DV360 vs Google Ads for Dealerships: Which Should You Use?

A dealer asked us last week: “Should I move my budget from Google Ads to DV360?” The short answer? Probably not. The longer answer? You’re asking the wrong question.

DV360 and Google Ads aren’t competitors. They’re not two different paths to the same destination. They’re complementary tools that solve different problems in your marketing funnel. Treating them as an either-or decision is like asking whether you need a hammer or a screwdriver—the answer depends entirely on what you’re trying to build.

The confusion is understandable. Both are Google platforms. Both involve digital advertising. Both can drive dealership results. But understanding the difference between DV360 vs Google Ads is critical to allocating your budget effectively and getting the most out of your advertising spend.

Most successful dealerships don’t choose one over the other. They use both strategically, with each platform playing a specific role in their overall marketing strategy. This guide breaks down exactly how DV360 vs Google Ads works, what each platform does best, and how to decide which one (or both) makes sense for your dealership.

DV360 vs Google Ads: Understanding What Each Platform Actually Does

Let’s start with the fundamental difference, because this is where most of the confusion lives.

Google Ads is built for capturing intent. It’s a direct response platform designed to reach people who are actively searching for something right now. Someone types “Toyota RAV4 near me” or “best hybrid SUV” into Google, and your ad appears. They’re showing you their intent through their search query, and you’re meeting them at exactly that moment with a relevant offer.

Google Ads includes search ads, Shopping ads, YouTube ads, and the Google Display Network. The common thread is that these are all Google-owned properties, and the core strength is capturing existing demand from people who are already in-market and actively looking.

DV360 is built for creating intent. It’s a programmatic advertising platform designed to reach people who aren’t actively searching yet. You’re finding them first, before they even know they’re in the market for a car. You’re planting your dealership in their mind through connected TV ads while they stream their favorite shows, display ads on the sites they visit, and video ads on content they consume.

DV360 gives you access to everything Google Ads has plus a massive world of third-party ad exchanges, premium publisher sites, streaming services, and connected TV platforms. It’s programmatic, which means automated buying based on audience data rather than manually selecting placements.

Here’s the funnel analogy that makes this click: DV360 works at the top and middle of the funnel—awareness and consideration. Google Ads works at the bottom of the funnel—intent and conversion.

Think about your own behavior when you bought your last car: you probably weren’t actively searching for months before you actually needed a vehicle. But during those months, you saw ads. You noticed certain brands. You developed opinions and preferences. When you finally did start searching, some dealerships were already top-of-mind. That’s what DV360 does.

Google Ads captures people who already know they want a car. DV360 reaches people before they start searching—building awareness and consideration so when they do eventually search, your dealership is the first one they think of.

Why this matters: if you only run Google Ads, you’re competing for shoppers who are already talking to three or four other dealerships. If you run DV360 first and Google Ads second, you’ve been building a relationship for weeks before that search even happens. You’re not one of five dealerships bidding for attention—you’re the dealership they already recognize and trust.

DV360 vs Google Ads for Dealerships: Feature Comparison

Let’s break down how these platforms actually compare across the dimensions that matter for dealerships.

Inventory & Reach

Google Ads gives you access to Google Search results, YouTube, the Google Display Network (which includes over 2 million websites), Gmail ads, and other Google-owned properties. It’s a massive reach, but it’s limited to Google’s ecosystem.

DV360 gives you everything Google Ads has access to plus third-party ad exchanges, premium publisher direct deals, connected TV platforms like Roku, Hulu, Fire TV, and smart TVs, audio and podcast inventory, and private marketplace deals with premium publishers.

Winner: DV360, hands down. The reach is substantially wider, and you get access to premium inventory that Google Ads can’t touch.

Targeting Capabilities

Google Ads offers keyword targeting for search intent, audience segments including in-market and affinity audiences, remarketing lists, demographic targeting, location targeting, and custom intent audiences based on search behavior.

DV360 offers everything Google Ads has plus advanced first-party data integration from your CDP, more granular audience layering, sophisticated cross-device targeting with frequency capping across all touchpoints, third-party data partnerships, and contextual targeting at scale across thousands of publishers.

Winner: DV360 for sophistication, but it requires expertise to use effectively. Google Ads is powerful enough for most dealerships’ targeting needs without the complexity.

Cost Structure

Google Ads has no platform fees. You pay per click (CPC) or per impression (CPM) depending on campaign type. It’s self-service or you can work with an agency. Pricing is transparent and straightforward. You can realistically start with $1,000 per month and scale from there.

DV360 has no platform fee from Google, but you’re required to work through a certified partner or agency. Those partners typically charge 10-25% of your ad spend in management fees. So if you’re spending $5,000 on ads, you’re paying an additional $500-$1,250 for management. The cost structure is more complex, and realistically you need a minimum of $3,000-5,000 monthly to make it worthwhile.

Winner: Google Ads. The barrier to entry is much lower, and the costs are more predictable.

Ease of Use

Google Ads has a user-friendly interface that most marketers can learn. There’s extensive documentation, support resources, and community forums. Many dealerships successfully manage Google Ads in-house. Campaign setup is straightforward, and the learning curve, while steep initially, is manageable.

DV360 has a complex, enterprise-level interface built for media buyers and programmatic specialists. The learning curve is extremely steep. Most dealerships need a partner or agency to manage it because the platform requires technical expertise in programmatic buying, audience configuration, creative trafficking, and bid optimization.

Winner: Google Ads by a mile. Unless you have a dedicated programmatic specialist on staff, you’re not managing DV360 yourself.

Reporting & Attribution

Google Ads offers clear conversion tracking with direct attribution. You can see the path from click to conversion. Real-time performance data updates constantly. ROI calculation is straightforward. Integration with Google Analytics is seamless, and most dealers can understand the reporting without a translator.

DV360 uses more complex attribution models because the conversion path is longer and less direct. View-through conversions become important—tracking people who saw your ad but didn’t click, then converted later. You need proper analytics setup and longer attribution windows to capture impact. Cross-channel measurement is possible but requires expertise.

Winner: Google Ads. The attribution is clearer and more direct, which makes it easier to understand what’s working.

Best Use Cases

Google Ads excels at capturing search demand, direct response campaigns, lead generation, retargeting website visitors, and promoting specific inventory or limited-time offers. It’s built for “I need this now” moments.

DV360 excels at brand awareness campaigns, reaching cord-cutters through connected TV, advanced audience targeting using CDP data, cross-device campaigns that follow shoppers across all their devices, and conquesting competitor audiences before they even search.

Winner: Depends entirely on your marketing goals. Neither is universally better—they’re built for different objectives.

DV360 or Google Ads? Here’s How to Decide

The right answer for the DV360 vs Google Ads question depends on your dealership’s budget, goals, and marketing maturity. Here’s a practical framework for making the decision.

Start with Google Ads If:

Your total digital ad budget is under $5,000 per month. You’re just getting started with digital advertising and need to build a foundation first. You need direct response and clear, immediate ROI tracking. Your primary goal is capturing in-market shoppers who are actively searching right now.

Why this makes sense: Google Ads delivers faster, more measurable results with substantially lower complexity. It’s where every dealership should start. Master search campaigns and Shopping ads before you even think about adding programmatic advertising to the mix.

The dealerships struggling with DV360 are usually the ones who skipped this step. They jumped straight into programmatic without building the Google Ads foundation first, and they end up with expensive awareness campaigns that don’t convert because their bottom-funnel capture mechanisms aren’t working.

Add DV360 When:

Your Google Ads campaigns are already optimized and performing well. You’ve maxed out your search impression share and need new ways to reach your market. You have $3,000-5,000+ per month specifically allocated for programmatic advertising, separate from your Google Ads budget.

You want to reach shoppers earlier in the buying journey, before they start searching. You have a Customer Data Platform with clean, unified first-party data that can power sophisticated targeting. You’re ready to target specific audience segments that go beyond search intent—equity customers, service lane prospects, past buyers approaching trade-in windows.

Connected TV advertising aligns with your market demographics (lots of cord-cutters in your area). You’re working with a partner or agency who can manage the platform complexity. You understand that DV360 results look different from Google Ads results—longer attribution windows, view-through conversions, awareness metrics.

Why this makes sense: DV360 extends your reach beyond search intent, but it only delivers value when you have the budget, data infrastructure, and expertise to use it properly. Adding it too early wastes money. Adding it at the right time creates a competitive advantage.

Use Both Together When:

Your total advertising budget exceeds $10,000 per month and you can properly fund both platforms. You want full-funnel coverage from awareness through conversion. You have a CDP feeding quality audience data into both platforms.

You understand that DV360 and Google Ads serve different purposes and shouldn’t be measured the same way. You can track cross-channel attribution to see how programmatic awareness campaigns influence search behavior. You’re ready for sophisticated, integrated campaigns where all channels work together strategically.

The strategic approach: Successful dealerships allocate budget based on funnel stage. A common split is 60% Google Ads for bottom-funnel direct response and 40% DV360 for top- and middle-funnel awareness. The DV360 campaigns create demand that Google Ads captures.

Some dealerships go 70/30 or even 50/50 depending on market saturation and competition. The key is recognizing that these platforms complement each other rather than compete.

Real-World Scenario

Let me show you what this looks like in practice. Imagine a shopper in your market who isn’t actively car shopping yet. Maybe their current vehicle is fine, but it’s getting older. They’re not searching for cars. They’re not visiting dealership websites. They’re just living their life.

Without DV360: Months pass. Eventually something happens—their car has an expensive repair, or they see a commercial for a new model they like, or a friend mentions they bought a new SUV. Now they’re ready. They search “best SUVs 2025,” see your Google Ad among several others, maybe click, maybe not. You’re one of five dealerships competing for their attention, and you’re all starting from zero.

With DV360: Two months before they’re ready to buy, they see your dealership’s Connected TV ad during their favorite streaming show. They don’t think much of it, but they notice. A week later, they’re reading a Car and Driver article about new SUV safety features and see your display ad. Still not shopping yet, but your dealership is registering. Another week passes, and they see your video ad on YouTube. Now they’re starting to think “I see that dealership everywhere.”

Then the moment comes—expensive repair or whatever triggers the decision. They search “best SUVs 2025” and there’s your Google Ad. But unlike your competitors, they already recognize your brand. They’ve seen you three or four times already. You feel familiar. Safe. Established. They click your ad first.

That’s DV360 creating mental availability. Google Ads captures the intent that DV360 helped create. Together, they’re more powerful than either alone.

The CDP Advantage: Making DV360 and Google Ads Work Together

Here’s what most dealerships miss when thinking about DV360 vs Google Ads: the real power comes from using both platforms with unified data feeding both of them.

Fullpath’s Customer Data Platform is the engine that makes this work. It unifies all your first-party data—website behavior, CRM history, service records, ad engagement, inventory interests—into rich shopper profiles. That data then feeds into both Google Ads and DV360, creating consistent, sophisticated targeting across your entire advertising strategy.

Here’s what this looks like in practice: Your CDP identifies customers with high positive equity who haven’t purchased in 4-5 years. That’s a valuable audience—they’re approaching natural trade-in timing and have equity to work with.

DV360 serves them Connected TV ads featuring upgrade messaging: “Your 2020 is paid off. See what’s new for 2025.” They see these ads while streaming content at home. You’re reaching them early, planting the idea before they even start shopping.

Google Ads retargets those same customers when they search for your brand name, specific models, or financing terms. Because you’ve already built awareness through DV360, they’re more likely to search for your dealership specifically and click your ads when they appear.

Both platforms share performance data back to your CDP, creating a feedback loop. You see which audiences respond best to which messages on which platforms. You see how DV360 awareness campaigns influence search behavior. You see which combination of touchpoints drives the highest showroom visit rates.

This is cross-channel attribution that actually works. Instead of evaluating each platform in isolation—”Is my DV360 ROI as good as my Google Ads ROI?”—you’re measuring how they work together to move shoppers through your funnel.

The reality is that most dealerships struggle with DV360 vs Google Ads because they’re managing them separately. Different partners, different strategies, disconnected data. When both platforms pull from the same CDP and work toward integrated goals, you stop choosing between them and start leveraging both effectively.

Fullpath’s team handles the technical complexity of both platforms, ensuring your campaigns work together strategically instead of competing for the same shoppers or sending conflicting messages.

DV360 vs Google Ads: The Answer Is “And,” Not “Or”

The whole DV360 vs Google Ads debate misses the point. These aren’t competing platforms you need to choose between. They’re complementary tools built for different stages of the buyer journey.

Google Ads captures existing demand. Someone searches, you appear, they convert. That’s powerful and it should be the foundation of your digital advertising strategy. Every dealership needs this working well before they even think about programmatic.

DV360 creates future demand. You reach shoppers before they’re actively shopping, build awareness and consideration over time, and position your dealership as the natural choice when they’re finally ready. This is the next evolution after you’ve maxed out your Google Ads effectiveness.

For most dealerships, the path is clear: Start with Google Ads. Master search and Shopping campaigns. Build your foundation. Get your conversion rates up. Make sure your website works. Implement proper tracking. Then, when you have $3,000-5,000 per month in additional budget and a CDP with clean data, add DV360 to reach shoppers earlier in their journey.

The dealerships winning in 2025 aren’t choosing one platform over the other. They’re strategically using both, powered by unified CDP data, to dominate their markets from awareness through conversion. They’re reaching shoppers with DV360 months before the competition even knows those shoppers exist, then capturing that carefully cultivated demand with Google Ads when the time is right.

That’s not choosing between tools. That’s building a complete, sophisticated advertising strategy that works at every stage of the funnel.

Want Help Building Your Full-Funnel Advertising Strategy?

Fullpath’s Digital Advertising helps dealers activate their data to get the most out of both Google Ads and DV360, creating a unified advertising strategy that reaches shoppers at every stage of the journey. Our team manages the complexity while you see the results—more awareness, more consideration, and ultimately more conversions. Curious whether DV360 makes sense for your dealership—or want to optimize your Google Ads performance first? Let’s talk strategy. Click here or reach out to us at get.started@fullpath.com to book your personalized demo today.