Each ad platform has a certain degree of automated bidding.
The decision to rely on giving ad platforms control over bidding has gone from a hard no to a “depends on it”.
When implemented correctly, automatic bidding can outperform human-judged bidding.
Goals that don’t align with the budget can kill automatic bids.
In addition, automatic bids will prevent some settings from affecting the campaign.
So it makes sense that Katrina from Oslo would want to know:
“Does it still make sense to edit locations, time, segments, and device bid using Google’s automated bid strategies?”
In this part of Ask the PPC we’ll go over the following:
- The difference between manual, smart, and automatic bids.
- Bid strategies that allow manual adjustments.
- When it makes more sense to go manual vs. automatic.
What is the difference between manual, smart, and automatic bidding?
Manual bidding is the most straightforward: the advertiser sets the bid and uses bid adjustments to direct the budget toward or away from people, places, times, and devices.
Advertisers can choose to use scripts to automate manual bids, so it’s closer to real-time bidding found in automatic/smart bidding.
Smart Bidding focuses on a “smart” objective such as conversions or return on ad spend (ROAS).
These bid strategies only allow advertisers to adjust the budget and goal parameters (target CPA and ROAS).
While you can still adjust some settings, they won’t focus the budget on or away from people, places, times, and devices.
Auto bids focus on all other goals, such as target impression share and clicks.
These bid strategies allow advertisers to adjust budgets and add bid limits.
Other than that, they have the same manual editing limitations as Smart Bidding.
Which bid strategies allow manual adjustments?
It can be difficult to keep track of exactly what adjustments can be made to all bid strategies.
Here is a breakdown of what each of them does:
ECPC Guide
- Positive bid adjustments (over bid): device, location, audiences, and schedule.
- Partial negative bid adjustment (low bids): device, location, audiences, and schedule.
- Modify your full negative bid (exclude): device, location, audiences, and schedule.
Clicks increase
- Positive Bid Adjustments: None.
- Partial negative bid adjustment: None.
- Modify your full negative bid (exclude): device, location, audiences, and schedule.
Share target impression
- Positive Bid Adjustments: None.
- Partial negative bid adjustment: None.
- Modify your full negative bid (exclude): device, location, audiences, and schedule.
Maximize conversion value
- Positive Bid Adjustments: None.
- Partial negative bid adjustment: None.
- Modify your full negative bid (exclude): device, location, audiences, and schedule.
Increase conversions
- Positive bid adjustments: Device, location, audiences, and schedule will allow for a higher target CPA.
- Partial negative bid adjustment: Device, location, audiences, and schedule will allow for a lower target CPA.
- Modify your full negative bid (exclude): device, location, audiences, and schedule.
When does it make sense to go manual versus automated
Budget is the biggest deciding factor in manual versus automated bid adjustments / bid strategies.
It is critical that automated systems contain enough data to support machine learning.
If the budget is constrained, you will need to manually go through to force the budget to spend.
If you go manual, it’s ideal to keep your bids conservative and move forward with bid adjustments.
For example, if the auction price is $5 to $17, bid closer to the lower range and use bid adjustments of 50% to 75%.
Writing bid adjustments can make sense if you have a larger account and/or need to make adjustments in real time.
Full automation (i.e. using bid strategies) can make sense if you have a reasonable budget for your industry.
The point is to get here and use the modifier classes as exclusions only.
Do you have a question about PPC? Submit via this form or tweet me at @navahf using the hashtag #AskPPC. See you next month!
More resources:
- Competitor Bidding Strategy in Search Engine Marketing: Waking up to Choosing the Chaos
- 5 steps to a successful branding bid strategy
- Top 10 Pay Per Click Trends To Know In 2022
Featured Image: Paolo Bobita/Search Engine Magazine
