<div class="gn-article"><div class="gn-hero gn-reveal"> <div class="gn-hero__image"><img src="https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/687a235da6861294eec73166/69089aae10f74af40e7632c2_65231bb855df512f97978d5d_PMAX-banner.jpeg" alt=""></div> <div class="gn-hero__head"> <span class="gn-kicker"><span class="dot"></span>Event · Expression</span> <h1 class="gn-title">How to Balance Automation and Strategy with PMAX</h1> <div class="gn-meta"> <strong>The GO Network</strong> <span class="pip"></span> <span>15 November 2023</span> <span class="pip"></span> <span>1 min read</span> </div> </div> </div> <div class="gn-event-meta gn-reveal"><div class="gn-event-meta__block"> <span class="gn-event-meta__label">When</span> <span class="gn-event-meta__value gn-date">Wed, 15 Nov 2023 · 16:00</span> </div><div class="gn-event-meta__block"> <span class="gn-event-meta__label">Where</span> <span class="gn-event-meta__value">Online</span> </div><div class="gn-event-meta__block"> <span class="gn-event-meta__label">Status</span> <span class="gn-event-status gn-event-status--recording">Past · Recording</span> </div></div> <div class="gn-body"> <h2>PMAX Is Not a "Set and Forget" Channel. Here's What You Still Need to Control.</h2> <p>Performance Max campaigns promise something every agency values: scale without complexity. Google's algorithm handles placements, bidding, and audience targeting across Search, Shopping, YouTube, Display, and Discover simultaneously. But the automation is only as effective as the inputs agencies provide. Hand over weak assets or vague signals, and the algorithm will optimise efficiently towards the wrong outcomes.</p> <p>In a webinar hosted by The GO Network, <strong>Jack Tungate</strong>, Associate Director at <a href="https://realtimeagency.com/" target="_blank"><strong>Realtime Agency</strong></a>, broke down exactly where agency practitioners need to stay active inside PMAX campaigns. The session centred on four components: Creative, Measurement, Product Feeds, and Holistic Media Strategies. Each one represents a lever agencies retain control over, regardless of how much the algorithm handles downstream.</p> <h2>Why Automation Still Needs a Strategist Behind It</h2> <p>The appeal of PMAX is genuine. A single campaign type that serves the full Google inventory, with machine learning continuously reallocating budget toward the highest-performing combinations, reduces the operational overhead that typically comes with managing multiple campaign types. For agencies running lean teams or managing large client portfolios, that efficiency matters.</p> <p>But automation without direction is just noise. Google's algorithm optimises toward the signals it receives. If those signals are incomplete, the campaign will find volume, but not necessarily value. Agencies that understand which inputs the algorithm depends on are the ones that produce results their clients can see in revenue, not just impressions.</p> <p>The four areas below are where that direction happens.</p> <h2>The Four Levers Agencies Need to Keep Hands On</h2> <h3>1. Creative</h3> <p>PMAX assembles ads dynamically from the assets you upload. That means your creative library is the algorithm's raw material. Upload a limited set of generic headlines, low-resolution images, and a single video, and the system will do its best with what it has. The ceiling on performance is set by the ceiling on your creative inputs.</p> <p>Agencies should treat PMAX asset groups as structured briefs. Each asset group needs a coherent theme, strong headlines that include clear value propositions, and multiple image and video formats. Google's Asset Strength indicator gives a diagnostic signal, but agencies should go further by testing different creative approaches across asset groups and monitoring which combinations are actually being served through the asset performance reporting available in the interface.</p> <p>Creative is also where agencies can communicate audience intent signals that the algorithm cannot infer on its own. Copy that speaks directly to a specific customer need gives the model a clearer picture of who to find.</p> <h3>2. Measurement</h3> <p>PMAX will optimise toward whatever conversion actions you tell it to. If your conversion tracking is misconfigured, duplicated, or set to the wrong goal, the campaign will scale spend toward the wrong outcomes with increasing efficiency. Measurement hygiene is not optional here, it is foundational.</p> <p>Agencies need to audit conversion actions before launching any PMAX campaign and ensure that primary goals reflect genuine business value, whether that is purchases, qualified leads, or revenue. Where clients have access to offline conversion data or CRM signals, importing that data into Google Ads gives the algorithm significantly richer feedback on what a high-quality conversion looks like. Tightening the feedback loop between ad spend and actual outcomes is one of the highest-leverage activities an agency can perform inside PMAX.</p> <h3>3. Product Feeds</h3> <p>For retail and e-commerce clients, the product feed is the foundation of PMAX Shopping performance. A poorly structured or incomplete Merchant Centre feed limits what the algorithm can serve and reduces the relevance of ads to user queries. Feed quality directly affects auction eligibility, impression share, and conversion rates.</p> <p>Agencies managing retail accounts should treat feed optimisation as an ongoing workstream, not a one-time setup task. Product titles should front-load the most important attributes. Descriptions should include terms shoppers actually use. Custom labels allow for intelligent segmentation within PMAX, enabling separate asset groups for high-margin products, seasonal lines, or new arrivals. The more clearly the feed communicates product relevance, the better the algorithm can match inventory to intent.</p> <h3>4. Holistic Media Strategy</h3> <p>PMAX does not exist in isolation. It runs alongside Search campaigns, Shopping campaigns, YouTube, and paid social activity. Without a clear view of how PMAX interacts with the rest of the media plan, agencies risk cannibalising existing campaign performance or inflating reported results through attribution overlap.</p> <p>Brand terms are a common friction point. PMAX will serve against branded queries unless you explicitly use brand exclusion lists. Allowing that to happen skews performance data and inflates ROAS figures that would have converted anyway. Agencies should map out campaign hierarchy before launch, define which queries PMAX should and should not own, and regularly review Search Terms Insights to understand where the campaign is actually finding volume.</p> <p>Thinking about PMAX holistically also means understanding how it fits within a full-funnel strategy. Upper-funnel awareness activity on paid social or YouTube feeds the intent signals that PMAX can then capture and convert. Agencies that plan both channels together will see stronger combined performance than those treating each platform as a separate silo.</p> <h2>Where to Start</h2> <p>If you are managing existing PMAX campaigns that are underperforming, begin with measurement. Verify that conversion actions are correctly configured and that the campaign is optimising toward goals that reflect real business value. Then review your creative asset groups and feed quality. Structural improvements to inputs will produce better returns than adjusting bids or budgets in isolation.</p> <p>Automation handles execution. Strategy still needs to come from the agency.</p> </div></div> <aside class="gn-related gn-reveal" data-auto="related-reading"> <div class="gn-related__label">Related reading</div> <ul class="gn-related__list"> <li class="gn-related__item"> <a href="/articles/playback-ai-personalisation-at-scale" class="gn-related__link"> <span class="gn-related__category">Expression</span> <span class="gn-related__title">Playback: AI Personalisation at Scale</span> <span class="gn-related__excerpt">Watch this GO Network session to master AI personalisation tools, metrics, and how to balance automation with creativity across email, media</span> </a> </li> <li class="gn-related__item"> <a href="/articles/how-to-reach-your-audience-with-organic-content-in-2022-by-the-experts" class="gn-related__link"> <span class="gn-related__category">Expression</span> <span class="gn-related__title">How To Reach Your Audience with Organic Content In 2022: By the Experts</span> <span class="gn-related__excerpt">Agency experts from RICH, Punch Creative, and Curated break down algorithm shifts, the changing content funnel, and what your organic strate</span> </a> </li> <li class="gn-related__item"> <a href="/articles/cracking-the-algorithm-to-achieve-social-media-success" class="gn-related__link"> <span class="gn-related__category">Expression</span> <span class="gn-related__title">Cracking the Algorithm to Achieve Social Media Success</span> <span class="gn-related__excerpt">Organic reach, paid strategy balance, and platform-specific tips for Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, and Facebook. See how top brands cracked t</span> </a> </li> <li class="gn-related__item"> <a href="/articles/the-power-of-provocation-campaigns-that-spark-culture" class="gn-related__link"> <span class="gn-related__category">Expression</span> <span class="gn-related__title">The Power of Provocation: Campaigns That Spark Culture</span> <span class="gn-related__excerpt">Agency leaders reveal how to back brave ideas, balance risk, and turn bold creative into earned media impact and real commercial results.</span> </a> </li> </ul> </aside>