The session that turned into firefighting
Sometimes the most educational sessions aren't about strategy — they're about firefighting. This week I sat down with a founder running ads for a sustainability-focused B2B platform. Sharp person, good instincts. But they'd walked into a trap that catches a lot of smart marketers.
They'd just launched a Google Display retargeting campaign. Small, sensible audiences: website visitors, a marketplace segment, a CRM list. Nothing aggressive. A week later: a flood of form submissions. Gibberish company names. Random characters in the fields. The kind of "leads" that make your CRM cry.
The first culprit: Optimised Targeting
We traced it back quickly. Optimised Targeting was switched on.
For those unfamiliar: this is a Google setting that says "don't just show my ads to the audiences I defined — find other people too, based on what Google thinks will convert." The intent is helpful. The reality, especially for small retargeting audiences, is that Google reaches into low-quality inventory — including mobile apps stuffed with bot traffic — and you end up paying for noise.
The fix was straightforward: turn it off. Consider restricting to desktop. Exclude mobile app placements. Problem solved — mostly.
The hidden second problem: auto-applied recommendations
But there was a second issue hiding underneath.
While reviewing the account, we found that Google had been silently auto-applying recommendations — adding keywords, opting campaigns into networks, adjusting bids — all without explicit approval. This is the setting that should be turned off in every Google Ads account, on day one, without exception.
Google's recommendations aren't malicious. Some of them are actually useful. But "useful sometimes if reviewed carefully" is very different from "safe to auto-apply." One of the changes had opted a Search campaign into the Display Network — quietly, without any notification. That changes your targeting completely.
The correct process: disable auto-apply in settings, then review each recommendation card manually. And if you want to audit what's already happened, Change History in Google Ads is your friend.
The lesson: know which defaults to fight
The lesson I keep coming back to: platforms will always default to settings that expand spend. Optimised Targeting. Auto-apply. Smart campaigns. They're not evil — but they're designed to grow budgets, not protect them. As a marketer, your job is to know which defaults to fight.
Have a similar story? I'd love to hear it — reach me at rubenlozano.me.