What is a manual campaign on OTTO?
Last updated: 31 October 2026 · The MargenOptimierer app is in German. Button and menu names are shown exactly as you see them, with the English meaning in brackets.
In a manual campaign, you decide yourself which keywords your items can appear for as ads.
You set a bid for each keyword. Its match type decides how closely a customer's search has to fit the keyword. If you create the campaign for a product group in Kampagnen-Setup (campaign setup), its keywords come from the group's keyword list.
Example: Manual campaign with 25 keywords
Say “Manual – Garden furniture” has the 25 keywords from the keyword list for garden furniture, including „gartenstuhl holz“ and „gartentisch eiche“. Its ads can appear for searches that match these 25 keywords.
You set a separate bid for each keyword, such as 0.40 € for „gartenstuhl holz“ and 0.50 € for „gartentisch eiche“.
What else counts for a manual campaign
Empty keyword list
If the product group's keyword list has no keywords, Kampagnen-Setup doesn't create a manual campaign.
No excluding
OTTO doesn't accept negative keywords in a manual campaign. You can only exclude search terms in automatic campaigns.
Manual stays manual
You decide whether a campaign is manual or automatic when you create it. OTTO doesn't let you change that afterwards.
Next
- How do I create campaigns for a product group?
Where this term appears
- How do I create a product group?
- How do I create campaigns for a product group?
- Which items aren't in any campaign yet?
- How do I set up a campaign template?
- How do I add search terms as keywords or exclude them?
- How do Sponsored Product Ads work on OTTO?
- Should I sell on OTTO or Amazon?
- Which metrics matter for OTTO advertising?
- What is a good ACoS on OTTO, and how do I calculate it?
- Should I use automatic or keyword campaigns on OTTO?
- When should I lower or raise bids on OTTO?
- How do I analyse search terms in OTTO's Keyword Report?
- What software is available for OTTO sellers?
- How does the OTTO search algorithm work?
- OTTO SEO: How do I optimize listings for OTTO search?