Bing Ads reporting outage screwed me...

by revg
14 replies
  • PPC/SEM
  • |
So the day I decide to run my first PPC campaign Bing ads reporting goes OUT! I mean everything.... no spend data, impression data or anything was coming through.

As a result I blew through my whole advertising budget because I didn't have any way of knowing that I WAS in fact getting impressions and spending on clicks!!!!

So now what? I am just out a bunch of money because the Bing ad reporting data was not coming through to let me know where I was at?

Anyone else get the same problem and get a refund or coupon or something?
#ads #bing #outage #reporting #screwed
  • Profile picture of the author irawr
    Banned
    Originally Posted by revg View Post

    So the day I decide to run my first PPC campaign Bing ads reporting goes OUT! I mean everything.... no spend data, impression data or anything was coming through.

    As a result I blew through my whole advertising budget because I didn't have any way of knowing that I WAS in fact getting impressions and spending on clicks!!!!

    So now what? I am just out a bunch of money because the Bing ad reporting data was not coming through to let me know where I was at?

    Anyone else get the same problem and get a refund or coupon or something?
    You couldn't see it in tracking on your end? What kind of budget are we talking about? I don't usually screw around putting less then 10k an in advertising account. If you lost that kind of money contact Bing. If we are talking a couple hundred dollars or less, get tracking setup on your end and learn from your mistakes.

    Edit: They might be nice to you if you call them, but you losing money on ads is not their problem to be 100% crystal clear about this. You could have paused it. Don't think of it as losing money, you are "buying experience."
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    • Profile picture of the author revg
      Ya I mean it's not like I lost the farm and I had my budgets set appropriately. I realize I am ultimately responsible.

      however... When data started coming through and then suddenly it slows down and then eventually haults altogether and Bing does nothing to notify us that there is something wrong with their reporting then it kind of leaves a bad taste in your mouth.

      In fact I contacted bing when my impressions stopped and they told me that my keywords were the problem... If they hadn't done that I would have just paused my campaigns.

      Anyway. Like you said... lesson learned the hard way. The best thing about that is you won't forget
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  • Profile picture of the author FreshMedia
    This is a real pain. I noticed this happening this past Saturday. I contacted support and I was told they were having technical issues and that reporting was 24 hours behind. Luckily I have a low daily limit set. Not knowing what your live stats are is like having your hands tied behind your back. Hope they fix it soon.
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  • Profile picture of the author JC Web
    Since you said this was your first campaign, I just want to check whether you have confirmed whether there was an actual outage. Reporting is never real-time and is usually delayed by a matter of hours. You should always have your own tracking in place. With your own tracking, you can see in real-time what clicks are coming in. You should have known you were getting traffic and whether it was converting or not before it showed up in Bing stats or even if it never did. While an outage can be annoying, it doesn't explain you losing money in this instance.
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    • Profile picture of the author revg
      Originally Posted by JC Web View Post

      Since you said this was your first campaign, I just want to check whether you have confirmed whether there was an actual outage. Reporting is never real-time and is usually delayed by a matter of hours. You should always have your own tracking in place. With your own tracking, you can see in real-time what clicks are coming in. You should have known you were getting traffic and whether it was converting or not before it showed up in Bing stats or even if it never did. While an outage can be annoying, it doesn't explain you losing money in this instance.
      That's fair enough. I was direct linking and I was tracking on my own so you're right it is my own fault for being dumb. I should have just paused it since eventhough I was tracking on my own I still had no idea how much I was paying per click and had no idea what my CTR was.

      So again, lesson hard learned. I'll use my own tracking from now on and never rely on the advertising platforms dashboard ever again.

      Edit: Yes I have confirmed it was an outage http://searchengineland.com/bing-ads...-outage-242140
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      • Profile picture of the author JC Web
        Originally Posted by revg View Post

        That's fair enough. I was direct linking and I was tracking on my own so you're right it is my own fault for being dumb. I should have just paused it since eventhough I was tracking on my own I still had no idea how much I was paying per click and had no idea what my CTR was.

        So again, lesson hard learned. I'll use my own tracking from now on and never rely on the advertising platforms dashboard ever again.

        Edit: Yes I have confirmed it was an outage Bing Ads Experiencing Nearly 2-Day Reporting Outage
        Are your ads currently paused? Since this is the first time you've used Bing, I think you'd be better off waiting until there are no more reporting problems on the platform. You may get too frustrated or discouraged if you continue running them without seeing how the reporting normally works.

        I coincidentally paused all my ads on Friday because I was going into the hospital and I'm not resuming them for a few more days of recovery, so I missed the whole thing. Small silver lining to my health problems I guess.

        If you add the parameters to your tracking url, you will be able to see which keywords triggered the clicks. So, combined with the information of what you bid, you can at least know a max amount of what you are spending. Your actual CPC and spend will be lower than that so you won't have to worry about going over what you want if you keep track of that.
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        • Profile picture of the author revg
          Originally Posted by JC Web View Post

          Are your ads currently paused? Since this is the first time you've used Bing, I think you'd be better off waiting until there are no more reporting problems on the platform. You may get too frustrated or discouraged if you continue running them without seeing how the reporting normally works.

          I coincidentally paused all my ads on Friday because I was going into the hospital and I'm not resuming them for a few more days of recovery, so I missed the whole thing. Small silver lining to my health problems I guess.

          If you add the parameters to your tracking url, you will be able to see which keywords triggered the clicks. So, combined with the information of what you bid, you can at least know a max amount of what you are spending. Your actual CPC and spend will be lower than that so you won't have to worry about going over what you want if you keep track of that.
          Sorry to hear that you are having some health problems. I was in the hospital earlier this year with problems as well.Pretty much all better now, but was a bit of a scare for me. Hope you are doing well now.

          Ya I have paused everything now until this issue clears up. Thanks for the tips on adding parameters to the tracking url, I will definitely do that.

          Thanks again
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  • It's a shame this outage occurred just as you started your campaign. But don't let it discourage you. This was something way, way out of the ordinary. I for one am confident that my ads ran as usual and have a grasp of what happened even if I did not see those results for myself.
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    • Profile picture of the author revg
      Originally Posted by LucidWebMarketing View Post

      It's a shame this outage occurred just as you started your campaign. But don't let it discourage you. This was something way, way out of the ordinary. I for one am confident that my ads ran as usual and have a grasp of what happened even if I did not see those results for myself.
      Thanks, ya this was an unfortunate coincidence for sure. I am going to keep trying! Thanks
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  • Profile picture of the author modgerody
    Looks like they are still working on the situation, but at least they are making improvements.

    They have said that reporting is delayed by at the most 19 hours now.
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  • Profile picture of the author solarwarrior
    That's why I always rely on third party trackers for reports
    instead of putting all your eggs in one basket..
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    Offers 1-1 Coaching for Bing/CPA/Clickbank.
    1,248 students have benefited so far!
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    • Profile picture of the author techppc
      Originally Posted by solarwarrior View Post

      That's why I always rely on third party trackers for reports
      instead of putting all your eggs in one basket..
      any good and simple suggestions ?
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  • Profile picture of the author solarwarrior
    Prosper202 is free but it takes alot of work to set up.

    You can get hosted (done for you) tracker like clickmeter for a monthly fee.
    Signature

    Offers 1-1 Coaching for Bing/CPA/Clickbank.
    1,248 students have benefited so far!
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