The Quarterly Review Process
Every quarter, Grow Marketing reviews the full search term report for every PMax campaign under management. Each cluster is classified by intent:
- Correct purchase intent — keep and support
- Competitor brand loyalty — exclude (they’ve already decided on someone else)
- Wrong service intent — exclude (they want something you don’t offer)
- Wrong product category — exclude (completely different market)
One quarter’s review eliminates current waste. Ongoing quarterly review prevents new waste from accumulating as PMax’s algorithm explores new search territory.
Real Example: Epoxy Floor Coating Supplies
A national epoxy supply store running a single PMax campaign. 16,135 search terms in Q1 2026. Three wrong-audience categories excluded:
- Competitor chain brand searches — loyal to a specific physical store, not online buyers
- Contractor hire intent — homeowners wanting to hire someone, not buy supplies
- Wrong product categories — craft resin, marine epoxy, automotive primer
Preserved: Spanish-language buyer searches that most competitors exclude. Converting at comparable rates to English searches.
Result: 27 orders at $51 each — 4.9x estimated ROAS — within the specialty e-commerce benchmark range. |
When PMax Makes Sense
E-commerce with product feeds. Lead gen accounts with 50+ conversions per month. Brand awareness campaigns across Google’s full channel network. These are PMax’s strengths.
Local service businesses with specific, predictable vocabulary typically perform better with standard Search campaigns. We recommend the right campaign type for each account.
