Starting a Google Ads campaign can be daunting, especially when choosing the right bidding strategy. Selecting the initial bidding strategy is crucial for setting the foundation for your campaign's success. This article will guide you on the best bidding strategy to start with as a new advertiser and when to transition to Target CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) bidding.

The Best Initial Bidding Strategy: Maximize Clicks

For new advertisers, the Maximize Clicks bidding strategy is often the most recommended starting point. Here's why:

Simplicity: Maximize Clicks is straightforward. It aims to get you the most clicks possible within your daily budget. This simplicity allows you to focus on other essential aspects of your campaign, such as keyword research, ad copy, and landing page optimization.
Data Collection: When you're new to Google Ads, you lack historical data about your account's performance. Maximize Clicks helps you gather this crucial data. By driving traffic to your website, you can start understanding which keywords, ads, and audiences are most effective. This data will be invaluable when you transition to more sophisticated bidding strategies later on.
Budget Control: You set a daily budget, and Google Ads will automatically adjust your bids to maximize the number of clicks you receive within that budget. You can also set a maximum cost-per-click (CPC) bid limit to prevent overspending on individual clicks.

How to Set Up Maximize Clicks:

Sign in to your Google Ads account.
Select the campaign you want to apply this strategy to.
Go to "Settings" and then "Bidding."
Under "What do you want to focus on?", select "Clicks."
(Optional) Set a "Maximum CPC bid limit" to control your spending.
Save your settings.

Why Not Target CPA Initially?

While Target CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) is a powerful bidding strategy, it's generally not recommended for new advertisers due to the following:

Requires Conversion Data: Target CPA relies on historical conversion data to predict the optimal bids for achieving your desired CPA. Without sufficient conversion data, Google Ads won't have enough information to effectively optimize your bids, leading to poor performance.
Learning Period: Target CPA requires a "learning period" where the system analyzes your past performance and adjusts bids accordingly. If you have little to no conversion history, this learning period can be extended, and your campaign may not perform well initially.
Risk of Limited Traffic: If your target CPA is too low compared to the actual cost of acquiring a customer, Google Ads may significantly limit your ad impressions, resulting in very little traffic.

When to Switch to Target CPA Bidding

Once you've accumulated enough conversion data, you can consider switching to Target CPA bidding. Here are the general guidelines:

Sufficient Conversions: As a general rule, your campaign should have recorded at least 30-50 conversions in the past 30 days. This provides Google Ads with enough data to accurately predict future conversion rates. However, the more data you have, the better Target CPA will perform.
Stable Conversion Rate: Your conversion rate should be relatively stable. Significant fluctuations in your conversion rate can make it difficult for Google Ads to optimize your bids effectively.
Understanding Your Target CPA: You need to have a good understanding of what a realistic and profitable CPA is for your business. This will likely come from your initial testing phase with Maximize Clicks and analyzing your conversion data.
Meeting Minimum Requirements: In some cases, Google requires a minimum number of conversions within a certain time frame to be eligible for Target CPA. This is to ensure the algorithm has enough data to work with.

How to Switch to Target CPA:

Sign in to your Google Ads account.
Select the campaign you want to apply Target CPA to.
Go to "Settings" and then "Bidding."
Under "What do you want to focus on?", select "Conversions value" or "Conversions."
Check the box next to "Set a target cost per action (CPA)."
Enter your target CPA – the average amount you're willing to pay for a conversion.
Save your settings.

Important Considerations for Target CPA:

Monitor Performance Closely: After switching to Target CPA, closely monitor your campaign's performance. Pay attention to your conversion volume, CPA, and overall return on ad spend (ROAS).
Adjust Your Target CPA: If your campaign isn't performing as expected, you may need to adjust your target CPA. If you're not getting enough conversions, try increasing your target CPA. If you're getting too many conversions at a CPA that's too high, try decreasing your target CPA.
Give it Time: Target CPA bidding takes time to optimize. Don't make drastic changes too quickly. Allow the system to learn and adjust its bids.

Starting with Maximize Clicks is a prudent approach for new Google Ads advertisers. It allows you to gather data, understand your audience, and optimize your campaigns before transitioning to the more advanced Target CPA bidding strategy. Once you have sufficient conversion data and a stable conversion rate, Target CPA can be a powerful tool for maximizing your return on ad spend.

Bidding strategies for new advertisers: When you should switch to CPA bidding

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