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Smart Goals are a Google Analytics feature that uses machine learning algorithms to help marketers better optimize their campaigns on Google Ads. The machine learning capabilities of this tool alleviates a lot of the pressures of tracking conversions, which is a godsend for small business owners that don’t have the time or expertise for this activity.
That said, Smart Goals don’t always receive the most positive feedback. One of the biggest drawbacks to the feature is that Google is particularly tight-lipped about how the algorithms work and what sort of data is used to track conversions.
People, especially marketers, don’t like a mystery.
This discussion will aim to understand what is used to create Smart Goals and try and lift the veil on some of the more ambiguous parts of the feature.
Conversion tracking is how marketers identify which strategies are working. By connecting an action that relates to a campaign key performance indicator, you can see how many people “convert” based on the number of individuals that complete that action.
If you operated a lemonade stand, conversions would be people that paid for the drink. Naturally, a lot of people are going to walk by the stand and never pay for the lemonade.
This happens with your business’ website. You have lots of visitors, but only a fraction of those guests actually purchase, subscribe or otherwise convert.
In the Digital Age, it is imperative that you know when and where customers are converting, who those individuals are and, most importantly, why they are converting. In other words, what strategy worked to encourage a sale?
Smart Goals work by tracking your top tier of web traffic and customers to give insight into answering these key who, what, where, when and why questions. Businesses can then adjust their Google Ads strategies to target the right audiences on the Internet.
Machine learning algorithms are the engine that powers Smart Goals. The feature analyzes volumes of data across all different websites and businesses to identify correlations and insights into how users behave.
This data allows Smart Goals to set milestones based on the information gathered. Google does a good job of keeping the lid on exactly what data is gathered and analyzed. It’s safe to assume that some of the parameters include where traffic is coming from, how long a visitor stays on a site, what pages they visit and what actions they perform.
Smart Goals uses the data to determine when customers are most likely to convert and allows businesses to target those audiences more effectively.
Google created Smart Goals with small business owners and mom and pop stores in mind. The truth is that a lot of businesses use PPC marketing strategies, yet an overwhelming number don’t have any conversion tracking in place.
At the core of successful digital marketing is tracking customers, monitoring engagement and making adjustments accordingly. Without conversion tracking, businesses struggle to perform these necessary steps in the marketing process.
It’s no better than putting an ad in the newspaper, crossing your fingers and hoping that customers see it and respond.
Smart Goals are an alternative option for business owners and site managers that don’t have the know-how to properly implement conversion tracking code into their websites.
One of the reasons that many expert-level marketers abhor Smart Goals is because the feature is nowhere near as effective as setting up conversion tracking. These professionals feel that Smart Goals not only deter businesses from implementing a proper tracking mechanism but also lead them down incorrect paths.
In short, Smart Goals carry a lot of limitations that you don’t experience with sophisticated marketing. Perhaps the largest problem with Smart Goals is it doesn’t distinguish between each business and their unique goals.
Essentially, Smart Goals use the same algorithm to detect high-quality traffic for every business. But, businesses are different. A mom and pop convenience store have vastly different goals and objectives than a doctor’s office.
Marketing experts are wholly correct in stating that conversion tracking is superior to Smart Goals. It is. However, it is not without its own set of problems.
Again, the most substantial issue with Smart Goals is that it’s using data across all different types of businesses and “normalizing” conversions and best-case customer personas.
Some marketers argue that Smart Goals misguide these business owners by promising to be an answer to their problems. In reality, it just distracts them from putting in the time and effort required to implement proper conversion tracking.
Other limitations of Smart Goals include:
Conversion tracking is certainly the better option, but it is much more complex than Smart Goals. This means that implementation is very challenging for a lot of business owners. It isn’t just copy-pasting code.
Often, the script needs to be adjusted to ensure proper configuration. And, what if your goals change over time? Then, you need to make adjustments.
There are plenty of businesses that unfortunately neglect conversion tracking, but there’s also a large population that incorrectly configure the script. Bad conversion tracking is perhaps more harmful than ignoring this important data altogether.
Machine-learning algorithms is used to create Smart Goals.
There is no arguing that Smart Goals are lackluster compared to traditional conversion tracking methods. A lot of marketers discredit this feature because they know how to implement, configure and maintain a conversion tracking script.
This knowledge and know-how are not universal.
A professional chef may scoff at a ready-made meal for the same reason. They know how to create that dish themselves and with better ingredients and taste. Yet, some people know their way around a menu better than a kitchen.
Thus, Smart Goals have a place in the hands of website owners that lack the ability to properly investigate conversion data, or the resources to hire someone that does.
It’s not the best solution, but it will work in the short-term and it’s better than going without.
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