Managing Multiple PPC Campaigns? Don’t Let It Get Chaotic!
Hey there! If you’re anything like me, you’ve got multiple PPC campaigns running across different platforms like Google Ads, Microsoft Ads, and Facebook. And if you’re a PPC agency or freelancer managing campaigns for various clients – well, things can get chaotic pretty fast!
Between monitoring different accounts, optimizing for each client’s unique goals, and fiddling with bids and budgets, the work never seems to end. Before you know it, you’re drowning in campaigns that are disorganized and out of control!
But it doesn’t have to be that way. With some strategy and effort devoted to the organization, you can tame the PPC beast and reach PPC nirvana! In this post, I’m going to share my top tips for organizing and managing multiple PPC campaigns so you can work smarter, not harder.
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Develop a Consistent Naming Convention
Let’s start with one of the most basic but important things – naming your campaigns, ad groups, ads, and keywords. When you’ve got multiple clients, products, or services, things can easily get confusing.
Take the time to develop a consistent naming convention across accounts. Include important elements like the client name, product/service, match type, location, and ad variation. For example:
Acme Client_Branded_[Broad]
Acme Client_ProduktA_Seattle_[Phrase]
You get the idea. With a logical naming structure, you’ll be able to quickly scan and understand what’s what in the account.
Use Labels Extensively
Does your PPC platform allow you to apply labels or tags? Use them liberally! Labels help you organize campaigns, ad groups, ads, and keywords according to categories like “test”, “on hold”, “low performing”, etc.
For example, labeling certain keywords as “testing 10/10/23 – 10/24/23” allows you to quickly pause or remove test keywords when the test period ends. Labels keep things neat and organized as campaigns evolve.
Segment Campaigns and Ad Groups
Campaign and ad group structures are the foundation of any organized PPC account. Whenever possible, segment campaigns by client, product/service, location or other categories that make sense. This allows you to isolate certain products, services or markets for optimization.
Within each campaign, break ad groups out by keyword theme, match type, product category or subcategory. The goal is to group tightly related keywords so you can hone bidding and messaging. Highly specific ad groups = better quality score = better performance!
Build a Campaign Workbook
Maintaining a workbook is essential for tracking details on all your campaigns in one place. Include key info like:
Client name
Campaign name
Budget and schedule
Bidding strategy
Target locations
Ad rotation
Important dates
Recent changes
Performance benchmarks
Having campaign details centralized makes your job infinitely easier when clients ask for updates or you need to reference past adjustments.
Calendar Key Optimization and Check-In Dates
Ongoing optimization is crucial for PPC success. But it’s tough to stay on top of everything without visibility on what needs to be done and when.
Use your calendar to mark down:
Key campaign launch dates
Ad testing schedules
Bid adjustments
Budget changes
Client check-ins
Tests to analyze
Platform change rollouts
Scheduling optimization activities maintain momentum. You’ll be less likely to take things for granted or forget important to-do’s.
Leverage Automated Rules
PPC platforms like Google Ads provide automation rules that can save you oodles of time. Take advantage of them! Build out rules to:
Pause poor-performing keywords
Cap super high CPC keywords
Dynamically adjust bids by time, device, and more
Change budgets by schedule
Turn off certain location targets
And more…
Automating repetitive optimization tasks allows you to focus your energy on high-level strategy.
Analyze Performance Regularly
It’s easy to get so bogged down in the weeds of day-to-day PPC management that you fail to zoom out and assess overall performance. Allocate time at least monthly to review reports and analytics across your accounts.
Look for trends and anomalies in key metrics like CTR, conversions, and CPA – both at the campaign and ad group levels. Make sure you’re on track toward targets and goals. Performance analysis is crucial for identifying optimization opportunities.
Cut Through Clutter With Reporting
Speaking of analysis, don’t just rely on the native reporting in each PPC platform. The data is limited and scattered across accounts.
Leverage third-party reporting tools like Google Data Studio, Supermetrics, or Klipfolio to build custom reports and dashboards synthesizing data from all your accounts.
Consolidated reporting provides visibility in one place. Easily share high-level recaps with clients and stakeholders without hassling with multiple platforms.
Check Campaign Settings
How often do you thoroughly review campaign settings like locations, devices, ad schedule and more? For most of us, not often enough!
Make it a habit to periodically audit campaign settings across accounts to ensure nothing has gone out of whack. As campaigns evolve, old settings can become misaligned. An audit ensures quality remains high.
Listen for Opportunities to Consolidate
As PPC accounts grow over time, some legacy campaigns stick around while others are deprecated. Listen for consolidation opportunities to streamline management.
Maybe you can migrate an outdated campaign into a newer core campaign. Or consolidate multiple location-based campaigns that have overlapping audiences. Look for ways to consolidate without sacrificing relevance.
Clean Up Clutter
Cruise through your campaigns and ad groups on occasion to remove clutter. Delete old abandoned ad copy that’s no longer being used. Remove duplicated or irrelevant keywords that slipped in somehow. Take out ad groups or campaigns that aren’t productive anymore.
Don’t let your accounts turn into a junk drawer! Regular clean-up improves account quality and your sanity.
Rinse and Repeat
Whew, that was quite a list of tips! However, diligently applying these principles will do wonders for keeping your PPC accounts organized. Try implementing several tips at a time until you establish a solid management routine to managing multiple PPC campaigns.
The benefits are huge. You’ll gain back hours of your work week by eliminating chaos and confusion. Reporting and optimization become much simpler. And organized accounts lead to better performance results.
It does take effort to maintain order, but I promise it’s worth it many times over. Don’t let your campaigns spiral out of control! With some strategy and discipline, you can reach PPC nirvana.
