PPC Myths Busted: What Actually Drives Profit in Today’s eCommerce Landscape?

jax5027
Aug 23
4 min read

Whoever said “ignorance is bliss” never managed an eCommerce PPC account. If you’re tired of seeing dog-eared myths passed around founder WhatsApp chats like ancient wisdom, you’re not alone. The PPC world in 2025 is riddled with well-intentioned half-truths and agency-speak that’s more fog machine than lighthouse.

Let’s lift the curtain and torch a few of the biggest profit-sapping PPC myths out there. By the end, you’ll have a toolkit for judging your ad spend with the clear-eyed precision of a bored auditor and the gleeful scepticism of a tabloid journalist.

Myth #1: “Spend More and You’ll Make More”

Ah yes, the holy grail of “just turn it up.” Many agencies would have you believe that Google Ads is a glorified fruit machine – shove more coins in and watch the sales light up. Reality check: most eCommerce brands lose more the more blindly they spend.

Here’s what actually happens:

Pumping more cash into poorly targeted campaigns means you’re just feeding Google, not your bottom line.
A Tempe retailer doubled conversions without increased spend by targeting users surgically and optimising relentlessly.
One UK e-tailer went from £4,000 to almost £28,000 revenue while lowering cost per sale, simply by tightening campaign structure.

The takeaway: Spend smarter, not harder. If your agency’s default answer to lagging results is “raise the budget,” it’s time to ask tougher questions.

Myth #2: “It’s All About the Keywords”

Many founders still view search ads as a battle for the biggest pile of keywords. More = better, right?

Not even close:

Cramming 200+ keywords into a single ad group just makes your data impossible to read and your ads less relevant.
Strong visuals, on-brand copy and seamless landing pages all matter as much (if not more) than having every permutation of “buy [thing] online.”
Google’s Quality Score takes into account landing page experience, ad relevance, and expected click-through rate, not just “keyword coverage.”

If your campaign structure looks like a word salad with a side of spaghetti logic, it’s time for a rethink.

Myth #3: “High ACoS? SLASH The Budget!”

When Advertising Cost of Sale rises, the kneejerk agency reaction is to ruthlessly cut budgets. Ask yourself: does your business thrive when you panic on every wobble?

The reality:

Budget-chopping shreds campaign momentum and makes it harder to climb back when sales pick up.
Persistent high ACoS often points to targeting issues, mismatch between ad copy and product/offer, or botched conversion tracking – not always a spending problem.
Power users tweak targeting, test new audience segments, or refine creatives – instead of pulling the plug entirely.

The biggest brands don’t flinch at a spike – they sniff out why it happened and fix the root cause.

Myth #4: “PPC = Instant High Rankings (Amazon, Anyone?)”

Running sponsored listings on Amazon might give you the warm fuzzies, but it’s not a magic wand for organic rank.

Here’s what the data (and any honest Amazon specialist) actually says:

Organic sales, conversion rate and click-through rate boost your ranking way more than paid campaigns ever will.
PPC can nudge products into the spotlight, but without strong organic performance, you’ll soon be coughing up for every sale.
In other words, once your ad runs stop, so does the traffic – unless you’ve built up real demand.

Don’t fall for the “PPC pumps your way up the charts” line. It’s selling you a shortcut that doesn’t exist.

Myth #5: “Turn Off Ads When You’re Out of Stock”

The agency classic. Product’s gone? Turn off your campaigns. Easy win, right? Wrong.

Actual result:

You lose ad momentum, historical data and audience signals, basically starting from scratch once you restock.
Smart operators increase price during low inventory to slow the flow without killing visibility or algorithmic learnings.
If you must pause, do it with a plan: limit budgets or move traffic to related products, don’t just hit “off” and hope.

So... What Actually Drives PPC Profit in 2025?

Founders who win in today’s eCommerce PPC landscape think and operate differently from the crowd. What do they focus on?

Strategic Clarity Beats Blanket Spend

Decide what you’re trying to achieve… then build campaigns to match. Bullets, not buckshot.

Clear, focused campaigns win: One product, one campaign (especially for Amazon and brands with focused SKUs).
Healthy campaign structure gives you readable data, which means you can actually figure out what’s working.

Holistic Optimisation: You Can’t Tidy Just One Room

Conversion rate boosts don’t come from ads alone.

Your landing page and product listing do the heavy lifting once the ad brings someone in.
User experience, reviews, and trust factors all move the revenue needle.

Quality Score isn’t an agency’s way of ducking hard conversations— it’s a pricing algorithm set by Google that punishes lazy ads, bad websites and generic copy.

Data, Not Dogma

Forget what “should” happen. What does the data say today? Is CPC up or down? Are search queries matching to what you sell?
Monitor profitability over time. If you’re not tracking to order margin (and how shipping, returns, and fulfilment erode profit), you’re working blind.

Platform-Specific Mastery

Google Ads, Amazon Ads, Facebook—they all have their own rules, biases, and black-box tricks.

On Google Shopping, your feed quality and product data matter as much as your bids. (Need proof? Check our deep dive at Feed Me Seymour: Why Your Product Data Shouldn’t Be a Horror Show)
On Amazon, invest in organic bestsellers and let PPC assist, not carry, your organic rank.

Arming yourself with actual platform knowledge stops expensive flailing.

Action Steps: Blow Up the Myths, Build Real Profit

If you want output, not just “activity,” it’s time to get ruthless:

Want more no-nonsense PPC breakdowns? Check the rest of our myth-busting guides over at JudeLuxe Blog or dive straight into the PPC no-go zones with our deep-dive on Conversions vs. Conversions by Time.

If you’re hearing the same tired advice, remember: in 2025, the only constant is change. And the only real myth left is thinking you can set and forget.