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Use Ad Optimization (AI optimization)
Review 15 types of AI proposals for budgets, keywords, placements, creative, copy, bids, targeting, and more. Approve them or auto-apply to ad platforms.
Author: Cascade
Ad Optimization uses AI to analyze performance from your connected ad platforms and propose improvements. When you approve a proposal, Cascade updates the settings on each platform. Some optimizations support Auto-apply, which applies changes without waiting for approval. Open Ad Optimization from the left menu.
What you can do
Each type of optimization has its own card. The cards you see depend on your connected ad platforms and permissions.
Card | Details | Supported ad platforms | How changes are applied |
|---|---|---|---|
Budget Optimization | Proposes budget allocation changes every morning based on each campaign's performance | Amazon Ads, Google Ads, Meta Ads, TikTok Ads, Apple Search Ads, Yahoo! Ads, Microsoft Ads, LinkedIn Ads, X Ads, and Reddit Ads | Approval required |
Brand Metrics Budget Raise | Proposes daily budget increases for campaigns targeting purchase stages that show weak performance in Amazon Brand Metrics | Amazon Ads (also requires a plan for EC Analysis) | Approval required |
Keyword Optimization | Proposes adding, pausing, removing, or excluding search ad keywords | Google Ads, Yahoo! Ads (Search), TikTok Ads, Apple Search Ads, Amazon Ads, and Microsoft Ads | Approval required |
Placement Optimization | Proposes excluding placements that underperform or show signs of fraud | Google Ads, Meta Ads, Microsoft Ads, and Yahoo! Ads (Display) | Approval required |
Creative Optimization | AI generates replacement candidates for ad images with declining performance | Meta Ads, Google Ads (Demand Generation, responsive display, and P-MAX), and Yahoo! Ads (Display) | Approval required |
Copy Optimization | Proposes replacement headlines and descriptions, and new ad copy based on search terms | Google Ads (responsive search ads) | Approval required |
Bid Optimization | Adjusts keyword and product target bids daily to meet your target ACoS | Amazon Ads (Sponsored Products) and Amazon DSP | Auto-apply for Sponsored Products; approval required for Amazon DSP |
Bid Strategy Switch | Proposes switching search campaign bidding strategies based on completed conversion counts, and reverting if volume drops after the switch | Yahoo! Ads (Search) | Approval required |
Delivery Schedule Optimization | Proposes delivery schedules that stop ads during underperforming hours based on performance by hour and day of the week | Amazon Ads | Approval required |
Placement Bid Optimization | Adjusts bid adjustment percentages for each placement weekly to move closer to your target ACoS | Amazon Ads (Sponsored Products) | Auto-apply |
Stop proposals | Proposes pausing underperforming ad groups | Amazon DSP | Approval required |
Rakuten RPP Optimization | Proposes changes to maximum CPC, keyword CPC, exclusions, and keyword additions daily based on performance and gross margin | Rakuten RPP | Approval required |
Targeting Optimization | Proposes excluding buyers, retargeting, and creating similar audiences based on customer lists | Meta Ads, Google Ads, and Yahoo! Ads (Display) (Amazon Ads for category product targets) | Approval required (recommended audiences can run automatically) |
Bid Target Auto-Calculation | Calculates search ad bidding targets (target CPA and target ROAS) weekly based on gross margin | Google Ads and Yahoo! Ads (Search) | Auto-apply (review proposals that require approval on the card) |
Max CPC Optimization | Proposes maximum CPC changes based on conversion performance and other factors | Google Ads | Approval required (you can turn on Auto-apply) |
For instructions on each optimization, see Use Budget Optimization, About Keyword Optimization, About Placement Analysis & Exclusions, Use Creative Optimization, Use Copy Optimization, Use Targeting Optimization, and Automatically optimize Amazon Ads bids and delivery schedules.
Requirements
Available on the Business plan.
Owners, Admins, and Editors can open this page. Viewers and Guests cannot.
Owners and Admins can approve or dismiss proposals and access Settings on each card.
Only Owners and Admins can open proposal details for Budget Optimization, Bid Strategy Switch, and Bid Target Auto-Calculation. Editors see only the number of proposals awaiting approval on these cards.
The Rakuten RPP Optimization and Max CPC Optimization cards are visible only to Owners and Admins.
Connect the relevant ad platforms in Settings > Integrations.
Understand the screen
Cards are organized into 5 groups by status.
Group | Details |
|---|---|
New proposals | Optimizations with proposals ready for review. Cards show Proposal ready or Awaiting approval and the proposal date. |
Setup needed | Optimizations that need configuration before they can start. Cards show Setup required (e.g., customer list sync, target ACoS, or gross margin). |
Learning | A supported ad platform is connected, and AI is learning from performance data. This group also includes cards where approved proposals are Done, Budget Optimization cards with No changes, and cards with only automatic changes running, shown as Auto-applied. |
No proposals | Optimizations for which no ads met the proposal criteria in the latest evaluation. The card shows the reason. |
Not imported | Optimizations with no supported ad platform connected (Not connected) or no eligible active ads (No target) |
The following buttons appear at the bottom of each card.
View proposal — Open a proposal to review and approve it. Use the arrows on the proposal screen to move between past proposals. On cards marked Learning or No proposals, this opens the latest notice.
How to enable — Appears on Not imported cards. Shows supported ad platforms and the steps to start receiving proposals. Use Open integrations, Open Campaign Management, or Open Audience Management to go directly to setup. If you do not have permission to connect services, you are prompted to ask an Owner or Admin.
Settings — Change how the optimization works (budget groups, target ACoS, gross margin, customer list sync, and more).
Auto-apply — Appears on optimizations that support automatic application. It is always ON for Bid Optimization, Placement Bid Optimization, and Bid Target Auto-Calculation. For Targeting Optimization and Max CPC Optimization, use the checkbox to switch it ON or OFF (Owners and Admins only).
Steps
1. Open View proposal
Click View proposal on a card under New proposals. The proposal target, values before and after the change, and rationale appear.
2. Select the rows to apply
For proposals that let you select individual rows, clear the checkboxes for rows you do not need. In Targeting Optimization, you can also select Don’t suggest again. For Budget Optimization and bidding target proposals, use Dismiss to skip them.
3. Approve
Click the approval button at the bottom of the screen. The button name varies by card (e.g., Optimize Budget Allocation or Optimize Keywords). The card shows Applying while changes are being applied, then changes to Done.
Review applied changes on the Change history tab under Ad Settings > Campaign Management. Reviewing and approving proposals does not consume AI credits (except when generating replacements for underperforming P-MAX images in bulk).
New proposals appear under Ad Optimization Notices on the home screen. If Slack, Chatwork, or Microsoft Teams is connected, you also receive notifications there.
About auto-apply
Click About auto-apply at the top right of the screen for details. For the following optimizations, Cascade applies changes to ad platforms without waiting for approval and notifies you of the changes.
Bid Optimization — Bids for Amazon Sponsored Products campaigns with a target ACoS set (daily)
Placement Bid Optimization — Bid adjustment percentages for each placement in those same campaigns (weekly)
Bid Target Auto-Calculation — Bidding targets for Google Ads and Yahoo! Ads (Search) with a gross margin set (weekly, excluding proposals awaiting approval)
Recommended audiences in Targeting Optimization — Only when Auto-apply is ON on the card
Max CPC Optimization — Only when Auto-apply is ON on the card. Limits apply to each change and to changes over a set period. Proposals that exceed these limits wait for approval.
You receive a notice before automatic changes start (from the next day's proposals for bids, and from the next proposals for placement bids). Open an applied proposal to see "Applied: X" and how many of those changes Cascade applied automatically.
To stop automatic bid and placement bid changes, clear the target ACoS in each card's Settings and save. For bidding targets, remove the gross margin setting. For targeting and maximum CPC, clear the Auto-apply checkbox on the card.
How Ad Expression Check applies
If you enable the approval flow in Ad Settings > Ad Expression Check, keyword, copy, and creative changes, as well as Rakuten RPP keyword additions, are subject to that flow. Only approved proposals are applied to ad platforms.
Troubleshooting
Symptom | Cause | Solution |
|---|---|---|
The card shows Not connected | No supported ad platform is connected. | Check the supported platforms in How to enable, then connect one from Integrations. |
The card shows Setup required | Target ACoS, gross margin, customer list sync, or another setting is missing. | Configure it in the card's Settings. |
The card stays on Learning, and no proposals arrive | There is not enough performance data, or no ads meet the proposal criteria. | Keep your ads running and wait for the next evaluation. If the card description gives a reason, follow that guidance. |
You cannot click View proposal | Editors cannot open these proposals (Budget Optimization, Bid Strategy Switch, and bidding targets). | Ask an Owner or Admin to review the proposal. |
Some changes are not applied after approval | Values changed on the ad platform after the proposal was created, or the connection was lost. | Check the reason in the Result and Status columns on the proposal screen. Reconnect in Integrations if needed. |
