JD Sports enters its next growth phase with an AI-ready strategy after clicks jump 747%

From a single store in the North West of England in 1981 to 4,850 locations across 49 countries today, JD Sports has become a global sports fashion leader. Heading into the 2025 holiday shopping season, the brand focused on future‑proofing its approach to meet peak retail demand and modern, AI‑shaped consumer journeys.

The team recognized that search is evolving from just keyword targeting to include AI-driven discovery and conversational experiences. Anticipating that more shoppers would rely on AI-powered search, JD Sports updated its approach to ensure its holiday campaigns were structured and ready for this new way of finding products.

Working with Microsoft Advertising, JD Sports redesigned how products were grouped and strengthened the data flowing into the platform, giving AI clearer signals about sales priorities and customer behavior during peak season.

At the same time, their approach evolved to reflect how search itself is changing. What was once a simple question-and-answer journey has become more conversational, with longer, more nuanced queries. This shift is driving a surge in new search terms, many of which would never be captured by static keyword lists alone.

To keep pace, JD Sports leaned into automation. By using broad match and Performance Max (PMax), they were able to move beyond rigid keyword strategies and respond dynamically to user intent matching ads to the right queries, at the right moment, based on real-time signals.

Here’s how they did it...

• PMax to capture cross-channel demand: The team ran goal-based campaigns with PMax that served ads across Search and Shopping placements. The system prioritized placements based on conversion potential rather than fixed channel splits.
• Broad match to expand relevant queries: Using broad match, ads appeared for closely related searches without requiring exact keyword matches. A query like “lightweight running shoes for winter” could trigger JD Sports ads even if that phrase wasn’t manually added, expanding visibility during high-demand periods.
• Automated bidding to react in real time: Through automated bidding, bids adjusted dynamically based on signals such as device, location, and probability of conversion. As promotional traffic fluctuated, the system adapted instantly.

During peak season, clicks surged by 747% and the brand core conversion rate grew by 99%. Top impression share also rose by 85%, strengthening the brand’s visibility in high-intent searches while competition was at its highest.

By aligning structure, signals, and bidding with how AI-powered search evaluates queries, JD Sports paved the way for record growth.

A key part of this was simplifying account structure. JD Sports consolidated its top and mid-funnel account structures, recognizing that in AI-driven, conversational environments, the path to purchase is much shorter with multiple stages of the funnel often occurring in a single interaction.

By bringing Search, Shopping, and PMax together, the team strengthened conversion signals and gave automation a more complete view of user intent. This allowed broad match and PMax to dynamically generate and serve the most relevant ads at the right moment, without the need for manual buildouts across individual placements.

Automated bidding was the final puzzle piece, using the rich intent and behavioral signals seen in chat-based environments to adjust bids in real-time.