At Marketing Live 2024, Google is showcasing major improvements to artificial intelligence

Google Marketing Live 2024 showcased several significant AI-powered advancements in media, creative and measurement that have the potential to transform the advertising landscape. The new updates aim to optimize advertising performance across Google platforms, offering businesses and marketers innovative tools and features.

Notable new features include the enhanced Performance Max campaign feature, which connects AI-powered search campaigns with Performance Max to boost conversions and increase ROI across all Google channels. Advertisers using Performance Max saw an average increase in conversions or value of 27% at a similar CPA/ROAS. The latest updates give users greater control over their ads, greater visibility into their performance, and advanced creative tools to optimize a variety of assets while maintaining brand integrity.

Performance Max also gains AI-powered image generation capabilities to create visually engaging ads tailored to specific industries. These tools, powered by generative AI, allow advertisers to provide brand guidelines to ensure that the assets created are consistent with their brand. Features such as AI-powered image editing allow advertisers to edit images, add or remove objects, and adapt images to various formats. These additions will be rolled out in the coming months.

Google’s new partnerships with third-party creative platforms such as Canva, Smartly and Pencil Pro further streamline the creative process for advertisers by enabling easy export of assets to Google Ads. Performance Max’s improved placement reporting now includes YouTube videos, giving you transparency and control over where your ads appear. Additionally, new diagnostic statistics will unify campaign statistics for bidding, inventory, conversion setup and billing in one view, highlighting critical issues for faster resolution.

In search, advances in generative AI create immersive advertising experiences, help make complex purchasing decisions, and integrate advertising with AI reviews. Shopping ads will now be more visible in visual search results using Google Lens and Circle to Search. Interactive AI-powered recommendations in search ads will provide consumers with a personalized experience, and testing of AI search and shopping ads will begin soon in the US.

Designed to maximize presence on platforms like YouTube, Shorts, Discover, and Gmail, Demand Gen Campaigns is gaining new optimization tools for performance at scale. Animated image ads from Merchant Center product feeds will be automatically generated for YouTube Shorts, and creating segments with similar content will be simplified, benefiting smaller businesses that have smaller list size requirements.

There are also significant updates for retail and commercial. AI tools will help you create more engaging shopping connections, including creating dynamic video and product visualizations using Product Studio. Shopping ads will feature enhancements such as virtual clothing try-ons and 360-degree product views. New profit optimization goals and integration of loyalty programs will help companies tailor promotions more effectively.

YouTube’s advertising innovations include interactive elements for Shorts ads, creator-tagged products through the YouTube Shopping Partner Program, and tools to promote creator-created videos through YouTube ads. Detailed visibility into ad placements is also improved, so advertisers can see the content their ads appear between, including Shorts.

Measurement and consumer solutions are also improving. Google Ads Data Manager will simplify your use of first-party data, and your new customer acquisition goals with Google Analytics will optimize your campaign performance. Omnichannel budgeting and Google Engagement Audience Segments are designed to improve data management and connect you with more qualified customers. New AI-based analytics capabilities in Google Analytics and Search Ads 360 will help you make faster and more informed decisions.

Finally, the updates include improvements to app campaigns, specifically in terms of increasing website-to-app conversions and improving measurement and performance on iOS. New tools and partnerships across platforms ensure advertising is more interactive and better measured for results. These cumulative advances underscore Google’s commitment to using artificial intelligence to improve advertising efficiency and effectiveness across its suite of tools and platforms.