PPC Live The Podcast - The F*ck ups that led to Triumphs
PPC Live The Podcast - The F*ck ups that led to Triumphs
Anu Adegbola
Google Ads AI Isn’t Strategic — You Still Need to Be ft Mike Ryan
50 minutes Posted Sep 9, 2026 at 10:54 pm.
Introduction and guest background02:05 Mike's role and expertise in PPC05:03 The importance of sharing mistakes and lessons07:01 Mike's experience with AI Max and early mistakes10:09 How AI Max can target competitor terms unexpectedly13:07 The importance of checking search terms early16:57 The impact of market fears on ROAS targets19:59 Controlling AI Max with negative keywords and settings22:58 The significance of data consolidation and segmentation26:57 Advice for avoiding campaign pitfalls30:05 Responding to campaign errors with transparency33:57 The evolving role of campaign structure and guardrails37:06 New Google updates and strategic responses40:07 Behavioral responses to Google's August 17 update45:00 Market-wide effects of ROAS target changesFind Mike on LinkedInJoin us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Slack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Join us for the next ⁠PPC Live event⁠
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Show notes
In this episode, Mike Ryan shares his experiences with AI Max, campaign mistakes, and lessons learned in PPC management. Discover practical insights on avoiding common pitfalls and leveraging data effectively. Key topicsAI Max and its impact on campaignsCommon PPC mistakes and how to avoid themThe importance of data segmentation and guardrailsLessons learned from campaign failuresThe role of curiosity and critical thinking in PPCChapters00:00 Introduction and guest background02:05 Mike's role and expertise in PPC05:03 The importance of sharing mistakes and lessons07:01 Mike's experience with AI Max and early mistakes10:09 How AI Max can target competitor terms unexpectedly13:07 The importance of checking search terms early16:57 The impact of market fears on ROAS targets19:59 Controlling AI Max with negative keywords and settings22:58 The significance of data consolidation and segmentation26:57 Advice for avoiding campaign pitfalls30:05 Responding to campaign errors with transparency33:57 The evolving role of campaign structure and guardrails37:06 New Google updates and strategic responses40:07 Behavioral responses to Google's August 17 update45:00 Market-wide effects of ROAS target changesFind Mike on LinkedInJoin us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Slack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Join us for the next ⁠PPC Live event⁠