Google’s New Auction Insights & Performance Max: What Agencies Need to Know

Digital advertising is moving at lightning speed, and Google Ads continues to roll out updates that reshape how agencies manage and analyse campaigns. Two areas dominating conversations in 2025 are Auction Insights and Performance Max (PMax). Both offer opportunities, but they also challenge the way agencies approach strategy, transparency, and reporting.

If you’re managing PPC campaigns, here’s what you need to know to stay ahead.

Auction Insights: What’s Changed?

Auction Insights has long been a go-to feature for understanding how your ads stack up against competitors. Recently, Google expanded the data available while also tightening visibility in certain areas.

• More granular metrics – Advertisers can now get a clearer view of overlap rate, outranking share, and impression share, with breakdowns across devices and networks.
  
• Reduced transparency – Some detailed competitor insights have been scaled back, making it harder to map every move of your rivals.
  
• Why it matters – Agencies must get smarter at reading trends and layering this data with conversion performance, rather than relying on visibility metrics alone.
  

Auction Insights is no longer about a full competitive map ,it’s about spotting signals and adapting quickly.

Performance Max: The Benefits

Performance Max has been positioned as Google’s future-facing campaign type, combining Search, Display, YouTube, Discover, Maps, and Gmail into one automated campaign.

• Unified Reach – Instead of managing multiple campaign types, you can reach users across all of Google’s channels from a single setup.
  
• Machine Learning Bidding – Google’s AI optimises placements and bids in real time.
  
• Best Use Cases – E-commerce businesses (with product feeds) and lead generation campaigns with robust conversion tracking are seeing the strongest results.
  

When fueled with the right inputs, PMax can uncover new audiences and scale reach faster than traditional campaign types.

Performance Max: The Risks

Of course, PMax is not without its challenges.

• The Black Box Problem – Advertisers lose visibility into which channels or keywords drive conversions.
  
• Creative Dependence – Without fresh, diverse ad assets, campaigns can plateau.
  
• Reporting Gaps – Clients often want channel-level performance, which PMax doesn’t break down clearly.
  

Agencies that rely solely on automation without checks in place risk wasted budget and poor insights.

Best Practices for Agencies

So, how can digital marketers and agencies make the most of these updates?

1. Run PMax alongside Search
   Keep branded and high-intent campaigns in Search while using PMax for incremental reach.
   
2. Leverage Audience Signals
   Use first-party data, remarketing lists, and custom segments to guide Google’s automation.
   
3. Audit Weekly
   Dive into asset group reports, search term insights, and conversion paths to catch issues early.
   
4. Feed the Machine with Quality Inputs
   Regularly refresh creatives and ensure accurate conversion tracking is in place.
   
5. Educate Clients on Reporting Limits
   Set expectations that PMax provides results, but not always full transparency.
   

The Takeaway

Auction Insights and Performance Max are redefining how agencies run PPC campaigns in 2025. Where one reduces transparency, the other relies heavily on automation. Together, they signal a shift: agencies must focus less on manual tweaks and more on strategy, first-party data, and creative excellence.

The winners won’t be those who resist automation, but those who guide it with smarter inputs and sharper insights.