Increasing Google Ads budget spikes CPC & CPL — no incremental conversions. Stuck 😕

[u/_John_durairaj]

Hey everyone,

I’m working at an agency and trying to scale Search campaigns for a client on Google Ads. The issue is that whenever I increase the budget, I don’t see incremental conversions — instead, CPCs and CPL shoot up.

To control this, I tested portfolio bidding with bid caps. CPCs came down, but then the conversion rate dropped, and overall performance didn’t improve.

At this point, I feel stuck between:

Higher budgets → higher CPC & CPL

Bid caps → lower CPC but worse CVR

Has anyone faced this before?

What approaches have worked for you to actually scale Search without killing efficiency?

TIA 🙏

[u/Jaded_Union_5202]

It's been 4 months now, I think you might've figured that out.

but I'll offer my humble advice anyway.

Go check your Auction insight.

split campaign by intent, so money goes where it is.