Google announced on Google+ a small but significant addition to their Bid Simulator tool.
Not only can you get clicks, impressions and cost estimates predictions via the simulator, you can now also get estimated conversions predicted for you.
Google said on Google+:
Thinking about changing your bids, but not sure how it would affect your conversions? In addition to clicks, impressions and cost estimates, you can now see estimated conversions you might have received with different bids in the Bid Simulator.
Here is how big simulator estimates conversions:
The simulators offer conversion estimates to help you understand the number of conversions (1-per-click and many-per-click) your ads might have received if you had set different bids. Here's some information to keep in mind:
- Conversion delays: Conversions are currently reported up to 30 days after the click. The bid simulators conversion estimates show how many clicks might result in a conversion within approximately one day, based on clicks from a recent seven day period.
- Sparse conversion data: There is usually less conversion data than click or impression data when calculating these estimates, so conversions can be more difficult to estimate. The longer the history and the more conversions you have, the more accurate these estimates will be.
- Changes to Conversion Tracking: Removing or moving the Conversion Tracking tag could invalidate the estimates. Don't make any major changes to the Conversion Tracking code for at least two weeks before using the bid simulators for conversion estimates.
- Conversion definitions: Conversions rely not only on ad clicks, but also on the actions that customers take on your site. This can also make them more difficult to predict.
You can learn more about this at this help document.
Forum discussion at Google+.
