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Set Up a Microsoft Advertising Search Campaign

Create and manage Microsoft Advertising (Bing) search campaigns via the Microsoft Advertising API

Instructions

Set Up a Microsoft Advertising Search Campaign

Prerequisites

  • Microsoft Advertising account with API access (developer token required)
  • OAuth 2.0 credentials configured for the Microsoft Advertising API
  • Conversion tracking configured (UET tag installed)

Steps

  1. Authenticate via OAuth 2.0. Obtain an access token using the Microsoft identity platform:

    POST https://login.microsoftonline.com/common/oauth2/v2.0/token
Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded

client_id={app_id}&scope=https://ads.microsoft.com/msads.manage&grant_type=client_credentials&client_secret={secret}

  2. Create a campaign via the Campaign Management API. Use the AddCampaigns operation:

    <AddCampaignsRequest>
  <AccountId>{account_id}</AccountId>
  <Campaigns>
    <Campaign>
      <Name>Q1 Search - High Intent Keywords</Name>
      <BudgetType>DailyBudgetStandard</BudgetType>
      <DailyBudget>25.00</DailyBudget>
      <TimeZone>EasternTimeUSCanada</TimeZone>
      <CampaignType>Search</CampaignType>
      <BiddingScheme xsi:type="MaxConversionsBiddingScheme"/>
    </Campaign>
  </Campaigns>
</AddCampaignsRequest>

    Campaign types: Search (text ads), Shopping, Audience (display), Performance Max.

  3. Set geographic and demographic targeting. Use AddCampaignCriterions:

    <CampaignCriterion xsi:type="BiddableCampaignCriterion">
  <CampaignId>{campaign_id}</CampaignId>
  <Criterion xsi:type="LocationCriterion">
    <LocationId>190</LocationId>  <!-- United States -->
  </Criterion>
</CampaignCriterion>

  4. Create ad groups. Use AddAdGroups to organize by keyword theme:

    <AddAdGroupsRequest>
  <CampaignId>{campaign_id}</CampaignId>
  <AdGroups>
    <AdGroup>
      <Name>CRM Software - Exact Match</Name>
      <CpcBid><Amount>2.50</Amount></CpcBid>
    </AdGroup>
  </AdGroups>
</AddAdGroupsRequest>

  5. Add keywords. Use AddKeywords with match types:

    <AddKeywordsRequest>
  <AdGroupId>{ad_group_id}</AdGroupId>
  <Keywords>
    <Keyword>
      <Text>best crm for startups</Text>
      <MatchType>Exact</MatchType>
      <Bid><Amount>3.00</Amount></Bid>
    </Keyword>
  </Keywords>
</AddKeywordsRequest>

    Match types: Exact, Phrase, Broad. Start with Exact for high-intent terms.

  6. Create Responsive Search Ads. Use AddAds:

    <Ad xsi:type="ResponsiveSearchAd">
  <Headlines>
    <AssetLink><Asset xsi:type="TextAsset"><Text>Best CRM for Startups</Text></Asset></AssetLink>
    <AssetLink><Asset xsi:type="TextAsset"><Text>Close Deals 2x Faster</Text></Asset></AssetLink>
  </Headlines>
  <Descriptions>
    <AssetLink><Asset xsi:type="TextAsset"><Text>Built for founders. Free trial, no credit card.</Text></Asset></AssetLink>
  </Descriptions>
  <FinalUrls><string>https://example.com/demo?utm_source=bing</string></FinalUrls>
</Ad>

  7. Add ad extensions. Use AddAdExtensions for sitelinks, callouts, and structured snippets to improve CTR and quality score.

  8. Import from Google Ads (optional). Microsoft Advertising supports direct Google Ads import via the GoogleImportJob API operation. This copies campaigns, ad groups, keywords, and ads from Google to Microsoft with one API call. Use this to quickly mirror a working Google campaign.

  9. Monitor and optimize. Query performance via the Reporting API (SubmitGenerateReport). Track impressions, clicks, conversions, CPC, and quality score. Microsoft Ads CPCs are typically 30-40% lower than Google for the same keywords.

Error Handling

  • CampaignServiceInvalidBudget: Budget below minimum ($5/day). Increase daily budget.
  • CampaignServiceDuplicateCampaignName: Campaign name already exists. Append a date suffix.
  • KeywordServiceInvalidKeywordText: Keyword contains disallowed characters or exceeds 80 chars. Clean the keyword text.
  • Rate limit: 12 calls per second per account. Implement exponential backoff.

Authentication Notes

Microsoft Advertising API uses OAuth 2.0 via the Microsoft identity platform. Store refresh tokens securely. Tokens expire after 1 hour; use the refresh token flow to obtain new access tokens automatically.