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Manual vs. Automated Optimization  

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Campaigns' optimization in the digital age is a multifaceted process that combines data-driven insights, advanced technology, and continuous refinement.

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As a marketer managing different advertising campaigns on several media channels, you may encounter various challenges that lead to low conversion rates and inefficient budget usage.

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Typically, these issues stem from a lack of transparency in campaign data, making it difficult to optimize and control outcomes, compounded by extensive hours spent on data analysis.

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Whether you're fine-tuning marketing campaigns, streamlining supply chains, or enhancing user experiences, the quest for peak performance is constant.

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But a critical question looms: should you rely on manual optimization techniques honed through experience, or embrace the rising tide of automated optimization tools?

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This post will explore the pros and cons of both approaches, helping you determine the best strategy for your specific needs.

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We'll examine:

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• The strengths and limitations of human expertise;

• The power and potential pitfalls of AI-driven optimization;

• Real-world scenarios where each method shines;

• Strategies for combining manual and automated approaches.

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Let's dive in and unravel the complexities of manual vs. automated optimization.  

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Pros and Cons of Manual Campaign Optimization

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Human expertise remains a powerful asset in optimization efforts in specific situations. See below specific examples.

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- You Need Intuition and Context: Seasoned media professionals and campaign managers bring nuanced understanding to complex and unexpected situations. They can interpret data within broader business contexts and spot opportunities that may not be obvious to algorithms.

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- You Need Adaptability: Manual optimization allows for quick pivots in response to unexpected changes or unique circumstances.

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- Stakeholder Communication Is Crucial: Experts can effectively explain their reasoning and build buy-in for optimization strategies across an organization.

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Manual optimization also provides a high degree of customization.

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Human expertise allows for tailored targeting and bidding strategies: flexibility is ideal for handling complex, non-standard situations that require nuanced decision-making. Furthermore, manual optimization gives full control over budget allocation across different campaigns and ad groups, enhancing cost-effectiveness at a granular level.

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However, manual optimization is time-consuming and labor-intensive, requiring significant effort to monitor performance, adjust, and optimize bids and targeting.

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This process is also more prone to human error and biases, which can affect the accuracy and effectiveness of the optimizations.

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The Power of Automated Optimization

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Automated tools are revolutionizing the optimization landscape and daily media operations for many reasons:

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- Scale and Speed: Algorithms can process vast amounts of data and test countless variations far faster than any human team.

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- Consistency: Automated systems apply optimization rules without fatigue or bias, ensuring uniform quality.

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- Continuous Improvement: Many AI-driven tools use machine learning to refine their approaches over time, potentially outpacing human learning curves.

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- Handling Complexity: In scenarios with numerous variables, automated systems can identify patterns and optimal solutions beyond human cognitive capacity.

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However, automated optimization lacks the flexibility of manual methods.

It is highly dependent on the quality of the initial campaign setup and historical performance data to make accurate predictions.

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While it can broaden reach and find additional relevant audiences, it does not allow for the fine-tuning of targeting, bids, and creative elements to the same extent that manual optimization can in case of unexpected or unpredictable situations.

Leveraging the Strengths of Automation and Human Touch

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To achieve the best results, it is essential to leverage the strengths of both manual and automated optimization.

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Our MINT Academy has shared the following 3 simple steps for a successful optimization strategy which combines automation and human expertise.

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1. Define Clear Roles and Responsibilities

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Automated systems should handle most day-to-day optimization tasks; human experts should be proactively involved in monitoring performance, identifying opportunities for improvement, and making strategic decisions when required.

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Our MINT Academy experts suggest defining which optimizations should be automated vs. manual based on your workflow complexity, speed requirements, and business goals. As a rule, you may find useful the following scheme:

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Use automated optimization for:

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- Initial campaign setup, data analysis, and making strategic real-time adjustments at scale;

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- Continuous monitoring and pacing towards key KPIs.

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Leverage manual optimization for:

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- Fine-tuning and oversight targeting, bidding, and creative elements based on deep domain expertise;

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- Handling complex, unexpected and non-standard situations that automated systems may struggle with.

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2. Build an Iterative Optimization Process for Continuous Learning

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- Start with automated optimization to gather initial performance data and insights at scale.

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- Analyze the automated optimization results and make manual adjustments if needed.

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- Feed the automated campaign management system of your preference with your direct interventions to further refine its algorithms; software like MINT ARM automatically incorporates manual adjustments to your optimizations history to continuously learn and adapt.

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- Foster collaboration between human experts and the automated systems to drive continuous improvement and benchmarks.

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3. Maintain Human Oversight and Control

- Ensure automated systems can be overridden or adjusted by human experts.

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- Leverage your technology of choice to create alerts and dashboards to monitor automated optimization performance.

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- Analyze the outcomes of both automated and manual optimizations to identify best practices and insights.

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- Conduct regular checks on the quality of your input data: the effectiveness of automated optimization is heavily dependent on the quality and completeness of the data feeding into the system. Technologies like MINT ARM are here to help with this strategic task.

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The Strength of a Hybrid Approach

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The choice between manual and automated optimization isn't binary.

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The most successful organizations leverage both, capitalizing on human creativity and expertise while harnessing the power of AI-driven tools.  

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As you evaluate your optimization needs, consider starting with a hybrid approach.

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Identify areas where automation can free up your team for higher-level strategic thinking, while preserving manual oversight for critical decisions.

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Remember, the goal is not to replace human insight, but to augment it with powerful tools that expand what's possible in your optimization efforts.  

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For many organizations, the optimal strategy lies in combining manual and automated optimization following 4 pillars:

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- Human-Guided Automation: Set overarching goals and constraints manually, then let automated systems optimize within those parameters.

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- AI-assisted Decision Making: Use automated tools to generate insights and recommendations but rely on human judgment for final decisions.

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- Continuous Learning Loop: Implement automated optimization, analyze results leveraging your personal touch, and use those insights to refine the automation rules.

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- Task-Based Selection: Choose manual or automated approaches based on the specific optimization task and its requirements.

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The Future is on Campaign Strategy

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When you directly compare the capabilities of an algorithm to those of a human performing the same task — specifically, analyzing a vast number of variables in real-time to decide whether to purchase a particular impression based on specific goals (such as CPC, CTR, CPI, CPV, CPA, etc.) — the comparison is clearly unbalanced.

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Machines not only operate significantly faster, which is crucial in programmatic advertising, but they also make unbiased decisions for each available ad space in real-time. Does this mean that all campaign specialists will have to reinvent themselves?  

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No, campaign specialists won’t lose their jobs.  

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Instead, their role will evolve to focus on the most critical phase of campaign management: strategic planning.  

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Ensuring an optimal initial campaign setup for the algorithms is crucial for success.

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By establishing the right parameters for automated optimization, specialists can trust the system to manage the budget efficiently with minimal intervention.  

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AI-powered optimizations can be applied automatically or accepted or refused by campaign specialists, like MINT AI-based suggestions.

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Human oversight will be essential also in the future. Regular monitoring is needed to review periodic results, conduct A/B testing, and intervene when a campaign stagnates and could benefit from manual adjustments. This shift emphasizes the importance of strategic expertise in creating effective, automated campaigns.  

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Interested in knowing more about media management tactics and strategies? Stay tuned for more insights from our MINT Academy!

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