Help Center/Optimization & Strategy/Advanced Scavenger Campaigns
Advanced Strategy

🧠 Advanced Strategy: Using Scavenger Campaigns to Capture Missed Sales

10 min read
Last updated: October 2024

Master the Art of Missed Opportunity Recovery! 🎯

Scavenger campaigns are one of the most effective advanced ad strategies in WallyPilot. They're designed to capture missed opportunities — the high-intent clicks and conversions your main campaigns didn't catch — by targeting untapped or underperforming search terms that still show buyer intent.

This article walks you through how scavenger campaigns work, how to build them, and how to use WallyPilot's automation to make them self-optimizing.

What Is a Scavenger Campaign?

The Definition

A scavenger campaign is a secondary catch-all campaign that targets leftover traffic — keywords or placements your main campaigns aren't actively bidding on, but that still have the potential to convert.

Think of it as a data-driven cleanup crew:

Your main campaigns target proven, high-performing keywords.

Your scavenger campaign monitors what slips through — like new queries, low-volume keywords, and missed impressions.

Once a keyword in the scavenger campaign performs well, WallyPilot automatically moves it into your main performance campaign for optimization.

Why Scavenger Campaigns Work

1. Reduce Wasted Spend

Instead of spending aggressively across all search terms, you can test new ones in a lower-risk scavenger campaign and promote only the winners.

2. Uncover New Opportunities

Walmart's algorithm is dynamic — new keywords trend every day. Scavenger campaigns help you continuously find those emerging high-intent searches.

3. Feed Main Campaigns

By promoting successful keywords to your main structure, you ensure your ad portfolio stays lean, relevant, and efficient.

How to Build a Scavenger Campaign in WallyPilot

Step 1: Start with Broad or Auto Targeting

Create a new campaign in WallyPilot using auto targeting or broad match keyword settings. This allows Walmart's system to explore a wide range of search terms and shopper intent patterns.

Budget Strategy

Set a lower daily budget than your main campaigns — scavenger campaigns are meant to collect data, not dominate spend.

Step 2: Use WallyPilot's Keyword Filter Rules

Inside WallyPilot, set up keyword promotion rules such as:

Move any keyword with 5+ conversions and ACoS < 30% into your main campaign.

Pause any keyword that has over 300 impressions and 0 conversions after a 7-day window.

💡 Pro Tip: These automation rules keep your scavenger campaign lean and self-regulating without manual intervention.

Step 3: Track Performance Using WallyPilot Analytics

Monitor your scavenger campaign inside WallyPilot's dashboard. Look for:

New Search Terms

Low-cost conversions

Emerging Trends

CTR or conversion rate

Seasonal Keywords

Future campaign insights

Use this data to keep your keyword list fresh and prevent stagnation in your main campaigns.

Step 4: Promote Winners to Main Campaigns

Once you flag a high-performing keyword, promote it into your primary campaign set. This ensures your best keywords get stronger budgets and more precise bidding strategies.

Graduation Process

Successful keywords move from testing ground to performance powerhouse

Step 5: Optimize and Rinse

Your scavenger campaign should never stay static. Every few weeks:

Reset or remove stale keywords

Review newly promoted keywords in your main campaign

Adjust ACoS and CTR thresholds as your data volume grows

The Continuous Loop

This ongoing loop keeps your account competitive and ensures continuous growth in both paid and organic visibility.

🚀 Advanced Optimization Tips

Automation Rules

  • • Set different promotion thresholds by product category
  • • Use seasonal ACoS adjustments for holiday periods
  • • Implement negative keyword auto-addition rules
  • • Create alerts for unusual performance spikes

Performance Monitoring

  • • Weekly scavenger campaign health checks
  • • Monthly keyword promotion rate analysis
  • • Quarterly budget allocation reviews
  • • Track overall account efficiency improvements

📊 Expected Results

When implemented correctly, scavenger campaigns typically deliver:

15-25%

Increase in total account conversions

20-30%

Reduction in wasted ad spend

10-15%

Improvement in overall ACoS

Related Advanced Strategies

Optimization

Organic Ranking Optimization

Use ad data to improve organic search rankings

Read guide →
Research

Profitable Keywords Research

Advanced keyword discovery strategies

Read guide →