In 2024, Google launched a suite of powerful Performance Max features centred around improving controls and reporting capabilities. Performance Max gives users the full power of Google's channels and AI, all in one campaign to maximise user performance.

In 2025, Google will continue growing Performance Max in several key areas to help users improve results and gain more transparency into what's driving performance.

The new Performance Max features comprise:

More Campaign Controls to Help Users Steer AI

Last year at DMEXCO, Google introduced the beta for campaign-level negative keywords, which allows users to exclude specific queries they don't want to show ads on for brand suitability or other reasons. This feature is rolling out to all advertisers in the next few weeks.

Users can also improve how they use Performance Max to prioritise winning new customers using new customer acquisition goals. Last year, Google introduced a beta for high value new customer mode, which is now rolling out to all advertisers. With this new feature, users can specify their high-value customers and the long-term value they represent through Customer Match.

Google AI will use user data to predict which new users are likely to maximise lifetime value for businesses and bid more for them. Reporting is also available at the campaign-level so users can see how many new customers their campaign is driving, and how many were high value new customers.

For retail advertisers with product feeds, users will soon get better control over how brand exclusions work across different ad formats. Previously, brand exclusions applied to both Search and Shopping ads. Users will now be able to apply brand exclusions to just Search text ads, while keeping branded traffic for Shopping ads. This can be especially useful to brands that value showing Shopping ads for brand terms but may want to manage Search text ads for brand terms in a different campaign.

"URL contains" rules, which are available in standard Performance Max campaigns, will be expanding to Performance Max campaigns with product feeds as well. Users can use "URL contains" rules to target traffic based on specific page categories on their website. For instance, if you're an athletic apparel store, you can target your campaign specifically to all pages on your site that have "shoes" in the URL.

Two new betas are also coming soon to Performance Max campaigns. First, a beta for age-based demographic exclusions will allow users to exclude age brackets. Next, with Google's Devices beta, users can customise targeting to computer, mobile or tablet traffic. 

Enhanced Search Reporting and Guidance

Richer and more detailed reporting is also landing in Performance Max in January. Previously, Google introduced search themes in beta. Search themes let users indicate queries that they know their customers are using to look for them and are additive to the queries and placements Performance Max predicts will perform well based on their assets, feeds and landing pages.

Thanks to user feedback, Google is now officially launching search themes with some major improvements. Users will be able to use search terms insights to see whether queries are coming from Performance Max's keywordless targeting or from the search themes they've added.

Users will also find an indicator next to their search themes that tells them how "useful" their search themes are. These new reporting insights will help users understand if the search themes they provided are driving incremental traffic, on top of what Performance Max would find on its own, or whether they would benefit from updating their search themes.

Improved Asset Group Reporting

Finally, Google is building on enhancements to asset group reporting. The ability to segment asset group performance is rolling out now in all Performance Max campaigns. Users can break down their results more granularly, including seeing conversions by device, time and more. Google has also heard user feedback on how users want to be able to access and share this data outside of the Google Ads UI. That's why asset group performance is now downloadable.

In the upcoming months, Google will continue to add other Performance Max improvements, including more types of controls, reporting and insights. User feedback is critical in how Google shapes and implements these features to help users leverage the best of AI in Google Ads, so Google encourages users to keep providing feedback. 

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*Image courtesy of Google Ads & Commerce Blog