PPC advertising can “bleed” your budget even when campaigns appear active and successful at first glance. SaaS and tech companies face this issue particularly often, as their cost per click is high, and configuration errors quickly translate into losses.
One of the most common issues is the Google Display Network not working properly in search campaigns. This is exactly what PPC Manager Anna Saskevich, who works with SaaS and tech projects, points out.
Mistake #1: Display Network is enabled in Search campaigns
The Google Display Network is a network of over 2 million websites, apps, and video platforms where your ads can appear. The problem is that Display traffic operates on a different logic than search. While in Search, a user enters a specific query, in Display ads are often shown based on interests, behavior, or browsing history.
Because of this, an active Display Network in search campaigns often leads to:
- rapid budget depletion
- a large amount of low-quality mobile traffic
- irrelevant clicks
- accidental or invalid clicks
- distorted campaign statistics
As a result, the company sees a lot of traffic but doesn’t understand which segments are driving conversions and what can be scaled.
What is recommended?
The solution is quite simple—disable the Display Network in search campaigns. This allows you to:
- better control your audience
- get more relevant traffic
- improve lead quality
- analyze campaign performance more accurately
You can check this in Google Ads: Campaign → Settings → Networks → Include Display Network.
Mistake #2: Automatic bidding strategies without enough conversions
Automatic bidding strategies in Google Ads can work very well—but only if the system has enough data to learn from.
The problem is that many companies launch Maximize Conversions or tCPA too early, when the algorithm doesn’t yet understand:
- who exactly is converting
- which traffic is high-quality
- which segments perform better
As a result, Google starts “guessing” how to allocate the budget, and the campaign quickly becomes unmanageable.
What is needed for automatic bidding to work properly?
For the algorithm to optimize the campaign, several conditions must be met.
Proper conversion tracking
Google Ads conversion tracking must be correctly set up in the campaign. Without this, the system simply doesn’t know what to count as a result.
Sufficient number of conversions
For stable learning, Google typically requires:
- a minimum of 30 conversions over the last 30 days
- preferably 50+
If individual campaigns do not reach this volume, data can be accumulated at the campaign portfolio level.
Correct campaign goals
It’s best to use “macro goals” as primary conversions:
- purchases
- bookings demos
- trial sign-ups
- inquiries
If the algorithm is optimized for weak signals, traffic quality often drops.
Realistic KPIs
Another common mistake is setting overly aggressive goals. For example: if a campaign has been running for six months with a CPA of $40, and you suddenly set a target CPA of $20, Google starts to restrict auctions too much and loses the ability to learn properly.
The same applies to ROAS. Unrealistic numbers often don’t improve the campaign; on the contrary, they “break” the algorithm.
What is recommended?
If the campaign hasn’t accumulated enough data yet, it’s better to temporarily switch to manual bidding.
Manual Bidding allows you to:
- control bids manually
- analyze segments more accurately
- identify problem areas faster
- and gradually prepare the campaign for automation once it has a sufficient data volume.
Mistake #3: Audience Expansion enabled
Another issue that often causes PPC campaigns to lose lead quality is automatic audience expansion.
Audience Expansion allows the ad system to independently search for “similar” users outside the specified targeting settings. Formally, this is supposed to help scale the campaign, but in practice, it often leads to a loss of control over the audience.
For example: if a campaign targets people with the “Data Research” skill, the system may automatically expand impressions to users with “Data Analysis” skills or other related interests.
And the problem here is that the advertiser doesn’t see the full logic behind such expansion.
The platform can:
- add new segments
- remove some of the original interests
- change traffic distribution
And all of this happens without full control from the specialist.
What does this lead to?
Typically, this traffic has a lower cost per click, but that doesn’t mean better results. Often, the campaign ends up with:
- a less relevant audience
- lower-quality leads
- lower purchase intent
- inconsistent results
As a result, the statistics may look “cheaper,” but the campaign’s actual effectiveness drops.
What is recommended?
If lead quality is critical for your business—not just reach—it’s better to turn off Detailed Targeting / Audience Expansion.
This allows you to:
- control your audience more precisely
- maintain traffic relevance
- better understand which segments actually convert
You can check the settings via Google Ads Editor: Recent Changes → Campaign → Ad Groups → Targeting Expansion.
Mistake #5: Too-low bids and campaign budget
One of the most common questions in PPC is how much money you should actually allocate to advertising. There is no universal figure here. It all depends on:
- the niche
- competition
- campaign goals
- scaling aggressiveness
But there is one critical mistake that companies make regularly: setting bids that are too low or allocating a budget that is too small.
In this case, the campaign may not even enter the Google Ads auction. Simply put: the ad is technically “live,” but the system barely shows it to users due to an insufficient bid.
What does this lead to?
Low bids often mean:
- insufficient impressions
- very few clicks
- a lack of data to train the algorithm
- zero results even with the correct campaign settings
This is especially critical at the start, when campaigns are still in the learning phase.
What is recommended?
In many cases, the problem is solved by:
- increasing bids
- increasing the daily budget
- maintaining a stable volume of traffic for algorithm training
One of the basic practices is to set the daily budget to be approximately 10 times larger than the average bid.
This gives the campaign enough volume to collect statistics and train properly.
Mistake #6: Not using bid adjustments
Another mistake is the lack of bid adjustments. Bid adjustments allow the system to work more aggressively or, conversely, more cautiously with different audience segments.
Important: this tool only works with manual bid management.
How does it work?
For example, a campaign converts better on mobile devices. In this case, you can increase the bid for mobile traffic by 20%.
Before:
- bid $3
After adjustment:
- $3 + 20% = $3.20
In other words, the system will start participating more actively in auctions specifically for the mobile audience.
You can do the opposite as well—reduce bids for underperforming segments.
Which parameters can be adjusted?
Bid adjustments allow you to work with:
- devices
- geography
- display time
- audiences
- remarketing
- specific targeting methods
Why is this important?
Without adjustments, the campaign spends the budget evenly—even on segments that don’t deliver results. And the right bid adjustments help:
- reduce spending on low-performing traffic
- shift the budget to profitable segments
- improve CPA and overall campaign performance
Therefore, before scaling your ads, be sure to analyze statistics by device, location, and time of day—that’s where the simplest opportunities for growth are often hidden.