Retire These Google Ads Tactics
🛑 Drop outdated Google Ads tactics, then learn why Gen Z now shops through AI summaries
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💡 Google Ads Tactics to Phase Out Before 2026
Google Ads keeps shifting toward automation, and some long-standing PPC habits no longer pull their weight. Sarah Vlietstra highlights the tactics advertisers should retire and what to focus on instead as we move into 2026.
1️⃣ Relying on Phrase Match Keywords: Phrase match once offered a balance between control and scale, but its role has weakened. Today, broad match interprets intent far better, while exact match provides the precision phrase match that can’t match. Sitting awkwardly in the middle, phrase match is now too restrictive to scale and too loose to stay efficient.
2️⃣ Avoiding Standard Shopping Campaigns: Despite Google’s push toward Performance Max, Standard Shopping still wins in control and clarity. After the 2024 ad rank update, many advertisers see better performance through: • Product level insights • Clear attribution • Safer placements • Stronger brand protection Standard Shopping isn’t outdated. It’s a strategic advantage.
3️⃣ Using GA4 as Your Primary Conversion Source: Smart Bidding relies on real-time, accurate signals. GA4 events are delayed and often attribute conversions differently from Google Ads tags. This misalignment weakens automated bidding. GA4 is great for analysis, but it shouldn’t be your main conversion metric inside Ads.
4️⃣ Letting Performance Max Capture Branded Queries: PMax loves branded search because it boosts ROAS, but it also hides true incremental performance. Separating branded terms into their own campaign gives clearer visibility and more control. The exception: If account history, structure, or budget limit flexibility, keeping branded terms inside PMax may be more efficient.
5️⃣ Over-optimizing Responsive Search Ads (RSAs): Advertisers are shifting away from stuffing as many assets as possible into RSAs. Fewer, higher-quality assets with light pinning deliver better results. And remember: Ad Strength is a diagnostic, not a KPI. Chasing “Excellent” scores can hurt performance, even if Google says otherwise.
The Takeaway
Top advertisers in 2026 won’t fight automation. They’ll feed it the right signals. Focus on strategic inputs like clean conversion data, clearer campaign structure, and selective keyword control so automation can deliver stronger, more sustainable results.
💡 Young Consumers Are Becoming AI-First Shoppers
Search behavior is undergoing a generational shift. Millennials and Gen Z are no longer sifting through endless search results. They’re turning to AI summaries as their default way to discover information, products, and brands. And the numbers show just how fast this change is happening.
1️⃣ AI Summaries Are Replacing Traditional Search: New data reveals that: • 59 percent of Gen Z and 56 percent of Millennials rely on AI summaries for most of their online searches • Compared to just 32 percent of Gen X • And only 17 percent of Boomers Younger shoppers aren’t browsing links. They’re reading AI-generated answers.
2️⃣ This Changes How People Find Your Brand: If AI summaries become the first stop for younger audiences, SEO as we know it transforms. It’s no longer just about ranking on search results pages. It’s about earning a spot inside the AI summary itself. If your content isn’t digestible for AI, a huge segment of users may never see it.
3️⃣ The Good News for Marketers: If you’ve followed traditional SEO best practices, you already have a foundation for what some are calling AIO or AI-Optimized content. Experts like Ryan Law from Ahrefs confirm that clean structure, clarity, and valuable information often translate well into AI summaries.
4️⃣ How to Adapt Your Content for AI: Shift from writing for search engines to writing for AI understanding. • Use clear, concise language • Answer direct questions (who, what, why, how) • Organize content with structured data • Present information in formats AI can easily parse This ensures your content is feature-ready instead of becoming a digital fossil buried behind AI summaries.
The Takeaway
Younger generations are forming new search habits powered by AI. If your content isn’t optimized for these summaries, you risk disappearing from the discovery process. But with structured data, clear writing, and foundational SEO, you can position your brand where Gen Z and Millennials are already looking.
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