6 Performance Max Ad Examples: How and When To Use Them

What is Performance Max?

Performance Max is a goal-based campaign type that lets advertisers access their entire inventory from a single campaign.

Google Ads is a powerful tool that’s essential to many companies’ success. Their launch of Performance Max Ads paved the way for companies to simplify their ad campaigns while still reaching their audience.

Understanding Performance Max could unlock a new advertising method that helps your business see better returns. On this page, we will clear up a few questions surrounding Performance Max Ads, including:

• What are Performance Max Ads?
• 6 Performance Max Ad examples
• What goes into Performance Max Ads?

Let’s get started!

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What are Performance Max Ads?

Performance Max Ads (also known as PMax ads) are part of a goal-based campaign type that lets advertisers access their entire inventory from a single campaign. This ad type uses Google’s machine-learning function to format ads across different platforms.

The main distinction between PMax ads and other Google ad formats is their use of artificial intelligence (AI) for all their features. Rather than you doing the bidding, budget, optimization, creatives, and other ad aspects, you can have Google AI doing it.

6 Performance Max Ad examples

With these Google Performance Max Ad examples, you can see how one ad would look across different platforms. We’ll look at an example from Verizon to visualize how these ads are portrayed across different channels.

1. Search ads

Unsurprisingly, search ads appear in the Google search results pages. These ads are related to the keywords that the user entered for their query.

PMax ads are meant to work in tandem with keyword-targeted ads. So, if you’re already targeting a keyword in your account, Google will usually prioritize the search campaign over PMax.

However, if there is a related keyword you aren’t targeting in your account, it might be a good time to use a PMax ad. If that’s the case, the ad with the highest Ad Rank — either the PMax or search ad — will be shown. That’s how PMax differs from regular search ads internally, even though they look the same to the viewer.

For example, let’s say that Verizon had a search campaign that was targeting “best Internet providers” but not “fastest Internet providers.” These queries are pretty similar, though — the best Internet providers have the fastest Internet speeds — so Verizon’s ads could still appear for “fastest Internet providers.”

The difference is that the PMax ad could appear for “fastest Internet providers” query if it has a better Ad Rank than the search ad because their search ad isn’t directly targeting this term.

In this instance, these ads look like any other PPC ad, and they stick out at the top of the SERPs to grab the users’ attention immediately. There are usually no images or videos, only text.

2. Display ads

PMax ads use your assets to create the best ad for your campaign. The assets it pulls depends on the channel, which affects how display ads look.

A Verizon PMax ad for Fios could include a text-heavy video listing the features they offer or a photo with Verizon’s logo and slogan, depending on what Google pulls from a company’s assets. Just remember, AI is what determines what gets pulled, and it’s all based on your set goals, audience, budget, and other optimization factors.

Users can see your display ads on any site that allows them. One common place you’ll find display ads is on free blogs or newsletters. These ads can be banners, sidebars, videos, and more. They usually break up text to encourage users to keep scrolling on the page.

3. YouTube ads

YouTube ads can appear in the feed, like the example above, or they can play before, during, and after videos. You upload these videos to your ad assets, and Google’s AI will determine what videos to use based on your campaign goals, audience signals, etc.

So, the video it shows could change based on these attributes!

4. Discover ads

The Discovery channel lies within the Google Chrome mobile app. As users browse naturally, Google will gather search data and begin showing them recommendations and suggestions based on their history. These ads look like display ads, often with an image and text blurb.

Google’s AI will then determine which headlines and images, for example, to use for the ad based on audience signals, previous high-performing ads, and other factors. If you have multiple headlines and images in your ad assets, Google can choose from that pool to create the best combination.

5. Gmail ads

Gmail ads appear in the inbox with a label on them:

When you click on the email, this is the ad that appears:

This is a simple image ad with a link back to Verizon’s website. These ads look more legitimate than others since they are coming straight from Google. They are also completely personalized based on the users’ Gmail activity.

And, as with other PMax ads, the data used to create these Gmail ads comes straight from your email assets. Google’s AI will select a custom heading and image based on audience signals and other key ad performance factors.

6. Maps ads

Finally, we have ads that appear on Google Maps. When users search for local businesses, they will see the sponsored results above all others, just like with search ads. These ads look more like business listings, so it’s important to include all the necessary information for Google to accurately create the PMax ad.

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What goes into Performance Max Ads

Let’s go over the different assets that you can include to create your different PMax ads:

• Headlines and description: The header and description are essential to grabbing users’ attention. These assets will appear across all platforms, and they will drive users to click on your ad.
• Images: Some ad formats require images, so you should upload relevant, attractive images to help maximize your approach on each platform. You can upload landscape images, square images, portrait images, square logos, and landscape logos, as long as they follow Google’s Asset Guidelines.
• Videos: Videos are another crucial asset to PMax ads, especially those that appear on sites like YouTube. Similarly to images, you can upload different video formats to meet Google’s guidelines.
• Other: To make a successful ad, you should include other assets, such as your business name, site links, calls to action (CTAs), and audience signals. These will give users all the information they need when they see the ad.

To help you create better PMax ads, you want to upload multiple versions of each asset. Uploading multiple options allows Google’s AI to create the best versions of ads to maximize your conversions.

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