Use Search for compliance transparency and clean attribution; use Performance Max sparingly and only with robust offline conversions and creative guardrails.
Default to Google Search for 80%+ of Google budget. Layer in Performance Max only once your offline conversion feedback is solid - without that, Pmax optimises to whatever converts cheapest, which often means junk leads in regulated finance. The blackbox nature also complicates compliance review.
The workhorse. Transparent keywords, clean attribution, straightforward compliance review. Best for mid-to-late funnel and ROAS-grade reporting.
Powerful, but only when fed revenue-weighted offline conversions. Without them, youre optimising to lead count, and regulated-finance leads of dubious quality will clog the pipe. Use with asset group guardrails and audience signals; review search-terms and brand-exclusions weekly.
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