We all want low-cost leads — that’s the dream. And for many advertisers, Google Ads Performance Max (PMAX) — a common source of performance max spam traffic.
campaigns seem like the perfect tool to help achieve that. They offer massive reach, automation, and lower cost per lead than traditional search campaigns in competitive industries.
I’ve seen PMAX work incredibly well for clients who want to maximize visibility while keeping costs in check. But there’s a catch — and it’s a big one, called Syndicated Search Spam.
What Is syndicatedsearch.goog?
When you see syndicatedsearch.goog as the referrer in your analytics, it means the user arrived via one of Google’s Search Partners—sites other than google.com that embed Google’s search engine or ads into their pages.
Because these partner sites vary widely in design and intent, traffic from syndicatedsearch.goog often converts at a lower rate. Many clicks happen accidentally—through confusing layouts or pop-ups—or originate from low-quality networks and bots. With Performance Max you currently can’t opt out of that network.
- Budget drain: Clicks from syndicatedsearch.goog can inflate costs without driving meaningful engagement.
- Limited transparency: You can’t see which specific partner sites generated the clicks or exclude individual placements.
- Actionable step: For standard Search campaigns, consider disabling “Include Google search partners” altogether; for Performance Max, monitor referral traffic closely and adjust conversion goals or budget allocation to offset poor-quality clicks.
Alternative Names for syndicatedsearch.goog
- searchpartners.google
- searchpartner.goog
- google-search-partner
- syndicatedsearch.google
- partners.search.google
The Hidden Cost of “Syndicated Search” Traffic
In the past, some Google Ads campaigns allowed advertisers to opt out of search partners — third-party sites that could show your ads outside of Google Search. With PMAX, however, Google introduced a newer category called “syndicated search.” — a common source of syndicatedsearch.goog.
The problem? There’s currently no built-in way to opt out of this traffic.
This creates a serious issue for advertisers and digital marketers. With PMAX, you give up a lot of control. And as with many automated tools, that trade-off can result in spam leads, fake phone calls, or low-quality engagement — a common source of google ads spam leads.
— much of which is driven by syndicated search.
— a common source of low-quality PPC traffic.
How Do You Identify SyndicatedSearch Traffic?
To identify traffic coming from SyndicatedSearch, you’ll want to use tools like your CRM or analytics platform that can capture and display referral sources. CRMs such as HubSpot often show the referring URL, helping you track where visitors came from—whether it’s from a direct link, search, or a referral source like syndicatedsearch.goog. In Google Analytics, you might see variations such as syndicatedsearch.goog / referral, https://syndicatedsearch.goog/, or simply syndicatedsearch.goog listed in your traffic sources. Additionally, if your forms are set up to capture UTM parameters or other URL data, you can customize them to record the referral source at the time of submission. This way, even if the visit is routed through third-party content distribution networks or syndication platforms, you can still get a clearer picture of where your leads are coming from.
A Real Client Story: When Syndicated Search Became a Problem (and We Fixed It!)
One of my clients had avoided Google Ads for years. They had bad memories from a previous experience where rising CPCs meant their budget was eaten up in just a few clicks — often without results.
So, we tried a few alternate routes:
- • Display campaigns for brand awareness (but not leads)
- • Retargeting past visitors with search ads to lower CPCs
Results were mixed — cost per lead remained higher than was acceptable.
Once I got comfortable with Performance Max, we tested it on one of their most popular services. The results were impressive — a common source of block syndicated search issues:
- • Tons of impressions
- • Steady flow of phone calls and form fills
- • Budget scaling as leads came in consistently
Everything was working well. Until it wasn’t.
The Sudden Spike in Spam and How We Fixed It
About 2–3 months into the campaign, the intake team reported a sharp increase in spam — fake form submissions and junk phone calls. After digging into the data, the culprit was clear: — a common source of google ads referral spam.
syndicated search traffic — a common source of prevent fake leads from Google Ads.
.
To fix it, we had to get creative. We wrote a custom script that redirected anyone from syndicated search to a landing page without a conversion option. That meant no form, no phone number — nothing to count as a lead from this one referral source. All other sources of traffic (e.g., Email, SEO, Social traffic) were unblocked.
Why did we do this? Because we needed to retrain Google Ads’ AI.
Google Ads’ algorithm favors traffic sources that appear to convert. If bad traffic from syndicated search keeps completing forms, the AI assumes it’s doing a good job and sends you more of it. But if those visitors don’t (or can’t) convert, Google stops favoring them. Over time, lead quality improved while maintaining a fair cost per lead.
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Why Syndicated Search Is So Tricky
Performance Max is great at casting a wide net and delivering cheap clicks. But you have very little control over where your ads show up. And once spam starts to come in, it can snowball.
Here’s how it happens:
- Google starts by targeting a fairly relevant audience based on the “search themes” you select when setting up each asset group.
- PMAX’s AI begins to expand to broader audiences to find more conversions.
- It stumbles into syndicated search traffic — often low-quality or unrelated.
- That traffic submits forms or calls your number.
- Google interprets those interactions as “leads” and starts prioritizing them even if the person just enters “asdf” as their name or accidentally clicks your phone number.
- Now your campaign is optimized for spam…
If you don’t intervene, your cost per lead may look great on paper — but your sales team will be drowning in junk.
Are There Ever Good Leads from Syndicated Search?
In my experience? No.
Even if one or two come through, they’re far outweighed by the spam. Cutting it off saves your team time, effort, and sanity. It is a better use of your team’s time to focus on a consistent stream of quality leads than to waste time on what is clearly spam.
Why Syndicated Traffic Persists in Performance Max
It’s important to note that Google currently does not allow advertisers to disable Search Partner traffic within Performance Max campaigns through the Google Ads interface. Even if you’ve disabled Search Partners for your standard Search campaigns, PMax will continue to serve ads across the Search Partner Network, including on syndicated search sites. This behavior is confirmed in Google’s official documentation on Performance Max campaign settings. To address this, Google recommends using the campaign modification request form or applying exclusions such as brand lists and negative keyword strategies—both of which are outlined in their help resources. Referencing these official guidelines ensures your actions align with Google’s intended campaign behavior and policies.
Why Can’t You Disable Syndicated Search in Performance Max?
Google Ads is a platform that can help a company realize fantastic returns (ROAS) — but Google Ads is also a business. For them, More Clicks = More Revenue.
And while Google Ads’ AI is impressive, it has no way to tell a quality lead from a spammer. Only your intake team can do that. So we, as advertisers, need to take control in any way we can.
It would be easier if we could just toggle off syndicated search in PMAX. But right now, that’s not an option. Google sees you’re getting leads (even if they’re garbage) and considers that a win.
What Can You Do About Spam Submissions from Syndicated Search?
If you’re seeing a spike in spam or low-quality leads from PMAX, here’s what I recommend:
To deal with syndicated search spam, you basically have five choices:
- Give up on Google Ads. (A viable solution if you are not a Google Ads expert like I am.)
- Stop using Performance Max campaigns. (A viable option if you are more comfortable with other types of campaigns on Google Ads.)
- Adjust the basic Performance Max settings to exclude content containing “syndicated search”: https://prnt.sc/Nq30jVpUXwW6. (This may have some effect, but there are no guarantees that it will solve the syndicated search spam issue.)
- Disallow forms from being submitted if the referring site has “syndicated search.”
- HINT: This is easy to do with GravityForms.
- Add hidden field that detects referring source: https://prnt.sc/lCCfAhjzPAJ4
- Create conditional logic that hides specific form inputs (e.g. the submit button): https://prnt.sc/Uh2h-W0cbiNg
- HINT: This is easy to do with GravityForms.
- Expert Level Syndicated Search Blocking: Add a script to your site that hides elements of your site when a visitor comes from a “syndicated search” site. (NOTE: This can get very complicated quickly. If you need help with this, please contact us: https://mediuminteractive.com/contact/)
Final Thoughts
Performance Max can be a powerful campaign type — but only when properly managed. If you’re running PMAX and seeing great CPL numbers but poor lead quality, don’t ignore it. It’s likely syndicated search is quietly eating your budget.
Thankfully, there are workarounds — and you can still benefit from PMAX’s reach without sacrificing lead quality.
If you’re dealing with this issue and need help implementing the fix, feel free to reach out. You’re not alone, and there are smart ways to fight back against the spam. Ask Us For Help: https://mediuminteractive.com/contact/