At our peak, I was managing 400 campaigns across 12 networks, adjusting bids 50 times a day, and drowning in spreadsheets. The breaking point came when I made a $50,000 mistake from exhaustion. That's when we built our automation stack. Now I manage 2,000 campaigns with less effort than those original 400.
The Automation Spectrum
Not everything should be automated. Understanding what to automate is key:
Always Automate
- Data aggregation and reporting
- Anomaly detection and alerts
- Budget pacing and caps
- Basic bid adjustments
- Routine status checks
Automate with Oversight
- Campaign creation (templates)
- Creative rotation
- Audience expansion
- Budget reallocation
Keep Manual
- Strategy decisions
- Creative direction
- New channel testing
- Crisis response
The 80/20 of Automation
Start with reporting automation. It's low-risk and high-reward. Most UA managers spend 40%+ of time pulling and formatting data. Automate that first.
Automated Reporting Stack
Data Collection
- API integrations with all ad networks
- MMP data pipeline
- Revenue/LTV data from product
- Scheduled pulls (hourly/daily)
Data Processing
- Normalization across sources
- Calculated metrics (ROAS, ROI, etc.)
- Cohort projections
- Automated QA checks
Visualization
- Real-time dashboards
- Automated daily/weekly reports
- Slack/email alerts
- Executive summaries
Bid Automation
Automated bidding ranges from simple to sophisticated:
Rule-Based
- If CPI > $X, reduce bid by Y%
- If ROAS > target, increase budget
- Simple, predictable, limited upside
Algorithm-Based
- ML models predicting optimal bids
- Considers more variables
- Better performance but less transparent
Automation Guardrails Are Essential
Always set limits on automated actions. Maximum bid changes per day, minimum/maximum budgets, human approval for large changes. Unchecked automation can burn budget fast.
Alert Systems
What should trigger alerts:
- Spend anomalies: Unusual pacing up or down
- Performance drops: CVR, retention, ROAS declining
- Fraud signals: Unusual patterns in conversions
- Technical issues: Tracking failures, API errors
- Creative fatigue: Performance degradation signals
Building Your Automation Stack
Phase 1: Foundation
- Centralize data in one place
- Build automated daily reports
- Set up basic alerts
Phase 2: Optimization
- Automated budget pacing
- Rule-based bid adjustments
- Campaign templates
Phase 3: Scale
- ML-based bidding
- Predictive analytics
- Full workflow automation
Automate with Confidence
ClicksFlyer's platform automates data collection, reporting, and alerting—letting you focus on strategy while we handle the operational heavy lifting.