Weekly Call w/ Gilbert — Doodla Farms & Google Ads Review (2026-03-25)
Overview
Weekly review with Gilbert and Karly covering Doodla Farms Amazon performance and inventory status, a live Google Ads audit that fixed broken remarketing tracking and missing ad extensions (raising optimization score from 60% to >80%), a new PMAX lifecycle strategy, and a critical flag on the Aviaries account due to zero conversions and broken tracking.
Attendees: Mark Hope, Gilbert Barrongo, Karly Oykhman
Related client: [1]
Key Decisions
- Yellow Cornmeal PPC bids will be increased to recover sales momentum lost since December; ROAS is strong and CPC is declining, making this a favorable moment to push.
- PMAX lifecycle strategy adopted: Use PMAX for ~90 days to gather performance data, then convert to Search or Shopping campaigns. Existing Black Beans, Popcorn, and Cornmeal PMAX campaigns are candidates for conversion.
- Display Remarketing campaign rebuilt to target cart abandoners with all-product messaging, replacing a beans-only focus that was producing zero counted conversions despite 115k+ impressions.
- Brand Search campaign bid strategy switched from Manual CPC to Target Impression Share (95% absolute top, $1 cap) to stop missing 23% of brand queries.
- Old World Search campaign switched from Maximize Clicks to Maximize Conversions; campaign is new so performance will be monitored before further changes.
- Inventory velocity floor set at 6 units/month for any product with velocity below 10, to prevent the planning algorithm from recommending zero replenishment.
- Aviaries account requires full overhaul — spending $33/day with zero conversions due to broken conversion tracking and poor campaign structure.
Action Items
- [ ] Increase PPC bids on Yellow Cornmeal to regain sales momentum (@Gilbert Barrongo)
- [ ] Review top 10 products (last 30 days) in Sellerize; check inventory/trends; prep pricing review (@Gilbert Barrongo)
- [ ] Set minimum velocity to 6 units/month in inventory sheet for all low-velocity products (@Gilbert Barrongo)
- [ ] Create catch-all Google Shopping campaign for the 58 untargeted products (@Gilbert Barrongo)
- [ ] Create and upload PMAX videos (correct aspect ratios) for low-score campaigns (@Gilbert Barrongo, @Karly Oykhman)
- [ ] Launch PMAX campaign for Old World products; connect Merchant Center feed (@Gilbert Barrongo)
- [ ] Email Parag the PaperTube performance chart (flat conversions, rising CPC); schedule next-week review (@Karly Oykhman)
- [ ] Complete Aviaries GTM/conversion tracking fixes; implement call-outs/snippets; switch to conversion bidding (@Karly Oykhman)
- [ ] Schedule Aviaries working session with Mark and Sebastian to finish account setup (@Karly Oykhman)
- [ ] Meet Monday to configure AI agent tool on Gilbert's computer (@Mark Hope, @Gilbert Barrongo)
Doodla Farms: Amazon Performance & Inventory
Sales & Metrics
- Sales are recovering; recent high of $4,800/day.
- Organic rankings trending positively.
- Ad units and ad costs are flat; TACOS is decreasing.
- Profit margin holding in the 30–40% range.
- Overall ROAS improving week-over-week (3.4 → 3.66).
Top Products (Day of Call)
- Black Beans
- White Doodla Popcorn
- Yellow Old World Popcorn
- Yellow Doodla Popcorn
Inventory Issues
| Product | Status | Action |
|---|---|---|
| White Old World Popcorn | Out of stock | $2k shipment en route to FBA |
| Pinto Beans (25 lb) | Low stock — 6 units en route | New order sent to Jason |
| Yellow Cornmeal | Adequate inventory; PPC sales down since Dec | Increase PPC bids |
| Blue Haven Cornmeal | 11 months inventory (within 6–12 mo target) | Monitor |
Inventory Management Process
- Target range: 6–12 months of inventory on hand.
- Overstock action: 25% coupons applied to all products with >12 months inventory; coupons expire April 22.
- Velocity floor fix: For any product with velocity below 10 units/month, manually hard-code velocity to 6 in the planning sheet. Prevents the algorithm from recommending zero replenishment when a product temporarily goes out of stock.
- Watch these products closely — the floor will gradually build inventory if actual demand doesn't recover.
Product Flags
- Yellow Cornmeal: PPC sales flat since December despite healthy ROAS and declining CPC. Decision: increase bids to regain momentum.
- Organic Rye Flour: Bestseller Rank declining since March 15. Not an inventory issue — root cause under investigation.
Google Ads: Live Audit & Fixes
Starting State
- Account Optimization Score: 60% — below the ~80% threshold where Google throttles impressions.
- No site links, call-outs, or snippets on most campaigns.
- Display Remarketing spending ~$300/month with zero recorded conversions.
Fixes Applied During Call
1. Display Remarketing Campaign
- Problem: $300/month spend, 0 conversions, 115k+ impressions. Beans-only messaging targeting a broad 90-day visitor window.
- Root cause: Tracking error — 574 conversions were occurring but not being counted.
- Fix: Campaign rebuilt to target cart abandoners with all-product messaging. New headlines: "Still thinking it over," "Your cart is waiting," "Complete your order."
2. Missing Ad Extensions
- Problem: Site links, call-outs, and structured snippets absent from Brand Search, Old World Search, and most other campaigns.
- Fix: New account-level extensions created (8 site links with full descriptions, call-outs, structured snippets). Account-level placement means they serve across all campaigns without per-campaign setup.
- Expected to improve ad real estate, CTR, and Quality Score across the board.
3. Brand Search Campaign
- Problem: 76% impression share — missing 23% of brand queries.
- Fix: Bid strategy switched from Manual CPC (34¢) to Target Impression Share, 95% absolute top, $1 cap.
- Rationale: On brand campaigns, the goal is presence, not conversion efficiency. Every missed brand query is a competitor opportunity.
4. PMAX — Black Beans
- Problem: Target CPA set at $17; actual CPA running at ~$30–32.
- Fix: Target CPA raised to $30 to reflect reality and allow the campaign to bid competitively.
5. PMAX — Popcorn
- Strong ROAS (5.5x). Budget increased from $10 to $20/day to capture available demand.
6. PMAX — Cornmeal
- Budget already at $20/day but spending only $3/day. Target CPA of $12 was constraining bids too tightly.
- Fix: Switched to pure Maximize Conversions (no target CPA).
7. Old World Search Campaign
- Problem: Spending $37/month with 0 conversions. Campaign is new (~2 weeks old).
- Fix: Switched from Maximize Clicks to Maximize Conversions.
- Note: Campaign is too new to draw conclusions. Monitor for another 2–3 weeks before further action.
8. New "Catch-All" Campaign
- Problem: 58 products in Merchant Center have no active advertising.
- Fix (pending): Create a low-budget catch-all Shopping campaign to ensure all products have coverage. Mirrors the "gold banner" approach — don't let products slip through with zero visibility.
Post-Audit Optimization Score
Raised from 60% → >80% through extension additions, tracking fixes, and bid strategy corrections.
PMAX Lifecycle Strategy
Use PMAX for ~90 days to gather performance signal, then convert to more efficient Search or Shopping campaigns using the learned data.
PMAX spends broadly to discover what works. Once patterns are established (~90 days), the data should be used to build targeted Search or Shopping campaigns with tighter control. The existing Black Beans, Popcorn, and Cornmeal PMAX campaigns are approaching or past this threshold.
Immediate next step: Build a new PMAX campaign specifically for Old World products (connect to Merchant Center feed) to start the 90-day learning clock.
Other Accounts
PaperTube
- Gilbert pulled a year-long trend (Jan 2025–present) showing flat conversions despite rising CPCs.
- Asymmetric does not yet manage PaperTube's Google Ads — awaiting final approval from Parag.
- Action: Karly to send the performance chart to Parag as supporting context for the account handover conversation.
Aviaries
Live audit during the call revealed critical issues:
| Issue | Detail |
|---|---|
| Spend with zero conversions | $33/day, 0 conversions recorded |
| Broken conversion tracking | "Submit Lead Form" was set as a secondary conversion action, not primary |
| Poor campaign structure | Phrase match only; no conversion-optimized bidding |
Decision: Full account overhaul required. Karly to schedule a working session with Mark and Sebastian to plan and execute the rebuild.
See also: [2] (if exists)
Transcript Excerpts
On optimization score and impression throttling:
"Google punishes you if your optimization score is below 80. It actually throttles your impressions. So you need to have optimization scores above 80. And honestly, it's a good idea to have optimization scores above 90. Usually, you can get to 90 without increasing the budget." — Mark Hope
On ad extensions as free real estate:
"This is real estate that we're wasting. It's like buying a house with a big yard and then putting a fence and ignoring half of it. It makes the ad bigger — instead of just showing the title, it actually shows the links and other stuff. We should always use site links, snippets, and call-outs for every campaign." — Mark Hope
On the PMAX lifecycle:
"You use PMAX to figure out what works, and then you convert it to other types of campaigns. After a while, you say, OK, we've tried everything. So now let's take what we learned and build good, solid campaigns going forward." — Mark Hope
On brand search impression share:
"We're missing 23% of brand searches. That's just dumb. If somebody's searching for your name, you don't want to leave any on the table." — Mark Hope
On inventory velocity floor:
"The lowest velocity should always be six, never zero, never one, never two... If the velocity goes to zero, it messes up the algorithm — it's going to say you don't need any because you're not selling any." — Mark Hope