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Here's a real-time Google Ads case study that demonstrates exactly why I do NOT recommend using CPC limits with your Smart Bidding strategies. This coaching client came to me because their Google Ads campaigns for a home services business weren't performing well. Specifically, spend was flat month over month but conversion volume kept dropping. By the time we met, they had only gotten 6 conversions in the last 30 days. There were a few red flags here, such as: - CTR below 5% - Impression share below 10% - Avg CPC less than $2 - Conversion rate of 2% CPA was about $120, and their client wasn't happy with the volume or the efficiency. We scrapped the old setup, which had Broad Match keywords in dozens of different ad groups, and Maximize Conversions with bid limits. I walked them through creating a new Search campaign, with Exact Match keywords themed across just 4 ad groups. We also spend a good chunk of time working on new ad text, to get that CTR up. Maximize Conversions bid strategy, no bid limits. Now's the part where some of you will cheer, and some of you will have a heart attack. Results from the first few days under the new structure: - 16% CTR - Impression share ~30% - Avg CPC $28 (there's the heart attack) - Conversion rate 27% "OMG Jyll, $28 CPC, that's absolutely insane!" Well guess what? ? In the previous 30 days, old structure, they got 6 conversions at $120 CPA ? In the last 4 days, new structure, they got 3 conversions at $108 CPA This is for a brand new campaign that is still learning and has had zero optimizations. Can you imagine how much this thing is going to rock once the machine learning settles into its stride?! So please, my friends, stop holding the AI back. Stop optimizing for metrics that don't matter. Stop putting arbitrary bid limits on your Smart Bidding strategies ??♀? --- If you like real-life Google Ads case studies like this, be sure to sign up for my newsletter by tapping "Visit my website" at the top of this post. Starting in December, I'll be sending out a new one every week!
Navah Hopkins
3 个月
Fully agree random bid limits hurt. That said, I understand folks applying the 10% of budget bid cap for pragmatism (because if you can't fit at least 10 clicks in your day, you're likely not going to get enough engagement to get a conversion).
I most strongly disagree. Plenty of times have I gone from a pmax back to a manuel shopping campaign with target roas and a max CPC and seen great results. Same goes for search campaigns with a target CPA. in some accounts where there average cpc is 10 usd. The algorithm will sometimes go for a 30 or 40 usd bid, which is nonsense. The account is spending 10k monthly so it should have the data. I just cap the max bid at 13-15 usd. Everyone is happy. I get 90-95% of the possible volume and I don’t get the hiccups where the algorithm does something crazy
Nikolina Tomaskovic
3 个月
Jyll Saskin Gales Thanks for sharing this Jyll, I really enjoy your case studies! ?? I'm curious why you chose Max Conv in this new campaign, and not Max Clicks to collect data first? It's interesting how we follow certain rules that can work (like get 30 conversions in 30 days) or at least it worked before, but now that things are more automated there are other strategies that can work better.
Mirza Lacevic
3 个月
Yes but what if the CPC is $200-$500, would you let the algorithm do its thing or limit the bids?
Todd Mintz
3 个月
IMO, safety bid limits are important and in my experience, don't throttle the results.
Chelsea So
3 个月
Great case study! Let the AI do its thing—proof is in the results! ??
Whit Norrad
3 个月
This is relatable in the world of automotive! Yes yes yes! Don't put a fake ceiling on someone buying something expensive, when you don't need to (to make it rock).
Heidi Sturrock
3 个月
Yes - running into this - $50 CPC but higher conversion rates that lead to better efficient CPAs at higher volume. Check in on your main KPI metrics before succumbing to the heart attack!
Great insights, Jyll! It’s fascinating to see the dramatic turnaround. What further optimizations do you plan to implement next?
?? Scaling eCommerce Brands with Google Ads | We work with European stores/brands spending $20k/mo. to $1m/mo.
3 个月You came out fighting here I see ??