Is there such a thing as too many campaigns in Google Ads?
Starting your Google Ads account for the first time can be overwhelming, especially when you don’t know how many campaigns or ad groups to create and where to spend budget.
Running multiple campaigns in Google Ads may seem like the best way to increase the conversions you get from your advertising dollars. However, some businesses make the mistake of running too many simultaneous campaigns, which can limit their effectiveness.
Focusing on fewer, well-funded campaigns is common practice in Google Ads. So remember, it’s quality over quantity.
If you’re wondering how many campaigns are too many, or need some Google Ads advice, the Digital4Startups has some tips for you.
Is it bad to run multiple campaigns in Google Ads?
Dave Kooi, Senior Account Manager at Digital4Startups, says that less is more in Google Ads.
“It’s tempting to over-segment for control, but Google’s machine learning thrives on consolidated data. Focus on high-impact campaigns with clear objectives and sufficient budget for better results,” said Kooi.
If you aren’t starting with a large budget in mind, running several Google Ads campaigns could spread your budget too thin, leading to several problems. Those problems include insufficient daily budgets, fewer clicks, lack of data, and ultimately poor performance.
Each campaign needs enough data to optimize properly, so spreading your budget across too many campaigns can hinder performance analysis. To ensure effective use of your ad spend, it’s better to consolidate your campaigns into a few key ones with a list of ad groups.
This way, you can allocate your budget more effectively and drive meaningful data and results. Additionally, as you gather more data, you can optimize and refine your campaigns.
How can you run multiple campaigns in Google Ads?
To create your first campaign, all you have to do is click on the blue plus sign on the campaign page in Google Ads. Most of the time, advertisers want to create more than one campaign, but there can be different reasons why you would want to separate or consolidate campaigns.
If you’re creating multiple campaigns, make sure that each different Google ad type– Search, Shopping, Performance Max, etc.– should have its own campaign. When creating multiple campaigns in Google Ads, it’s best to use Google Ads Editor to make bulk changes and copy over previous campaign settings to your new campaign.
A good strategy to use when running multiple campaigns is to separate campaigns for distinct customer segments with different needs and behaviors. You can also use separate campaigns for different objectives like brand awareness, lead generation, and sales.
Additionally, using geo targeting and considering separate campaigns for each region can help to optimize and strengthen your campaigns as well, which Matthew Ruske, General Manager of Digital4Startups, can attest to.
“Over the last year or so, Google has pushed advertisers to consolidate as much as possible. The message from Google has been that performance is far better when the algorithms, machine learning, etc. have as much data as possible,” said Ruske. “While true in most cases, it is still important to separate variables such as audience, geography, and product where it makes sense. You don’t want your data to get too cloudy.”
Whatever you decide, focus on quality over quantity, make sure you have well-structured campaigns with relevant keywords, a variety of match types, and accurate ad copy.
How many Google Ads campaigns should you be running?
Ruske says that there’s no perfect number when it comes to campaign quantity. It all depends on the individual business/advertiser and their budget.
That being said, the key to running any of your Google Ads campaigns is to keep them as manageable as possible. Focus on the most profitable campaigns with your bestselling products or services, then consolidate them to allocate more budget to the best opportunities.
“Keep an eye on budget cannibalization. If 1/10 ad groups is accounting for 90% of the spend, break it out into its own campaign to allow the other ad groups a legitimate opportunity,” said Ruske.
Once you do that, you can increase your daily budgets, dedicating more funds to fewer campaigns, leading to more clicks and better data. Eventually, you will then be able to scale gradually and expand to other products/services as your budget grows.
If you do have a smaller budget but have a seasonal offer or sale going on, that’s a great time to test out an additional campaign and adjust budget. That’s because it allows you to tailor your messaging and bidding strategies specifically to highlight the sale. This will then help to further attract customers and give you more control over your ad copy and targeting.
How does running multiple campaigns affect bidding strategy?
Many advertisers use the “Maximize Conversions” bidding strategy, however, this strategy requires 30-50 conversions per month to work effectively.
If your multiple campaigns are too diluted, then you won’t hit this threshold, so it won’t be effective as it could otherwise be. Your campaigns also might struggle to serve as they won’t have enough data.
Targeting the same audiences or keywords could also cause ads to compete against each other because only one advertiser can show at a time. This can make the auction more expensive and increase your CPCs, the amount you pay per click on your ad.
Therefore, solidifying your campaigns and focusing your budget will help generate enough conversions for advanced bidding strategies to work as planned. In Google Ads, less is often more.
Conclusion
While it’s tempting to run multiple Google Ads campaigns, focusing on fewer, well-funded campaigns often yields better results. Consolidating your efforts to allocate your budget wisely will help you generate meaningful data, improve performance, and optimize your campaigns more effectively over time.
Remember, the goal is to get the most out of your budget and your campaigns, so always make sure your account structure is aligned with your business goals. If you have any questions about Google Business Profiles or Google Ads and want to schedule a consultation, please email info@digital4startups.com.
