Automation is a wonderful thing. I use Macro Scheduler to automate a large number of tasks every day, and it probably saves me in the region of 3-4 hours a week, sometimes more.
But not everything should be automated.
I find it unnerving that planes can take off and land automatically, but take some comfort in the fact that a (hopefully stable) computer might do a better job than a person. At least that’s what I tell myself, when sitting inside the many tons of metal that are hurtling themselves towards the ground at terrifying speed.
I’m also baffled by companies who choose to trust Google’s automated settings to handle their AdWords accounts.
Automation is easier, but before flipping the switch, think about what you might be doing.
Google make money from AdWords. They make money from you by how you set up your account.
Do you really want Google to decide how the account should be run?
Do you want Google to decide how much you should pay for a click, or how much you should spend a day?
There are many settings within an AdWords account. Yet none of the defaults are in the interests of the advertiser. Not one.
Google’s system is setup primarily for Google.
The Inside AdWords blog recently announced that Google have raised the number of automated rules from 10 to 100.
Don’t be tempted. Don’t consider automation.
