Paid Media News & Opinion #129

Demand Gen campaigns bring Promoted Pins to Google Maps

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> What’s happening

An addition to the huge list of Google Marketing Live 2025 updates from last week, Promoted Pins on Google Maps will now be available via Demand Gen campaigns, displaying physical business information as users browse and search for directions. They are already available via Performance Max.

Demand Gen campaigns will offer this inventory as part of its wide range of placements across visual surfaces, which also include Gmail and YouTube. Google say this will help ‘drive foot traffic to physical stores’ during high-intent moments.

The pins include business name, logo, opening times, contact info, links to website/app and promotions.

> Why we care

Demand Gen is an often-overlooked campaign type with many features not available on Performance Max, such as lookalike audiences, as well as being tailored to non-search placements which are ideal for physical businesses. At ad group level, there will be some customisation of assets, copy and targeting that can help tailor these ads nicely to particular locations.

Google Maps has shifted culturally in recent years, becoming more and more of a place for discovery. This ad placements helps highlight businesses to users during these key discovery moments.

Google lowers customer match list minimum

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> What’s happening

Google has significantly reduced the minimum user threshold for Customer Match lists in Search campaigns. It has been brought down from 1,000 users to just 100. This change could be a big win for small and midsize businesses, making access to precision audience targeting far easier.

The update allows advertisers to use Customer Match in Search campaigns with as few as 100 users, the shift brings Google Search in line with YouTube’s current list requirements. However, it’s important to note that the change applies exclusively to Customer Match lists. Other audience types like remarketing lists still have different thresholds.

This adjustment reflects a broader trend within Google’s ad ecosystem, pushing for greater consistency and inclusivity across its platforms.

> Why we care

Previously, only large advertisers with substantial user data could take advantage of Customer Match targeting on Google search. With this update, smaller businesses without access to large databases can access and run highly targeted, intent-based campaigns.

With the new 100-user threshold, small advertisers now have a much greater opportunity to tap into one of Google Search’s most powerful targeting tools, making intent-driven marketing more accessible than ever. That said, as with any data-driven strategy, more data typically leads to better performance. While it remains to be seen how smaller audience segments will perform, advertisers should aim to go beyond the minimum requirements by feeding platforms like Google with as much high-quality data as possible to maximize results.

More broadly, this update indicates how Google is addressing targeting precision amid growing privacy constraints, still enabling tailored marketing without requiring large-scale databases.

YouTube launching side-by-side ads during livestreams

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> What’s happening

YouTube has launched side-by-side mid-roll ads for livestreams on connected TVs and the web. There’s two options for live streamers:

Take a Break Ads - creators choose either 1, 3 or 5 minutes as a break time with a default “break” message or custom video to viewers during that time, while eligible viewers will be served ads during that break

Side-by-Side Ads - these run alongside the livestream, with the audio from the livestream muted while the ads play, with no actual break in the livestream content.

This update is part of YouTube’s broader push to improve monetisation options for creators.

> Why we care

It’s another potential placement for advertisers to a highly engaged audience, so that’s a positive. We do have some concerns about the experience all round for the Side-by-Side Ads, as the livestream audio muting during that time will heavily impact the experience of the viewer. This in turn is likely to cause a lot of frustration and negativity, which is not the mindset advertisers will want viewers of their ads to feel.

If the ads were muted - similar to TV ads often seen on US sportscasts - then it would be less intrusive, but the current planned format needs more thought. The “Take a Break Ads” feel like a smarter move and more in-line with typical advertising, but it’s unclear whether advertisers will have control over which format their ads would potentially appear in.

What else we've been talking about:

• Google rolls out simplified Enhanced Conversions setup in Tag Manager

• Discord enters the Ad arena

• You’ve Implemented LinkedIn’s Conversions API: Here’s How to Maximize Its Impact

• Unlock Pipeline Growth and Revenue Impact with Attribution Enhancements

• The Hagakure method for Google Ads management