Create and adjust budget spend and key metrics in a plan

A plan’s budget spend, key metrics, and key metric amounts are evaluated when the new Search Ads 360 generates budget performance (volume and efficiency) estimates. You can define these manually, or you can enable a budget bid strategy for the plan. After you’ve created a plan with a defined budget manually, you can adjust its settings, or choose to enable a plan budget bid strategy.

As you enter new values for spend, key metrics, and key metric amounts, the charts on the Explore forecasts and Compare performance tabs automatically update.

Control budget spend, key metrics, and key metric values manually

You can create or edit a manual budget by setting the spend, key metrics, or key metric amounts. At stage 1 “Adjust forecast,” the “Explore forecast” chart reflects any new amounts you enter, assisting with decisions you make about optimal settings for the current plan. 3 key metrics are available to select:

• Clicks, Avg. CPC
• Conversions, Avg. CPA
• Conv. value, conv. value per spend

You can also manually enter the amount for your overall spend to modify the forecast. The last settings entered at stage 1 are carried forward to stage 2 “Set up plan”.

To make manual key metrics or key metric amounts entries or adjustments (rather than automatically with a budget bid strategy), do the following:

1. In stage 1 “Adjust Forecast”, click the Key metrics dropdown.
   1. To specify clicks and average cost per click as the key metric for the plan:
      1. Select Clicks, Avg. CPC.
      2. In “Your Plan”, enter the amounts you want to forecast from in Spend, Avg CPC, and Clicks. The chart adjusts to reflect an updated forecast (if available).
   2. To specify conversions and average CPA for the plan, do the following:
      1. Select Conversions, Avg. CPA.
      2. In “Your Plan”, enter the amounts you want to forecast from in Spend, Avg Cost/Conversion, and Conversions. The chart adjusts to reflect an updated forecast if available.
   3. To specify conversion value, conversion value per spend for the plan, do the following:
      1. Select Conv. value, conv. value per spend.
      2. In “Your Plan”, enter the amounts you want to forecast from in Spend, Conv. value / Spend, and Conversion value. The chart adjusts to reflect an updated forecast if available.
2. Click Continue.
3. In stage 2 “Set up a plan”, in “Performance targets”, enter the options you require.
   1. Optionally, adjust the settings carried through from stage 1.
   2. Optionally, adjust the metric types and amounts for Above target and Below target report flags. The options include:
      • by set %
      • by set amount
      • by any amount
   3. Optionally, click Target to display “Key metric target”.
      1. In the Target dropdown, click Avg. conv. value / cost or Conversion value.
      2. Adjust the Amount.
4. In “Performance settings”, select Manage campaign performance manually.
   • With this option, you'll manually adjust average daily budgets, bids, and bid adjustments to reach your forecasted goals.
   • This option must be selected to apply settings you have entered manually.
5. Click Update plan.
6. In stage 3 “Confirmation,” click Continue to plan.

Control budget spend, key metrics, and key metric values automatically using a budget bid strategy

Alternatively, you can make automatic adjustments to your spend, key metrics, and key metric values using a budget bid strategy in plans as you are creating them, or you can switch a manually adjusted plan to a budget bid strategy after it is created.

There are 3 options you can apply to your budget bid strategy:

• Use Google Ads Auction-time bidding
  • Google Ads Auction-time bidding can help improve performance by using real-time contextual signals like time and location. Available for Google Ads campaigns only.
• Set intraday bidding limits
  • Intraday limits apply to campaigns that don't use Google Ads Auction-time bidding, and they only apply to the base keyword or product group bid. Device, location, or audience bid adjustments could raise or lower bids beyond these limits. Enter minimum and maximum bids.
• Set Target conversion value / cost constraint
  • This sets the minimum conv. value / cost amount for a budget bid strategy. Enter a value in Keep conversion value / cost above, but be aware that setting a target conversion value / cost constraint may prevent the budget bid strategy from spending the targeted amount.

To automatically adjust a plan’s budget spend, key metrics, and key metric amounts using a budget bid strategy, do the following:

10. Click Update plan.
11. In stage 3 “Confirmation,” click Continue to plan.