What Is Performance Max?
Performance Max (PMax) is Google's campaign type that uses machine learning to automatically serve ads across all Google inventory - including Shopping, Search, Display, YouTube, Discover, Gmail, and Maps - from a single campaign. Advertisers provide creative assets (images, videos, headlines, descriptions, logos) and Google's AI assembles them into ads optimised for each placement and user.
PMax campaigns are designed to maximise conversions or conversion value against a target ROAS or CPA, using Google's first-party signals (search history, purchase intent, demographics) to find and convert the highest-value users.
Creative Assets in PMax
The quality and variety of creative assets uploaded to a PMax campaign directly affect its performance. Google's own data shows that campaigns with high-quality assets (high "asset group rating") consistently outperform those with low-quality assets. Images and videos are the most critical - PMax requires multiple image sizes (landscape, square, portrait) and ideally at least one video.
Many PMax campaigns underperform because advertisers upload only packshot images and no video. Adding lifestyle images and Bryft-generated product videos to PMax asset groups routinely improves campaign efficiency significantly.
PMax Asset Requirements
- Images: at least 3 landscape (1.91:1), 3 square (1:1), and 1 portrait (4:5)
- Video: at least one (15–30 seconds recommended); auto-generated if missing
- Logos: at least one square and one landscape version
- Headlines: minimum 3 short (30 characters) and 5 long (90 characters)
- Final URL: must be a relevant, fast-loading page
Real-World Example
A homeware brand refreshes their PMax asset groups with Bryft-generated lifestyle images (replacing packshots) and 15-second product videos (replacing auto-generated video). Asset group quality score improves from "Low" to "Excellent". Within four weeks, PMax campaign ROAS improves from 4.1x to 6.8x, and the campaign accounts for 38% of total digital revenue - up from 18%.