Google Ads’ new AI image tool, Nano Banana Pro (NB), brings conversational image generation and editing directly into campaigns, letting advertisers create seasonal, mood-adjusted, and material-specific visuals without a photoshoot. It’s part of Google’s broader push alongside Opal, its AI writing tool, to accelerate content creation across PMax, Display, and other automated campaigns.
Driving the news. Ameet Khabra, founder of Hop Skip Media, ran extensive tests across three industries—mattresses, HVAC, and real estate—to evaluate NB’s performance in live campaign scenarios. She found that while the tool shows impressive results in some areas, it has notable limitations advertisers need to understand before relying on it.
The good:
- Seasonal transformations and lighting adjustments are highly accurate.
- Material and finish edits (e.g., kitchen cabinets, furniture) hold texture and perspective well.
- Large object additions and placement guidance work reliably for general marketing.
- Prompt refinement generates richer instructions from simple queries.
The bad:
- Brand restrictions block logos, branded products, and detailed text overlays.
- Demographic bias and object placement errors persist.
- Zooming out or combining unrelated images can produce unrealistic results.
The weird:
- NB sometimes mixes seasons or misinterprets “luxury” or “masculine” prompts literally.
- Aggressive holiday additions can overwhelm subtlety.
Bottom line for advertisers. Nano Banana Pro is best for ideation, seasonal variations, or asset-heavy campaigns like PMax or Display according to Khabra. It is not yet a substitute for professional creatives in regulated, high-stakes, or brand-sensitive campaigns. Testing in isolated asset groups and human review remain essential.
Why advertisers should care. Faster creative production can reduce campaign bottlenecks and increase testing volume—but blind reliance risks off-brand visuals, poor CTR, and misaligned automation signals. Used carefully, NB is a creative accelerator; used blindly, it’s a shortcut to mediocre imagery.
Dig Deeper. Nano Banana Pro in Google Ads: The Good, Bad, and Weird
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