How does manual CPC bidding work?

Manual CPC (Cost-Per-Click) bidding is a type of bidding strategy used in online advertising platforms, particularly in Google Ads. It allows advertisers to set their own maximum bid for each click on their ads. This means you, as an advertiser, have complete control over how much you're willing to pay for a single click on your ad.

Here's how Manual CPC bidding works:

Set Maximum CPC: You decide on the maximum amount you're willing to pay when someone clicks on your ad. This is known as your "max CPC bid." For example, if you set a max CPC of $2, you're willing to pay up to $2 for each click on your ad.

Ad Auction: When a user searches for something relevant to your keywords, Google (or another platform) holds an auction to determine which ads will appear and in what order. Other factors are considered in the auction process, such as ad quality, relevance, and landing page experience, but your max CPC bid plays a big role in determining if your ad shows.

Pay Per Click: If your ad is clicked, you pay the actual amount based on the auction, which is often less than your max CPC. Google Ads uses a "second-price auction," meaning you typically pay only a little more than the next highest bidder, not necessarily the amount of your max CPC.

Optimization: Manual CPC gives you control but requires more monitoring and management compared to automated bidding strategies. You'll need to review your campaigns regularly, adjust your bids, and optimize your targeting and keywords to make sure you're getting the best ROI for your budget.

Benefits of Manual CPC:
Control: You have full control over your bids.

Transparency: You can easily track and adjust bids for individual keywords or ad groups.

Customization: You can make specific adjustments to different parts of your campaign, like increasing bids for high-converting keywords or decreasing bids for underperforming ones.

Drawbacks:
Time-Consuming: It requires manual adjustments and constant monitoring.

Requires Knowledge: You need to understand how to optimize bids based on performance, search volume, competition, and other metrics.

In essence, Manual CPC bidding gives you more hands-on control over your ad spend, allowing you to tailor your bids and budget to the performance of each keyword or ad.