Google recently updated it's "Unfair Advantage Policy" to allow for double-serving ads. This means that since 14th April 2025, Google now allows it's systems to display the same ad for the same company, site or app more than once on the same page of search results, as long as the ads are in different locations on the page. For example, one ad could be shown at the top of search results, and another for the same advertiser could be shown at the bottom of the page.

Why Google Is Making This Change

This change is being seen by some as one of the biggest changes in policy since the platform launched two decades ago, and presents an opportunity for larger businesses with extensive budgets to dominate search results by advertising in multiple places on the same page. Google's motivation for this change may be to increase competition (and therefore revenue) without increasing either the number of ad positions or the number of advertisers.

How This Change May Affect You

If you run a small business and advertise on Google, it's very likely you could be impacted by this change. If we use the example of a small accountancy company that advertises locally, they may compete with several other local accountants and a national company. Previously, ads for the national company with the big budget could only be displayed in one location in search results, however now they will be entered into the auction for more than one ad location, potentially driving up the cost-per-click (CPC) to advertise on that page or even excluding some advertisers altogether.

How To Mitigate Any Negative Effects

If you find that your advertising becomes more expensive or you lose clicks as a result of this change, you may need to consider one of the following approaches:

  • Be prepared to spend more and increase your budget
  • Target more niche or more specific keywords
  • Improve your landing page design and content to make it more relevant, since Google ranks ads based on relevance as well as bid amount
  • Concentrate on converting more of the clicks on your ads into customers, meaning you can reduce the number of clicks you need to pay for