Almost every audit I run on a small paid search account finds the same thing: the spend isn't too low, it's pointed at the wrong people. Broad match plus automated bidding is very good at finding volume, and volume is not the same as intent.
Start with the search terms, not the campaigns
The campaign view tells you what you intended to buy. The search terms report tells you what you actually bought. Sort by cost, look at the top fifty terms, and mark every one you wouldn't have paid for on purpose. On a $2,000 budget it is routinely a third of the money.
Then check what happens after the click
A click that lands on a homepage is a click that has to work out where to go next. Most won't. If a campaign promises a specific service, the page it lands on should open with that service and ask for the enquiry above the fold.
The three checks worth running this week
- Search terms sorted by cost, with negatives added for anything off-intent.
- One landing page per campaign theme, matching the ad's promise word for word.
- Conversion actions defined as enquiries or revenue — not page views or form loads.
None of this is clever. It's just the part nobody goes back and does once the account is live.