Simon Telek | Google Ads

Google Ads | eCom | Scaling eCommerce Brands from 6 Figures to 7 Figures With Google & Meta Ads - Guaranteed ROI Increase @

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

Running Google Ads in eCom?

If you save one post today, this should be it.

Most PMAX campaigns I audited this year had flaws in their segmentation logic.

Here is the smartest way to restructure your campaigns:

Segment products based on real performance data.

Not by category.
Not by intuition.
By math.

Here’s the play:

Split your catalog into 4 performance-based tiers:

HIGH PERFORMERS

- High ROAS high spend
- These are your heroes.

Feed them more budget.

LOSERS

- Low ROAS, high spend
- These are bleeding money.

Cut them or restructure.

UNPROVEN

- High OR low ROAS
- But low spend, not enough data.

Don’t judge them yet.

ZOMBIES

$0 spent.
No impressions.
No clicks. No data.

(Check out my post earlier on how to revive them)

⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘

The way to visualize it:

X-axis: ROAS
Y-axis: Spend

Then set 2 thresholds:

A ROAS threshold

A Cost threshold

Every product falls into one of the 4 categories

🟢 High ROAS + High Spend? → High-performer
🔴 Low ROAS + High Spend? → Losers
🟡 Low Spend? Doesn’t matter ROAS → Unproven
⚫ $0 Spend? → Zombies

⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘

Now,

Why is this crucial to consider?

When you lump all your products into one campaign, Google over-allocates budget to “known performers” and completely ignores products with potential.

That’s how you end up with:

10 products eating 90% of budget

New or high-margin SKUs getting zero exposure

This segmentation gives you:

- Control
- Data clarity
- Better chance for all products to do better

You don’t need fancy software to do this.

Just export your product performance report by item ID.

1. Use a 90-day window.
2. Slice the data using those thresholds.
3. Build campaigns based on the segments.

That's it.

Drop me a DM if you have any questions.

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

Google Ads Tip #32

Starting fresh on the platform?

Don’t go straight to PMAX.

Here’s why:

When launching a brand new ecom account,

PMAX gives you zero visibility.

You won’t know which products, keywords, or audiences are actually working.

Instead, do this:

Start with

Standard Shopping + Search

You get full control.
You can see real search terms.
You’ll know exactly what’s driving performance.

Test product viability & gather signal

Which SKUs convert?
Which keywords trigger purchases?
What price points hold up in auctions?

THEN layer in Performance Max

Use it once you have data to guide structure.

PMAX becomes a smart amplifier,

....instead of a black-box.

The move is simple:

Learn what works → then scale it.

Control first, scale second.

PMAX is powerful.

But it’s only smart if you are.

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@MarkPivko Right on

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

Hard pill to swallow:

PMAX ≠ a retargeting strategy.

If you’re only using PMAX only for retargeting,

You’re leaving money on the table.

Let me explain:

Most eCom brands assume PMAX handles retargeting

“well enough.”

No, it doesn’t.

Yes, PMAX does some retargeting,

But it’s not designed to do it well.

It’s a jack-of-all-trades campaign.

It blends everything together:

cold, warm, brand, non-brand, remark…

all in one black box.

Here’s the problem:

When you don’t separate retargeting into its own campaign,

You give up control.

You can’t dial in your bids,

can’t test creatives properly,

can’t even see how warm traffic performs on its own.

So here’s the move:

Keep PMAX running as your catch-all.

But add a dedicated Display Retargeting on top.

We consistently see 100–200% higher ROAS from standalone retargeting campaigns,

compared to what PMAX delivers on its own.

Why?

Because you can:

➢ Use a better bid strategy
➢ Segment your audiences properly
➢ Exclude recent buyers
➢ Run specific creatives for returning visitors
➢ Control frequency
➢ Actually see the numbers

In short:

PMAX ≠ a retargeting strategy.

Let it run in the background.

But build real retargeting on top of it

and watch your ROAS climb.

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@waleed_contact Definitely Waleed

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@kamhossieny spot on Kam

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@markoscales Depends on account size, but usually homepage, category page, product page, cart abandoners, previous purchasers and all visitors

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@CJChristen94478 Absolutely

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@waleed_contact What do you mean exactly?

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

Running Google Ads in eCom?

If you save one post today, this should be it.

Most PMAX campaigns I audited this year had flaws in their segmentation logic.

Here is the smartest way to restructure your campaigns:

Segment products based on real performance data.

Not by category.
Not by intuition.
By math.

Here’s the play:

Split your catalog into 4 performance-based tiers:

HIGH PERFORMERS

- High ROAS high spend
- These are your heroes.

Feed them more budget.

LOSERS

- Low ROAS, high spend
- These are bleeding money.

Cut them or restructure.

UNPROVEN

- High OR low ROAS
- But low spend, not enough data.

Don’t judge them yet.

ZOMBIES

$0 spent.
No impressions.
No clicks. No data.

(Check out my post earlier on how to revive them)

⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘

The way to visualize it:

X-axis: ROAS
Y-axis: Spend

Then set 2 thresholds:

A ROAS threshold

A Cost threshold

Every product falls into one of the 4 categories

🟢 High ROAS + High Spend? → High-performer
🔴 Low ROAS + High Spend? → Losers
🟡 Low Spend? Doesn’t matter ROAS → Unproven
⚫ $0 Spend? → Zombies

⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘

Now,

Why is this crucial to consider?

When you lump all your products into one campaign, Google over-allocates budget to “known performers” and completely ignores products with potential.

That’s how you end up with:

10 products eating 90% of budget

New or high-margin SKUs getting zero exposure

This segmentation gives you:

- Control
- Data clarity
- Better chance for all products to do better

You don’t need fancy software to do this.

Just export your product performance report by item ID.

1. Use a 90-day window.
2. Slice the data using those thresholds.
3. Build campaigns based on the segments.

That's it.

Drop me a DM if you have any questions.

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@leadgen_x I like short and impactful pitches though. When people are “building relationships” it often shines through that it’s only for the money. I prefer straight communication. If the pitch is good, relationship will be built either way.

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@leadgen_x This is spot on Bright

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

Many accounts don’t have a tracking problem.

They have a settings problem.

I’ve audited dozens where conversion tracking works,

but conversions are set up wrong.

Here’s the one question you need to answer:

Do you know the difference between

Primary vs Secondary conversions?

Let’s break it down:

PRIMARY CONVERSIONS

→ Show in the “Conversions” column
→ Used for Smart Bidding
→ Google optimizes for these

SECONDARY CONVERSIONS

→ Show in the “All Conversions” column
→ Not used for bidding
→ Just for reporting

For Ecom Accounts:

Set “Purchase” to Primary.

Always.

That’s your north star.

If you want Smart Bidding to work, you need to feed it real buyer data.

Want better ROAS?

Then optimize for buyers, it’s that simple

What About Calls?

Ask yourself: Would I be happy paying for this action?

→ Yes? Set to Primary
→ No? Set to Secondary

In ecom, calls are usually irrelevant.

Don’t waste optimization power on them.

What To Do Now?

Go to: Tools > Conversions > Summary

If you see a bunch of random actions marked as Primary?

Fix it.

Keep it tight.

Only include what drives actual revenue.

If you’re not intentional with your conversion setup,

Google will optimize for noise.

Train the machine to chase what matters.

And your results will follow.

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@markoscales Hahaha nice. The problem is way too common

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@majoradamviktor Love the comparison haha. Very true point btw

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@MarkPivko It's not the most efficient when there is not data

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

Google Ads Tip #32

Starting fresh on the platform?

Don’t go straight to PMAX.

Here’s why:

When launching a brand new ecom account,

PMAX gives you zero visibility.

You won’t know which products, keywords, or audiences are actually working.

Instead, do this:

Start with

Standard Shopping + Search

You get full control.
You can see real search terms.
You’ll know exactly what’s driving performance.

Test product viability & gather signal

Which SKUs convert?
Which keywords trigger purchases?
What price points hold up in auctions?

THEN layer in Performance Max

Use it once you have data to guide structure.

PMAX becomes a smart amplifier,

....instead of a black-box.

The move is simple:

Learn what works → then scale it.

Control first, scale second.

PMAX is powerful.

But it’s only smart if you are.

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@Hashir_Shaikh_ @perfectwhitetee I love the simplicity of it

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@ArijanJanes Which one of these do you have the highest hopes for?

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@majoradamviktor This is spot on. Too many brands confuse visual identity with brand identity.

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@ArijanJanes Much better

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

@herculesdey Exactly

[Simon Telek | Google Ads @simontelek]

The Easiest Way to Improve Your RSAs:

Don’t launch a new test.

Just clean up your current one.

Here’s how:

Go into your responsive search ads

Hit “View asset details”

Look for any headlines or descriptions marked “Low”

That’s your cleanup list.

Google literally tells you what it doesn’t like.

➡ Remove the underperforming asset
➡ Replace it with a fresh one
➡ Let Google test it again

If a headline is tagged Low,

delete it and try something more direct or benefit-driven.

You don’t need a full restructure to improve performance.

You just need to keep feeding the algo better ingredients.

Small tests, big upside.

Do this weekly and your ads will keep getting stronger.