Google Ads Demand Generation Campaigns

Demand Gen campaigns are designed to reach users before they even think to actively search for a brand and generate interest across Google’s more visual and entertaining properties.

What Are Google Demand Generation Campaigns?

Google Demand Generation campaigns are crafted to engage potential customers even before they initiate a search. Powered by advanced AI algorithms, these campaigns predict the products and brands likely to catch people's interest and engage potential customers proactively, before they commence searching for a product or service.

Demand generation campaigns build upon Google Discovery Ads, offering enhanced creative options and targeting capabilities to optimise leads and conversions. With Google Demand Generation Campaigns, your ads appear across various platforms, including the Google Discovery Feed, Gmail, and YouTube, spanning YouTube feed, In-Stream, and Shorts within a single campaign.

According to Google:

“Demand Generation campaigns introduce a unique set of features crafted specifically for today’s social marketer. With Demand Generation, your top-performing video and image assets are seamlessly integrated across our most visually engaging touchpoints — YouTube, YouTube Shorts, Discover, and Gmail. These platforms collectively reach over 3 billion monthly users as they browse, watch, and connect.”

There are five ad placements available for Demand Generation campaigns:

• YouTube Shorts

• YouTube in-stream ads

• YouTube in-feed ads

• Google Discover

• Gmail ads

Capturing engagement and driving action across YouTube, Discover, and Gmail, Demand Gen campaigns are the go-to choice for advertisers aiming to showcase visually captivating, multi-format ads on Google’s most impactful platforms.

On top of that, you can also add your product feed to Demand Gen campaigns to show your products and connect with the consumers through immersive, relevant, and visually striking creatives. Leveraging product feeds, Demand Gen campaigns effectively allows advertisers to transform their image or video ads into dynamic virtual storefronts fostering consideration and facilitating purchases.

Notably, advertisers that integrate their Merchant Centre Feed into Demand Gen Campaigns typically experience a 33% increase in conversions at a comparable cost per action (CPA).

What Are The Benefits of Google Demand Generation Campaigns?

Performance: Promote the most relevant products to your target audience precisely when they're most likely to be interested. Google's machine learning algorithms anticipate user interests and intent, automatically showcasing relevant products to help achieve your maximum conversions, target CPA, and target ROAS goals.

Simplicity: Instead of crafting individual ads for each promoted item, simply connect your Google Merchant Center feed to a new Demand Gen campaign. The images and product details within your product feed serve as a vast array of creatives for ads that are automatically presented to potential customers.

Flexibility: Pair your curated products with specific audience segments while leveraging both image and video formats, including short and long forms, to effectively promote your products.

Best Practices for Google Demand Generation Campaigns

To achieve success with Google Demand Generation campaigns, adhering to strategic best practices is crucial. These practices are designed to fine-tune your campaigns for maximum impact and efficiency across various stages of the marketing journey. Let's explore the key best practices that can elevate your Google Demand Generation campaigns to new levels of effectiveness.

Conversion Tracking:

Ensure precise tracking by implementing Google Ads conversion tracking tags across your entire website. Utilise the Conversion Tracking event on the final conversion page for accurate measurement. Extend your reach by integrating app conversions through 'account level goals' with Firebase. To capture comprehensive data, deploy the Global Site Tag on all pages. Depending on your objectives, consider Max Clicks bidding to drive site visits without the need for conversion tracking. For accurate and privacy-conscious reporting, opt for Enhanced Conversions. Leverage Data Driven Attribution (DDA) to refine your campaign strategies based on detailed insights.

Campaign Structure:

Maintain campaign stability in the initial stages by refraining from significant changes within the first two weeks post-launch. Once you've accumulated at least 50 conversions at the ad group level, consider adjusting the campaign structure. Fine-tune tCPA (target cost per acquisition) bids within a +/- 20% range to optimise performance. Consolidate audience themes within the same ad group to facilitate learning and streamline targeting. Utilise the Asset Report to identify top-performing assets and ensure alignment with best practices. Tailor your approach based on access to a Google Merchant Center (GMC) feed; consider implementing Dynamic Product Ads or sitelinks accordingly.

Bidding Strategy:

Experienced campaign managers can start with either tCPA or tROAS (target return on ad spend) bidding, depending on their familiarity and goals. For newcomers to Demand Generation or those without specific tCPA goals, initiate campaigns with Max Conversions bidding and transition to tCPA bidding after achieving 50 conversions. Max Clicks bidding is effective for driving relevant traffic and doesn't require conversion tracking. Gain insights into bid strategy performance with tailored metrics from the Bid Strategy Report.

Budget Allocation:

Consider a recommended daily budget of £100-£500 per ad group to achieve meaningful results. Ad groups with over 50 conversions tend to perform better, so keep this in mind when assessing performance. Set daily budgets at a minimum of 15 times the tCPA or 15 times the expected average CPA, whichever is higher. Utilise the in-UI budget simulator to explore simulations for Max Conversions campaigns.

Creative Development:

Craft visually captivating content that effectively communicates your brand's narrative. Emphasise the call-to-action (CTA) consistently across visuals, voiceovers, and graphics. Prioritise assets that have demonstrated strong performance across various inventory types. Adopt a mobile-first creative approach to ensure compatibility across different devices. Utilise different aspect ratios for images and videos to enhance versatility. Keep ad text concise, with text overlay occupying less than 20% of images. Employ A/B experiments to optimise creatives for specific target audiences.

Audience Targeting:

Activate Optimised Targeting from the outset to enhance efficiency and scalability. Utilise both online and offline data to reach existing customers and engaged audiences effectively. Upload Customer Match lists, considering match rate and match keys to refine targeting precision. Maintain data freshness through regular updates to ensure maximum relevance. Include at least one campaign targeting in-market audiences to capture users actively seeking your offerings. Experiment with Lookalike Audiences, focusing on segments that have demonstrated strong performance. Optimise by reusing successful audiences across campaigns, particularly those with higher conversion potential based on historical performance.

Google's Demand Generation campaigns are a strategic solution to captivate consumers, inspire action, and boost creativity. By tailoring campaigns to address unique moments of engagement, advertisers stand to harness the full potential of Google's ecosystem and forge meaningful connections with their audience. With the gradual rollout of these campaigns over the coming months, the advertising industry eagerly anticipates the profound impact of AI-driven Demand Generation campaigns.