Google's Recommendations Are Designed to Increase Your Spend, Not Your Profit

The Optimisation Score Trap

Google's optimisation score is presented as a health metric. It's not. It's a behavioural nudge designed to push you toward Google's preferred account structure - which prioritises their revenue model. We explored this broader pattern in Google Wants You to Fail (Slowly).

A 100% optimisation score means you've done everything Google wants. That doesn't mean your account is optimised for profit. It means it's optimised for Google.

Misaligned Incentives

Google makes money when you spend more. Your business makes money when you spend profitably. These are not the same objective. Every recommendation should be evaluated through this lens.

"Raise your budget to capture missed impressions" sounds helpful until you realise those impressions are in low-converting time slots or low-intent placements that your current budget wisely avoids. This is the same dynamic behind agency incentive misalignment.

Dangerous Recommendations

• • "Switch to broad match": Widens your targeting beyond commercial intent, diluting conversion quality - this is where negative keyword management becomes critical
• • "Raise your budget": Increases spend without evidence of incremental profit at the margin
• • "Remove redundant keywords": Often removes exact match terms that give you control over high-intent queries
• • "Consolidate campaigns": Removes the segmentation you need for SKU-level profit management
• • "Apply auto-apply": Gives Google permission to change your account without your approval

Safe Recommendations

• • Fix disapproved ads and policy violations
• • Add missing ad extensions (sitelinks, callouts, structured snippets)
• • Fix broken URLs and redirect chains
• • Update outdated ad copy with current promotions

These are maintenance items, not strategic changes. They improve account hygiene without altering your commercial approach.

Agency Pressure

Some agencies auto-apply every recommendation to maintain a high optimisation score because it makes their quarterly business review with Google look better. Ask your agency: do they evaluate each recommendation individually, or batch-apply them?

If your agency's strategy is "do what Google says," they're not a strategic partner. They're a Google sales channel with extra steps. This is a key red flag we cover in why your agency doesn't understand your business.

Next Steps