As part of Google’s ongoing push for ad transparency and accountability, advertisers will start seeing some notable changes in how their ad payer information is displayed – especially if you’re an agency or manage clients’ accounts. These updates will roll out in two key phases, and if you’re not paying attention, your agency’s name could be shown as the ad payer (even if it’s not supposed to be).
Here’s the breakdown:
Phase 1 – Starting May 2025:
Google will begin showing the payer name (a.k.a. the payment profile name) on ads, even if it’s different from the verified advertiser name. This means:
- If you’re an agency managing Google Ads for clients, and your account is incorrectly verified as a direct advertiser, Google might display your agency name as the payer instead of your client’s.
- This information will appear in both the “My Ad Center” and the Ads Transparency Center.
What you need to do before May 31, 2025:
If your agency account is showing as a direct advertiser (instead of an agency), reset your advertiser verification and re-verify as an agency. This ensures the correct payer is displayed – protecting your client’s brand and your agency’s reputation.
Phase 2 – Starting June 2025:
Advertisers will be able to manually edit the payer name in the billing section of the advertiser verification page. Going forward, whatever name you set here will override the payment profile name that would otherwise be shown.
If you’re running Election Ads, none of this applies unless you decide to update your payer name – then you’ll need to complete the full verification process again.
Why This Matters for Your Business
At 616 Marketing Group, we see this as a positive shift. Greater transparency gives consumers more confidence and puts trustworthy brands (like yours) ahead of the competition. But it also means your ad setup needs to be done right – or your ads might send the wrong message.
We help service-based businesses across Michigan and beyond not just run ads – but run them smart, with proper compliance and strategy built-in from the beginning.
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