3 Reports You Need to Optimize Performance Max Campaigns

As Google Ads moves forward with AI-driven ads, Performance Max is becoming increasingly important to advertisers and so the ability to optimize Performance Max has become increasingly important to digital marketers. When Performance Max first came on the scene, Google provided very little to help optimize it (ah, memories). As it’s become a more mature product, more data for optimization has become available via reports. 

We break down below the three reports you need to run to optimize Performance Max campaigns.

Campaign Performance Report

Understanding the Performance Report in Google Ads

This report is a top-level report that allows you to measure Google’s Performance Report. It’s tailored to offer specific insights and provide crucial data at your fingertips. Here are some metrics you should analyze in this report to help you optimize Performance Max. 

Key Metrics to Focus on:

• Click-through rate (CTR): The temperature check for your ad’s appeal.
• Conversion rate: A measure of your landing page’s effectiveness in compelling actions.
• Cost per action (CPA): Calculates the expense of acquiring a conversion, be it a sale or a sign-up.

How to Run the Performance Report:

This is a predefined report in the Report Editor. Access it by going to the Insights and Reports dropdown on the left side of your screen. Then click Report editor. From there, scroll down to Performance Summary and click Campaign Performance.

Utilizing Performance Report Data to Optimize Performance Max

This top-level report will help you recognize and evaluate trends over time to make informed bid adjustments. Apply strategic shifts based on performance insights like scaling what works and fixing what doesn’t.

Here are some questions to ask yourself:

• Am I getting enough clicks?
• Do I have a good click-through rate?
• Is the cost per click too high?
• Are enough people clicking my ad?
• Are those clicks converting?
• If my clicks aren’t converting, why?

Using this report to answer these questions will help you to improve your campaigns and their performance.

Look at Comparative Data

Another important thing to look at is data at different intervals, like 30, 60, and 90 days, to see how your campaigns have improved or degraded. Compare the data to the previous period to see changes. If your cost per click is going up, consider any changes you’ve made that could have affected this.

Take a look at bid strategies. Have they made clicks and conversions too costly? If your campaign is performing badly, then you’ll need to dig deeper. Do you have several asset groups under one Performance Max campaign? Since insights are still limited with this campaign type, you’ll need to think strategically. If you have a poor-performing campaign, try splitting those campaign groups out and see how things do.

The Auction Insights Report

What the Auction Insights Report Offers

Your ads don’t exist in a vacuum. The Auction Insights Report shows your performance compared to your competitors. Being unique and likable may be more important than imitating the competition, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t know what your competition is doing.

Understanding where you appear and where you rank among the competition is a vital part of Search Engine Marketing (SEM) because if no one sees you, they can’t click on your ad.

Key Metrics to Focus on:

• Impression share: Your slice of the possible advertising pie.
• Overlap rate: How often you’re in the auction with your rivals.
• Position above rate: Frequency of your ads ranking above others.
• Top of page rate: How often your ads (or your competitor’s) are at the top of the page

How to Access the Auction Insights Report:

You’ll navigate to this one a bit differently. First, make sure you’re at the All Campaigns level. Go to the left side and find Insights and reports, and in the dropdown, look for Auction Insights. Click on it to open the report.

Actionable Data from Auction Insights to Optimize Performance Max

Use competitive benchmarking to stack up against others. Pinpoint coverage gaps and tweak strategies to increase visibility and competitiveness. Use the report to find who is competing against you in auctions and, in turn, research them to find advantages.

Use this report to see if your ad quality and budget are up to snuff with your competitors. If you’re slipping behind in the auction, this report will give you the data you need.

The Search Terms Insights Report

Diving into the Search Terms Insights Report

Performance Max campaigns use a different logic from Search, yet search terms are just as crucial. This report is perhaps the most important one you can review. You’ll see search terms, categories,

Key Metrics to Focus on:

• Search term: The phrases people use to trigger your ads.
• Performance metrics: Includes CTR, conversions, and CPA.

How to View the Search Terms Report:

Again head over to the left side of the screen and click Insights and reports. Click on Insights. Scroll down to Search terms insights. Click on it to open the report.

Using Search Terms Insights Report to Optimize Performance Max Campaigns

The Search Terms report is actionable in different ways than it would be for a Search Network campaign. Here, your primary goal is to mine terms for a negative keyword list. These will need to be added at the account level to be effective. Look for irrelevant terms you’d like to exclude from your campaigns. You’ll also see if your audiences and signals are off base based on the terms in the report.

Brand exclusions are another thing you can build from this report. Look for brands that are coming up in the terms and add them to your campaigns as brand exclusions.

Other Reports to Consider

Timing is everything, so consider running Time of Day, Geo, and Day of Week reports for additional insights into the best hours for your ads. Why spend money if you’re not converting?

You can also run the Performance Max Placement report to see where your ads show, and to find possible exclusions. The more familiar you get with reports and the data you can review, the more you can optimize Performance Max campaigns.

Reporting is a Powerful Optimization Tool

Harnessing the power of Google Ads reports could be the pivot point for helping optimize Performance Max campaigns efficiency. Integrate these insights, and watch the performance needle move in the right direction, helping your business (or the business of your client) to thrive in the digital advertising space.