Is Jumping Straight Into Automated Bidding the New Standard for Lead Gen?

[potatodrinker]

Surprised anyone starts with manual bidding these days, unless budget is really tiny

[TTFV]

If you think you can get around 15+ conversions a month you can usually skip manual bidding and use smart bidding immediately. While it may take a few weeks for Google find it’s footing this is generally going to work out to be more efficient than transitioning bidding methods later.

[Flikker]

Ideally yes. Google has market wide data, but not data on what converts for your exact product or service. That would be the only reason a new account would start on manual CPC, but once there is enough conversion data there is literally zero reason for it.

[petebowen]

I’ve found that starting with conversion-based bidding works well enough now that it’s become my default approach.

I think it works because Google has enough system-wide data to know what’s likely to convert for a typical service business. They no longer have to wait for your account to generate enough data.

I’ve written up the exact campaign structure and day-by-day stats (I’m a bit of a geek) for a new campaign I recently launched using Max conversions with a target CPA in place here if you’re interested: [https://pete-bowen.com/whats-the-right-bidding-strategy-for-a-brand-new-google-ads-account](https://pete-bowen.com/whats-the-right-bidding-strategy-for-a-brand-new-google-ads-account)

[bolerbox]

i’d start automated if the account has clean conversion tracking and the lead quality signal is actually real

the trap is counting every form fill as equal. then smart bidding finds the cheapest junk leads faster than a human ever could. for lead gen i care less about “can we get 30 conversions” and more about “can we send back qualified lead / booked call / closed won data”

if that feedback loop isn’t there yet, max clicks or manual for a short calibration period still has a place. not because manual is better, just because bad signals make automation confidently wrong

[ppcwithyrv]

focus on cost per conversion and conversion rates. Pay for the lead not the click

[crawlpatterns]

yeah ive noticed that too honestly, a few years ago i would never trust automated bidding on a fresh account but lately it feels way more capable out of the gate. i still think it depends alot on conversion tracking quality though cause when the data is messy google just optimizes toward garbage leads faster lol. manual can still help in weird niches or super low budget accounts, but for normal lead gen stuff automated seems alot less painful now. kinda feels like google already knows what a decent lead looks like before the account even has history anymore

[pixelyash1]

You’re not wrong automated bidding has gotten significantly better, and for lead gen especially, starting with Maximize Conversions even with limited conversion history, often outperforms manual CPC now. Google’s AI uses cross account signals from thousands of similar lead gen campaigns, so it’s not starting from zero. That said, I still recommend starting with Maximize Clicks or Manual CPC for the first 3-5 days just to validate that your keywords and ads actually work and aren’t triggering junk traffic. Once you see decent click volume and a few conversions even 5-10 switch to Maximize Conversions or Target CPA. If you have a solid offer and clean tracking, jumping straight into automated bidding can work, but only if your landing page and conversion tracking are bulletproof.

[aamirkhanppc]

It depend upon budget and traffic . Normally if you are narrow niche then it wont work but if it is wider niche then you can easily get conversions. Google can do but the question is quality of lead

[pantrywanderer]

I’ve started seeing the same thing, especially in verticals where Google already has tons of historical conversion data across advertisers. The part that still makes me cautious is explainability though. Automated bidding can work fast, but when performance swings, it’s harder to justify decisions internally to clients who want clear reasoning behind spend changes.

[ppcbetter_says]

If your campaign structure, landing page and conversion tracking is good enough, yeah, it usually works

[PatternFluid2214]

depends on the niche tbh. for competitive home services like roofing or hvac, jumping straight into max conversions can burn through budget fast in the first 2-3 weeks while the algo figures things out. manual gives you more control early on to catch bad search terms before they eat your spend. both approaches work, the account structure and negatives matter more than the bidding strategy.