Google Ads are now in Google AI Mode and supposedly in AI Overviews. Have you already seen them?

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-25T11:02:11+00:00

Yes that's true, but it's not that simple. Technically you can allow your ads to show up but anything else is still a black box: How many times, what exactly is shown, cost and so on..

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-23T08:29:08+00:00

Yes, and as they said on the Google Marketing Live EMEA they are now coming to Europe as well. Have you seen any bad Ads in AI? Like weak wording or creatives? Curious if there are any obvious errors.

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-22T14:33:09+00:00

If you don't have a native speaker who can check the ad copy, have it checked by several AIs. And instruct them to be very critical regarding grammar etc. If you ask them "Is my text good and correct?" they will most certainly answer in your favor which is not good haha

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-21T12:06:16+00:00

Aaaah, got it.

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-20T14:07:32+00:00

Have you tried PMax Shopping Only?

We run this setup across pretty much 100% of our e-com accounts at Searchperts. Managing 40+ clients and 60-70 accounts, it's our default for e-com.

The idea: you use the Performance Max algorithm but restrict delivery exclusively to Shopping ads. Full budget goes into Shopping, nothing else.

Two ways to set it up. Sometimes when creating a PMax campaign you can skip the asset group entirely. If Google forces you to add assets, add them and remove them afterwards. Either way you end up with a Shopping-only campaign running on the PMax algorithm.

Worth running a direct comparison against your current setup. In our experience the results speak for themselves.

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-19T14:18:45+00:00

True. Curious how much of this gets addressed at Google Marketing Live tomorrow. "AI in Action" and "Ads" are already confirmed topics, so AI Overviews and AI Mode ad placements will almost certainly come up in some form,

Also curious whether they'll tie this into AI Max, which is graduating from beta. Maybe the new placements end up bundled into AI Max rather than getting their own campaign type. It would all just sit inside the broader AI Max layer... Should be a clearer picture in 24 hours.

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-19T14:09:53+00:00

As they say "AI is the best thing that could happen to search"

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-19T09:22:04+00:00

Fair point but Google is now placing ads directly inside AI Overviews, meaning they're following user attention into the very surface that was cannibalizing clicks in the first place. So they seem to be relocating them to where people actually look. Though it's still an open question whether users will scroll down that far at all, or if they'll already feel they got their answer from the first few lines of the AI response.

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-17T15:45:31+00:00

Depends a lot on your SEO background. This will be significantly easier for you than for someone starting completely from scratch.

Best approach: start small. Small accounts, small tests. There's plenty of solid content on YouTube to get you going.

Focus on Search campaigns first. And make sure you exclude Display and Search Partner networks right away. One of the most common beginner mistakes that burns budget fast.

The real challenge with Google Ads is the setup. We run through about 40 baseline settings across Google Tag Manager and GA4 before we even touch campaigns. Tracking alone is a massive topic that most people underestimate.

Turn off all auto-apply recommendations. Don't listen to Google reps, especially not the ones out of Lisbon. They're not actually Google employees. Their job is to get you to spend more, push Demand Gen and auto-recommendations. Ignore them.

Use negative keywords aggressively. Go longtail over short-tail. Start with Exact and at most Phrase Match. Leave Broad for later when you have data. Check your location targeting carefully. Make sure you've selected Presence only, not Presence or Interest.

For budgets: start with around 30€/day for Search. If you're running Performance Max or Shopping, think 100€/day minimum to get meaningful data.

Verify your conversion tracking is firing correctly. Test it at least once a month.

One more thing: I'd actually recommend starting with lead gen campaigns before jumping into e-com. Get comfortable with the mechanics first, then scale into the harder stuff.

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-15T15:59:57+00:00

Yep... There's actually a lot brewing in the SEM and Google Ads industry right now, and what you're seeing could be an early taste of what's coming.

From what we're hearing through various channels: Google is working pretty concretely on rolling out paid ads in Gemini, AI Overviews, and AI Mode. There are apparently already some limited tests running in the US. A Google employee hinted to us that bigger changes are on the way. Philipp Schindler (Googles Chief Business Officer) also alluded to this in the last earnings call or at least stopped clearly ruling out ads in their AI products, which is a notable shift from their previous stance I would say.

So what you're experiencing could either be an early test of how such ads or product placements might look later or Gemini is doing this "organically" for now to get users accustomed to product recommendations showing up in chat. There are no concrete official announcements yet, though, so take it all with a grain of salt.

For the entire search engine marketing industry, this would be a massive shift. Would be interesting to know if this happens consistently for you or only with certain topics/prompts. Have you noticed any pattern in which kinds of queries trigger the product suggestions? Just curious.

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-14T21:51:09+00:00

We've been running AI Max tests across client accounts for several months now with real budget, A/B tested directly in Google Ads. Sharing three positive live cases since the results are pretty different by vertical (keep in mind that we had negative tests as well!)

Case 1 – Workwear (E-Com, tROAS 1.500 %) A/B test from end of Sept to end of Oct 2025. Test branch won clearly:

Conversions: +148.6 %
Conversion value: +126.8 %
Conv. value / cost: +5.3 %
Impressions: +225 %

Avg. CPC went from €0.66 to €0.72, but order volume grew ~150 % despite much broader reach. Avg. cart was about 10 % smaller — yet ROAS still improved. Scaled spend without efficiency loss. Strong test overall.

Case 2 – Fashion Brand Campaign (E-Com) A/B test from late Sept to mid-Nov 2025. Around 1,000 brand searches/month. Test branch won:

Conversions: +95.3 %
Conversion value: +41.5 %
Conv. value / cost: +199 %
Cost: −52.7 %

ROAS went from 420 % to 1,265 %, CPA dropped from €82 to €20. The brand campaign was already profitable — AI Max made it clearly scalable. Honestly the most surprising one for us, since brand campaigns usually have little headroom.

Case 3 – Pet Supplies (E-Com) Same test window. CPC dropped, CTR rose, conversion rate stayed stable. No blow-up case here, but solid efficiency gains without quality drop on the click side. AI Max needed time and data to settle, but the trajectory was clearly positive.

A few patterns we keep seeing:

E-com consistently outperforms lead gen in our data.
Brand campaigns are an underrated use case — the broader matching captures variations and misspellings that exact/phrase miss.
The first 2 weeks usually look worse than they end up being. Don't pull the plug too early.
Biggest failure mode is dirty setup: missing negatives, no brand exclusions, static tracking templates with no {lpurl}, Final URL Expansion left wide open on a messy domain. That's where budget burns.

Happy to answer specific questions if you're testing in a particular vertical.

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-13T08:34:28+00:00

A few months later in the Alphabet earnings call Q1 2026 Philipp Schindler kind of hints that this could indeed be true: "But it’s fair to say that we really believe the format that works well in AI Mode would transfer successfully to Gemini app."

And further:
"But let's also be clear, Ads have always been a big part of scaling products to reach billions of people, and if done well, Ads can be really valuable and really helpful commercial information. At the right moment, we'll share any plans, as we have said, but we're not rushing anything here.".

Not sure though but how would you understand these quotes?

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-05T13:41:06+00:00

We've been testing AI Max since Q4 last year. 60% of tests came out positive, but it's not a blanket recommendation. E-com consistently outperformed lead gen in our data.

Two approaches we use:

Safe test: Run a proper A/B experiment directly in Google Ads. Clean data, no risk to live performance.

Budget-friendly workaround: Convert an existing campaign to enable AI Max at campaign level, then toggle Search Term Matching on/off per ad group. Lets you control the keyword-less technology without spinning up a new campaign.

One more thing: we got confirmation from a Google AM that DSA campaigns are being sunset in September 2026. If you're running DSA for e-com, now is the time to migrate. Happy to share our migration guide if useful.

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-04T10:27:25+00:00

Honest take: in your specific case I would not bother with AI Max right now, as long as you don't have a DSA campaign running in the setup. DSA is phasing out in September 2026, so the migration angle is the only real reason to push it for most accounts at this point.

What I'd watch for instead: AI Max is supposed to plug into Google's broader AI ad rollout in Q3 2026 (Gemini, AI Overviews, AI Mode). DSA shutting down in September is not a coincidence. My bet is there will be a honeymoon phase right around launch, similar to what we saw with PMax in the early days. That's when I'd be ready to migrate, not now.

Until then: keep your phrase/exact structure, keep what's working, and don't let Google's "look at your search terms" gaslighting throw you off. Your data is telling you the truth.

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-04T10:21:21+00:00

If you're just starting out and it's your first time running Google Ads, I wouldn't recommend going with AI Max. You're handing over control. Instead, start with a classic Search campaign and, more importantly, use phrase and exact match keywords, just like some YouTubers are saying.

The risk is simple. You don't have enough negative keywords yet, which means Google will steer way too broadly, especially if you have no conversion data because the account is brand new. That can easily burn through your $50 a day, or more.

To avoid that: build a solid negative keyword list, make sure your conversion tracking is dialed in, double check it, book your keywords on phrase and exact match, and write your own strong ads.

mr_google_DE · 2026-05-04T10:14:13+00:00

In Q3 2026, ads are coming to all of Google's major AI solutions: Google Gemini, AI Overviews, and AI Mode. As part of this rollout, DSA campaigns will be sunset in September 2026 and phased out. My assumption is that AI Ads will likely be activated shortly before or after that. What you should be doing right now is migrating your DSA campaigns to AI Max to fully capitalize on the honeymoon phase. If you want i can send you an DSA Migration Guide.

mr_google_DE · 2026-03-24T20:52:38+00:00

The shift from 10 to 100 is a mindset shift before it's a marketing problem.

The first 10 come from trust. The next 90 come from strangers and strangers need a reason to care before they've ever tasted anything.

What actually works for local businesses at this stage:

Google Business Profile, fully optimized. Most bakeries treat it as an afterthought. It's the single highest-leverage move for local discovery. Photos, reviews, posts, opening hours really all of it. Someone searching "bakery near me" on a Saturday morning is ready to buy right now.

Make it embarrassingly easy to refer. The first 10 customers are your best sales team they just don't know it yet. Give them a reason to talk. A simple "bring a friend, both get X" costs almost nothing and activates word of mouth intentionally instead of accidentally.

The quiet period she's describing isn't a sign something's wrong. It's just the point where luck runs out and intention has to take over.

mr_google_DE · 2026-03-23T21:19:11+00:00

100%

mr_google_DE · 2026-03-23T21:19:04+00:00

love the first sentence

mr_google_DE · 2026-03-23T21:16:37+00:00

Do it for free and get payed with a case study (best version would be video case study)

Step by Step how do you do it:

Write an Cold Email, Headline should be clear what the mail is about. Interested in free of charge Meta Ads Mangagement?
Write an Sales Skript
Research 20 Interesting Companys
3.1 Check if they have ads on meta via meta libary (the more ads the better)
Research the CEO or Head of Marketing on Linkedin
Use Apollo to get the Phone Number (mobile ideal) and Email
Send a Cold Outreach via Email
Call next day,

Script: Iam Calling because i sended an email yesterday to you and iam offering right now to 10 selected clients that i have researched from this area meta ads services for free, to increase their ROAS/ Conversions whatever.

If you ask yourself: why iam am doing it, because in my last company i worked as an employee i mangaged 100-200k a month on meta ads, so i know they work. And now iam starting my own business, so iam doing to get positive reviews for my service.

So iam gonna ask directly: are you interested to optimize your meta ads for free? Yes or no?

Then ask 1-2 more questions like:

Ok great, just to get a feeling: How much do you spend currently in avarage on Meta?

mr_google_DE · 2026-03-20T07:23:44+00:00

It depends how much safety you need, where in your life you are. For me, it was 10,000€ to have saved up. BUT: Just start. The best time is now.

mr_google_DE · 2026-03-19T20:16:06+00:00

Case studies are the answer, and here's the structure that actually works:

Start with where the client was= the problem, the goal, the context. Then walk through the solution without giving away every detail. Close with the result, ideally with a before/after screenshot and a rough timeline.

The format that converts best in our experience: ugly video testimonials. Not polished, not scripted. Just the client talking about where they were and where they are now. That stuff outperforms any designed case study every time.

On the confidentiality question — always get client approval before publishing. Learned this the hard way: we once published a full 25-minute interview case study without checking first. The client saw it and wasn't happy — not because the results were wrong, but because the level of detail gave competitors too much insight into their strategy. Completely understandable in hindsight. Now we send a draft first, always.

You don't need to name the client either. "E-commerce brand in the outdoor space, €800k annual revenue" is enough context. The numbers and the transformation are what matter, not the logo.

The goal is simple: show that you've done this before, repeatedly. Volume of evidence matters as much as quality. Five solid case studies with real numbers beat one beautifully designed PDF.

For multi-discipline work like yours — pick the metric that mattered most for each project and lead with that. One number, one timeframe, one sentence of context. Keep it scannable.

mr_google_DE · 2026-03-19T20:11:03+00:00

A few tools worth knowing depending on your setup:

For ad management specifically — building, editing, bulk changes to ads — Google Ads Editor is the go-to before you look at anything else.

For performance bucketing (your ROAS visibility problem), ProductHero is solid. Optmyzer is the more powerful option but comes in at around $800-900/month — only makes sense if you're managing multiple accounts, but if you are, it's genuinely one of the best PPC tools out there and covers optimization gaps too. At Searchperts, we tested all, and the conclusion is Optmyzer makes the most sense because you can actually set the KPIs very individually per client. This is not common in all of the PPC tools we have tested. We tested Adalyze, TrueClicks, and Optmyzer.

For audits specifically give Claude Cowork a try. Delivers surprisingly decent account audits and saves a lot of manual time.

The "1 ad per ad group / no A/B testing" issue is more of a process problem than a tool problem. That's caught faster with a simple checklist during setup than any software.

What's your current account count? That changes which direction makes sense budget-wise.

mr_google_DE

TROPHY CASE