Is It Worth Upgrading Dynamic Search Ads to Performance Max?

Are you also one of those advertisers confused about whether to upgrade your Dynamic Search Ads (DSAs) to Performance Max? You are not alone. With PMax’s rising popularity and the noticeably better results it brings over DSAs, it’s a shift that’s becoming harder to overlook.

DSAs have always helped cover the opportunities for your ads that keyword-based campaigns often miss. Powered by Google AI, DSAs leverage your website content to target and reach users who are precisely searching for what your business offers, dynamically generate ad copies, and gain additional traffic and sales!

However, Performance Max campaigns, also powered by Google AI, offer a wider range of benefits. PMax allows you to reach your target audience across all Google channels from a single campaign. And most campaign settings, such as bidding, ad creation, etc., are automated to a large extent, which reduces manual effort.

It is because of these benefits that many advertisers are considering the switch from DSAs to PMax.

But before switching, it’s important to understand how both campaigns differ, what level of control each offers, and whether Performance Max fits your business goals. This blog will help you weigh those factors and decide which campaign type will be right for your setup.

Why Google Is Encouraging the Switch From DSAs to Performance Max? 

For eligible advertisers, Google has rolled out self-upgrade tools that allow them to switch from Dynamic Search ads to Performance Max. 

But should you upgrade your existing campaigns? Are there any benefits of doing so? As per Google, there are. Those benefits include: 

1. Higher Conversion Potential: According to Google, advertisers have noticed an increase of more than 21% in conversions or conversion value after switching from DSAs to PMax at the same cost per action (CPA) or return on ad spend (RoAS).
2. Wider Reach: DSAs can only appear across Search. But PMax can display your ads across all Google channels, such as Search, YouTube, Display, Discover, Gmail, and Maps. This means that your ads reach more users and you can drive higher conversions. 
3. Google AI Technology: Google AI powers the majority of settings for PMax campaigns. These settings include, but are not limited to, bidding, placements, audience targeting, and asset generation. 

Additionally, Google AI also optimizes your PMax campaigns in real-time to ensure that you get the maximum value from your budget. 

4. Innovative New Features: With PMax, you also get access to features such as inventory-aware serving, which improve the performance of your ads by automatically excluding those URLs from your campaigns where products are out of stock. 

Moreover, PMax also allows you to leverage automatically created assets, such as Final URL expansion, that help you serve better text ads, which are more closely aligned with the user’s query and drive better results.

Differences Between DSAs and PMax 

Before upgrading your Dynamic Search Ads to Performance Max, you must know how the functionality of these two campaigns differs from each other. Some core differences between the two include: 

Ad Placements and Formats

DSAs are text-based ads that only serve across the Search Network. But PMax campaigns can showcase your ads across all Google channels, such as Shopping, YouTube, Gmail, Maps, Discover, and Display. 

PMax can serve ads in any format based on the channel, your asset groups, and user intent. For example, if you have connected your Merchant Center feed during the campaign creation stages, and if a user searches “best running shoes” on Google Search, then PMax can showcase a Google Shopping ad. On the other hand, if the same user watches a YouTube video later on, then, depending on their behavior, PMax may show them a video ad. 

Note: DSAs only serve across the Search Network. While Google prompts you to opt in for Display Expansion (a feature where Google will use the unused ad budget of your Search Campaigns to showcase them across the Display Network), you must note that DSA won’t serve in Display Expansion. You’d need a Responsive Search Ad for that.

Ad Creation 

For Dynamic Search Ads, Google AI will crawl your website and use its content to generate an ad relevant to the user’s query automatically. During the ad creation stages, advertisers only need to provide creative descriptions. Google also automatically generates the Final URLs, Headlines, and Display URLs. 

For PMax campaigns, Google AI creates and displays ads based on the assets that you either upload manually or generate with AI. If you are also using text customization (formerly known as automatically created assets), then PMax can use content from your landing pages to customize your ads and serve them better. 

Targeting 

When it comes to targeting, DSAs match the queries of users on Google with specific pages on the advertiser’s website. And you can control this targeting process. You can either target only specific URLs, groups of URLs, or all pages on your website. 

On the other hand, PMax uses signals such as search themes, audience signals, and Google AI to target users. Its specialty is that it automatically identifies users who are likely to convert and delivers your ad across the different Google channels it supports. 

Reporting and Insights 

Google offers detailed insights into the performance of your Dynamic Search Ads with the help of different reports, which include but aren’t limited to: 

• Search terms and landing page reports
• Auction insights
• When and where ads showed

While PMax also supports these reports, you also get other insights such as channel-level performance (how your ads perform across different channels), asset group reporting, product-level data (for Shopping ads), and much more. 

How to Switch from Dynamic Search Ads to Performance Max? 

First of all, it’s important to understand that the transition from DSAs to PMax can happen via two methods: 

1. You use the self-upgrade option, in which Google will just pause your old DSA campaign and create a new PMax campaign. The original DSA campaign will not be deleted or removed, and you can also access its historical data. Moreover, if you aren’t satisfied with your PMax campaign’s performance, you can also switch back to the original DSA campaign by re-enabling it. 
2. You can pause or remove Dynamic Search Ad campaigns manually, and set up a new PMax campaign just like you can set up any other campaign. 

In this blog, we will be focusing on the self-upgrade method. 

Note: If you are interested in switching from DSAs to PMax via the second method, then you just need to follow two simple steps:  1. Go to Campaigns, apply the filters for Dynamic Search Campaigns, and then select and pause or remove any specific campaign.   2. You can then easily set up a new PMax campaign by going to Campaigns, clicking on the ‘+’ button, and following the steps further.  We suggest you read our blog on how to set up PMax campaigns to learn about the PMax campaign creation steps in detail.

Eligibility for Self-Upgrading DSAs to PMax

You must know that not all DSA campaigns are eligible for self-upgrade to PMax. Google has some criteria, which include: 

• Your DSA campaign should have up to 100 enabled ad groups.
• The campaign must use Smart Bidding.
• It should have DSA ad groups in a Search campaign without keywords.
• DSA creative must be enabled.
• The campaign should not be running a trial.

If your campaign meets this criterion, you will get a notification from Google in your Ads account. With that notification, Google will inform you that you are now ready to make the upgrade, and can proceed further. 

After that, you can self-upgrade your DSA to PMax in two ways.

Self-Upgrading Via Recommendations 

1. Start by going to the Recommendations tab, which is located on the left-hand menu of your Google Ads Account.

2. Look for a recommendation that says, “Upgrade DSA campaigns to PMax.” Remember, this option will only appear when your DSA campaign meets the eligibility criteria shared above. 

3. Then, based on the recommendations, you will have to select the campaign(s) that you wish to upgrade. 

4. Once you select a campaign, Google will start to prepare your PMax campaign. 
5. It will automatically fetch the data assets from your original DSA campaign. These assets may include headlines, descriptions, etc. But apart from that, it is likely that you will have to add image and video assets for your PMax campaigns. 

Note: You can easily edit or remove any pre-filled assets during this stage.

6. If you were using page feeds in your DSA campaigns, Google will carry forward that page feed setup to your PMax campaigns. Moreover, if you were utilizing custom labels for your page feeds, those will be transferred from the ad group level to the asset group level. 

Similarly, if you were using “URL Contains” rules, then from the ad group level, those will also be transferred to the asset group level in PMax campaigns. 

7. Once you review everything and add any missing assets, you can publish the PMax campaign. If your campaign has enough traffic and budget, Google may also offer to run an A/B experiment to help you test performance before fully switching.

Self-Upgrading Via The Notification In Google Ads Account   

1. Click on the notifications icon, which you can access at the top right corner of your ads account. 

2. Look for an “Upgrade campaign” notification. 
3. Select “Apply” in the notification. 
4. And then click on “Apply all” to confirm your selection. 

That’s it. After these steps, you can easily upgrade your DSAs to PMax from the upgrade flow. 

Can You Test the Impact of PMax Campaigns Before Upgrading?

Another important question to answer is whether there is a way to check whether upgrading your DSAs to PMax will be helpful for you before you do so. 

Well, luckily, there is. You can create a PMax Experiment, specifically the Upgrade experiment, which allows advertisers to check how a PMax campaign would perform if it replaces their current Dynamic Search Ads campaign. 

It lets you simulate the potential uplift that will occur if you shift your DSA’s budget to a comparable PMax campaign. 

Here’s how you can set that experiment up: 

• In your Google Ads account, click the ‘Campaigns’ icon from the left-hand side menu.
• Select ‘Experiments’.

• Click the plus (+) button and choose Performance Max experiments.
• Click Test vs. Search campaign, then hit Continue.

Note: With this experiment, you can also test out the uplift of PMax campaigns against Google Display Ads along with DSAs.

• Choose an eligible DSA campaign.
• Set the traffic split between your current campaign (Control) and PMax (Treatment).

• Set up your new PMax campaign during the flow, review assets, budget, and bidding.
• Click ‘Create experiment’, give it a name, and set your start and end dates.
• Click ‘Schedule’ to launch your test.

If you run the experiment and find that your new PMax campaign brings better and statistically significant results, then that’s a strong signal. You can then consider upgrading your Dynamic Search ads to PMax.

Challenges to Expect During the Self-Upgrade (And How to Handle Them) 

You must be careful about several challenges that you will have to face when you are self-upgrading your DSAs to PMax. Those include: 

1. More Assets Required: Unlike DSAs, which are text-based ads, PMax campaigns require you to upload different kinds of assets, such as images, videos, page feeds (optional), etc. 

What to do: Go through the ad specs for PMax campaigns and create and upload assets that comply with those asset requirements. 

Google recommends that you cover all types of assets for your PMax campaigns. This helps to ensure that Google AI can create as many ad combinations as possible, and showcase the most relevant ad across all channels. 

Pro tip: You can use Google’s Generative AI capabilities for PMax to auto-generate some types of assets.

2. Limited Control Over Placements: With DSA campaigns, your ads will only appear on the Google Search Network. But with PMax, your ads can appear on any channel, and you cannot control your ad’s placement and delivery to a large extent. 

For example, if you upload images and videos and use your Merchant Center product feed with PMax, Google will automatically serve ads across multiple channels. You cannot restrict ad delivery to a specific network (e.g., Display) or prevent specific ad formats from being used.

Due to PMax’s restrictive nature, your ads may also appear on low-quality websites or random mobile apps, which can waste your ad spend. 

What to do: Luckily, Google allows you to exclude placements in PMax. Using those placement exclusions at the account level, you can ensure that your ads are not appearing across irrelevant placements. 

3. Upgrade Not Available for Certain DSAs: If your original DSA is using keywords or manual bidding, then you must note that you will not be able to upgrade it to PMax.

What to do: Currently, there is no workaround. You will need to wait for any updates from Google’s side when it starts to support such DSA campaigns for self-upgrade to PMax. 

But if you simply don’t want to run a DSA campaign and move to PMax, then you can manually rebuild your campaign in PMax. 

Note: DSAs provide access to the Search terms report. While PMax campaigns didn’t support search terms reports until recently, Google has now rolled out that functionality, and advertisers will soon be able to access it in their Google Ads accounts.

Who Should Upgrade Their DSAs to PMax (And Who Shouldn’t)

You can consider self-upgrading or switching DSAs to PMax if: 

1. Your goal is to widen the reach of your ads. PMax will help you reach users across all possible advertising channels that Google supports. 
2. More conversions or higher conversion value are your priority. 
3. Running ads in different formats is your priority. Google AI will use your assets and product feed data (if available) to create engaging ads for different channels depending on the opportunity. Unlike DSAs, which are text-based ads, PMax may create a video ad, a display banner, a Google Shopping ad, or any other type of ad, depending on the user’s query, intent, and other factors. 
4. You aim for greater control over assets. In DSAs, Google AI dynamically uses your website content to generate your ad copies. And you can only add descriptions at the ad group level. But if you want more control over what assets are used in your ads, consider creating PMax campaigns. 

But remember, you can only provide assets to Google. At the end of the day, ad combinations and which ads to display to the end user will still be automatically created. 

But you shouldn’t switch DSAs to PMax if: 

1. You don’t want to advertise your products or services beyond the Search Network. 
2. There are budget constraints. For PMax campaigns, even Google recommends a healthy budget (at least three times your cost per conversion) so that Google’s system can confidently explore different ad placement opportunities, learn about your target audience, which ad combination works the best, and optimize your campaigns better. 
3. You prefer ads that purely rely on your website content. While PMax will also use your website content to create ads to a certain extent, it will also take into consideration other elements such as your assets, product data, or other signals. This means that the ad will not always mirror your website content as closely as a DSA would.

Conclusion 

In the end, upgrading your Dynamic Search Ads to Performance Max can be a smart move if you want wider reach, extensive automation for your campaign settings, and better results. 

But remember, upgrading DSAs to PMax may not be ideal for every advertiser out there. Thus, take time to review your goals, budget, and how much control you want. Then decide what works best for you.

FAQs 

1. How does Google notify about the eligibility for self-upgrading Dynamic Search Ads to Performance Max? 

You will either get a notification for self-upgrading Dynamic Search Ads to Performance Max, which you can check from the notifications in the top right corner of your Google Ads account, or a recommendation. You can check the recommendation for upgrading DSA to PMax from Google on the recommendations page. 

2. How long does the self-upgrade process take? 

The process is quick, and it usually takes less than 2 minutes to create a new PMax campaign from your DSA. Once that new PMax campaign is up and running, it takes about a week for the campaign to learn and ramp up. 

3. Can I switch back to the original DSA campaign after upgrading? 

Yes, you can. When you upgrade your DSA campaign, it is paused, and Google allows you to re-enable it if you aren’t satisfied with your PMax campaign’s performance. 

4. How will audience targeting work in your upgraded PMax campaign?

Your audience targeting settings will get converted to audience signals for the upgraded PMax campaign. 

5. What will happen to the ad groups of my original DSA campaign?

Google will convert each dynamic ad group to a PMax asset group. 

6. Is the upgrade tool for moving from DSAs to Performance Max available in SA360?
No.

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