Maximize conversion value only does something different from Maximize conversions when your conversions are worth different amounts. If every conversion carries the same value, total value is just the number of conversions times that value. The strategy has nothing to weigh, and if you've added a target ROAS, it's acting as an average CPA target you never chose.
Two accounts, same problem
On a mentoring call, we looked at a home services company's Search campaign for air conditioning repair. It had one conversion action, phone call leads, and every call was valued at 10. The bid strategy was Target ROAS, formerly called Maximize conversion value with a target ROAS. Our first question was why it was on value bidding when there was only one conversion goal.
On another call, an ecommerce account in Malaysia was running Performance Max on Target ROAS. The purchase action showed 47 conversions worth 9,600 in total, and nobody could say where that value came from. In the settings, the action was set to use different values for each conversion, with a default of MYR 1. Google is clear about what that means: if your tag isn't passing values, the default is used for every conversion. So any purchase without a value, whatever its size, counted as MYR 1.
In both cases our advice was the same: move to Maximize conversions until the values mean something.
Why a flat value changes nothing, and why the target does
Google separates the two strategies cleanly. Maximize conversions goes for the most conversions regardless of their value. Maximize conversion value goes for the most total value. With one fixed value, those are the same goal written two ways.
The target is where it actually bites. ROAS is value divided by spend. If every conversion is worth 10 and the target is 200%, the campaign has to average about 5 per conversion to hit it. That's effectively a target CPA of 5. Nobody sets out to choose a cost per lead that way. It falls out of a placeholder value and a percentage. In our experience, if that number is too low for your market, you see the same symptoms as a CPA target set too low: restricted delivery and a campaign that struggles to spend.
When value bidding earns its place
- Real transaction values. Purchases where the tag passes the actual order value. That's what value bidding is built for.
- Several actions, valued differently. On a third call, a SaaS was choosing values for MQLs and SQLs, so the bidding would chase SQLs harder. Google's best practices page says that with static values you should measure at least 2 unique values across at least 2 different actions.
- Neither? Use Maximize conversions. It's not a downgrade. It's the strategy that matches your data.
We cover setting values across several actions in multiple conversion actions: values or one primary, and what happens when value bidding runs short of volume in why your Target ROAS campaign keeps stalling out.
Check yours in two minutes
- Open the conversion action and read its value setting: same value, or different values with a default.
- If it's different values, compare total value to conversions times the default. If they're close, the tag isn't passing values.
- If it's one action at one value, ask what the ROAS target works out to per conversion. That's your real CPA target.
The takeaways
- With one fixed value per conversion, Maximize conversion value pursues the same thing as Maximize conversions.
- If the tag doesn't pass values, Google applies your default to every conversion.
- A ROAS target on a flat value is an average CPA target: value divided by target equals what you'll pay per conversion on average.
- Use value bidding for real order values or differently valued actions. Otherwise, Maximize conversions.
Common questions
Does Maximize conversion value work if every conversion has the same value?
It runs, but it has nothing to weigh. Total value is just the number of conversions times the fixed value, so it pursues the same thing Maximize conversions does. Google's own pages tie value bidding to conversions that are worth different amounts.
What happens if my conversion tag doesn't pass a value?
If the action is set to use different values for each conversion but the tag isn't sending them, Google says the default value you entered is used for all conversions. Every purchase then looks identical to the bidding, whatever the order was worth.
Is a target ROAS with a fixed conversion value the same as a target CPA?
In effect, yes. If every conversion is worth 10 and you set a 200% ROAS target, the campaign has to average about 5 per conversion to hit it. You're running an average CPA target, just expressed as a return.
When should I use Maximize conversion value instead of Maximize conversions?
When conversions are genuinely worth different amounts: purchases with real order values, or several conversion actions you've valued differently, such as a demo worth more than a sign-up. Google's best practices page says to measure at least 2 unique values across at least 2 different actions when using static values.
Should I switch back to Maximize conversions?
If you have one conversion action at one value, or your values aren't reliable, yes. Changing bid strategy restarts learning, so make the change once, fix values in the background, and move to value bidding when the values mean something.