-Powered Tools
- Expanded Image Editing: Enhance image assets in Search, Demand Gen, App, and Display campaigns.
- Product Focus: Spotlight your products by editing images directly from Google Merchant Center.
- Multilingual Asset Generation: Generate ad copy and images in six new languages:
- German
- French
- Spanish
- Portuguese
- Dutch
- Italian
Google said in its blog, “More advertisers will be able to easily generate a wide variety of ad copy and images for your Performance Max, Demand Gen, App and Display campaigns – and wherever else you choose to use them.”
3. Scale and Optimise Assets with AI
AI will unlock new ways to enhance human creativity — not replace it. With the addition of new tools, you have the option to prove up to five reference images alongside your prompts.
Google AI will generate new visuals that seamlessly align with your brand’s unique style. Here are the top benefits:
Human-AI Collaboration
- Enhanced Creativity: Use the power of AI to generate new images that align with your brand’s aesthetic.
- Custom Inputs: Share up to five reference images to guide the AI’s creative process.
Brand Consistency with Performance Max
- Comprehensive Brand Guidelines: Define and upload specific brand elements to maintain visual consistency across ad formats.
- Full Availability: Brand guidelines for Performance Max will be available to all advertisers starting next month.
Precise Demand Gen Creative Control
- Pin Video Assets: Specify where your most impactful visuals should appear.
- Broader Availability: Demand Gen creative preferences will be accessible to all advertisers.
4. Performance Max: Deeper Insights, Better Results
Optimise your creatives for maximum impact. Google’s enhanced reporting provides actionable insights into asset performance to help you achieve outstanding ad strength.
Moreover, the asset reporting has expanded to include conversion metrics for each element. Plus, new asset coverage reporting in Performance Max (available next month) will identify underperforming asset groups and offer tailored recommendations like “add 2 long headlines” or “include 3 square images.”
Here are the top benefits for advertisers.
Enhanced Creative Optimisation
- Clear Roadmap: Use new creative reporting to improve Ad Strength.
- Asset-Level Metrics: Track conversion metrics for individual assets.
- Targeted Recommendations: Receive specific recommendations for underperforming asset groups.
Improved Campaign Visibility
- Streamlined Performance Insights: Access a consolidated view of insights, explanations, and recommendations.
- Goal Tracking: Monitor progress against your CPA and ROAS goals with target pacing insights.
- Root Cause Analysis: Understand contributing factors to campaign fluctuations and leverage tailored recommendations.
Comprehensive Impression Share Reporting
- Visibility on Search Results: Track your prominence for text and Shopping ads.
- Competitive Analysis: Understand the competitive landscape and identify opportunities to increase your reach.
5. Tailored Media Management with AI
Enhanced Control in Performance Max
- Campaign-Level Negative Keywords: Exclude irrelevant search terms to ensure precise targeting.
- Omnichannel Bidding: Maximise both online and in-store conversions. This feature will be available in the coming months.
- Expanded Reach with Display & Video 360: Buy Demand Gen campaigns within your existing workflows. This feature will be available in October.
Speaking about the latest updates, Brendon told The Drum, “For marketing and marketers, our vision and product strategy are rooted in what we are building: the best AI-powered campaigns putting Google AI to work across your creative, media and measurement today.”
When asked by LBB how the tools can be put to use by advertisers with large marketing infrastructures, he explained, “If you have deep levels of expertise, then of course, we want to provide you the tools and systems to do that. And if you’re looking for more simplified and automated ways of doing that, we want to do that as well. We serve customers around the world, the biggest to the smallest in every market.”
By providing you with the most advanced AI tools, Google hopes businesses can achieve their best possible ROI. “I think there are plenty of examples we talk about when people adopt Performance Max that they see, depending on the different verticals, a 27% increase in conversions,” he added.
Need a fresh perspective? Let’s talk.
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