Why it happens
Too many actions are primary
Too many actions are primary
Page views, scrolls and micro-events set as primary inflate conversions and teach Smart Bidding to buy cheap, low-value actions.
The same conversion is primary twice
A tag action and a GA4 import of the same purchase, both primary, double count and break CPA and ROAS.
The real goal is secondary
The action you care about only appears in All conversions, so bidding ignores it.
How to fix it, step by step
List your actions
Go to Goals, then Conversions, then Summary. Each goal shows its actions and whether each is primary or secondary.
Switch an action
Click the action, click Edit settings, and under Goal and action optimization choose Primary action or Secondary action. Save.
Keep one source per conversion
If the tag and a GA4 import track the same purchase, keep one primary and set the other secondary.
Check campaign goals
Open each campaign, go to Settings, then Goals, and confirm it uses the goals that contain your primary action.
Steps checked against Google Ads Help: About primary and secondary conversion actions; Google Ads Help: About campaign-specific conversion goals; Google Ads Help: About conversion goals.
Sprites fixes this
Or let Sprites fix it
Sprites finds actions set to the wrong role and switches them, so bidding chases what you actually want.
What Sprites does
- Reads every campaign's goals and the conversion actions each one bids on.
- Compares Conversions with All conversions per action, so duplicates and demoted goals show.
- Switches actions between primary and secondary, and fixes counting, value and lookback windows.
- You approve every change before it goes live, and Sprites reads each action back to confirm it landed.
What it doesn't do
- It does not create or edit custom conversion goals.
Questions
What is the difference between primary and secondary conversions in Google Ads?
Primary actions count in the Conversions column and are used for bidding. Secondary actions are recorded in All conversions for reporting and are not used for bidding.
Do secondary conversions affect bidding?
No, unless a campaign uses a custom goal that includes them. By default Smart Bidding ignores secondary actions.
How many primary conversion actions should I have?
As few as describe the outcome you pay for. Usually one purchase or one qualified lead action per campaign goal.
Will switching an action to primary reset learning?
Changing what a campaign optimizes for can put Smart Bidding back into learning for a short period. Make the switch once, not repeatedly.
Let Sprites fix it
Connect the account. Sprites finds the cause, stages the change and waits for your approval.