AI Can Elevate Your SEM Campaigns, But Only with the Right Guidance

“Simpler & Smarter.” 

That is the promise we hear the most about AI. You can get instantaneous responses, it can build, it can think, it is a world of untapped power just at the end of a simple prompt. But without the right guidance, the promise of AI can come up short and appear to fail.

AI-powered SEM campaigns can help small businesses improve ad targeting, automate campaign management, and uncover new opportunities in Google Ads and Microsoft Ads, but only when the right strategy, signals, and guardrails are in place. 

How do you set up AI for success? 

At Yellow Pages, we work on AI-powered campaigns every day for thousands of clients.  We help guide the AI so that it can improve upon ad performance. We don't just dream that AI will make things simpler and smarter, we know how to influence and guide it to achieve the right results. 

Life on SEM Street 

SEM is closely integrated with AI. Google Ads and Microsoft Ads are adding more and more AI features to ease content and campaigns creation as well as daily management. Simpler and smarter, remember? The Ad platforms can create images for you with a simple description; it can animate them and even use content directly from your website. And like every AI model, the more you can give the better. 

What started with Dynamic and Smart Campaigns, to all-in-one campaigns like Performance Max, has expanded to layers of subtle features that you can toggle on or off. What started as a simplification, has in turn become more complex in its own way. 

At the heart of this complexity, is that AI has transformed. It is now an advertising channel itself. Like in SEO, the conversational space with AI is a new area to conquer. You want to be quoted when someone asks for a plumber in your area the same way you want to be the first result in Google.  To align with today's AI-powered search experiences, ads are becoming more conversational and are increasingly integrated into tools such as Google AI Mode, Microsoft Copilot, and other generative AI environments. These formats are designed to match how users naturally ask questions and interact with AI assistants. 

The rise of AI is inevitable in SEM, and the early bird catches the worm, or it is said.  Thanks to our strong partnerships with Google and Microsoft, our team is one of those early birds. We are able to learn about AI functionalities early and test them before scaling their launch. This keeps our clients at the forefront of new capabilities, without compromising their performance. 

AI With SEM: A New Stage in the Relationship 

AI is not necessarily new. It has been around us for years. AI in SEM was formerly known as Machine Learning, it became dynamic campaign and ad features, and later smart campaigns and smart bidding processes. 

Despite that, AI does feel new. AI has taken on greater breadth and seeming power.

Which means each new feature needs to be carefully considered and taken care of (and tracked properly), if we want the AI functionalities to perform to its fullest potential.  With all the new AI functionalities, comes a learning process for both the campaigns and the tools themselves. As we have seen with Performance Max, Google continues to reiterate and build upon their tools. With Performance Max, we now have better reporting and brand guideline options. These updates reflect the changing needs of the platforms and of course the advertisers. Things are constantly moving, and having a partner that stays up to date on the changing landscape is key. 

Understanding the Process Behind AI-Powered Results 

The platforms encourage us to focus on client results. At the end of the day, what counts is not just the number of phone calls, forms, and leads, but whether those leads translate into customers, revenue and business growth. Often, we overlook what occurs between the ads and the lead signing a contract or purchasing a service. From our perspective, focusing solely on the lead volume is missing a larger piece of the puzzle.

To replicate the results, we need to understand the process that led the user to engage with the ad and ultimately become a customer. That means we need to make sure the platforms are receiving accurate conversion signals and high-quality first-party data. As AI-powered advertising tools increasingly optimize based on the information they receive, better data enables them to make better decisions and focus on the actions most likely to drive meaningful business outcomes.

That leads us to understand the pros and cons of each feature, illustrated here with two examples:

Performance Max: Reach Customers Across All Google Channels 

One of the most promoted campaigns is one of the most watched. Performance Max is heavily relying on AI. We provide it with images, videos, text, and a few signals to understand what our clients are promoting. The Google platform will customize your ads to serve on Google’s channels, including Search, Maps, YouTube, Gmail, and Display. Magic.  Google reports that advertisers using Performance Max see, on average, 18% more total incremental conversions at a similar cost per action.

However, AI is only as good as the information that it receives. Without guardrails and refinement, Performance Max can perform poorly. Without intentionally providing the right signals, Performance Max can target low-intent traffic, including existing customers, or optimize toward actions that don't always translate into meaningful business outcomes. When this happens, we tend to blame the AI, or Performance Max itself.

When harnessed correctly, with tools like negative keywords, detailed audiences, enhanced conversions and regular lead quality check, Performance Max can, and as we have often seen, generate great results. Features such as Brand Guidelines and brand exclusions help ensure ads remain aligned with a business's identity while providing greater control over where and how a brand appears.

The key is ensuring the platform has the right data to learn from and optimize against.

Performance Max shows a remarkable balance between performance and visibility, with cost per conversions usually lower than other campaign types.

Thus, in the right campaign mix and anticipated constraints, it remains one of Google's more powerful tools to generate incremental growth.

AI Max: Precision and Control in Modern Search. 

AI Max for Search moved out of beta and became a headline Search feature in 2026. When activated in a Search campaign, it will allow Google to select your assets and landing pages for you. Making your ads more appealing to individual search queries. AI Max for Search can also go beyond your provided keyword list to appear for new terms and longer search queries related to your business.  That sounds good, really good, in fact it is. As Google's continuous optimization layer for Search, AI Max is designed to help advertisers uncover new opportunities while adapting to how people search today. Google reports that advertisers using AI Max typically see 14% more conversions or conversion value at a similar CPA/ROAS, with campaigns relying primarily on exact and phrase match keywords seeing uplifts of up to 27%.

As with any AI-powered solution, success depends on the quality of the inputs, signals, and controls provided. With the right guardrails in place, AI max can help advertisers reach relevant audiences, expand into new search opportunities, and match users to the most appropriate content. Features such as Text Guidelines, brand controls, and landing page exclusions provide additional transparency and control, helping businesses maintain brand consistency while benefiting from AI-driven optimization.

AI-Max can be an amazing trailblazer.  As Search continues to evolve, technologies such as AI Max are becoming a core part of how campaigns identify demand and connect businesses with potential customers. With the right strategy and oversight, AI Max can help uncover valuable opportunities while staying aligned with your business objectives and brand standards.

Maximize Your Google Ads Performance

AI opens the door to powerful opportunities in paid advertising. Knowing when and how to utilize it effectively makes all the difference. With the right expertise and care, you can maximize performance and avoid any pitfalls.

At Yellow Pages, our goal is to put AI to work to scale our clients' performance even further, finding the right tool for the right campaign, in the right context, and in tight partnerships with Google & Microsoft to stay ahead. We know where to look, what to constrain, and when to step in. That is what we do every day, across thousands of SEM campaigns, so you don't have to figure out the expensive way.

SPEAK TO AN EXPERT

About the Author: Yoann Morand – SEM Campaign Manager

Freshly arrived at Yellow Pages from France last year, Yoann is an SEM Campaign Manager who lives for conversions and performance. His 10 years in digital marketing across multiple industries have given him a sharp eye for conversion funnels, a deep understanding of ad platforms and algorithms, and insight into how SEM influences other channels and the business as a whole. He's the type to challenge every feature and system, and he genuinely enjoys debating where the digital world is headed. Outside of work, you'll find him hiking, reading obscure books, and losing hours to video games.