When Performance Max (PMax) campaigns first hit the scene, Google promised they would unify Google Ads channels and boost conversions. But for advertisers already running strong Search campaigns, a nagging question has emerged: Is PMax truly garnering new traffic, or is it quietly siphoning clicks that would have come from your Search campaigns anyway? Let’s break down the evidence of potential cannibalization, why it matters, and what you should do if PMax campaigns are simply reshuffling your existing traffic.
What Is PMax?
In case you aren’t already acquainted, let’s introduce PMax.
Performance Max, more commonly known as PMax, is a goal-based Google Ads campaign type that uses automation to run ads across all available Google channels — Search, Display, YouTube, Discover, Gmail, and Maps – within a single campaign. Instead of manually setting up and managing each campaign type separately, you give PMax your creative assets, audience signals, and conversion goals, and AI automatically determines when, where, and how to show your ads to maximize performance.
PMax is designed to increase incremental conversions (i.e., the additional conversions that result from a marketing campaign) by reaching people across multiple touchpoints. However, because it also runs ads on Search, some marketers are finding that it’s overlapping existing Search campaigns. According to Google, PMax “complements existing Search campaigns and respects your keyword targeting.” They even specify that “if the user’s query is identical to an exact match in your Search campaign, the Search campaign will be prioritized over Performance Max.” But is that really the case? Or is PMax cannibalizing the performance of your Search campaigns?
PMax and Search Campaigns Battle It Out
According to a new study by Optmyzr, which analyzed data from 500+ accounts and 40,000+ ad groups, the overlap between PMax and Search campaigns is rampant. Here’s the lowdown:
- In over 91% of the accounts analyzed and over 56% of the campaigns analyzed, PMax included ads for search terms that exactly matched keywords in active Search campaigns.
- This cannibalization occurred across all match types. Exact matches were not immune.
- In these cases of overlap, Search outperformed PMax nearly twice as often on both click-through rate (CTR) and conversion rate.
- When PMax and Search competed for related queries (not exact matches), the overlap was even more prevalent. Although Search still tended to win, it wasn’t always by a wide margin.
To be fair, Google does acknowledge the overlap: “Your Performance Max campaign may sometimes show for branded keywords in your Search campaign, even if those keywords are set to exact match (for example, if your Search campaign is limited by budget or if the targeting is stricter).” Also, Optmyzr states that the reason for the keyword overlap could be that the Search Campaign was ineligible to show an ad due to targeting or budget constraints, and the study doesn’t take that possibility into account. Whatever the reason, it’s important to be aware of the overlap.
For many, this information won’t come as a huge surprise. Marketers have been suspicious of PMax since its inception. But now that we have data definitively proving that PMax is cannibalizing Search campaigns, it’s time to pay more attention to your campaigns and take action where needed.
Why You Should Care
If you have a PMax campaign and a Search campaign running at the same time, competing for the same queries, it’s your loss.
First of all, you may pay more for clicks that your Search campaigns could have delivered at a cheaper price. Second, you may lose insight into which strategy led to conversions, meaning you won’t know which campaign to thank for positive results. And because PMax combines results from all channels into one report, you won’t be able to fine-tune your campaign as easily. Third, unless you actively monitor this potential keyword overlap, you probably won’t even know it’s happening!
How to Adjust Your Google Ads Strategy
If you suspect that PMax is crowding out your Search campaigns, take steps to protect them and regain control of your advertising strategy. What can you do?
- Check your campaign settings. The overlap often occurs because your Search campaign is ineligible to serve ads. Why might this happen? Budget constraints, mismatches in location targeting, ad schedules, or audience exclusions can all interfere. And if Google doesn’t enter the Search campaign into the auction because it’s ineligible, PMax will sweep up that traffic. So, make sure the targeting, bids, and budget are all appropriately set so that your campaigns are eligible for all the auctions you’re hoping to enter. In addition, compare your Search and PMax settings to avoid misalignment.
- Pinpoint converting terms in PMax that aren’t in your Search campaigns. Then, add them as exact match keywords, shifting the priority back to your Search campaign.
- Identify your top-performing search terms and add them as keywords in your Search campaigns. If you don’t, you may prevent an exact match between the search term and the keyword, which can cause PMax to swoop in and take the query.
- Create more specific ad groups. Because responsive search ads (RSAs) mix and match keywords and ad assets, an ad’s focus can become fuzzy. If you create more specific ad groups with ads tailored to those terms, you’ll create more relevant ads that may boost your conversion rate and outperform automated approaches like PMax.
- Add common brand misspellings as exact match keywords in Search. Even if you have brand exclusions enabled, PMax may trigger ads for similar matches, which can muddy your brand performance data.
- Turn off auto-apply recommendations that eliminate redundant or “non-serving” keywords. Google may recommend these automated changes, but due to the PMax overlap, they can actually delete keywords that help prevent PMax from snagging all your search traffic. This can also be important for businesses with seasonal demand, whose impressions may change drastically depending on the time of year. If seasonal keywords are auto-removed when traffic slows, they won’t be available when the season rolls around again.
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Just because PMax may be siphoning some of your Search campaigns’ traffic, that doesn’t mean you should villainize it. It can be an excellent complement to your Search campaigns — but it does need some supervision to function optimally. So, if you’ve noticed that it’s competing with your Search campaigns, jump in and take the wheel.
When you’re ready to create an effective Google Ads campaign, contact 417 Marketing for help. Our team of knowledgeable, creative, and passionate professionals specializes in SEO, web design and maintenance, and Google Ads. Since our inception in 2010, we have successfully completed over 700 websites. Contact us today to learn more about what we can do for your company.