The Bidding step sets how Google Ads spends your budget in the auction.
The four strategies
Target CPA (tCPA) - tell Google what a conversion is worth paying (e.g. $50 per lead) and it bids to hit that. Best when the goal is leads and you know your numbers.
Target ROAS (tROAS) - tell Google the return you need (e.g. 300%) and it bids to value. Best for e-commerce with conversion values tracked.
Maximize Clicks (with a CPC limit) - gather traffic and data, capped so no single click overpays. A sensible starting strategy for brand-new campaigns without conversion history.
Enhanced CPC - manual bidding with Google nudging bids up or down per auction.
The supporting controls
Max CPC bid limit - a per-click ceiling. Setting one on Maximize Clicks is strongly advised; without it, nothing caps what a single click can cost.
Impression position - aim for top of page, or anywhere on page.
Impression share target - the share of eligible auctions to aim for (e.g. 90%).
Networks - whether to include Search Partners and the Display Network. Leaving both off keeps spend on Google Search itself, which is the cleanest data while a campaign proves itself.
RELATED ARTICLES
Setting the daily budget
A simple way to pick a number you can defend.
Targeting
Locations, presence vs interest, languages, devices and rotation.
The eight steps at a glance
Setup → Discovery → Bidding → Targeting → Generate → Review → Budget → Launch.