5 Little-Known Methods to Boost Google Ads Performance with AI
The digital marketing landscape is undergoing a seismic shift, driven by artificial intelligence (AI) and automation. Google Ads, once a platform dominated by manual bidding and segmented campaigns, is now evolving into an AI-powered ecosystem that bridges branding and performance. This transformation is not just about technology—it’s about adapting to changing consumer behaviors. The Boston Consulting Group’s 4S model (streaming, scrolling, searching, and shopping) highlights how modern consumers move fluidly across digital touchpoints, demanding a seamless experience.
Leading brands like Fielmann, Delivery Hero, and Santalucía are at the forefront of this revolution. Fielmann, a European eyewear giant, leveraged Demand Gen campaigns to unify upper- and lower-funnel strategies, achieving a 7.7% increase in purchase intent and a 24% lift in conversions. Meanwhile, Delivery Hero used AI-driven bidding to double customer lifetime value in Latin America, while Santalucía’s value-based bidding strategy boosted ROI by 64%. These case studies prove that the future of Google Ads lies in automation, data integration, and AI-driven decision-making.
Ⅰ. Bridging Branding and Performance with Demand Gen
Fielmann’s journey from traditional TV and outdoor advertising to digital performance marketing illustrates the power of Demand Gen. Historically, the brand relied on broad-reach branding campaigns, but as online sales grew, it needed a strategy that could engage consumers across multiple touchpoints. The challenge was clear: How could Fielmann maintain its strong brand presence while driving measurable conversions?
The answer came in the form of Google’s Demand Gen campaigns, which combine YouTube, Discovery, and Gmail placements with AI-powered audience targeting. By running visually rich ads on YouTube Shorts and Discovery, Fielmann reached younger demographics while simultaneously tracking performance metrics like add-to-cart rates and search volume. The results were striking—12 million impressions, a 7.7% lift in purchase intent, and a 24% increase in conversions. What surprised the team most was that Demand Gen didn’t just drive awareness; it directly contributed to revenue, proving that branding and performance are no longer siloed disciplines.
Ⅱ. AI-Driven Bidding Strategies for Customer Acquisition
For Delivery Hero, the challenge was optimizing customer acquisition in highly competitive markets. The company’s three-tiered AI strategy—ranging from basic audience signals to predictive modeling—demonstrates how AI can balance reach and profitability. In Southeast Asia , Delivery Hero’s Foodpanda brand achieved a 52% increase in ROAS by integrating first-party data into Google Ads. In Latin America , PedidosYa doubled customer lifetime value by using Target ROAS bidding to prioritize high-value users.
The key insight? AI thrives on data but requires trust. Delivery Hero initially hesitated to fully automate bidding, fearing a loss of control. However, tests proved that AI could outperform manual strategies by dynamically adjusting bids based on real-time signals. By feeding Google AI with predictive customer lifetime value (LTV) data, Delivery Hero ensured that campaigns prioritized users who would generate long-term revenue, not just one-time orders.
Topkee's approach to leveraging AI-driven tools like TTO initialization settings and smart bidding strategies to optimize Google Ads performance. Their comprehensive services, including keyword research , creative production , and remarketing strategies , ensure data-driven decision-making while maintaining transparency. For instance, Topkee's TTO tool enables precise conversion tracking and automated data synchronization, while their attribution remarketing analyzes user behavior to deliver personalized ads, boosting conversion rates. By combining AI-powered automation with human oversight, Topkee helps businesses achieve higher ROI without sacrificing control.
Ⅲ. Value-Based Bidding in Complex Industries
Santalucía, a Spanish insurance leader, faced a unique challenge: qualifying leads in an industry where offline conversions (call center sales) are critical. Traditional lead generation often resulted in low-quality inquiries, wasting ad spend on unqualified prospects. To solve this, Santalucía implemented a lead scoring system that assigned values based on conversion likelihood and policy profitability.
By integrating offline call center data with Google’s Smart Bidding, the company enabled Value-Based Bidding—a strategy where AI adjusts bids based on lead quality. The impact was transformative: 3.2x growth in online sales and a 64% higher ROI. Santalucía’s success underscores the importance of breaking down data silos—when call center insights were fed back into Google Ads, AI could optimize bids in real time, ensuring higher returns per lead.
Ⅳ. Omnichannel Synergies and Data Integration
Both Santalucía and Delivery Hero highlight the power of omnichannel data integration. Santalucía’s call center optimization relied on real-time CRM APIs, allowing Google Ads to adjust bids based on offline conversions. Meanwhile, Delivery Hero used GA4 to track cross-channel behavior, linking app orders, web visits, and ad interactions into a unified performance dashboard.
The lesson? Data silos kill efficiency. Brands that unify online and offline data gain a 360-degree view of customer journeys, enabling AI to make smarter bidding decisions. Santalucía’s call center agents could now prioritize high-value leads, while Delivery Hero’s marketing team could allocate budgets based on predictive LTV models—proving that true ROI comes from connected data.
Ⅴ. Future Trends and Strategic Recommendations
As Google Ads evolves, three trends will dominate the digital advertising landscape, reshaping how brands approach campaign management and performance measurement. First, the death of manual bidding is imminent, with AI-powered automation (Smart Bidding, Demand Gen) replacing manual adjustments. Topkee’s TTO tool exemplifies this shift, enabling automated conversion tracking and budget optimization across multiple ad accounts, freeing marketers to focus on strategic initiatives like creative development and audience segmentation.
Topkee’s integrated services, from keyword research to AI-generated creatives, align with this trend by ensuring campaigns resonate across funnel stages. Third, metric evolution will prioritize customer lifetime value (LTV) and lead quality scoring alongside ROAS. Topkee’s attribution remarketing strategies and reporting tools empower brands to track these KPIs, leveraging TTO CDP’s data automation to refine targeting and personalize ad experiences.
To stay competitive, brands must experiment early with these advancements. As Fielmann’s CMO Benjamin Ludigs emphasizes, “Successful marketing emerges where technology, data, and creativity converge.” Topkee’s end-to-end solutions—from website assessments to Demand Gen-ready creatives—provide the infrastructure to operationalize this convergence, ensuring adaptability in an AI-driven advertising era.
Conclusion
The future of Google Ads is AI-driven, automated, and omnichannel, as demonstrated by industry leaders like Fielmann, Delivery Hero, and Santalucía. Fielmann leveraged Demand Gen campaigns to bridge branding and performance, achieving a 7.7% lift in purchase intent and 24% higher "Add to Cart" conversions through AI-optimized creatives and cross-channel reach. Delivery Hero’s three-tiered AI bidding strategy—using GA4 data integration and Target—boosted ROAS by 52% in Southeast Asia and doubled customer lifetime value in Latin America. Santalucía’s value-based bidding, powered by offline call-center data and Smart Bidding, increased online sales by 3.2x with 64% higher ROI. These cases underscore that adaptation to AI-driven automation is non-negotiable—whether through predictive bidding, omnichannel data unification, or dynamic creative optimization. For marketers, the imperative is clear: Evolve or risk obsolescence. Embracing AI-powered tools like Demand Gen, Value-Based Bidding, and GA4 integrations isn’t just strategic; it’s existential for sustaining growth in an era where AI decides the balance between reach and profitability.
