Performance Max is powerful, but many advertisers worry about it cannibalizing their Search campaigns. There's a solution: feed-only Performance Max. By omitting creative assets, you can tap into PMax's AI-driven conversion optimization for Shopping and Display while keeping your Search text ads separate.
This guide explains how to set up feed-only Performance Max campaigns, when this approach makes sense, and the trade-offs you should consider.
What Is Feed-Only Performance Max?
A feed-only Performance Max campaign is simply a PMax campaign where you only provide your product feed - no text headlines, descriptions, images, or videos in the asset group.
Performance Max requires certain assets to serve on certain placements:
- Shopping placements: Only need product feed
- Display placements: Can use product images from feed
- Search text ads: Require headlines + descriptions
- YouTube: Can use product feed for product ads
- Discover/Gmail: Can use product images from feed
By not providing text assets (headlines, descriptions), you prevent PMax from creating Search text ads. The campaign will still run on Shopping, Display, Discover, Gmail, and product-based YouTube placements.
Key Insight
Feed-only PMax gives you the AI optimization benefits of Performance Max for Shopping traffic while preserving your ability to run separate, controlled Search campaigns. It's a middle ground between full PMax and Standard Shopping.
Why Use Feed-Only Performance Max?
Protect Your Search Campaigns
Full Performance Max takes priority over Search campaigns for query matching. If you have well-optimized Search campaigns with carefully managed keywords and bids, PMax can cannibalize that traffic.
Feed-only PMax avoids this by not competing for text ad placements. Your Search campaigns continue to handle Search traffic while PMax optimizes Shopping.
Get AI Optimization for Shopping
Standard Shopping gives you control but requires manual bid management. Feed-only PMax provides:
- Real-time bid adjustments based on conversion likelihood
- Cross-channel optimization across Shopping and Display
- Automated product prioritization based on performance
- Goal-based optimization (Target ROAS/Maximize Conversions)
Expand Beyond Shopping
Unlike Standard Shopping, feed-only PMax can serve your products on:
- Display Network: Product-based display ads using your feed images
- Discover feed: Product recommendations in Google Discover
- Gmail: Product ads in Gmail Promotions tab
- YouTube: Product-based video ads (limited without video assets)
This expands your product visibility beyond pure Shopping placements without requiring you to create separate Display campaigns. However, keep in mind that PMax does not report impression share metrics, making visibility measurement more challenging.
How to Set Up Feed-Only Performance Max
Step 1: Create the Campaign
- In Google Ads, click + New campaign
- Select your goal (Sales or Leads)
- Choose "Performance Max" as campaign type
- Select your Merchant Center account when prompted
- Set your bidding strategy (Target ROAS or Maximize Conversion Value)
- Set your daily budget
Step 2: Configure Listing Groups
- In the asset group section, connect your product feed
- Set up listing groups to include the products you want
- You can segment by brand, category, custom labels, etc.
- Exclude products you don't want in this campaign
Step 3: Skip Creative Assets (Critical Step)
This is the key to feed-only setup:
- When prompted to add assets to your asset group, do not add any text assets
- Skip headlines, long headlines, and descriptions
- Skip image uploads (the campaign will use your product feed images)
- Skip video uploads
- You may see warnings about missing assets - this is expected
Important
Google will encourage you to add assets and may show warnings. You can proceed without them. The campaign will run with limited placements, which is exactly what you want for a feed-only approach.
Step 4: Add Audience Signals (Optional)
Even without creative assets, you can add audience signals to guide the AI:
- Custom segments based on search terms or website visitors
- Your data (remarketing lists, customer match)
- Interests and demographics
These are hints, not hard targeting, but they help PMax find the right users.
Step 5: Launch and Monitor
- Review all settings and launch the campaign
- Allow 2-3 weeks learning period
- Monitor placement reports to confirm no Search text ads are serving
- Track performance against your Shopping benchmarks
Benefits of Feed-Only Performance Max
1. Search Campaign Protection
Your Search campaigns continue unchanged. You maintain control over keywords, bids, and ad copy without PMax interference. This is especially valuable if you have brand campaigns, competitor campaigns, or highly optimized non-brand Search campaigns.
2. AI-Powered Shopping Optimization
Performance Max's machine learning, built on Google's AI infrastructure, optimizes bids and product selection in real-time based on:
- User signals (device, location, time, demographics)
- Historical conversion patterns
- Cross-product performance data
- Auction dynamics
3. Extended Reach
Standard Shopping only serves on Shopping and Search product ads. Feed-only PMax adds Display, Discover, Gmail, and YouTube placements - all using your existing product feed images. Google is also expanding product ad placements further with shopping ads inside AI Mode, making your feed the key to visibility across an ever-growing number of surfaces.
4. Simpler Management
No need to create and test creative assets. Your product feed does the work. This reduces setup time and ongoing creative maintenance.
5. Works Alongside Standard Shopping
You can run feed-only PMax and Standard Shopping together. Use Standard Shopping for products where you want control, and feed-only PMax for products where you want AI optimization.
Drawbacks and Limitations
1. Limited Reach Compared to Full PMax
By skipping creative assets, you miss:
- Search text ads (significant volume for many advertisers)
- High-quality Display ads with custom images
- YouTube video ads with custom content
Feed-only PMax will have lower total reach than full PMax with all assets.
2. Less Control Than Standard Shopping
You lose many Standard Shopping controls:
- No product-level bidding
- No campaign-level negative keywords
- Limited search term visibility
- No impression share data
3. Black Box Optimization
Even feed-only PMax has Performance Max's reporting limitations. As Search Engine Land has documented, you won't see the detailed product-level, search term-level insights available in Standard Shopping.
4. Google May Encourage Full Assets
Google's interface and recommendations push you toward adding assets. You may see "limited" warnings and suggestions. The campaign works without them, but Google clearly prefers full PMax.
5. May Still Show Some Shopping Ads on Search
Feed-only PMax will still show Shopping ads (product images) on Search results - just not text ads. If you want to prevent all Search presence, Standard Shopping with Search partners disabled is more controlled.
When to Use Feed-Only Performance Max
Good Fit For:
- Advertisers with strong Search campaigns: You've invested in Search campaign optimization and don't want PMax cannibalizing it
- Testing PMax without full commitment: Try PMax optimization on Shopping without disrupting your whole account
- Limited creative resources: You can't produce quality images and videos for full PMax
- Products that sell well visually: Fashion, home goods, electronics - where product images are compelling
- Complementing Standard Shopping: Use both to test which approach works better for different products - see our Shopping vs PMax comparison for details
Not Ideal For:
- Maximizing total reach: Full PMax or separate campaigns for each channel will reach more users
- Products needing explanation: Complex products that benefit from Search ad copy
- Advertisers wanting maximum control: Standard Shopping offers more levers
- Accounts without Search campaigns: No need to protect what doesn't exist
Feed-Only PMax vs Alternatives
| Factor | Feed-Only PMax | Full PMax | Standard Shopping |
|---|---|---|---|
| Search text ads | No | Yes (takes priority) | No |
| Shopping ads | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Display placement | Yes (product ads) | Yes (full creative) | No |
| Bid control | Goal-based only | Goal-based only | Full control |
| Negative keywords | Account-level only | Account-level only | Campaign/ad group |
| Product reporting | Limited | Limited | Full detail |
| Setup effort | Low | Medium (need assets) | Medium (need structure) |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a feed-only Performance Max campaign?
A feed-only Performance Max campaign uses only your product feed without adding creative assets (images, videos, headlines, descriptions). Without text assets, PMax cannot create Search text ads and will primarily serve on Shopping and Display placements. This lets you use PMax's AI-driven bidding while keeping your Search campaigns separate.
Why would I run feed-only Performance Max instead of full PMax?
Feed-only PMax makes sense when you want PMax's conversion optimization for Shopping but don't want it competing with your Search campaigns. Full PMax takes priority over Search campaigns for text ad placements, which can cannibalize well-optimized Search campaigns. Feed-only avoids this while still benefiting from PMax's AI for Shopping traffic.
Can Performance Max run without creative assets?
Yes. If you only provide a product feed and don't add text assets, images, or videos to your asset group, Performance Max will run but will be limited to placements that can use your product feed directly - primarily Shopping and product-based Display ads. It won't create text Search ads without the required assets.
What placements does feed-only Performance Max use?
Feed-only Performance Max primarily serves on: Google Shopping, Google Display Network (using product images from your feed), Discover feed, Gmail (product ads), and YouTube (product-based video ads if available). It won't serve text ads on Search because it lacks the required text assets.
Should I use feed-only PMax or Standard Shopping?
Use feed-only PMax if you want automated bidding with AI optimization and don't mind less control. Use Standard Shopping if you need detailed product-level reporting, negative keyword control, and full bid transparency. Many advertisers test both to compare performance.
Conclusion
Feed-only Performance Max offers a middle ground for advertisers who want PMax's AI optimization without sacrificing control over Search campaigns:
- Protect Search campaigns from PMax cannibalization
- Get AI optimization for Shopping and Display
- Extend reach beyond pure Shopping placements
- Reduce setup complexity by skipping creative assets
The trade-off is reduced reach compared to full PMax and less control compared to Standard Shopping. But for many advertisers - especially those with strong Search campaigns they want to protect - feed-only PMax hits the right balance.
Consider testing feed-only PMax alongside your existing campaigns. Compare its Shopping performance against Standard Shopping, and monitor whether it reaches incremental users on Display and Discover that you weren't reaching before. The data will tell you whether this hybrid approach works for your business.