Automated systems have transformed every aspect of marketing operations over the past few years, from how we run email campaigns and schedule social media posting to lead scoring and AB/ testing. Now, with the growing maturity of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, we are seeing the major paid media platforms advocate ever more sophisticated forms of automation that minimise manual input and rely on algorithms.
Just a few examples of this include:
These automations are incredibly powerful and can save time and drive great results for advertisers when they are used wisely. However, brands should not think of these automations as set-and-forget solutions. Unattended, these automated features may deliver a lot of cheap clicks. But you will also want to ensure that they are generating high-quality traffic that justifies your ad spending.
One of the factors marketers should be aware of is that the paid media platforms are often designed to reward volume in terms of clicks and impressions. But in reality, not all clicks and impressions are of equal value. For example, you will probably be thrilled if you see your clicks double overnight after you add a single broad match keyword. Disappointment may follow if you see that your conversions have halved in value.
The keyword may have attracted a lot of traffic from users who weren't ready to buy or for whom your ad was actually irrelevant. A cheap click is not cheap if it does not convert. In the long run, it may cost you even more. Not only will you have wasted part of your ad spending, but you might have polluted your data signals with irrelevant interactions. The result is that the automated algorithms may continue to target audiences that are not relevant to you.
Leading marketers are increasingly moving away from old-school metrics like impressions and click-throughs. These are easy to track, but do not show value. Instead, they are shifting from volume to value-based bidding, tracking metrics such as conversion value, lead quality and Return on Ad Spend (ROAS). Consider this comparison of two imaginary campaigns as an example of why marketers should optimise for value rather than volume:
An automated campaign will happily optimise for Campaign A, unless someone instructs it to do otherwise.