Google Ads can optimise towards any conversion action marked as primary and included in the relevant goal. If page views, calls, imported orders and duplicate purchases are all treated as bidding signals, the algorithm may optimise for the easiest action rather than profitable sales.

Check account conversion actions

1. Open Goals. In Google Ads, go to Goals, then Conversions, then Summary. Review every conversion action rather than only the headline goal groups.
2. Add the key columns. Check source, category, status, action optimisation, value, count method and recent activity. Flag actions with similar names or unexpected sources.
3. Identify primary actions. Primary actions appear in the Conversions column and can be used for bidding when their goal is active. Secondary actions remain available in All conversions for observation.
4. Check purchase settings. Ecommerce purchase should normally use a unique transaction ID, variable values, the correct currency and Count every. Compare imported and tag-based purchase actions for duplication.
5. Inspect campaign goals. Open each important campaign's Settings, then Goals, and see whether it uses account-default goals or campaign-specific goals. Confirm the chosen actions match the campaign's real objective.
6. Remove weak signals carefully. Change non-essential actions to secondary or exclude their goal from the campaign. Do not delete historical actions simply to tidy the screen.
7. Monitor after changes. Annotate the date and watch conversion volume, value and bidding status. Material goal changes can alter Smart Bidding behaviour while it relearns.

Reconcile the numbers

Compare Google Ads purchase conversions and value with GA4 and Shopify, accounting for attribution windows, consent, refunds and the date each platform assigns to a conversion. Look for duplicate order IDs or two purchase actions receiving the same order.

Review this setup after migrations, new call tracking, app installations and GA4 imports. Conversion actions accumulate quietly, so ownership and a short definition beside each action prevent old tests becoming live bidding signals.

Verification notes

Open Goals, then Conversions, then Summary and check the Action optimisation setting for each action. Primary actions used by the campaign goal can inform bidding and appear in Conversions. Secondary actions are generally observation-only and appear in All conversions.

Source checked

This guide was checked against Google Ads conversion goals guidance.