If you have worked with Google Adwords before, you have probably seen the campaign option where Google by default tries to show the best performing ads more frequently. So here is the million dollar question. If Google loves its advertisers and wants to provide you with the best value, then should you defy them and uncheck this option?

The answer is a simple yes. Under no circumstances (I don’t care what it is), should you have that option on. Here is why. Nobody says that PPC marketing is cheap. In fact, the costs tend to go up every year by some percentage, so even if you are doing everything right, there is a good chance that you could take a hit when Google updates its algorithms or more competitors enter your industry. One way to combat that is to become a ninja in testing. It means that you test, test, and more test your ads, keywords, and everything else (URLS, Capital letters, Small Letters, Bids, Ad tone, Placements) to figure out ways to manage your CPA. A/B testing is the most basic type of testing you could do, which basically allows you to put two ads against each other and figure out which one wins in terms of impressions, clicks, CTR, and …

If you allow Google to optimize your account and show the best performing ads more frequently, then you basically don’t get to do a fair A/B testing done for your ads. An ad might get the first 10 clicks and be extremely successful after a small amount of impressions, but the results need to be statistically significant. With that option on, you basically tell Google to push that ad more often, which means the other ad doesn’t get a chance to show its potential. So the answer is no! You should always go with rotation.