That's why the algorithm keeps showing your ads to job seekers.
Get the Free Blueprint$5,000/month in ad spend.
300+ clicks.
14 "conversions" (half of which are bots or tire-kickers).
Google's dashboard says "Optimized." Your revenue says otherwise.
Here's the math Google doesn't show you.
Smart Bidding needs 30-50 conversions per month to learn what works.
At $5K/month, most manufacturers get 10-15.
That's like asking someone to learn to drive by watching 3 cars go by. They're guessing. And at $4-8 per click, their guesses are expensive.
| You Targeted | Google Matched You To |
|---|---|
| "precision machining" | "machining classes online" |
| "custom manufacturing" | "manufacturing jobs near me" |
| "sheet metal fabrication" | "DIY sheet metal projects" |
Job seekers. Students. DIYers. All clicking. All costing you money. None of them buying.
It's not that Google Ads doesn't work at your budget.
It's that Google's automation doesn't work at your budget.
Different problem. Different fix.
I put together a blueprint for manufacturers stuck in exactly this spot.
Not theory. Not a sales pitch for my services. An actual framework you can use.
Once you see the conversion threshold, every bad result makes sense. And you'll know exactly when (and whether) to turn automation back on.
When the algorithm can't help, these are your levers. Miss one and the others can't compensate.
A single focused setup that will teach you more about your market than a year of Performance Max ever could.
71% of Google Ads accounts have broken tracking. Five questions tell you if yours is one of them.
15-minute read. Written by someone who spent 17 years on drafting floors before running Google Ads for manufacturers.
I'm Corey Koehler. I started managing Google Ads for a manufacturing company while I was still working as a mechanical draftsman. That was 11 years ago.
I know tolerances. I know RFQs. I know what it's like when a sales cycle takes six months and the agency wants to talk about "impressions."
Company of One. No junior account managers. No handoffs.
Minnesota. No BS.
Drop your email. I'll send it over.
Takes 15 minutes to read. No pitch at the end. Just the framework.
You'll still learn the framework. But this is really for people already spending — or about to start — who want to skip the expensive learning curve.
The examples are manufacturing-specific. But if you're B2B with long sales cycles and a budget under $15K/month, you'll recognize yourself.
None. I'll follow up with a few emails about diagnosing your specific account. If that's useful, great. If not, unsubscribe. No hard feelings.