Question

Is anyone else experiencing a sudden halt in delivery with Google's Display campaigns, especially on TCPA? If so, what non-standard solutions or workarounds have you found to get your ads running again?

Answer 1

The issue you're experiencing with Google Display campaigns suddenly halting delivery, especially with a Target CPA (TCPA) bidding strategy, is being reported by many advertisers.

Here’s what the advertising community is saying and the likely causes behind it:

• TCPA is a Smart Bidding "Black Box": The problem lies in how TCPA and other smart bidding strategies are working now. They are highly reliant on conversion data. If Google's algorithm decides that it's impossible to get a conversion at your specified target bid (e.g., your $0.10 target), it simply stops serving ads altogether to avoid spending your budget inefficiently. It's not that your campaigns are broken; the algorithm is just being extremely conservative.

• Recent Algorithm Updates: There have been numerous discussions and reports across advertising forums about a drop in delivery and conversions in late July and August. These are often tied to unannounced algorithm updates that change how Google's system evaluates a campaign's viability. A strategy that worked well for two years might now be seen as too restrictive by the new algorithm.

• The "Learning" Phase Problem: The issue is particularly bad for new ad groups. When they're in the learning phase, the algorithm needs data. If your bid is too low from the start, it never gets enough impressions to gather that data, so it gets stuck in a loop of not delivering.

What Others Are Doing to Fix It

Since the usual fixes aren't working, you need to trick the algorithm into delivering again.

1. Stop Using TCPA to "Control Costs" for New Campaigns: Your current method of starting with Maximize Conversions and then switching to TCPA is a good instinct, but the a very low bid can completely halt progress. For new ad groups, don't start with a $0.10 TCPA. Instead, set a very generous TCPA (e.g., $5.00-$10.00). After a week or two of consistent conversions, slowly walk the bid down by 10-15% every few days until you reach your desired target.

2. Audit Your Conversion Tracking: Your conversions may have stopped tracking properly due to a change on your website, a plugin update, or a recent Google Tag Manager change. The algorithm sees this lack of conversion data and gets "lost," which can cause it to stop delivering.

   • Action: Use Google Tag Assistant or the Tag Manager Preview mode to confirm that your conversion tags are firing correctly on your thank-you pages.

3. Try the "Duplicate & Rebuild" Trick: This is a classic workaround for a "stuck" campaign. Create a brand-new campaign with the exact same settings, but start it with Maximize Conversions or a much higher TCPA. Sometimes, simply recreating the campaign from scratch gives the algorithm the clean slate it needs to start delivering again.

4. Check for Account-Level Issues: While support often misses this, there could be a policy violation or account-level flag that's impacting your campaigns.

   • Go to Tools & Settings > Policy Manager in your account. Look for any notifications or unresolved issues.

   • Check your billing and payment information to ensure everything is active and up to date.