I’m looking for advice on connecting HubSpot qualified lead data with Google Ads smart bidding strategies for B2B campaigns. Right now we stick with manual cost-per-click bidding on regular search campaigns because our previous Performance Max campaigns brought in too many low quality leads and spam contacts.
However, I’m wondering if we’re missing out on better opportunities by not fully utilizing our CRM data integration with Google’s automated bidding features. We have solid data in HubSpot but haven’t really pushed it back to Google for optimization.
Has anyone successfully set up an effective workflow between these platforms for B2B lead generation? What bidding strategies work best when you feed qualified contact data back to Google?
Our current manual approach generates some decent contacts but the volume is pretty low. I’m curious if smart bidding with proper CRM data could help us reach more qualified prospects while maintaining lead quality. What conversion actions do you track? Any specific campaign types that work better than others?
Would love to hear about your setup and results if you’ve tackled this challenge before.
The game-changer for us was setting up enhanced conversions with our HubSpot integration instead of just basic conversion tracking. Google’s machine learning works way better when you give it multiple touchpoints from your sales funnel, not just form fills. We created custom conversion actions in Google Ads that align with HubSpot’s lifecycle stages. This allows us to track form submissions as the primary conversion while also sending data back for leads that progress to marketing qualified status and closed deals. This approach provides Google’s algorithms with better signals about valuable traffic. We initially used Enhanced CPC for our search campaigns before transitioning to Target CPA, which resulted in smoother optimization than jumping directly to full automation. Additionally, we excluded poorly converting audience segments in HubSpot, which proved beneficial when we revisited Performance Max. After about six weeks, we observed a significant increase in lead volume, along with higher lead scores in HubSpot for our Google Ads traffic compared to our prior manual bidding approach.
HubSpot-Google Ads sync is a nightmare when you build it manually.
I wasted months trying to get conversion data flowing between systems. The real issue isn’t the integration - it’s keeping everything synced in real time as leads move through your funnel.
Automating the entire workflow fixed this for us. Instead of using native integrations that break or lag, I built a system that watches HubSpot contact changes and instantly pushes conversion values to Google Ads.
The trick is tracking multiple conversion events with different values. Form fill = X dollars. Marketing qualified lead = Y dollars. Closed customer = Z dollars.
Google’s algorithm learns what good traffic looks like for your business. No more waiting 30 days for it to separate spam from real prospects.
You can auto-adjust Target CPA based on actual pipeline performance too. Cost per SQL drops? System lowers your targets. Spikes? It raises them.
The automation handles all the messy API calls and data formatting. Takes an hour to set up versus weeks of manual work.
Check out Latenode for building this workflow - handles HubSpot and Google Ads connections without coding: https://latenode.com
honestly, our biggest mistake was jumping into smart bidding way too early. google needs at least 30 conversions monthly to work right, but we switched over with only 10 total leads. should’ve stuck with maximize clicks first to build volume, then moved to target CPA after hitting that threshold. also - check that your hubspot attribution windows match google’s. we had wonky data for weeks before we caught that mismatch.
We encountered similar issues with Performance Max initially leading to a flood of low-quality leads. To address this, we integrated HubSpot with Google Ads for offline conversion tracking, focusing on key metrics such as marketing qualified leads and sales accepted leads for optimization. It took about 30 days for Google’s algorithms to distinguish our target metrics from random form submissions. We found that using Target CPA bidding outperformed maximize conversions once we began supplying quality data. Initially, we set our target CPA about 20% above our normal cost per qualified lead, gradually lowering it as performance stabilized. Patience is key; anticipate 4-6 weeks for Google to adjust based on your CRM insights. Additionally, we found smart bidding in traditional search campaigns provided more reliable results compared to Performance Max, although PMAX improved lead quality as it adapted.