PMax and Brand Bidding: Are you ready…

In this episode of the Growing Ecommerce Podcast, host Mike Ryan sits down with two industry heavyweights—Kirk Williams of ZATO Marketing and Ben Krueger, a Senior E-commerce Growth Consultant at Google. They tackled some pretty hot-button issues, including the brand vs. non-brand traffic debate, the growing impact of Performance Max (PMax), and whether the trusty cost-per-click (CPC) still holds water in today’s automated ad environment. Spoiler: While automation is great, relying solely on PMax’s full automation could blur critical insights, especially when it comes to separating brand from non-brand traffic—leaving you with less control than you think.

Key Insights from the Episode

1. Brand vs. Non-Brand traffic: A fine line worth walking?

Kirk Williams took the mic first, highlighting the need to separate brand from non-brand traffic. His argument? Non-brand traffic is like catching those high-funnel audiences—people who don’t know you from Adam. Brand traffic, on the other hand, signals users are already in your orbit. This is where PMax muddies the water, blending both types of traffic, making it harder to pinpoint what’s driving real value.

Ben Krueger weighed in, suggesting that the mix might not be as bad as it seems. From a financial standpoint, combining the two could create efficiencies. But does efficiency always mean accuracy? Jury’s still out on that.

2. Performance Max: The future is here, but are we ready?

PMax has completely flipped the Google Ads game. Traditionally, advertisers have been used to steering the ship with manual controls—now, PMax is taking over with full automation across Search, Display, Shopping, and more. It’s like a self-driving car: great in theory, but nerve-wracking if you’re used to being behind the wheel.

Krueger and Williams both agreed that while PMax shows promise, it’s not all smooth sailing. Some advertisers are trying “hacks” like asset-only campaigns to claw back a bit of control, but the real value seems to come from embracing the platform’s full potential. Easier said than done when you can’t even see all the levers, though, right?

3. Is CPC still a thing?

The debate then shifted to CPCs—are they still relevant in today’s AI-heavy landscape? Ben Krueger’s take: not really. He argued that focusing on return on ad spend (ROAS) gives a clearer picture of campaign performance. Sure, but inflated CPCs can still sting, especially when competitive bidding feels like throwing money into a black hole.

For now, it seems like CPC still plays a role—but maybe it’s time to reconsider how much weight we give it.

4. The new king: creative content

The conversation also hit on the importance of creative assets. With automation reigning supreme in PMax, the quality of your creative content can make or break your campaigns. Both experts stressed that if you’re not segmenting creative by product or audience, you’re leaving money on the table. In a world of automated bidding and black-box algorithms, creativity might just be your last line of defense.

5. Google vs. Meta: The data showdown

Lastly, there was a bit of a rivalry brewing. Meta’s Advantage Plus platform is winning points for offering more audience control and better data insights than Google’s PMax—at least for now. If audience data is your bread and butter, this is one area where Google could stand to step up its game.

What should advertisers do now?

With PMax being here to stay (and getting more entrenched by the day), here’s how you can stay ahead:

  • Focus on audience and creative segmentation to squeeze the most value from automation.
  • Track ROAS, not just CPCs, to keep profitability in check as auction dynamics fluctuate.
  • Experiment with campaign setups, but remember, PMax is designed to cover the full funnel, so working against it may limit results.
  • Eager for more control? Try our PMax brand traffic analyzer script or other scripts helping you have better sight.

Automation doesn’t mean you lose control; it just means you have to steer smarter. If you’re feeling the heat from PMax’s black box, it might be time to look for new strategies to better guide that AI. After all, when the dust settles, human insight still beats algorithms every time.