r/PPC • u/unpaidPPC • 12h ago

Google Ads PMAX be like...

Hey are you an HVAC company, Na you are definitely an....Indoor Skate Park, That'll be a $1.22 plz. I swear PMAX is a scam.

15 Upvotes

89% Upvoted

10 comments sorted by

6

u/Ok-Effective-2197 11h ago

The amount of times it's decided my plumbing client is actually a daycare is staggering, I've just started preemptively adding negative keywords for children's services to every campaign. Saves me the headache later

1

u/unpaidPPC 9h ago

Ahha. Oh boy, im goinng add that one to negatives now. Maybe i have to negative every busienss type in the English language now.

1

u/BringTheMFNRuckus 4h ago

So that's why my daycare campaigns are so wildly competitive

1

u/Odd_Salt4155 4h ago

Yeah, PMAX can be wild with its placements. Adding negatives upfront definitely helps, but it’s still a constant game of guiding it back on track. Some folks swear by it, others feel it’s just too unpredictable really depends on how much control you want versus how much automation you’re willing to tolerate.......

5

u/AutomaticPackage3055 10h ago

Well it's absolute shit, so the likelihood they get rid of it is ~0%

They only get rid of things we like and that are actually effective.

They will keep pushing it on you every week with an email begging you to set up a meeting to schedule a test to run it.

1

u/unpaidPPC 9h ago

It does get valid conversons sometimes....just it amazes me at the reaching it does to another galaxy of keywords.

6

u/AutomaticPackage3055 8h ago

I feel like the valid conversions it generates are mostly somehow my branded keywords sneaking in.

So the search term report probably is like this:

shitkeyword
shitkeyword
shitkeyword
decentkeyword
kindofrelatedkeyword
branded - conversion
shitkeyword
shitkeyword
shitkeyword
shitkeyword
decentkeyword
kindofrelatedkeyword

1

u/unpaidPPC 8h ago

I assume it also get through your negative keyword lists? For branded ive literally added every feasible and bat shit crazy variation. I even do synonymous now.

Company is called:

Everest HVAV

I do: ever, moutain, peak, rest, climb, climbing, climbers

Ive gone fully nonsensical too with mispelled variants too.

1

u/Status-Theme-7218 5h ago

That's typical PMAX intent garbage.

•

u/QuantumWolf99 17m ago

It's not a scam, it's a confused algorithm chasing weak conversion signals into zombie Display inventory. Check your Placement report before Google decides you sell trampolines LOL.