8 PPC Best Practices That Do More Harm Than Good

In today's digital marketing landscape, automation is becoming increasingly essential due to the numerous tasks at hand. Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising is a prominent method, allowing your ads to be displayed dynamically to users across search engines and social media based on their search queries. Notably, you only incur ad costs when users interact with your ads. While this approach can effectively drive both organic and paid conversions, it must be executed properly. Within this space, various PPC best practices exist, which may initially appear beneficial but can ultimately damage your brand and business.

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The realm of PPC is extensive, with the potential for fine-tuning strategies that cater specifically to each brand's unique goals. This individuality suggests that standard best practices, particularly those auto-generated by your PPC platform, can inadvertently harm your advertising efforts.

Many often default to ‘best practices’ as a preliminary guideline, particularly those new to PPC or teams seeking immediate results without a fundamental understanding of how to optimize expressly for their objectives.

So, which commonly suggested PPC strategies could be counterproductive to your advertising success?

8 PPC Practices Doing More Harm Than Good 

1) Relying on Broad-Match Keywords

When aiming to control how your ads appear in search results, the match type you choose is crucial. Many platforms, including Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising, may recommend broad-match keywords as a starting point for your strategy. However, simply increasing your appearance on various searches through these broad options may not be the most effective tactic.

Gaining control over your keyword match types, such as using phrase-match and exact-match keywords, allows for better alignment with user intent. For instance, a phrase-match keyword can differentiate between someone seeking information and someone ready to purchase. Recognizing these distinctions is vital for crafting content that resonates at various stages of the conversion funnel.

2) Auto-Accepting Platform Recommendations

Platform-generated recommendations can facilitate your approach by offering keywords you might overlook or aid established strategies. However, automatically accepting these suggestions without critical evaluation rarely maximizes the effectiveness of your ad budget. Google has been heavily promoting this practice, yet its AI lacks a nuanced understanding of your unique brand and marketing approach.

By auto-accepting recommendations, you risk:

• Generic Suggestions
• Changes and Keywords Without Review
• AI-Generated Ad Copy
• Misdirected Audience Targeting
• Inapplicable Strategies for Your Business Model

These additions to your campaign and budget accrue without proper analysis. While the capability might seem beneficial in principle, AI is not adequately equipped to autonomously manage your PPC campaigns just yet.

3) Combining Search and Display Campaigns

Google's option to merge your meticulously crafted search strategies with corresponding display campaigns may sound appealing initially. However, it is crucial to note that users seek search results and display content for different motivations.

When it comes to lead generation and conversion, the variance in intent between searchers can be significant. Consequently, brands typically benefit more from developing two distinct, audience-centric campaigns rather than redundantly applying strategies from one to the other.

While the potential for synergy might entice you, search and display ad groups, along with their respective conversion approaches, often demonstrate marked differences. Thus, creating two tailored campaigns is usually more effective than simply duplicating efforts.

4) Fully Automated Bidding Without a Strategic Goal

Though automated bidding—designed to optimize for conversions—can enhance an established PPC campaign, merely activating it without considerable input does not guarantee superior outcomes. An effective automation strategy requires a clear understanding of desired conversions and ad objectives.

By establishing proper frameworks, automated bidding can streamline your strategy and reduce manual effort. However, it necessitates a well-defined conversion funnel and robust tracking methods to guide users toward meaningful results.

The automation system performs better with direct oversight, ensuring that your objectives are achieved within a guided structure that effectively optimizes your time and budget.