Promoted pins come to Demand Gen Campaigns: key highlights from Google Marketing Live 2025

Google Marketing Live 2025 has unveiled a series of exciting updates for advertisers, particularly for those managing Google Ads campaigns. A major announcement from the event is the introduction of Promoted Pins to Demand Gen campaigns. This significant development is poised to offer fresh opportunities for businesses aiming to enhance their local presence and drive foot traffic.

Understanding promoted Pins

Promoted Pins are branded markers that appear on Google Maps, making them visible to users searching for nearby businesses. Historically available through Performance Max, these pins are now being integrated into Demand Gen campaigns. The strategic placement of these pins is designed to boost in-store visits and catalyze local conversions, offering advertisers a robust tool for increasing engagement with local audiences.

Performance Max enhancements

Google Ads continues to refine its Performance Max campaigns, rolling out several noteworthy enhancements. The beta release of channel-level reporting will enable advertisers to gain insights into the performance across specific channels. Additionally, the much-anticipated search term visibility feature will soon be available, providing deeper understanding of user search behavior. To further streamline targeting, new customer exclusions will be introduced, allowing advertisers to exclude branded searchers, site visitors, and app users, refining the focus on net-new prospects.

AI Max for Search: a glimpse into the future

The introduction of AI Max for Search, currently in beta, aims to revolutionize search advertising. By blending broad match options with keywordless targeting, this feature offers a unique approach to capturing search intent. Importantly, advertisers maintain control over their campaigns through advanced optimization insights, ensuring that while AI drives performance, strategic oversight is still possible.

Smart bidding exploration

Advertisers seeking to maximize their return on ad spend will benefit from Google’s new Smart Bidding Exploration. This feature utilizes flexible ROAS strategies to capture additional conversions within the current audience reach, offering a dynamic way to enhance campaign performance without overextending budgetary limits.

AI-Powered Demand Gen success

Google reports a significant 26% year-over-year conversion lift among Demand Gen advertisers utilizing AI-powered updates in 2024. These promising results highlight the potential of AI to scale advertising performance effectively. As the use of AI continues to expand, advertisers are encouraged to leverage these advancements while maintaining strategic direction to ensure optimal outcomes.

In conclusion, the announcements from Google Marketing Live 2025 present a wealth of new opportunities for Google Ads managers. As Promoted Pins join the Demand Gen ecosystem and features like AI Max for Search and Smart Bidding Exploration roll out, advertisers should embrace these innovations, guiding the AI capabilities with informed strategy. By staying ahead of these developments, businesses can effectively increase their visibility, drive conversions, and ultimately enhance their competitive edge in a dynamic digital landscape.