When a Google Ads account underperforms, the instinct is to change bids or try new keywords. In practice, most wasted spend comes from problems that sit outside the campaigns themselves. Check these five before you raise your budget.
1. Conversion tracking that counts the wrong things
If page views or button clicks are counted as conversions, automated bidding will optimise for them. Track completed enquiries, calls over a set duration and purchases, and mark everything else as secondary.
2. Landing pages that do not match the search
Someone searching for a specific service should land on a page about that service, not your homepage. Match the headline to the query and make the next step obvious above the fold.
3. Broad match without negative keywords
Broad match can find valuable searches, but only with a maintained negative keyword list. Review the search terms report weekly and exclude anything irrelevant.
4. No follow-up on leads
Ads can only bring people to the door. If enquiries wait a day for a reply, many will have already contacted a competitor. Measure response time as seriously as cost per lead.
5. Judging too early
Automated bidding needs conversion data to learn. Changing strategy every few days resets that learning. Agree a test period and a success metric before you start.
Fixing these usually improves results more than any bid change. If you would like a second opinion on your account, get in touch.
