Are Google's New Performance Max Campaigns a Waste of Money?

Google's Performance Max campaigns have been a hot topic since their introduction, promising to simplify campaign management and deliver better results. But are they worth the investment? Let's dive in.

What are Performance Max Campaigns?

Performance Max campaigns are a new type of Google Ads campaign that leverages Google's machine learning to automatically optimize across all Google properties, including Search, Display, YouTube, Discover, and Gmail. This means you can reach potential customers wherever they are on the Google network.

Pros of Performance Max Campaigns

• Simplicity: Setting up a Performance Max campaign is relatively straightforward. You provide a single asset group with images, text, and headlines, and Google does the rest.
• Automation: Google's machine learning automatically optimizes your campaign for the best performance, saving you time and effort.
• Reach: Performance Max campaigns can help you reach a wider audience by targeting across multiple Google properties.

Cons of Performance Max Campaigns

• Lack of Control: While automation is a benefit, it can also be a drawback. You have less control over specific targeting options and bidding strategies.
• Transparency: It can be challenging to understand exactly how your Performance Max campaign is performing, especially compared to traditional campaigns.
• Cost: Performance Max campaigns can be expensive, especially if you're not careful with your budget.

When are Performance Max Campaigns a Good Choice?

• Rarely in my opinion: The lack of transparency and control can lead to a lot of wasted ad spend.
• Testing on a low budget: You could test £100 to see how it goes, but I would only recommend trying this if you have the campaign connected to a product data feed form your Google merchant centre account.

What type of Google Ads are a good choice for a start-up?

• Google Shopping Ads: I always recommend start-ups/small e-commerce business to focus on Google Shopping Ads. They provide the best ROI. Once set up they are easy to manage yourself. 
• Google Text Ads: The ROI will not be as good as Shopping Ads for an e-commerce store. But, you have lot's of control and options.

In conclusion, Performance Max campaigns can lead to a lot of wasted Ad spend. I always advise new/small e-commerce business to start off with Google Shopping Ads.

Real life example: I had a client that spent £1000 on performance max campaigns with 0 conversions. I told them to pause the campaign immediately and I set up Google Shopping Ads for them.

I got them there first ever 4 sales with just £80 ad spend. Overtime this will also improve, as the conversion rate is always lower for new e-commerce companies.