c/ad-buyers-anonymous

I was dead wrong about automated bidding

For 2 years I ran manual CPC on all my campaigns because I thought the algorithms were just guessing. Then my rep showed me a side by side test on one account that spent $5,000 and saw a 30% lower CPA with Target CPA bidding. I finally caved and tested it on 3 of my own campaigns and it actually worked better in every single one. Has anyone else fought against automation for way too long before finally giving in?

1 comments

adamgreen•1d ago

Had a client tell me my Facebook ads were 'too targeted' and wanted more broad reach

They literally said they wanted 'everyone' to see their ad even after I showed them the data on our $0.04 per click campaign. This was during a Zoom call last Wednesday and I just sat there staring at my screen for like 10 seconds. Has anyone else had a client push back against good targeting numbers?

2 comments

hannahk19•1d ago

Why does nobody talk about how much Amazon ads eat into your margins?

I was looking at my seller reports last night and found out Amazon takes almost 30% of my revenue just in ad costs and fees combined. That stat hit me hard because I found it buried in the 'advertising cost of sales' section of their dashboard. Has anyone else noticed this creep and found a way to get better ROAS without just raising prices?

2 comments

jana_fox50•1d ago

I picked manual bidding over automated and it paid off

I know everyone in this group swears by automated bidding these days. But I had a campaign for a local plumber in Austin last spring where I just couldn't get the CPA down with their smart bidding. It kept spending on broad keywords that brought in tire kickers. So I switched to manual CPC bidding, set my max bid at $1.50, and spent like 3 hours tweaking negative keywords. After two weeks, my cost per lead dropped from $18 to $9 and we booked 4 actual jobs from it. Maybe it's just me but I think automated tools miss a lot of the local nuance. Has anyone else had better luck going manual for specific service businesses?

2 comments

kim693•1d ago

One Tuesday that cost me $800 because I ignored my gut on ad targeting

Last month I ran a campaign for a local landscaping company in Austin and let them talk me into targeting 'homeowners interested in luxury pools.' Wasted 6 days and $800 before I paused it. Has anyone else lost money by trusting a client's audience ideas over your own data?

2 comments

cora_scott77•2d ago

Got told my Facebook ad copy was 'too nice' and it made me rethink everything

I had a client in Phoenix last month who sells used truck parts. I was running ads for them with all this friendly, helpful language like 'we can help you find what you need' and 'call us for a quote.' Their conversion rate was flat. The client finally called me and said 'Cora, stop being so polite. Just tell them we have the part, how much it costs, and that we ship same day.' I changed the copy to be blunt and direct. CTR went up 40 percent in a week. Has anyone else had feedback that forced you to totally change your ad voice?

c/ad-buyers-anonymous

I was dead wrong about automated bidding

Had a client tell me my Facebook ads were 'too targeted' and wanted more broad reach

Why does nobody talk about how much Amazon ads eat into your margins?

I picked manual bidding over automated and it paid off

One Tuesday that cost me $800 because I ignored my gut on ad targeting

Got told my Facebook ad copy was 'too nice' and it made me rethink everything

Pro tip: I used to blame the platform for low conversions until I checked my landing page load time

That advice about lowering bids on slow days cost me a campaign

Threw $300 down the drain on a Facebook ad course that was just recycled blogs

My conversion tracking broke silently for 6 weeks and I wasted 4 grand

Just realized I was setting my Facebook ad budgets totally backward for 2 years

DAE realize Facebook ads manager shows you a totally different stat set than what actually matters?

Facebook ads manager completely changed my ROI last month

Threw $600 at Facebook ads for a local bakery and got 2 clicks

Compared Facebook ads and Google ads for my local bakery in Phoenix. Google won by a mile.

Finally cracked 500k impressions on a single campaign and it felt surreal

Chat with a floor guy made me rethink ad frequency caps

Took me 6 days to figure out why my ad set was overspending

That one critique about my landing page copy that actually helped

Appreciation post: That one Tuesday when everything clicked on my Facebook retargeting

Picked up a tip from a vendor at a farmer's market in Portland that cut my Facebook ad costs by 30%

Warning: That Facebook Ads audience overlap tool nearly cost me $500 in one day

The one lady in Peoria who made me rethink my whole ad targeting approach

Last Tuesday my ad campaign hit a 12x ROAS out of nowhere

That call with my dad about his ad budget last night really flipped my thinking