Google Ads Drops Display and Video Planning From Performance Planner

Why It Matters

By dropping impression‑based planning, Google forces marketers to rethink how they forecast and optimize brand‑building campaigns, potentially accelerating a broader industry pivot to performance‑driven metrics.

Key Takeaways

• Performance Planner no longer supports Display and Video campaign planning.
• Impression share metrics removed, limiting upper‑funnel forecasting.
• Tool now focuses on conversion‑centric types such as Search and Performance Max.
• Advertisers must adopt external methods to plan awareness campaigns.

Pulse Analysis

Google’s decision to strip Display and Video from Performance Planner reflects a strategic realignment toward conversion‑centric outcomes. The planner, once a go‑to for budgeting across all campaign types, now only serves search‑heavy formats, removing impression‑share metrics that helped advertisers gauge reach and brand exposure. This narrowing forces agencies and brands to seek alternative forecasting solutions, such as third‑party media mix models or custom dashboards, to maintain visibility into upper‑funnel performance.

For marketers, the immediate challenge is rebuilding awareness planning without native Google tools. Traditional impression‑share targets are being replaced by proxy metrics like viewable impressions, engagement rates, or lift studies conducted outside the platform. Agencies may lean on Google’s Reach Planner for high‑level estimates, but its granularity is limited compared to the former Performance Planner. Consequently, budgets for Display and Video may shift toward automated bidding strategies that prioritize conversions, even when the primary goal remains brand lift, prompting a reevaluation of KPI hierarchies.

The broader industry implication is a continued march toward automation and performance‑driven advertising. Google’s emphasis on Search, Shopping, App, Demand Gen, Local and Performance Max aligns with advertisers’ appetite for AI‑powered optimization. While this accelerates efficiency for direct‑response campaigns, it also nudges the market to innovate measurement frameworks for upper‑funnel activities. Brands that adapt quickly—by integrating cross‑channel analytics, investing in advanced attribution, and embracing hybrid planning approaches—will preserve their awareness objectives while capitalizing on Google’s performance‑first ecosystem.