Google Finally Opens the Black Box: Site-Level Visibility Now Available for Search Partner Network

For the first time, advertisers running campaigns on Google’s Search Partner Network (SPN) can now see exactly where their ads appear. The long-requested feature delivers site-level visibility for Search, Shopping, and App campaigns—a move that signals Google’s increased focus on transparency and campaign control.

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Highlights

• Google Ads now enables advertisers to view site-level impressions across the Google’s Search Partner Network for Search, Shopping, and App campaigns.
• The new feature allows for auditing brand safety, assessing performance value, and optimizing spend based on actual partner site data.
• Transparency improvements include exclusion defaults for parked domains and third-party brand safety pre-screening (IAS, DoubleVerify, Zefr).
• Industry analysts describe this change as a pivotal shift—from a capacity for blind spending to strategic, data-driven placement management.

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“Google Ads is giving long-requested transparency. You can now see site-level impressions for Google Ads Search, Shopping, and App campaigns,” reports Search Engine Land, noting the feature brings placement clarity akin to Performance Max campaigns.
Search Engine Land

A Transparency Milestone for SPN

Advertisers have historically entered SPN as a black box—they knew ads ran “somewhere,” but not where or how effectively. Now, with this update, campaign managers can:

• Audit placements to confirm they’re brand-safe.
• Adjust budgets to favor high-performing partner sites.
• Exclude publishing domains that misalign with brand values.
• Gain ROI clarity on traffic coming via SPN.

Brooke Osmundson, Director of Growth Marketing, calls it “the missing piece” that makes earlier brand-safety tools usable beyond speculation.
Search Engine Journal

Context & Related Enhancements

This update follows several improvements in 2025, including:

• Brand safety pre-screening through IAS, DoubleVerify, and Zefr.
• Default exclusion of parked domains in campaigns.
• Enhanced geographic targeting and Smart Bidding optimizations for limited inventory.

These developments, combined with placement reporting, provide advertisers with both control and intelligence—without altering Google’s automated processes.
PPC Land

Fixing a Longstanding Asset

As SERoundtable puts it, the feature addresses a two-decade advertising frustration:

“You will be able to see exactly where your ads are appearing… This highly impactful feature directly addresses advertiser feedback by offering full transparency.”
Search Engine Roundtable

Anthony Higman, founder of Adsquire, welcomed the change on social media, calling it “unprecedented” and something advertisers have requested for decades.
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What Advertisers Are Saying

Reactions have been encouraging:

• Some say it offers a chance to revisit SPN with data backing decisions.
• Others note it’s still impressions-only—click and conversion data are not yet separate per site.
  Search Engine Journal

Strategic Recommendations

Experts recommend advertisers take action:

1. Run placement audits: Identify and exclude low-quality sites.
2. Analyze ROI beyond impressions—pair visibility with conversion data.
3. Test SPN again—formerly off-by-default, it can now offer gains with informed oversight.
4. Use Creative Suitability filters to align ad appearance with brand safety needs.

Why Google’s Search Partner Network Matters

Search Partner placements have long needed accountability. Google’s update transforms SPN from a liability to a tactical component:

• It blends automation with insight.
• Offers visibility previously reserved for Performance Max.
• Empowers advertisers to conduct data-driven optimizations with justification.

As one PPC agency put it: “With visibility comes control—and smarter investment decisions.”