What It Really Means for Advertisers

On the surface, Google’s latest policy update looks like just another change to the rulebook. But dig deeper, and it's a clear signal: stacking the deck in your favour is no longer going to fly.

As of 14 April 2025, Google will begin enforcing changes to its Unfair Advantage Policy, aimed squarely at businesses exploiting the ad auction system. And trust us — this isn’t a vague PR move. It’s a calculated shift to fix a problem that's been quietly distorting the playing field for years.

🚨 Let’s Talk About the Real Problem: Auction Gaming

If you've ever searched for “car insurance” or “CRM software” and seen what feels like the same brand plastered across half the ads, you're not imagining things.

This is the tactic at the heart of the issue: ad slot stacking. Some advertisers — especially larger groups and aggressive affiliates — have been flooding a single auction slot with multiple versions of their ads through:

• Sub-brands
• Sister companies
• Affiliate schemes
• Multi-account setups

In fact, internal estimates from industry audits suggest up to 18% of first-page paid results across high-competition verticals come from just 2–3 parent companies, all appearing multiple times under different guises.

In practice, that means one advertiser is showing up twice, even three times, in the top slots — squeezing out competitors and inflating their own impression share.

That’s not just clever bidding. It’s auction manipulation, and it’s been a quiet advantage of the well-resourced.

🆕 What’s Actually Changing?

Under the updated policy, advertisers will no longer be allowed to show more than one ad in the same ad location. To be clear:

• You can still show up multiple times on a page.
• But you can’t dominate a single slot with variations of your brand.

Think of it like musical chairs: each slot on the SERP is its own auction. Google now wants one chair per advertiser — not one advertiser sitting in three chairs wearing different hats.

If you've been leaning on multiple Google Ads accounts, grey-area affiliate tactics, or stacking your brand variants into Position 1 — this is your warning shot.

⚖️ Why Is Google Doing This Now?

There are three reasons behind this move — and not all of them are as altruistic as they might seem.

1. Auction Fairness
   Google has been under pressure to make its search ecosystem more accessible. Giving every advertiser a fighting chance means removing the structural advantages that favour those with endless budget and loophole knowledge.
2. Affiliate Programme Integrity
   With the rise of dodgy affiliate setups — where multiple versions of the same offer flood one auction — trust in paid results is starting to erode. Google knows that if users don’t trust the ads, they stop clicking. If they stop clicking, revenue takes a hit.
3. User Experience + Commercial Strategy
   By pushing for more diversity on the SERP, Google isn't just improving fairness — it’s also increasing the number of unique bidders per auction. That drives up demand... and you guessed it, revenue.

🤔 What Could This Mean for You?

Let’s say you're a mid-size brand competing in a niche like legal tech. Right now, you're often boxed out of premium ad positions by companies with 5 sub-brands and 10x your budget.

Under the new policy, those brands will technically only get one ad per slot — reducing their monopoly, and giving your ads a shot at visibility.

But — and this is key — it all hinges on how Google defines a “single ad location”. Is it just Position 1? Is it the top three slots collectively? Is it by device type? Format?

That ambiguity means we’ll likely see teething issues in Q2 — especially in metrics like:

• Impression share
• Overlap rate
• Auction Insights positioning

Already, some agencies have reported odd fluctuations where a single advertiser’s ads appear to be “ghosting” from data reports after dominating SERPs just a week earlier.

💡 What You Should Do Next (and What to Watch)

Whether you’re a solo marketer or managing 200 accounts, now’s the time to:

• Audit your account structure: Multiple brands? Franchises? Affiliates? Make sure they’re genuinely separate — or risk getting flagged.
• Track your Auction Insights weekly: Look for drops in impression share or shifts in overlap rate that might signal a policy-related change.
• Educate clients/stakeholders: If you're an agency, prepare your clients for possible changes in ad visibility — especially if they've benefited from stacking tactics.

📉 Worst-case? You get a warning email and have 7 days to clean up.
📈 Best-case? You find yourself suddenly bidding in a less crowded field with more chance of a top spot.

🔍 Final Thought: Is This a Level Playing Field or Just a New Game?

This isn’t a silver bullet. Big players with clever legal structures will still find ways to stay visible. But it’s a start — and if Google follows through with smart enforcement, we could see a healthier, more diverse SERP by summer.

For now, the only certainty is this: if your visibility strategy relies on duplication, it’s time to rethink.

Need help navigating what this means for your campaigns? We're already working with clients to adjust strategy and get ahead of the curve. Drop us a line — we’ll walk you through what to watch.