Demand Gen Campaigns in Google Ads: What You Need to Know

Demand Gen campaigns represent Google's biggest evolution in upper-funnel advertising since the launch of Discovery ads. Released as the successor to Discovery campaigns in 2023, Demand Gen has matured significantly by 2026 into a powerful tool for reaching new audiences across YouTube, Gmail, and Google Discover — all from a single campaign type.

This guide explains what Demand Gen campaigns are, how they differ from other campaign types, and how to use them effectively to generate awareness, interest, and ultimately conversions for your business.

What Are Demand Gen Campaigns?

Demand Gen campaigns are a Google Ads campaign type designed to reach and engage potential customers across Google's most visual, content-rich surfaces. They serve ads on:

• YouTube: In-stream, in-feed, and Shorts placements
• Google Discover: The personalised content feed on Android devices and the Google app
• Gmail: The Promotions and Social tabs of Gmail

Unlike Search campaigns that capture existing demand (people actively searching for your product), Demand Gen campaigns create demand by putting your brand in front of people who match your ideal customer profile but aren't yet actively searching for what you sell.

How Demand Gen Replaced Discovery Campaigns

Google retired Discovery campaigns and automatically upgraded them to Demand Gen in late 2023. The key improvements include:

• YouTube placements: Discovery campaigns didn't serve on YouTube — Demand Gen does, massively expanding reach
• Video ad support: You can now use video creative alongside image ads within the same campaign
• Lookalike segments: Expanded audience tools that mirror Meta's lookalike audiences
• A/B creative testing: Built-in experiment tools for testing creative variations
• More bidding options: Including Maximise Clicks alongside conversion-focused strategies

If you're comparing Demand Gen with Performance Max campaigns, the key difference is control. Performance Max automates everything across all Google channels. Demand Gen gives you more control over placements, audiences, and creative while still benefiting from Google's machine learning.

When to Use Demand Gen Campaigns

Demand Gen is most effective in these scenarios:

• Brand awareness: Introducing your brand to new audiences who aren't searching for you yet
• Product launches: Creating buzz and interest around new products or services
• Top-of-funnel lead generation: Capturing email addresses and building remarketing audiences
• Competitive positioning: Reaching your competitors' audiences with compelling alternative messaging
• Supplementing search: Expanding beyond the limitations of intent-based search advertising

Demand Gen works particularly well alongside a strong remarketing strategy. You use Demand Gen to introduce prospects to your brand, then YouTube ads and display remarketing to nurture them toward conversion.

Audience Targeting in Demand Gen

Demand Gen's audience capabilities are its strongest feature and what differentiates it from other Google campaign types:

Custom Segments

Build audiences based on people's recent Google search activity, app usage, or website visits. For example, target people who searched for terms related to your product category in the last 14 days — bridging the gap between search intent and visual advertising.

Lookalike Segments

Similar to Meta's lookalike audiences, Google's lookalike segments find new users who share characteristics with your existing customers or website visitors. You can choose between narrow (top 2.5%), balanced (top 5%), and broad (top 10%) targeting, controlling the trade-off between precision and reach.

In-Market and Affinity Audiences

Layer Google's pre-built audience segments to reach people actively shopping in your category (in-market) or with long-term relevant interests (affinity). These work well as supplementary signals alongside custom segments.

Customer Match and First-Party Data

Upload your customer lists to target existing customers or create lookalike audiences based on your best customers. With first-party data becoming increasingly valuable as third-party cookies phase out, this is one of the most powerful features available. When comparing approach strategies, our Google Ads vs Meta Ads guide covers how audience targeting differs between platforms.

Creative Best Practices for Demand Gen

Demand Gen supports both image and video creative, and using both together typically outperforms either alone. Here's how to get the most from each format:

Image Ads

• Use high-quality lifestyle imagery: Demand Gen placements are content-rich environments — your ads need to feel native, not disruptive
• Provide multiple aspect ratios: Square (1:1), landscape (1.91:1), and portrait (4:5) to ensure optimal display across all placements
• Test product-focused vs. lifestyle imagery: Different audiences respond to different visual approaches
• Include clear branding: Users may not click — make sure brand impression is conveyed even at a glance

Video Ads

• Keep it under 30 seconds: Shorter videos perform better in feed-based environments
• Design for sound-off: Many users browse with sound muted — use captions, text overlays, and visual storytelling
• Hook in the first 3 seconds: You're competing with organic content for attention
• End with a clear CTA: Tell viewers exactly what to do next

Ad Copy

Provide multiple headlines and descriptions so Google can test combinations. Write copy that sparks curiosity or addresses a pain point — remember, these users aren't searching for you, so your messaging needs to interrupt and earn attention.

Bidding Strategies for Demand Gen

Choose your bidding strategy based on your campaign objective:

• Maximise Clicks: Best for driving traffic and building remarketing audiences. Use when you're starting out and need data
• Maximise Conversions: Let Google find users most likely to convert. Requires at least 50 conversions per month for reliable optimisation
• Target CPA: Set your target cost per conversion once you have enough data to establish a baseline
• Target ROAS: Optimise for revenue. Best for e-commerce with reliable conversion value tracking

Start with Maximise Clicks to gather data, then transition to conversion-based bidding once you've accumulated enough conversion signals. Allow 2–4 weeks of learning before judging performance.

Measuring Demand Gen Performance

Traditional last-click metrics don't tell the full story for demand generation campaigns. Track these metrics instead:

• View-through conversions: Users who saw your ad and later converted without clicking
• Assisted conversions in GA4: How often Demand Gen appears in multi-touch conversion paths
• New user percentage: What proportion of traffic from Demand Gen is first-time visitors
• Branded search lift: Monitor branded search volume before and after launching Demand Gen
• Audience growth: Track the size of your remarketing audiences — healthy growth indicates effective prospecting
• Engagement metrics: Video completion rates, click-through rates, and time on site after clicking

Demand Gen vs. Performance Max: Which Should You Use?

Both campaign types use Google's AI, but they serve different purposes:

• Use Demand Gen when: You want control over creative and audiences, you're focused on upper-funnel awareness, or you want to run campaigns specifically on YouTube, Gmail, and Discover
• Use Performance Max when: You want maximum reach across all Google surfaces including Search and Shopping, you're optimising for conversions with less concern about which placement drives them
• Use both: Demand Gen for prospecting and awareness, Performance Max for conversion-focused campaigns. They complement each other well

Common Demand Gen Mistakes

• Evaluating on last-click CPA: Demand Gen influences conversions that are attributed to other campaigns. Look at the full picture
• Under-investing in creative: This is a visual format — stock images and lazy copy won't cut it
• Too narrow audiences: Demand Gen needs audience scale to optimise. Start broader and narrow based on data
• No remarketing follow-up: Demand Gen fills the top of your funnel, but you need middle and bottom funnel campaigns to convert those prospects
• Killing campaigns too early: Allow 4–6 weeks for the algorithm to learn. Pausing after one week of mediocre results wastes the learning investment

Demand Gen campaigns are essential for businesses looking to grow beyond the ceiling of search advertising. At Spires Digital, we build integrated campaign strategies that use Demand Gen to feed your entire marketing funnel. Book a free strategy consultation via our Calendly to explore how Demand Gen can complement your existing Google Ads campaigns.