Google Ads Sales Representative Program Officially Launched in Croatia

Recently, Zagreb became the center of attention for the digital advertising community with the official launch of the Google Ads Sales Representative (ASR) program in Croatia. The event, hosted by Admixer Media and attended by Google, gathered advertisers, agencies, and industry leaders to discuss how this initiative will shape the local market.

The launch marks a significant milestone for Croatia and the wider Adriatic region. With digital ad spend steadily growing and advertisers seeking enhanced efficiency and measurable results, the Google Ads Sales Representative program arrives at the right moment to bridge global expertise with local needs. By combining Google’s cutting-edge advertising solutions with Admixer Media’s on-the-ground knowledge and support, the program sets a new standard for how brands and agencies can approach digital growth in Croatia.

Google Ads Sales Representative Program: Opportunities for the Croatian Market

The Google Ads Sales Representative program was officially presented as a unique model designed to empower local advertisers and agencies with direct access to Google’s global innovations. As Ivana Prakiš, Croatia Product Director: Google at Admixer Media, explained, the program ensures free local support and strategic consultations — all without changing account ownership or billing processes.

This approach is particularly relevant for the Croatian market, where advertisers often face the challenge of balancing global tools with local realities. The Google Ads Sales Representative program framework addresses this gap by offering transparency, dedicated expertise, and access to beta products that are typically unavailable without dedicated account management support. Importantly, the program does not compete with agencies; instead, it strengthens their role by giving them the resources and insights needed to deliver stronger results for their clients.

Digital Trends and Insights in Croatia

The Croatian e-commerce market is expanding at an impressive pace. In 2025, the number of online shoppers reached 1.75 million, representing a 52.5% penetration rate and an average revenue per user (ARPU) of €702. Compared to 2024, this marks a 15.5% increase in buyers, a 4.2% growth in penetration, and a 3.1% rise in ARPU, highlighting a steady upward trajectory.¹

Consumer behavior is evolving as well. Research shows that shoppers are becoming more mindful: 40% make fewer impulse purchases globally, 34% conduct more research before buying, and 44% spend more time planning their shopping trips.² In Croatia (2024), online shopping frequency breaks down as follows: 9% shop weekly or more often, 28% shop 2–3 times a month, 28% once a month, 27% 2–3 times over the past half-year, and 8% once in the past half-year.³

Younger generations are driving much of this shift. They tend to use multiple channels and sources of information — from social media and online reviews to price comparisons and influencer recommendations — before making a purchase, whereas older consumers often rely on fewer touchpoints. This underscores the growing need for omnichannel strategies.

According to the latest Google data, search and video platforms remain central to consumer journeys. Users perform over 5 trillion searches annually. Every day, Google facilitates more than 1 billion shopping interactions, underlining its role in daily commerce. Research shows that 61% of shoppers engage with at least five touchpoints before making a purchase, and in 86% of those cases Google and YouTube are present, making them unavoidable steps in the path to purchase.⁴ This influence is particularly strong during holiday seasons: despite the growing number of channels, these platforms consistently remain decisive in shaping buying decisions.

Tonka Hibler and Goran Vuzem from Admixer Media emphasized that these trends highlight the increasing importance of data-driven strategies, first-party data, and AI-powered tools. For advertisers, this means that the ability to harness quality data and apply it effectively will be critical to capturing demand, personalizing engagement, and maximizing ROI in an increasingly fragmented marketplace.

AI and Data in Google Ads

Artificial intelligence is no longer a concept of the future — it is already reshaping consumer behavior and marketing effectiveness. 83% of global users turn to Google or YouTube daily, making these platforms the most frequent touchpoints in digital journeys.⁵ Search queries are becoming longer and more complex, while tools like AI Overviews have already reached more than 1.5 billion people across 200 countries, showing how quickly AI integrates into everyday user experiences.⁶

Angelos Galanakis, Regional Head of Strategic Partnerships at Google, pointed out that this shift is particularly visible in visual search. Google Lens recorded 65% year-over-year growth, surpassing 100 billion visual searches in 2025, with one in five searches carrying a commercial intent.[6] Meanwhile, 70% of active social media users still validate information via Google, reinforcing its role as a trusted environment for decision-making.⁷

Running Google Search and YouTube together generates 21% higher ROAS compared to all other media.[5]

YouTube plays a crucial role in influencing shopping decisions, with 82% of viewers trusting its creators, making it a top platform for reliable product recommendations. Additionally, 81% of U.S. viewers agree that YouTube helps them make more confident shopping choices.⁸ With over 90 million hours of shopping videos watched daily, YouTube is not just a platform for entertainment but a vital tool for consumers in their purchasing journey.⁵

Artur Mosiak, Strategic Partnerships Development Manager at Google, emphasized that “good AI needs good data.” He outlined a three-step crawl–walk–run approach for every stage of data foundation setup: online tagging and app measurement, enriching the setup with additional 1P signals through tools such as Enhanced Conversions and Customer Match, and unlocking advanced analytics in Google Analytics and BigQuery to connect both online and offline data. This structured path enables advertisers to gradually strengthen their data foundation and ultimately maximize the performance of Google’s AI-powered advertising solutions.

AI technologies are already being actively applied in real campaigns in Croatia, enhancing efficiency and accelerating data-driven processes. Zorin Radovančević, CEO at Escape, showcased the ‘Big Bang Made Bigger’ project, demonstrating how AI combined with Google Ads and Cloud enabled faster analytics, smarter budget allocation, and measurable campaign optimization for one of the Adriatic region’s largest electronics retailers. Another case was presented by Ivan Frančešević, Chief Data Officer at SeekandHit, who demonstrated how Grounded AI with Google NotebookLM helped the agency overcome fragmented data, inconsistent strategies, and lengthy onboarding. By centralizing KPIs, reports, audits, meeting notes, and recommendations into one AI-powered notebook with citations, the team significantly reduced preparation time, accelerated decision-making, and improved transparency and consistency in client communication.

Vertex AI for Marketing: Practical AI in Action

The conference also highlighted how AI is moving from experimental technology to practical marketing solutions with Google Vertex AI. Oleksandr Tismenetskyi, GMP & GCP Product Director at Admixer Advertising, demonstrated how AI is already transforming marketing workflows, from content creation to campaign management.

Oleksandr showcased applied use cases of models like Imagen, Veo, and Lyria for generating images, videos, and audio — reducing production times from weeks to hours. Several proprietary tools developed within Admixer Advertising further demonstrated how AI can directly impact campaign efficiency:

DreamBoard creates full-scale video ads from a short brief;
ViGenAir adapts long videos into multiple formats,;
BackgroundR and FeedGen improve visuals and product feeds;
DV360 SpendCap ensures real-time budget control.

Shaping the Future of Digital Advertising in Croatia

The launch of the Google Ads Sales Representative program in Croatia marks more than just a new partnership — it is an important milestone for the local advertising industry. By combining Google’s global innovations with Admixer Media’s local expertise, the program gives advertisers and agencies the tools, support, and insights they need to scale smarter and grow faster.

The data and case studies presented during the event left no doubt: the future of digital advertising belongs to data-driven strategies, AI-powered tools, and cross-platform ecosystems that connect channels into one measurable flow.

Companies and agencies interested in exploring the opportunities of the program can reach out to Admixer Media for consultation and support.

Sources: