Automated bidding in Google Ads

Google Ads is evolving beyond recognition from what it was just 5 years ago. Gone are the days of manually tweaking bids and obsessing over CPCs. AI has taken the wheel, and automated bidding is now the gold standard for advertisers looking to maximise performance without the constant micromanagement.

But is it really as simple as sitting back and letting Google do all the work? Not exactly. Automated bidding can be a game-changer for your marketing, but only with your strategic and effective management, analysis and optimisation.

From choosing the right strategy to avoiding the common pitfalls, we’re here to guide you through the best way to approach automated bidding across your campaigns. Let’s get started.

• Why automated bidding matter in Google Ads
• Understanding Google Ads automated bidding strategies
• How to choose the right automated bidding strategy for your goals
• Best practices for optimising automated bidding
• Common pitfalls & mistakes to avoid

Why automated bidding matters in Google Ads

Automated bidding helps advertisers achieve their goals more efficiently by adjusting bids based on real-time data signals. The shift from manual to AI-driven bidding has transformed pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, reducing guesswork and improving performance.

Google’s automation aims to balance budget efficiency with conversion maximisation, making campaign management easier for advertisers. AI-driven bidding allows Google Ads to respond instantly to changes in the competitive landscape, consumer behaviour, and market trends.

Understanding Google Ads automated bidding strategies

There are a wide selection of automated bidding strategies available. So which ones focus on what’s most useful for your business, and your marketing goals? Here’s the lowdown.

Maximise Clicks

• This strategy focuses on getting the most clicks within a set budget.

• It’s ideal for brand awareness campaigns and high-traffic objectives.

• If you’re a new business looking to drive visitors to your site, this is a great option.

Maximise Conversions 

• This strategy prioritises getting as many conversions as possible within your set budget.

• It’s best for businesses focused on direct sales.

• If the most important thing to your marketing is the volume of sales alone, this is the strategy for you. Just make sure your conversion tracking is super accurate!

Maximise Conversion Value 

• This focuses on generating conversions that specifically bring in the highest revenue for your brand.

• It works well for eCommerce brands and businesses with variable product pricing, due to the simplicity of selecting high-revenue items.

• Similar to Maximise Conversions, this requires accurate revenue tracking in Google Ads.

Target CPA 

• Target Cost Per Acquisition automatically sets bids to help generate conversions at a target cost per customer.

• It’s ideal for businesses that want predictable acquisition costs.

• We find this works best with accounts containing a good amount of historical conversion data to guide AI decisions.

Target ROAS

• This automatically adjusts bids to achieve a target return on ad spend.

• It’s ideal for advertisers who prioritise profitability over sheer volume alone.

• This strategy is quite advanced, as it requires both detailed conversion tracking and revenue data.

Enhanced CPC 

• This strategy combines manual bidding with automated bid adjustments for better performance, to control the cost per click.

• It allows more control while still benefiting from AI-driven bid adjustments.

• We find this can be a good middle ground for any marketers hesitant to go fully automated, as you can still control a substantial portion of the strategy.

How to choose the right automated bidding strategy for your goals

Now that you’ve had an introduction to each strategy, it’s time to uncover which one is best for your goals. Here’s another way of looking at which strategies are most useful in specific use cases:

• Brand awareness campaigns = Maximise Clicks for traffic growth.

• Lead generation with fixed budget = Target CPA for controlled acquisition costs.

• eCommerce with varied pricing = Maximise Conversion Value or Target ROAS.

• Limited data but still want automation = Enhanced CPC as a starting point.

• Sales-driven approach with flexibility = Maximise Conversions for volume optimisation.

Best practices for optimising automated bidding

It's vital to ensure that conversion tracking is correctly set up before you start using any automated bidding strategies, as this provides the AI with accurate data to optimise performance effectively. 

Once in place, allow enough time for AI-driven bidding to adapt before making any changes, as premature adjustments can disrupt its learning process. While it's important to monitor performance regularly, frequent manual interventions should be avoided, as they can reset the learning phases and hinder progress. Basically, set it and monitor it for a while, but don’t change anything around for a couple of weeks at least.

To refine targeting, consider using negative keywords, audience exclusions, and bid adjustments, helping to focus spend where it’s most effective. Budgets and CPA/ROAS targets should be adjusted gradually to prevent any sudden performance fluctuations. 

Finally, seasonality can have a significant impact, so using seasonality bid adjustments when necessary can ensure that your campaigns remain competitive and responsive to changing market conditions.

Common pitfalls & mistakes to avoid

As with any automated strategy, it’s all too easy to make a mistake, that is then escalated thanks to the automation of your strategy. Here are a few important things to keep an eye on when managing your campaign. These could save you some headaches!

Setting unrealistic targets

• Overly aggressive ROAS or CPA goals can restrict your ad spend and limit reach.

• AI needs flexibility to adjust bids dynamically, so let the data show you what you should be realistically aiming for.

Ignoring seasonality adjustments

• Automated bidding may misinterpret seasonal spikes and adjust bids incorrectly.

• Of course, this is something you can combat yourself. For example, use manual overrides during peak shopping periods, so that the AI doesn’t make incorrect assumptions and changes to your strategy.

Using Smart Bidding with low conversion data
Google’s AI relies on historical conversion data to make decisions.
Without enough data, Smart Bidding may underperform or make inaccurate adjustments. So make sure you only trail new strategies with accounts that have lots of useful historical data.

Failing to exclude irrelevant audiences or placements

• Not using negative keywords and exclusions can waste ad spend on low-quality traffic. You don’t want your ads to be spent on audiences who just don’t need your product.

• Regular audits of search terms and placements are crucial, this is something you can easily keep an eye on manually from time to time.

In Closing

Automated bidding is a concrete part of the future of Google Ads, but it’s not a magic wand. AI can save you time and money, but only if you’re well informed on which strategies will benefit your campaigns the most. 

Success with automated bidding isn’t about setting it and forgetting it. It’s about knowing which strategy fits your goals, keeping a close eye on performance, and making smart adjustments along the way.

Use it wisely, taking this guide as your launchpad, and future-proof your campaigns, with you fully in control.