Reading Time: 5 minutesIt’s August, and businesses are already gearing up for the most profitable but competitive time of the year. Smart advertisers are testing their holiday PPC campaigns before the market is inundated with deals and promotions, and the cost per click (CPC) and cost per acquisition (CPA) go up.
It seems too early, but it is actually not when you consider the data on online holiday shopping trends. Adobe for Business found that 8% of shoppers started looking for deals as early as September in 2024 to spread out their financial burden from the holidays across multiple months. With the growth of Buy Now Pay Later programs and the looming economic uncertainties in the market, this trend will continue this year.
Besides, it makes sense to collect data for your PPC campaigns well in advance so you can make adjustments before the peak period to maximize your sales. Ideally, your campaigns should start running by the first week of September to convert early buyers.
If you’re starting to panic at the thought of putting together and testing all aspects of the campaign (copy, creatives, strategy, and landing pages) all within less than a month — Don’t. Instead, count yourself lucky that we live in the time of AI. Using a combination of GenerativeAI tools like ChatGPT and the new native AI tools like AI Max within Google Ads, you can tackle most problems associated with holiday PPC campaigns. Let us show you how.
New AI-Powered Google Ad Features to Automate Profitable Changes
Aside from dealing with high competition and acquisition costs, advertisers face two primary challenges with their holiday PPC campaigns:
- Managing unpredictable shopper behavior, like early deal hunting and switching between devices. Regardless of how and when customers look for products you sell, ad placement should be personalized, the creative and the landing page must fit the device size, and delivery must match their search intent in real-time for optimal conversions.
- Popular products can go out of stock during peak shopping season, which can lead to wasted ad spend if campaigns aren’t updated in time.
Google’s new AI features help solve both of these challenges.
AI Max and Brand Controls
AI Max is the latest upgrade of Performance Max campaigns. It hooks up with your product feed on Google Merchant Center and uses real-time signals like stock availability, product prices, search trends, and device type to adjust which ads are shown, where they are shown, and how much you bid to win a desired placement. For example, if an item goes out of stock, it stops promoting it, and if search demand spikes on mobile for a high-margin product, it increases mobile bids automatically.
As of May 2025, all brand controls have been moved under AI Max, too. Now, you can set rules about where your ads appear (like avoiding certain brands or categories), and the system applies those filters as it optimizes. This allows you to maintain both control and flexibility during peak shopping season.
Virtual Try-Ons (VTO) and 3D Spins:
Google has just launched two AI shopping tools: Virtual try-ons and Smarter Price Alerts. Both are already live in the US. The former pairs well with an existing feature within Google Merchant Center that allows you to display your products with a 360-spin.
Both virtual try-ons and 3D spin features help reduce returns and improve buyer confidence by showing products more realistically before purchase, so it makes sense to use them together. VTO lets shoppers see how products like glasses or makeup look on them using their phone camera, while 3D spins let users rotate and examine products (like shoes or bags) from every angle.
You previously needed to have your product content in 3D to make use of 360-spin, but now it is as simple as uploading three images of your product to Google Merchant Center. It then uses its native GenerativeAI (Gemini) to generate it for you.
These immersive experiences are powered by your product images and feed data. Once enabled, Google automatically adds them to eligible Shopping ads across Search, YouTube, and other ad networks. During the holidays, this can boost engagement and conversion rates—especially for fashion, beauty, and lifestyle products where “fit” or appearance plays a key role.
Price Drop Alerts and Badges
Launched just recently along with Virtual Try-outs, these smart pricing features make it easier for both customers to find better deals and for sellers to obtain better prices for their products.
Price Drop Badges appear automatically on Shopping ads when Google detects that a product is being sold at a lower price than its recent average. It uses historical pricing data from your feed to determine whether a drop is significant enough to be highlighted.
On the other hand, Price Drop Alerts are opt-in notifications shown to logged-in users who have shown interest in a product. If you have tried the “alert me when this flight price drops” alert on Skyscanner before, you already know how these work. Google has just made this feature available to all sellers now. When the price decreases, users are notified, increasing the chance they will return and complete their purchase.
How do they help? These price signals boost urgency and purchase intent, especially during high-traffic shopping periods like Black Friday or the holiday season. Shoppers actively hunting for deals are more likely to click on products with a visible badge or respond to a timely alert. You get increased visibility and conversions without the need for separate discount campaigns.
Smarter Ways to Get More from AI for Ads
Google’s latest AI updates are powerful, but you still need human discretion in the mix. For instance, if there are errors in your Google Merchant Center pricing or a gap in the data, these new features won’t even work for you. It’s best to check your primary account-level info and product feed before you start experimenting with new campaigns.
But your involvement certainly doesn’t stop there. Sure, you can use AI to generate and optimize assets, but you still need to prompt the AI with correct input for the best results.
Here’s how to get more out of your campaigns:
- Feed it stronger creatives: Use AI tools to quickly create multiple ad variations, then layer in your brand tone and value props. Rotate in new creatives often so Performance Max has fresh assets to test.
- Use audience data to shape targeting: Sync first-party segments from your CRM or email platform into Google Ads. AI works better when it starts with people who already look like your best customers.
- Prioritize mobile-first assets: Holiday traffic is mostly mobile. Feed Google Ads vertical videos, responsive creatives, and landing pages that load fast on smaller screens. This sets the right precedent for AI.
- Monitor the insights and act on them: Performance Max uncovers search trends, asset performance, and audience shifts. Use these reports to double down on what is working and pull back where you see waste.
Final Words
If data for last year is any indication, economic uncertainties impact profitability for all other periods of business, except the holiday season. In fact, despite the looming recession and inflation, 2024 saw an 8.7% increase in online holiday spend compared to the previous year. Businesses that stand to recover their profits this holiday season need to have their ducks in a row before mid-September to have enough time to test landing pages and gather ad data for improvements. Start familiarizing yourself with new AI-powered features now to leverage them effectively come peak holiday shopping season.
Also, remember: AI is a tool, not a strategist. It can work faster than any manual approach, but you still need to feed it the right information and creatives for the best results.
Still not sure where to start? Vizion Interactive can help with your shopping campaigns.
At Vizion Interactive, we have the expertise, experience, and enthusiasm to get results and keep clients happy! Learn more about how our status as a Google Partner, along with our PPC Management, Google Shopping Ads, Social Media Advertising, Amazon Advertising, and other Paid Media services can increase sales and boost your ROI. But don’t just take our word for it, check out what our clients have to say, along with our case studies.
