Google Ads: You Can Now Target Google Maps in Demand Gen Campaigns

Google has added Google Maps to the channel controls in Demand Gen campaigns. Advertisers can now choose Maps as a placement, mix it with other channels, or run Maps-only campaigns to drive local visibility and store visits. Here’s what changed and how to use it.

Since launch, Demand Gen campaigns have become one of the most effective ways to reach people on Google’s most visual surfaces: YouTube (Shorts, in-stream, and in-feed), Discover, Gmail, and the Google Display Network.

Advertisers kept asking for more control over where those ads run. In late December 2025, Google answered by adding Google Maps to the list of channels you can select in a Demand Gen campaign.

What Changes for Your Demand Gen Campaigns

Until now, Maps inventory was sometimes included automatically, with little visibility, in certain campaign types. Channel controls make it an explicit choice:

1. Channel-level selection: In your campaign settings, you can include or exclude Google Maps as a placement.
2. Maps-only campaigns: You can build Demand Gen campaigns that serve exclusively on Google Maps. That’s a new option for advertisers whose main goal is to drive foot traffic or capture local intent.
3. Flexible testing: You can combine Maps with other channels, such as YouTube or Discover, or isolate it to measure its real performance and ROI on its own.

One prerequisite: according to Google’s Help Center, Maps ads only serve when a location asset that isn’t an affiliate location is enabled in the account. If your Google Business Profile isn’t linked to Google Ads yet, start there; our Google local SEO guide covers the profile basics.

Why This Is Good News for Advertisers

Bringing Maps into Demand Gen is more than a technical add-on. It’s a strategic shift, for three reasons.

1. Reach Local Intent at the Right Moment

Google Maps is where people discover local businesses. Showing a visual, engaging ad while someone is planning a trip or looking for a service nearby puts your brand in front of an audience that’s ready to act.

2. More Transparency and Control

Lack of control over ad placements is one of the biggest frustrations with Google’s automated campaigns. With Maps as its own channel, and Maps results in channel-level reporting, account managers can see where performance comes from and shift budget accordingly.

3. An Alternative to Traditional Local Ad Formats

For brick-and-mortar businesses, this update turns Demand Gen into a highly visual, more “social” alternative to classic local ad formats. You can tell a brand story even inside a navigation app.

Our Take

This change confirms Google’s push to make its AI-powered campaign types, such as Demand Gen and Performance Max campaigns, more modular. For advertisers, it means drive-to-store strategies can now be fine-tuned with much more precision.

What to watch: the real question is how Maps placements perform compared with YouTube or Gmail. Will cost per acquisition (CPA) on Maps be competitive? How will people respond to immersive ad formats inside a utility app? Run a controlled test, with clear store-visit or lead goals measured through Google Ads conversion tracking, before moving significant budget.

Want to fine-tune your Google Ads campaigns or test Maps placements for your local business? Référenceur is a French-speaking PPC agency from Belgium and Luxembourg, and we manage Demand Gen campaigns for U.S. businesses remotely, through video calls, shared screens, and monthly reporting. Get a free assessment of your account.