Case Study - Yellow Shoes

Is automated bidding the most effective strategy across all campaign types?

Background

Is automated bidding always the best choice — even for branded campaigns?

Google strongly encourages advertisers to adopt automated bidding strategies like Target ROAS or Maximize Conversions. While these are effective for many campaign types, particularly generic or acquisition-focused ones, their application in branded campaigns can lead to unnecessary overspending and reduced control over key performance levers.

Strategy

Leveraging Manual CPC to regain control and improve efficiency.

For Yellow Shoes, we challenged the default approach by replacing automated bidding on branded campaigns with Manual CPC strategy.

This allowed for tighter control over cost-per-click (CPC) and search impression share. By continuously monitoring performance, we ensured brand visibility remained strong while driving CPCs down.

Results

This allowed for tighter control over bids, with a progressive reduction in CPC while maintaining strong visibility through consistent monitoring of search impression share.

Within three months, branded CPCs had dropped substantially, spend was sharply reduced, and impression share remained stable above target.

Over the following year, this optimization led to :

-70% drop in branded CPC
-88% reduction in branded spend
+127% increase in revenue
+200% increase in profitability

The cost savings unlocked by this shift were then strategically reinvested in higher-growth areas such as Performance Max, Shopping, and Generic Search, fueling broader reach and acquisition.

Conclusion

One-size-fits-all doesn’t apply to bidding.

This case illustrates the importance of tailoring bidding strategies to campaign goals. For branded campaigns, where control and cost-efficiency are critical, Manual CPC can outperform automated options — freeing up budget to accelerate growth where it matters most.