New ways for marketers to reach customers with AI Overviews and Lens

The ways people ask questions today have expanded beyond the search box. Now, consumers are using their voices to find answers on the go, and their cameras to explore the world around them. This evolution in search behavior has opened up exciting new opportunities for businesses to connect with their audiences in new ways.

At Google Marketing Live, we unveiled our vision for the future of advertising in an AI-powered world. We showcased how ads would seamlessly integrate with new Search features, creating more opportunities for you as an advertiser to meet consumer needs and forge stronger connections, while remaining firmly in the driver’s seat.

Today, we shared our latest updates to further expand the types of questions people can search for on Google using AI. And we’re excited to announce updates to the Search ads experiences in two of these features: AI Overviews and Google Lens. Let’s explore what these changes mean for you.

Ads in AI Overviews: now live

Sometimes you want a quick answer, but don’t have time to piece together all the information you need. AI Overviews in Search help you quickly find information and discover all the web has to offer. We’ve found that people who engage with AI Overviews are more satisfied with their search results, and find ads appearing above and below the overview helpful.

At Google Marketing Live, we shared a demo of how Search and Shopping ads would appear directly within AI Overviews when relevant to both the query and the response provided. This new ad format was designed to help people discover new brands and make informed purchasing decisions. Ads will continue to feature our industry-leading clear and transparent “Sponsored” label.

Imagine this: You’ve just spent the day at the park and now your jeans are covered in grass stains. You turn to Google and ask, “how do I get a grass stain out of jeans?” AI Overviews provides a number of helpful solutions, ranging from using common household products, to commercial products like stain removers. Instead of needing another search to find the right product, relevant Shopping ads appear right within the AI Overview, allowing you to quickly and easily find the perfect stain remover.

After several months of careful testing, we're excited to announce that Ads in AI Overviews are now available for mobile users in the US. People have been finding the ads within AI Overviews helpful because they can quickly connect with relevant businesses, products and services to take the next step at the exact moment they need them.¹

Shopping ads in Google Lens: see it, Lens it, shop it

With Google Lens, people are searching what they see more than ever before. Every month, people use Lens for nearly 20 billion visual searches, and 20 percent of all Lens searches are shopping-related. Advertisers can tap into these high-intent consumers, as Shopping ads will appear above and alongside visual search results by the end of the year.

For example, let’s say you’re shopping at a mall and a backpack displayed in a store’s window catches your eye. You want to learn more — and check if there's other colors available — but you’re in a hurry. Simply tap the Lens icon in the search bar and snap a photo or upload one from your gallery to learn more about the product. Lens will bring together our advanced AI models and Google’s Shopping Graph — which has information on more than 45 billion products — to identify the exact item in your photo.

Starting this week, you’ll see an even more helpful results page that shows key information about the product you’re looking for, including reviews, price comparisons across retailers and where to buy. Testing shows that with this new Lens feature, shoppers are more likely to engage with information in this new interface.² We’re rolling this out today for Android and iOS devices in select countries.

This presents a unique opportunity for advertisers — 75% of US consumers get excited when they come across a new product perfectly aligned with their needs.³ With Shopping ads, you can connect with motivated shoppers at the moment their interest is piqued. And because your product listing ad will show up for visual searches the same way it does for query searches, shoppers will already be familiar with the format. You can showcase your business to a highly engaged audience and attract shoppers looking for your product, or products similar to yours — creating a seamless experience from inspiration to purchase. Learn more about shopping with Lens here.

A common question we hear from advertisers is, “What do I need to do to show up in these new search experiences?”

The answer is simple: you can show ads in these experiences with your existing AI-powered Search ads, Shopping and Performance Max campaigns. There’s no additional action required. As we evolve the consumer Search experience, we’re also building advancements into our ads solutions — allowing you to automatically connect with customers as they search in new ways.