Google Ads is set to streamline its advertising offerings by merging Video Action Campaigns (VAC) into the more versatile Demand Gen campaigns starting Q2 2025.
In a blog announcement, Google said, “To help advertisers capture emerging demand and drive growth, we’re bringing the best of Video Action Campaigns and Demand Gen together. Starting in Q2 2025, Video Action Campaigns, also known as video conversion campaigns, will be upgraded to Demand Gen campaigns.”
This strategic move will help advertisers capitalise on emerging market trends and drive business growth with access to a broader range of ad formats and targeting options.
Why Should Advertisers Switch To Demand Gen Campaigns
According to Google, advertisers who uploaded both video and image assets to Demand Gen campaigns saw a 20% boost in conversions at the same cost per action (CPA).
It’s no surprise then that advertisers can easily boost their video performance with a multi-format strategy on Demand Gen instead of still using Video Action Campaigns.
This combination of visual formats gives advertisers a concrete chance to boost their marketing ROI and achieve more targeted customer acquisition.
Key Benefits of Demand Generation Campaigns
Demand Gen campaigns are essential for businesses looking to increase brand awareness, generate leads, and drive sales. Here are some of the key benefits:
- Massive Audience Reach
- Expanded Reach: Tap into a potential audience of over 3 billion monthly users across YouTube, Discover, and Gmail.
- Expanded Reach: Tap into a potential audience of over 3 billion monthly users across YouTube, Discover, and Gmail.
- Tailored Creative Storytelling
- Multi-Format Flexibility: Enjoy the freedom to combine video and image ads within a single campaign, backed by granular insights to optimise your creative strategies.
- Creator Partnerships: Collaborate with creators through BrandConnect to inject authentic and engaging content into your campaigns.
- Creative Control: Decide where your video assets appear, ensuring optimal placement across various surfaces. For instance, you can pin highly popular YouTube Shorts ads to increase their visibility.
- Highly Relevant Audiences:
- Lookalike Segments: Identify and target new audiences who share similar characteristics with your existing customer base so you can expand your reach while maintaining relevance.
Once you’ve combined all of these elements, you can enhance your campaign’s effectiveness and achieve unprecedented levels of engagement and impact.
Some of the best features of Video Action Campaigns are now available for Demand Gen campaigns.
Here’s a breakdown of the new enhancements by Google:
- Omnichannel Bidding: This feature, which will be in beta soon, allows for unified bidding across multiple channels, ensuring optimal performance and cost efficiency.
- Expanded Buying Options: Starting in October, you can purchase Demand Gen campaigns directly within Display & Video 360 for more flexibility and control.
- Enhanced Brand Safety: Third-party verification with YouTube brand safety partners and Google video partners inventory is now available for Demand Gen so that your ads appear in suitable environments.
Advertisers who exclusively run video ads with Demand Gen have achieved comparable conversion rates and cost per action to their existing Video Action Campaigns.
How to upgrade your Video Action Campaigns to Demand Gen
Want a seamless transition from Video Action Campaigns to Demand Gen? Google has outlined a phased approach with a clear timeline:
1. Now: Switch to Demand Gen
Switch to Demand Gen and start running new campaigns now. You can also duplicate your existing Video Action Campaign settings using Google’s copy-and-paste tool.
2. Early 2025: Get Migration Assistance
A migration tool will be introduced to manually upgrade your Video Action Campaigns to Demand Gen. This tool will preserve your historical settings and learnings.
3. March 2025: Campaign Creation Deadline
Google will discontinue the creation of new Video Action Campaigns. Familiarise yourself with Demand Gen to ensure a smooth transition.
4. Q2 2025: Automatic Upgrade
All remaining Video Action Campaigns will be automatically upgraded to Demand Gen. You will receive advance notifications.
Follow this timeline to optimise your campaigns and capitalise on the benefits of Demand Gen while minimising disruptions.
Case Study: DoorDash’s Success with Demand Generation
According to Google’s data, DoorDash saw a 15X increase in conversion rates while reducing CPA by 50% when moving from VAC to Demand Generation.
Collaborating with Kepler, DoorDash strategically combined image and video assets. Bruno Reis, the Performance Marketing Director at Dasher Growth, DoorDash said, “Demand Gen campaigns have been instrumental in driving exponential growth in our strategy. Thanks to Demand Gen’s audience and multi-format creative capabilities, we are able to achieve greater performance compared to Video Action Campaigns.”
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