Saying Goodbye to Enhanced CPC - What comes next?

Google Ads is phasing out Enhanced Cost-Per-Click (eCPC), marking the end of a bidding strategy that has been commonplace in PPC for years. 

As a PPC manager, you’ll want to stay one step ahead of this significant change and know how best to adapt to this change, and what new strategies will work best. 

Let us guide you through everything that’s going on, and how you can level up your campaign management in light of this update:

• What does depreciation mean for Advertisers/What is it?
• Why Google is phasing out Enhanced CPCs
• Alternatives to enhanced CPC: What options do you have?
• Impact on PPC strategy: how to adapt to change
• Steps to take before enhanced CPCs is fully depreciated

What does deprecation mean for Advertisers/What is it? 

From now until March 2025, any new Google Ad campaigns that you create will not have the eCPC option available. From March 2025 and beyond, all of your historical PPC campaigns will also lose the eCPC option. 

What is Enhanced CPC?
eCPC is a hybrid bidding strategy where Google automatically adjusts bids, increasing or decreasing them based on the likelihood of a conversion.

It was a sort of halfway point between total AI control and total manual control of your campaign. It basically allowed marketers to maintain manual control while leveraging Google’s machine learning for optimised bidding.

This was a popular option for many marketers since its introduction in 2010, as it allowed anyone new to using AI in their campaigns to still retain part control over their campaign bidding strategy. But now, things are set to change.

What does deprecation involve?
Deprecation means eCPC will no longer be available as an option for new campaigns.
Furthermore, existing campaigns using eCPC will need to transition to other bidding strategies.

How will advertisers be affected?
You’ll need to adjust your PPC strategies, particularly any involving manual adjustments with automated enhancements.

Campaigns relying on manual bidding with eCPC will lose the machine-learning edge that fine-tuned bids for better conversion rates.

Why Google Is phasing out Enhanced CPCs

So why is this chance taking place? With eCPC being so popular, this update is significant. Here’s the lowdown on the story behind this pivotal change.

Why is Google moving away from eCPC?
The primary reason behind this change lies in Google’s pivot towards AI tools. As a marketer, you will have already seen that Google is focusing on fully automated bidding strategies like Smart Bidding, which offers more advanced machine learning. The two go hand in hand, and this is something that Google believes will be a time-saving and more sophisticated approach to campaign management.

Smart Bidding optimises bids in real-time, using a wide range of signals like device, location, and user behaviour. So in many respects, it offers the potential for more accuracy and informed decision-making, especially for very new campaigns that won’t have a lot of data for marketers to use when deciding their next steps for the campaign.

Are there any trends in PPC bidding?
This lean in towards AI reflects a strong trend toward automation, with Google pushing advertisers toward Smart Bidding strategies such as Maximise Conversions or Target CPA.

Google aims to make PPC management simpler and more effective with fewer manual interventions by marketers. We think that a blend of automation and manual, human-led management is the best approach. If you take your expertise as a PPC manager or marketer, and allow AI to assist on larger campaigns, or with things like idea generation, you could save yourself time and money.

Alternatives To Enhanced CPC: What options do you have?

Now that eCPC is off the cards, you still have plenty of automated, smart bidding strategies at your fingertips. 

Smart Bidding Strategies
Smart Bidding is Google’s preferred alternative to eCPC, offering fully automated bid adjustments using real-time signals.

Advertisers can choose between various Smart Bidding options, including Target CPA (Cost-Per-Acquisition) or Maximise Conversions.

We’d recommend this as a good starting point for anyone used to eCPC.

Enhanced eCPC and Smart Bidding
So what’s the difference between eCPC and more general smart bidding? Enhanced CPC allowed partial automation with manual controls, while Smart Bidding relies fully on Google’s AI.

Smart Bidding offers more granular, data-driven adjustments and uses more signals than eCPC, resulting in better conversion optimisation over time.

Manual CPC (without enhancement)
Of course, you still have the option to use Manual CPC, but without eCPC, you lose any potential benefits of machine-learning enhancements that may have helped increase conversions in your campaign. 

Manual CPC offers more control but requires more hands-on management compared to Smart Bidding​. So set time accordingly to cater to this more personal approach to campaign management. 

Impact on PPC Strategy: How to adapt to change

Flexibility and an openness to AI updates is key to navigating the next few years in PPC. Here are a few pointers to bear in mind.

Balancing manual and automated bidding
As eCPC is phased out, you’ll need to evaluate the trade-offs between manual bidding control and full automation.

Fully automated strategies like Smart Bidding can significantly reduce the need for manual intervention but may not suit every campaign.

Shifting focus to automation
We would recommend experimenting with Smart Bidding to see if it meets your campaign’s needs, particularly for conversion-focused campaigns.

It’s crucial to assess the performance of Smart Bidding strategies early on to ensure smooth transitions before eCPC is completely removed. If you are prepared, the chance will be almost unnoticeable to your clients, as your results will not take a dip.

Steps to take before enhanced CPCs is fully depreciated

If you’ve still got a couple of campaigns running on eCPC, here’s what to do to fully prepare.

Data-driven bidding strategies
Shift your focus to data-driven bid management strategies that rely on Google’s machine learning for predictive analytics.

This could take the form of exploring options like Target CPA, Target ROAS, and Maximise Conversions to find the best fit for your campaign goals. As these are tried and tested bidding strategies, you’ll be safe in the knowledge that they have helped many similar campaigns already. So you’re not stepping into something totally new, after all.

Leverage AI for smarter bid management
With eCPC gone, use Smart Bidding’s AI to dynamically adjust bids based on conversion likelihood, real-time signals, and historical data. This way, you’ll be maximising the potential for lower CPCs in your campaigns.

Set clear KPIs and allow the algorithm time to learn and optimise performance. As with anything automated, we’d recommend giving it at least 2 weeks, if not an entire month, before making any major changes. This will ensure you have enough data on your side to inform any decisions to updates in strategy and management.

Prepare Early
Start transitioning campaigns away from eCPC now, experimenting with different Smart Bidding strategies to find the best alternative. Time is on your side with this one!

Finally, ensure all team members are up to speed with the new bidding tools and strategies​. If this is a shared learning experience, your entire team can level up together, increasing the efficiency of your output.

Conclusion

The deprecation of Enhanced CPC marks a significant shift in Google Ads’ approach to PPC bidding, moving towards fully automated systems that rely heavily on machine learning. 

Now is the time to adjust your strategies by embracing Smart Bidding and other automated options to stay competitive in an evolving PPC landscape.