The Impact of Different Google Ads Bid Strategies on Campaign Success
Bid strategies in Google Ads can be a complex topic, even for experienced PPC advertisers. With over half a dozen options to choose from, it’s easy to lose track of which strategy to use and when. Each bid strategy gives Google’s systems a different mandate around spend, target metrics, and profit. Media buyers often switch between strategies throughout a campaign’s lifecycle. In this guide, we’ll explore the different bid strategies, when to use them, and why they’re important for campaign success.
1. Manual CPC
Manual cost-per-click (CPC) bidding is not the ideal strategy for most campaigns, but it has two clear uses. The first is for brand campaigns where the goal is to capture a certain amount of impression share and ensure that searches for your brand end up on your website. In these cases, it’s recommended to use Phrase and Exact Match bidding while limiting Broad Match to relevant terms.
The other use case for Manual CPC is low-volume keywords in lead generation campaigns. If you have a limited budget and are trying to stay profitable, manual bidding can work well. Start with a higher bid and gradually lower it until you find the sweet spot where Google is no longer spending the full budget.
2. Maximize Clicks
Maximize Clicks is a bidding strategy used to simply spend the campaign’s budget and get as many clicks as possible. It’s useful for collecting conversion data and speeding up the learning process. However, it’s important to use this strategy sparingly and only when the goal is to push traffic and collect data. Be cautious of the quality of clicks as there are no guardrails in place.
3. Target Impression Share
Target Impression Share is primarily used for branded search campaigns. The goal here is to maintain visibility and capture as much impression share as possible for your brand. There’s no need to use CPA or ROAS targets in this case, as they will push aggressively and make you pay more for clicks that could be obtained for less. Stick to using Phrase and Exact Match bidding to avoid overspending.
4. Smart Bidding
Smart Bidding is a bid strategy that uses machine learning and automation to optimize bids based on specific goals. There are two primary Smart Bidding strategies: Maximize Conversions and Maximize Conversion Value. Maximize Conversions focuses on the number of transactions or conversion actions, while Maximize Conversion Value focuses on any value provided, typically revenue.
For most campaigns seeking profitability, it’s recommended to use Maximize Conversions with a Target CPA or Maximize Conversion Value with a Target ROAS. These strategies allow you to set a target goal and optimize for profit margin while spending as much of the budget as possible. It’s important to find the optimal ROAS or CPA target by starting without a target and slowly adjusting based on performance.
Value-based bidding can be used with Maximize Conversion Value to feed business data that illustrates which leads are most valuable. This is useful for both ecommerce businesses and lead generation. By understanding your brand’s full sales funnel and working backward to determine the value of a conversion, you can use offline conversions to feed that information back into Google Ads.
Ultimately, the key is to match the bid strategy with your campaign’s goals. While automation and AI may receive criticism, using these technologies with the right support and setup can lead to better performance. It’s important to adapt and choose the bid strategy that aligns with your objectives.
In conclusion, bid strategies in Google Ads play a crucial role in campaign success. Understanding the different options and when to use them is essential for optimizing ad spend, capturing relevant traffic, and achieving your campaign goals. By leveraging the power of automation and machine learning, advertisers can unlock the full potential of their Google Ads campaigns.
