Google AI Max drives revenue but at a higher cost, according to Smarter Ecommerce’s Mike Ryan, who analyzed 250+ campaigns. Outcomes vary, and much more testing is still needed.

Why we care. AI Max isn’t a minor update. It’s Google’s most significant reimagining of Search campaigns in years, shifting away from keyword syntax toward pure intent matching. For you, that’s both an opportunity (possible growth) and a risk (an efficiency tradeoff).

By the numbers. The result of the analysis:

• Median revenue: +13%
• Median CPA: +16%
• ROAS range: +42% to -35%

Advertisers who activate AI Max typically see 14% more conversions or conversion value at a similar CPA or ROAS, rising to 27% for campaigns still relying on exact and phrase match keywords, Google says.

Turning on AI Max is essentially a coin toss: you may see a lift, but efficiency likely won’t follow, Ryan concluded

What AI Max actually is. Rather than forcing Search campaigns into Performance Max, Google went the other direction — bringing PMax-style automation into classic Search. The result is three core features:

• Search Term Matching (broad match expansion plus keywordless targeting),
• Text Customization (dynamic ad copy), and
• Final URL Expansion (automated landing page selection).

Four pitfalls Smarter Ecommerce identified:

• Broad match cannibalization: Up to 63% of the time, recycling existing coverage rather than finding new queries.
• Competitor hijacking: In one account, AI Max scaled so aggressively into competitor brand terms that it consumed 69% of total Search impressions.
• Reporting overload: Search term and ad combination reports can run to tens of thousands of rows, making manual auditing nearly impossible without automation.
• Search Partner Network blowouts: One campaign saw half a million monthly impressions land on SPN at a 0.07% conversion rate, versus 3.04% on standard Google Search.

Between the lines. Google’s 14% uplift stat conspicuously excludes retail — an omission Ryan flags as significant for ecommerce advertisers. There’s also a deeper irony: you’re most likely to adopt AI Max if you’re already running Broad Match, DSA, and PMax — yet Google says those accounts will see the lowest incremental benefit.

What’s next. In a conversation with Ryan, Google Ads Liaison Ginny Marvin confirmed that Google plans to deprecate Dynamic Search Ads and migrate the technology into AI Max for Search. No firm timeline was given, though past Google deprecations often run about a year from announcement.

Ryan recommends activating AI Max’s keywordless features in your existing Search campaigns now and beginning to wind down DSA — not migrating it to PMax.

Ryan’s verdict is cautious optimism. About 16% of advertisers are testing AI Max, and few have gone all in. Start small, audit aggressively, and don’t let FOMO around AI Overviews drive your decision.

The report. The Ultimate Guide to AI Max for Google Search

Google is investigating a disruption affecting Google Ad Manager, according to an update posted on the Google Ads Status Dashboard.

The incident began at 13:49 UTC on March 4. By 13:54 UTC, Google said it was reviewing reports that some users could access Ad Manager but weren’t seeing the most up-to-date data.

What’s happening. The issue appears to impact reporting consistency. Specifically, Ad Exchange match rate and Ad Exchange request values are not aligning between Ad Manager’s interactive reports and the legacy reporting query tool (now deprecated).

Why we care. Reporting discrepancies in Google Ad Manager can directly impact how you evaluate performance and optimize campaigns. If Ad Exchange match rates and request data don’t align across reporting tools, it becomes harder to trust the numbers driving pacing, forecasting and revenue decisions.

What it means. Users can still log into Ad Manager, but reporting discrepancies may affect data accuracy — at least temporarily. There’s no indication yet of a full outage, but for publishers and advertisers relying on real-time reporting, mismatched metrics could complicate performance monitoring and optimization decisions.

What’s next. Google says it’s actively investigating and will provide further updates. In the meantime, affected users are advised to monitor the status dashboard and contact support if they’re experiencing issues not listed there.

Google introduced a new availability value in Google Merchant Center — built specifically for vehicle sellers who don’t carry every model on the lot. The new attribute, “build to order,” lets dealers flag vehicles that aren’t physically in inventory but can be customized and ordered by customers.

What needs to change. Sellers must update two areas: their structured data (set availability to BuildToOrder) and their Merchant Center feed (set availability to build to order). Consistency between structured data and feed submissions is critical to avoid disapprovals.

Why we care. Until now, sellers had limited ways to signal that a vehicle wasn’t available for immediate pickup. The new value better reflects how many modern automakers operate — especially direct-to-consumer brands like Tesla and Rivian, where buyers configure features before production. For dealers offering factory orders or custom builds, this means clearer expectations for shoppers — and cleaner data for Google.

The fine print Vehicles marked “build to order” must have the condition attribute set to “new.” If a listing is marked “used,” it will be disapproved — Google considers build-to-order vehicles to be newly configured, not pre-owned.

Bottom line If you sell customizable or factory-order vehicles, this update gives you a more accurate way to reflect availability — but only if your feed, structured data and condition fields are properly aligned.

First spotted. This update was shared by Google Shopping specialist Emmanuel Flossie, where he shared how to implement this update on his blog.

Dig deeper. “Availability [availability]” Google Merchant Centre help doc

Google is communicating that starting April 1st, Customer Match uploads through the Google Ads API will stop working for certain users, in a message sent to API developers.

Specifically, developers who haven’t uploaded Customer Match data in the past 180 days using their developer token will no longer be able to do so via the Ads API.

What’s changing. If you fall into that inactive bucket, any attempt to upload Customer Match lists through the Google Ads API after April 1 will fail. Instead, Google wants you to move those workflows to the Data Manager API. The change applies only to Customer Match uploads — all other campaign management and reporting tasks should continue as normal in the Google Ads API.

Why Google says it’s doing this. Google positions the Data Manager API as a more modern, unified data ingestion solution across its platforms, with stronger security protocols. It also includes features not available in the Ads API, such as confidential matching and enhanced encryption — signaling a push to centralize and better secure audience data handling.

Why we care. If you or your developers haven’t touched Customer Match uploads in the last six months, this could catch you off guard. After April 1, 2026, the old workflow simply won’t work — and errors will replace uploads.

The takeaway. Check whether your developer token has been used for Customer Match recently and plan a migration to the Data Manager API now, before Google flips the switch.

First spotted. This announcement was shared by Paid Search specialist Arpan Banerjee who shared the message he got from Google on LinkedIn.

Google will begin enforcing a minimum daily budget for Demand Gen campaigns starting April 1, 2026.

What’s happening: The Google Ads API will require a minimum daily budget of $5 USD (or local equivalent) for all Demand Gen campaigns. The change is designed to help campaigns move through the “cold start” phase with enough spend for Google’s models to learn and optimize effectively. The update will roll out as an unversioned API change, applying across all buying paths.

Technical details:

• In API v21 and above, campaigns set below the threshold will trigger a BUDGET_BELOW_DAILY_MINIMUM error, with additional details available in the error metadata.
• In API v20, advertisers will receive a generic UNKNOWN error, with the specific validation failure referenced in the unpublished error code field.

The rule applies when modifying budgets, start dates, or end dates in ways that push daily spend below the $5 floor — covering both daily and flighted budgets.

Impact on existing campaigns. Current Demand Gen campaigns running below the minimum will continue serving. However, any future edits to budgets or scheduling will require compliance with the new floor.

Why we care. For advertisers and developers, this adds a new compliance layer to campaign management workflows. Systems will need updating to catch and handle the new validation errors before deployment.

The bottom line. Google is standardizing a minimum investment threshold for Demand Gen — prioritizing performance stability, while requiring advertisers to adjust budgets and automation accordingly.

Meta is updating its ad measurement framework, aiming to simplify attribution in what it calls a “social-first” advertising world.

What’s happening. Meta is narrowing its definition of click-through attribution for website and in-store conversions. Going forward, only link clicks — not likes, shares, saves or other interactions — will count toward click-through attribution. The change is designed to reduce discrepancies between Meta Ads Manager and third-party tools like Google Analytics.

Between the lines. Social media has overtaken search as the world’s largest ad channel, according to WARC, but many attribution systems were built for search-era behaviors. On social platforms, engagement extends beyond link clicks. Historically, Meta counted all click types toward click-through conversions, while many third-party tools only counted link clicks — creating reporting misalignment.

What’s changing. Conversions previously attributed to non-link interactions will now fall under a renamed “engage-through attribution” (formerly engaged-view attribution). Meta is also shortening the video engaged-view window from 10 seconds to 5 seconds, reflecting faster conversion behavior — particularly on Reels. The company says 46% of Reels purchase conversions happen within the first two seconds of attention.

Why we care. This update makes it easier to see which actions actually drive conversions, reducing confusion between Meta reporting and third-party analytics like Google Analytics. By separating link clicks from other social interactions, marketers get a clearer view of campaign performance, while the new engage-through attribution captures the value of likes, shares, and saves.

This gives advertisers more confidence in their data and helps them make smarter, more impactful

Third-party tie-ins. Meta is partnering with analytics providers like Northbeam and Triple Whale to incorporate both clicks and views into attribution models, aiming to give advertisers a more complete performance picture.

The rollout. Changes will begin later this month for campaigns optimizing toward website or in-store conversions. Billing will not change, but reporting inside Ads Manager may shift as attribution definitions update.

The bottom line. Meta is attempting to balance clearer, search-aligned click reporting with better visibility into uniquely social interactions — giving advertisers cleaner comparisons across platforms while still capturing the incremental impact of engagement-driven conversions.

Dig deeper. Simplifying Ad Measurement for a Social-First World

Google is rolling out Video Reach Campaign (VRC) Non-Skip ads, expanding how brands reach connected TV audiences on YouTube.

What’s happening. VRC Non-Skips are now live globally in Google Ads and Display & Video 360. Built for the living room experience, they run as non-skippable placements optimized for connected TV (CTV) screens.

Why we care. YouTube has been the No. 1 streaming platform in the U.S. for three straight years, making the TV screen a critical battleground for your brand budget. With guaranteed, non-skippable delivery, you can ensure your full message reaches viewers in premium, lean-back environments.

AI in the mix. Google AI dynamically optimizes across 6-second bumper ads, 15-second standard spots, and 30-second CTV-only non-skippable formats. Instead of manually splitting your budget by format, you can rely on AI to allocate impressions for maximum reach and efficiency.

Bottom line. Advertisers now have a simpler way to secure guaranteed, full-message delivery on the biggest screen in the house — using AI to maximize reach and efficiency across non-skippable formats without manually managing the mix.

Google’s announcement. VRC Non-Skip ads are now generally available, allowing brands to reach TV audiences with Google AI.

Google is expanding its recurring billing policy to allow certified U.S. online pharmacies to promote prescription drugs with subscriptions and bundled services.

What’s happening. Certified merchants can now offer:

• Prescription drug subscriptions — recurring billing for prescription medications.
• Prescription drug bundles — combining drugs with services like coaching or treatment programs, as long as the drug is the primary product.
• Prescription drug consultation services — recurring consults to determine prescription eligibility, either standalone or bundled with medications.

Requirements for eligibility. Merchants must maintain certified status, submit subscription costs in Merchant Center using the [subscription_cost] attribute, include clear terms and transparent fees on landing pages, and comply with all existing Healthcare & Medicine and recurring billing policies. Accounts previously disapproved can request a review once requirements are met.

Why we care. The update opens new revenue opportunities for online pharmacies, letting them leverage recurring models and bundled services while staying compliant with Google policies.

The bottom line. Certified U.S. online pharmacies can now run recurring prescription and bundled offers, giving them more flexibility to reach patients and scale subscription-based services.

Dig deeper. Recurring billing policy expansion: Prescription drugs