TL;DR: Paid Search didn’t technically get worse. Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising now judge performance based on whether clicks can reliably turn into outcomes. That includes landing page clarity, relevance, user behavior, accurate product data, and inventory stability. If those things are shaky, ads get more expensive and show less often. This is not a malfunction; it is a confidence issue, and the solution is alignment.
If you have solid ads, a sound strategy, and you are actively optimizing your accounts, a performance decline is rarely caused by a lack of effort. It is almost never because the platform “stopped working.”
What has changed is how Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising decide where to send their users.
The truth is that Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising are no longer sending traffic to experiences that don’t reliably turn clicks into something useful, like a valuable lead that converts, a product that can be purchased immediately, or a page that answers the question implied by the search.
When that stops happening often enough, the platforms quietly pull back. Fewer impressions. Higher CPCs. No warning and no clear explanation. This is not a platform failure; it is a judgment call based on what users do after they click.
That’s why optimizing the user experience for clarity and ease of use and providing accurate product data is more crucial than ever.
There was a time when paid Search rewarded diligence. Match the keyword, write the ad, bid smartly, and scale what works. That system still exists in roughly the same way that fax machines still exist.
Today, relevancy and post-click behavior carry more weight than keyword mechanics alone.
At auction time, Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising evaluate signals such as:
This is where accounts can lose momentum. Not because the keywords are wrong, but because the experience after the click does not reinforce the intent that triggered the ad in the first place.
In short, keywords still open the door, but what happens next determines whether the platform keeps inviting people in.
In the past, landing pages used to pass inspection and then were pretty much left alone, much like a building with a certificate of occupancy.
Now, landing pages are feedback mechanisms for Smart Bidding, which means they’re being evaluated continuously for relevance based on user behavior. Not stated intent. Not best practices. Behavior.
Both Google and Microsoft strongly factor landing page experience directly into ad competitiveness. In plain language, they are asking:
Users (not advertisers) are the primary customers of paid Search platforms. When they click an ad and pause, scroll aimlessly, or return to the search results, the platforms interpret that as risk. The conclusion is simple: “sending more of our users here isn’t going to make them happy.”
As a result, those ads serve less frequently. When they do serve, the cost is higher to offset the risk.
For ecommerce advertisers, landing pages are only part of the trust equation. Product feeds are statements of fact. They tell the platforms:
If feed data is inaccurate, incomplete, or inconsistent with the landing page, trust can be broken before the ad is even eligible to enter the auction.
Common feed-related issues include:
These issues directly affect eligibility, ranking, and cost across Google Shopping, Microsoft Shopping, and Performance Max campaigns. It is not a compliance issue, but a trust issue. When the data does not line up, the platform loses confidence.
Product availability might have been the warehouse’s problem in the past. Today, it is a performance variable.
When users click ads and see low stock, missing variants, or constant sell-outs, they go elsewhere. The platforms learn from that behavior and adjust accordingly.
In addition to raising your CPCs, unstable or shallow inventory directly impacts your ability to scale.
The system waits to see whether the supply will remain stable long enough to scale. If inventory depletes again, the system never gains momentum.
Since automated campaigns share signals across placements, the system isn’t malfunctioning when performance declines. Instead, it’s reacting to relevance and trust signals.
Think of user behavior like a review system: if they click and bounce, they send the platform a one-star review. If they successfully complete the call to action with minimal friction, they send the platform a five-star review.
Google and Microsoft want to send more users to five-star experiences so their customers keep coming back to search.
If you’re hoping to scale, now is the time to strengthen the signals that earn trust and send “5-star reviews” back to the platforms:
Once you have those elements in place, campaigns often start performing smoothly again, almost like magic. Except it’s not magic, it’s alignment.
Why did my paid Search ads suddenly stop working?
They didn’t. The platforms lost confidence that clicks would turn into positive user outcomes, so they limited exposure and raised costs.
How does landing page experience affect performance?
It determines whether the platform trusts the click. Clear pages get rewarded with lower CPCs. Confusing ones get more expensive.
I want to optimize my landing pages. Where should I start?
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