What tools or third-party platforms do you use for bid management and optimization?

Great question—there are a bunch of tools and platforms out there that help streamline bid management, automate optimization, and enhance overall performance across channels. The ones you choose depend on your goals, budget, and the complexity of your campaigns. Here's a breakdown of some of the top tools used for bid management and optimization:

1. Native Ad Platform Tools
These are built into the ad platforms and are essential for most advertisers:

Google Ads Smart Bidding (e.g., Target CPA, Target ROAS, Max Conversions)

Meta Advantage+ Campaigns (automated budget and bid allocation)

Microsoft Ads Automated Bidding

They're great because they use platform-level signals (like user intent, device, location, etc.) in real time.

2. Third-Party Bid Management Platforms
These are especially useful if you're running large-scale or multi-channel campaigns and need more control or cross-platform coordination.

a. Search & Performance Marketing Tools
Marin Software
Multi-platform bid automation with integrations across Google, Meta, Amazon, and more.

Kenshoo (now Skai)
Powerful for e-commerce and cross-channel attribution; includes AI-driven bidding and forecasting.

SA360 (Search Ads 360)
Google's enterprise-level tool (formerly DoubleClick). Offers cross-engine bidding, custom rules, and attribution integrations.

Optmyzr
Great for small to mid-size teams wanting automation plus custom rule building and reporting flexibility.

b. Social & E-commerce Specific Tools
Smartly.io – Used for automating bidding and creative testing across social platforms (especially Facebook/Instagram).

Pacvue – Strong for Amazon, Walmart, and retail media networks; combines bid automation with share of voice data.

Teikametrics – Tailored to Amazon and Walmart ads, with AI-based bid optimization focused on profitability.

3. Data Integration & Attribution Tools
While not bid tools themselves, these help inform better bidding decisions:

Google Analytics 4 & BigQuery – For building custom bidding signals and feeding them into Smart Bidding.

Segment, Zapier, or Supermetrics – Help connect your CRM and backend data to ad platforms for value-based bidding.

Attribution platforms like Hyros, Wicked Reports, or Northbeam – Help assign revenue across channels, enabling smarter bidding strategies.

4. AI & Custom Solutions
If you've got access to engineering or data science resources:

Build custom bidding scripts using Google Ads Scripts or the API.

Leverage machine learning models (via Python, R, or cloud services like AWS/GCP) to predict conversion or LTV and adjust bids accordingly.

Choosing the Right Tool Depends On:
Ad spend and team size

Platform diversity (e.g., just Google vs multi-channel)

In-house vs agency execution

Need for custom rules vs plug-and-play automation

Access to first-party data