Wednesday 12 February 2025, 15:46
Spring Cleaning Your Microsoft Ads: Practical Tips for Better Performance
Vuzo’s team are no slouches when it comes to optimising our clients Ad Accounts. Nobody has unlimited spend, and everyone is tasked with doing more with less. Microsoft Ads can sometimes be seen as the poorer cousin of Google Ads, but it’s not to be underestimated, or neglected, particularly now that Co-Pilot is exploding in popularity.
If you’ve been treating Microsoft Ads as an afterthought while focusing most of your energy on Google Ads, you’re not alone. Many advertisers simply copy and paste campaigns from Google into Microsoft Ads, missing out on the platform’s unique features and creating inefficiencies that waste budget. With “spring cleaning” season upon us, there’s no better time to spruce up your Microsoft Ads account and ensure you’re getting the most out of every click. Here’s how to do it:
1. Evaluate (and Possibly Exclude) Syndicated Search Partners
What’s happening?
Microsoft Ads often includes traffic from “syndicated search partners”—third-party sites that can deliver cheap clicks but sometimes very low-quality engagement.
Why it matters
- Cheap clicks sound great, but 7-cent traffic doesn’t help if those visitors spend only a few seconds on your site and never convert.
- Microsoft (Bing) search partner traffic isn’t as transparent as Google’s version, so you must dig deeper to see which partner sites are actually valuable.
Action Steps
- Go to your Microsoft Ads reporting and filter by network or placement. Identify which partner sites generate clicks but yield high bounce rates or near-zero conversions.
- Exclude or pause those domains. If partner traffic is still driving marginal value, consider keeping the best-performing sites and excluding only the worst offenders.
2. Increase Bids (Selectively) on the Main Microsoft Network
What’s happening?
Syndicated partner clicks can inflate your volume, but those clicks often have minimal impact on leads or sales. Meanwhile, main-network impression share may be lower than you realise because default bids aren’t high enough.
Why it matters
- By raising your bids—particularly if you’re bidding strategically—you’ll get in front of more users on the main Microsoft Ads network.
- These users typically have higher intent and yield stronger conversions than random partner traffic.
Action Steps
- Review your impression share on the main network. If it’s low (e.g., below 30%), explore increasing bids or using an automated bidding strategy focused on conversions.
- Monitor your cost-per-click (CPC) and cost-per-acquisition (CPA). Ensure that any CPC increases still result in profitable conversions.
3. Restructure Your Dynamic Search Ads (DSAs)
What’s happening?
Copy-pasting Google Ads’ DSAs directly into Microsoft Ads can create overly broad campaigns. Microsoft Ads may scan your entire website and bid on irrelevant search terms.
Why it matters
- DSAs can be powerful for capturing missed keywords, but only if you confine them to the right sections of your site.
- Broad DSAs can cause wasted spend on unrelated clicks—hurting your overall performance.
Action Steps
- Create specialty- or category-specific DSAs rather than one giant catch-all. Restrict each DSA campaign to a set of relevant URLs or product pages.
- Regularly check your search term report to discover new high-value queries, then convert those into targeted ad groups or keywords.
4. Refresh (and Expand) Your Ad Extensions
What’s happening?
Ad extensions often don’t get as much attention in Microsoft Ads. Maybe you copied your Google Ads extensions over once and haven’t updated them since.
Why it matters
- Microsoft Ads rewards you for having robust ad extensions with higher quality scores.
- Well-crafted extensions also help pre-qualify clicks, which can boost engagement and reduce wasted spend.
Action Steps
- Add (or update) at least four sitelinks per campaign—Microsoft Ads can give you a quality score lift for having four or more. If needed, use the same URL multiple times with different sitelink text.
- Don’t forget about callouts and structured snippets. Highlight key selling points, services, or benefits relevant to each campaign.
5. Leverage Audience Targeting Across All Campaigns
What’s happening?
Advertisers often apply audiences to a single campaign (like a high-volume brand campaign) but forget to replicate them across others.
Why it matters
- Audience targeting (in “observation” mode) lets you bid more aggressively on high-intent segments, like people in specific industries or job functions.
- If certain audiences work well in one Microsoft Ads campaign, there’s a good chance they’ll help in others.
Action Steps
- Identify top-performing audiences in any existing campaign (e.g., healthcare audiences, in-market segments). Apply them to all campaigns using “bid only” or “observation.”
- Adjust bids upward for your most valuable audience segments to capture more conversions.
6. Test Conversion-Based Bidding
What’s happening?
Many advertisers rely on cost-per-click or max-clicks bidding in Microsoft Ads. However, if you’ve got solid conversion tracking in place, you can set a target CPA (cost per acquisition) or another automated strategy.
Why it matters
- Conversion-based bidding helps Microsoft’s algorithm optimise for the metrics that matter—actual leads or sales—rather than sheer click volume.
- You’re more likely to see an uptick in qualified traffic that accomplishes meaningful actions on your site.
Action Steps
- First, ensure your conversion tracking is accurate. Avoid “smart goals” or unspecified micro-conversions that don’t reflect genuine value.
- Pick a campaign with decent conversion volume and switch to Target CPA bidding using an important event (like a sign-up or purchase).
- Monitor results for at least 2–3 weeks to let the algorithm learn. Refine your CPA target based on performance.
7. Monitor, Measure, and Iterate
What’s happening?
After making changes, you might see fewer clicks, but ideally more conversions—and improved return on ad spend (ROAS).
Why it matters
- Ad performance is dynamic, and external factors (seasonality, competitors, budget changes) can shift your success metrics.
- Continuous monitoring ensures you catch issues early and capitalise on opportunities quickly.
Action Steps
- Set up weekly or bi-weekly performance reviews. Track engagement metrics (bounce rate, time on site) alongside conversion metrics (leads, revenue).
- Adjust bids, budgets, and audience targeting based on these insights. Keep refining your DSA campaigns to incorporate newly discovered profitable keywords.
Final Thoughts
Spring cleaning your Microsoft Ads account can feel like a chore—but it’s also a chance to unlock hidden value. Whether you’re excluding poor-quality partner sites, refining your DSAs, or finally giving your ad extensions the attention they deserve, every tweak brings you closer to a more profitable, higher-performing account.
If you’ve long neglected Microsoft Ads or relied on straight copy-paste from Google Ads, use this opportunity to give the platform the careful optimisation it needs. The result? Less wasted spend, better conversion metrics, and a healthier return on every advertising dollar.
Ready to make the most of your Microsoft Ads?
Start applying these spring cleaning tips today, and watch your performance—and ROI—bloom.