It has been a significant year of change across PPC, especially with the increasing use of AI overviews and LLMs contributing to a new search landscape. PPC agencies are having to be more strategic in how they achieve their KPIs for clients, and stay as up-to-date as possible on the changes happening.
In this article, we’ve rounded up some of the key PPC trends in 2025, and what these shifts could mean as we enter 2026. From PMax updates to smarter automation and AI, here’s what you need to know:
Performance Max Updates
There have been many new features rolled out in Google Ads this year for Performance Max campaigns to help advertisers more accurately report on successes and learnings within their accounts and have greater control of the activity.
Channel placement report
One of the main ones is the channel placement report, which allows advertisers to see exactly which placements Google is serving your ads to, something which was previously completely unknown. This was initially impression, engagement and conversion data, but cost has also been later added.
Why is this useful? It allows advertisers to identify which placements work well for them, and guide what within the campaign may need updating – whether that is placement exclusions, updated creative or amendments to the search themes and signals.
Campaign-level negative keywords
Campaign-level negative keywords have been incredibly useful. Previously, negatives could only be applied at account level, limiting precision. Now, we can easily block irrelevant search terms, enabling more targeted segmentation of activity by service, product, region or audience.
Not only does this lead to increased traffic relevancy and ROI, but it also reduces wasted ad spend and saves time on constant monitoring. For instance, you can block competitor terms without affecting other campaigns.
Creative suggestions
Additional creative suggestions have also been rolled out. These provide advertisers with guided insights into which images may need updating, alongside recommendations to remove a background or suggest other adjustments to improve engagement.
These make it a whole lot easier for teams to refresh their assets quickly (without full redesigns), so creatives are always aligned with the audience’s preferences, ultimately boosting click-through rates, conversions, and overall campaign performance.
AI Max
AI Max is one of the newest features launched across Google Ads this year, now appearing in all accounts for testing. It is designed to leverage machine learning more efficiently, helping to enhance campaigns, identify high-performing segments and make smarter decisions.
Better search term matching
AI Max utilises Google AI to optimise ad copy and search term matching in real-time, suggesting new relevant, high-performing search queries and showing them the most relevant ad with customised text.
You have to use broad match with AI Max, so it can reach the widest range of search queries; however, the technology behind this campaign toggle is greater than just broad match targeting itself.
Benefits include Google sending users to the most relevant landing page after serving them the most relevant ad copy, thereby improving user journeys that would otherwise require testing.
Reporting
Reporting is also available in AI Max. Advertisers can now see performance across both manually created and automatically generated assets, giving clear visibility over which headlines, images, or videos are working (and not).
The reports offer actionable data on CTR, impressions, ROAS and conversions, allowing us to optimise creative and bidding strategies. Plus, intuitive dashboards and exportable data make it simpler than ever to spot trends or gaps all in one place.
As with all new Google Ads products, there has to be a close eye given to the details of campaign performance, and what traffic and types of messaging Google is serving. There will likely be continued updates to AI Max, as we saw with Performance Max, before it fully reaches its potential and is used across all accounts.
The ‘Zero-Click’ Age
One broader trend that is continually being mentioned across PPC blogs and LinkedIn is the move into the ‘zero-click’ age, with the introduction and uptake of so much AI use. This is something we have seen happening across our clients and have been strategising against for a while now.
Diversifying beyond Google search
Users are seeking information from a wide range of platforms, not just Google search. This has led AI overviews to pull answers from relevant videos, podcasts, and blog content, creating a richer user experience that delivers quick, comprehensive information.
Providing deeper, detailed content
To follow, users also expect deeper content that gets straight to the point of their questions with as much detail as possible. Short, shallow pages are losing ground as audiences (and search engines) favour longer-form content, detailed guides, and step-by-step instructions to satisfy their queries — saving them time endlessly scrolling through the SERPs.
How does this impact PPC?
When analysing year-on-year data, we see a significant decline in click-through rates across our accounts. As more users seek information from AI overviews, alternative platforms and LLMs, we have to consider at what stage during their user journey they use Google search and how, through PPC, we can be there with the right ad to bring them to our client’s sites.
Using other campaign types beyond search, such as Performance Max and AI Max, can also help broaden reach and generate learnings which feed into this new ‘Age’, and how we can successfully be part of it through our PPC activity.
Ready to make 2026 your most successful year in PPC?
Understanding the latest trends is only the first step. At Candidsky, we specialise in creating data-driven PPC campaigns that reach the right audience, maximise ROI and keep you ahead of the competition.
Whether you’re looking to optimise your existing pay-per-click efforts or launch a new strategy across search, shopping, or display, our team is here to guide you every step of the way, so that every pound you invest works harder for your business.
Get in touch today by filling out our contact form or calling us on 0161 9656, and we’ll be happy to help with your enquiry.