Google expands Smart Bidding Exploration, adds Promotion Mode

Google announced several updates to its Smart Bidding and budgeting tools on July 26, 2024, aimed at helping advertisers discover new demand and optimize campaign performance during peak periods. The company is expanding Smart Bidding Exploration, a feature that allows campaigns to pursue additional conversion opportunities by setting a return on ad spend (ROAS) tolerance. Google reports that campaigns using this feature have seen an average 18% increase in unique converting search query categories and a 19% increase in conversions. This capability is being extended to Performance Max campaigns without product feeds and is entering a beta for Shopping ads across both Performance Max and Standard Shopping campaigns.

Additionally, Google is introducing a new Promotion Mode beta. This feature enables advertisers to temporarily adjust ROAS targets and allocate additional daily budget during high-demand periods, such as seasonal events, product launches, and flash sales. This provides flexibility for advertisers to capitalize on specific, time-limited opportunities without permanently altering their campaign strategies.

Further changes include an update to bidding target optimization for campaigns constrained by budget, effective August 17. This update aims to deliver more consistent performance aligned with advertisers' CPA and ROAS targets. Starting July 6, advertisers will receive notifications within Google Ads if campaign adjustments are recommended. These enhancements provide Google's AI bidding systems with greater autonomy to identify incremental conversions beyond established keyword and audience patterns, potentially uncovering new demand for advertisers.