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What Are Demand Gen Campaigns? Building Demand with Visuals and Video

Updated: 3 June 2026
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Short answer

Demand Gen campaigns are a Google campaign type designed to build brand awareness and purchase intent across Google's visual and video surfaces — YouTube, YouTube Shorts, the Discover feed, and Gmail. They replaced Discovery campaigns in late 2023 and operate entirely within the Google ecosystem, though they feel similar to social media ads in format. If you want to reach people who haven't searched for your product yet but match your ideal customer profile, Demand Gen is worth considering.

Discovery's Successor: How Demand Gen Came to Be

Google had long offered Discovery campaigns for visual-format advertising. But as user behavior shifted — especially with the rise of YouTube Shorts — Discovery became limited. By late 2023, Google fully replaced Discovery with Demand Gen, a broader format that supports video, short clips, and image combinations rather than static visuals alone.

Where Do Demand Gen Ads Appear?

  • YouTube main feed and in-stream placements: Visual and video ads users see while watching content
  • YouTube Shorts: Ads shown between short vertical videos, typically 6–15 seconds
  • Google Discover feed: Ads appearing in the content feed when users open the Google app or Chrome on mobile
  • Gmail Promotions tab: Visual card-style ads displayed in email inboxes
3 billion users

According to Google's official statements, the combined YouTube, Discover, and Gmail ecosystem that Demand Gen reaches spans this many people.

Search ads activate when someone is already looking for something — demand already exists and you meet it. Demand Gen works the other way around: it reaches people who haven't searched yet but whose interests, demographics, and behaviors match your customer profile. Think of it as a digital shop window — your restaurant's photos or your dental clinic's video appear on potential customers' screens before they've even thought to search for you.

Demand Gen will feel familiar to anyone used to social media advertising (Meta, TikTok). It's visual- and video-first, audience-based, and not reliant on search intent. The difference: it reaches people on YouTube, Gmail, and the Google Discover feed — not on Facebook.
Which businesses benefit most from this campaign type? E-commerce stores with visual products, services needing advance promotion (weddings, dental aesthetics, holiday packages), local businesses launching seasonal campaigns, and new ventures building brand awareness are all good candidates. Use it for medium-term recognition and demand-building, not for immediate sales.

Frequently asked questions

What ad formats can I use in Demand Gen campaigns?

Demand Gen supports single images, image carousels, and video formats. You can use both images and videos within a single campaign; Google automatically decides which performs better where. Vertical (9:16), square (1:1), and horizontal (16:9) aspect ratios adapt to different placements, including YouTube Shorts.

What should I do if I have an existing Discovery campaign?

Discovery campaigns can no longer be created, and existing ones have been automatically migrated to Demand Gen by Google. If you still see a campaign labeled Discovery in your account, the transition is complete and your core settings should be preserved. That said, it's worth reviewing with an expert whether your migrated campaigns are taking full advantage of newer Demand Gen features like video formats and updated audience targeting options.

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