What you will learn
- Explain how the ad auction uses bids, ad quality, and context
- Compare manual CPC, Maximise clicks, and Smart Bidding strategies
- Decide which bidding strategy suits a campaign's stage and data
Every time someone searches, Google runs an auction among eligible ads. The winner is not simply the highest bidder. Ad Rank combines your bid with ad quality, which reflects expected click-through rate, ad relevance, and landing page experience, plus the context of the search. Quality Score, shown from 1 to 10 for each keyword, is a useful diagnostic of that quality. Better ads can win higher positions while paying less per click.
Bidding strategies fall into two broad groups. Manual CPC lets you set a maximum cost per click yourself, and Maximise clicks gets as many clicks as possible within budget. Smart Bidding uses machine learning to set a bid for each auction: Maximise conversions, optionally with a target CPA, aims for the most conversions, and Maximise conversion value, optionally with a target ROAS, aims for the most revenue.
Smart Bidding needs reliable conversion tracking, because it learns from the conversions you record. A new account with no data often starts with Maximise clicks or manual CPC, with sensible bid limits, to collect traffic and learn which searches convert. Once conversions are being recorded steadily, switch to Maximise conversions. Avoid sharp changes to strategy or budget every few days, since each big change can restart the learning period.