What are performance max campaigns and what is their greatest advantage on Microsoft Advertising?
For anyone who follows PPC news, the recent developments of AI in all its forms have been impossible to miss. The most innovative among them and the one that offers the most opportunity for advertisers are Performance Max (PMAX) campaigns.
PMAX first took centre stage with Google’s launch in 2021, however, Microsoft have long been developing their own version which is designed to maximise the unique capabilities of their own platform and make life easier for both agencies and in house teams.
In our blog on generative AI in ad optimisation, we spoke about the doubts and concerns that pervade the adoption of AI in digital marketing and PPC in particular. We hear some of those concerns mirrored when it comes to PMAX campaigns. It is undoubtedly a fairly daunting prospect when you hand over control of your ads into the hands of something unknown, however, with more widespread adoption and increasingly better returns, remaining competitive without PMAX could prove to be difficult in the coming year.
Yet, there is no need to plunge in at the deep end. As with all aspects of PPC, testing the water and slowly adopting as you grow in confidence and understanding makes the journey a more comfortable and profitable one. This blog will show you how this can be achieved.
Indeed, while we will begin with the basics – for they never go amiss – we will then go into greater depths about the advantages of Microsoft PMAX, sharing tips on setting up and running campaigns with takeaways for all no matter your industry, budget and expertise.
Why Microsoft Advertising Performance Max?
If you aren’t advertising on Microsoft at all, understanding the unique value proposition of and opportunities available on Microsoft Advertising is a necessary place to start.
Google has long dominated the PPC world and placed on a pedestal high above the competition; but cracks are beginning to show. It would be foolish to suggest that their hold over digital marketing is ever going to lessen drastically but it would be equally daft to not consider what else is out there.
Microsoft Ads (formally Bing Ads) has a valuable and growing audience, including potential customers you won’t reach anywhere else.
By diversifying your spend onto Microsoft there are several key rewards. First and foremost, is the reach and impact of your ads. Whether or not you are reaching people who are only on Microsoft, there is no denying that you will be increasing your brand visibility and creating new touchpoints. Opportunities on Microsoft are not simply limited to Bing and Outlook.
Microsoft is not simply Bing and Outlook. The diverse opportunities include ads on Netflix, LinkedIn ads and make the most of Snapchat ads. Plus, with less competition a lower cost per click (CPC) is often reported.
Diginius works closely with Microsoft because we have seen the results for ourselves and can attest to greater reliability and a desire to do right by the customer.
We would never suggest you abandon the likes of Google completely as it would be a rather ineffective strategy. By combining the might of Google and the power of Microsoft however, you should see your performance soar.
So, what is Performance Max?
To put is simply, PMAX is a campaign type that uses AI and machine learning to perfect your ads through automation. Microsoft’s PMAX is powered by industry leading AI, deep audience intelligence as well as intent, demographic, behavioural and profile data. PMAX leverages AI to find the ideal combination of assets and targeting to put out the most high-performing ad for your audience, helping to both find new audiences and increase conversions.
Performance Max campaigns have made such an impact in the world of PPC because they reflect the needs and wants of the customer. Consumer journeys are undoubtedly becoming more complicated and so the level of sophistication to reach and convert them needs to increase similarly; and the expectation of personalisation adds another layer of complexity.
Microsoft Performance Max simplifies these rather overwhelming demands placed upon PPC advertisers. Through one campaign, you can make the best of various automations and optimise your ads across all surfaces to see increased performance as a result. These automations include multiple ad formats and placements, audience signals, automated bidding, predictive targeting, AI-powered recommendations and Microsoft is promising more features to come.
Finally, it is worth noting just how many ways there are to optimise PMAX campaigns, some of which we will explore in greater depth in the section on setting up PMAX campaigns below:
What are the benefits of Performance Max?
Drive performance and meet your goals by finding and attracting your ideal audience.
After providing the input (see below) you can be confident that you will be reaching your most highly performing audience. Moreover, AI will ensure that the right ad creative is seen by the right person to maximise impact.
Your ads will be dynamic and reach your audience wherever they are.
Microsoft will serve a variety of rich ads across Microsoft Advertising surfaces, including Bing, AOL, Yahoo, MSA, Edge, Outlook and more.
Future-proof your business.
One of the trickiest parts of working in marketing in general is navigating though the ever-changing waters of consumer trends, needs and expectations. PMAX uses real-time automation to allow you to stand strong against competitors and so increase your ROI.
Simplify your workflows and use your time more efficiently.
By adopting PMAX into your strategy you can offload manual work, streamline ad management and free time to focus on other aspects of your business. However, worry not! You are still in control with campaigns and asset-level reporting along the way.
How to get started on Microsoft PMAX?
Set-up is simple, accessible and you can easily import campaigns from Google.
Step 1: Conversion Tracking.
Chose the conversion goals that are important to your business and assign values for your conversions.
Step 2: Choose your bid strategy
There are two to choose from. The first, Maximise Conversions, means that the automations will focus on helping you get as many conversions as possible. The second, Maximise Conversion Value, will ensure you get the highest value conversion within your budget.
Given the nature of PMAX, we suggest that you leave your assessment of bid strategy until at least 30 conversions have been achieved.
Step 3: Final URL Expansion.
This is a nifty tool that will replace your final URL with the most relevant landing page based on search query and intent. We recommend leaving this on.
Step 4: Add assets
You can add as many versions of test and image assets as you like: the more, the better! The more options available, the more ad formats can be created and experimented with. Plus, Copilot – Microsoft’s AI – is on hand to help.
Step 5: Set up Audience Signals.
By adding this, you can help guide the predictive targeting and so speed up the campaign learning period. This means that you can expand your reach and find the audiences that are most likely to convert.
How to make the most of PMAX campaign set up.
A great advantage of PMAX is how you can integrate it into your other campaign approaches. For example, if you are in retail and you want to keep things simple and budget friendly, you can simply run a PMAX campaign. With a little more know-how and budget, you can run PMAX campaigns alongside a separate shopping campaign. Of course, this can then get more advanced by adding in other possibilities, such as audience ads remarketing to name just one.
All of this is simply to say that the approaches are fully customisable. The level of automation you are looking for depends on a number of factors from the time you have to set-up and maintain these campaigns, your budget and of course experience.
The greatest advantage of Microsoft Performance Max
It is easy to get carried away with the innovative technology and marvel at the capabilities now available. However, it is not the tools themselves that are the greatest advantage.
One of the biggest frustrations for digital marketers is the time wasted on menials but nonetheless important tasks. PMAX offers some salvation. It has the flexibility to do as much or as little as you want, providing an elegant solution to some common PPC problems while simultaneously maximising the unique opportunities available on Microsoft.
The audience and the network of platforms available on Microsoft has long been a huge win for advertisers and PMAX only improves the experience for both audience and advertiser.
There are many ways to dip your toe in the water and to tentatively start testing in the New Year. There is one thing for sure though, PMAX is here to stay and will only become more capable as investment is spent in this direction and of course, as the technology itself learns more.
I still feel a little out of my depth!
If you are a business or organisation that is looking to expand into Microsoft Advertising but are nervous about doing it yourself, a PPC agency might be for you. Through our free PPC Matchmaker service, we will find you the expertise you need to manage all your PPC campaigns and naturally, all of the trusted, vetted agencies on our books are fully acquainted with MSA and all of its tools.
If you are a PPC agency and are looking to diversify your offerings, then consider joining our Microsoft Diginius Partner Program and you will get all the help you need to make the best of PMAX for your clients with some financial incentives thrown in to boot!
