When creating a new Google Ads account, Google starts you off in what is considered "Smart Mode". This is a simplified version of Google Ads. You may have also been reading about Smart Bid Strategies like Maximize Conversions, Target CPA or Target ROAS. How are these different than Smart Mode? Are they the same thing?

Smart Mode uses these bid strategies but they're not called 'bid strategies'. This is because this confuses most newbies. In Smart Mode, you just tell Google what your business goals are and it automatically applies the smart bid strategy it thinks is relevant for your campaign.

You can switch your account over to "Expert Mode" which then allows you to be more specific in setting your bid strategy. It also allows you to use Manual CPC which lets you set the bid for each keyword in your campaign. Even if you don't plan to use Manual CPC, I always recommend switching to "Expert Mode" because it will give you more control over your campaign which allows you to optimize it overtime to reduce wasted ad spend, increase conversions, lower your cost per conversion and increase your return on ad spend.

You're able to do this by setting up your campaign in a more granular fashion, which gives you more data on which keywords, locations, audiences, demographics & days and times are generating the best results so you can make the necessary adjustments to drive more conversions (i.e. leads or sales) for less money.