**Automations** is where TrackIQ stops reporting and starts acting. Everything on this screen either defines a change, groups the campaigns it applies to, or records a change that has already happened.

Three controls do all of it: two tabs, and the **Change log** button.

[Watch the walkthrough](https://kb.trackiq.com/kb-assets/kbvideo-automations-screen-explainer-39e50863.mp4)

*Prefer to watch? Sixty-three seconds on the two tabs, the change log, and naming rules properly.*

## **The Rules tab**

![The Rules tab, one row per rule](/kb-assets/shot-auto-probe-d187cc.png)

One row per rule, with the columns that answer the questions you actually have:

| Column | Tells you |
|---|---|
| **Name** | what it does, if you name it well — see below |
| **Groups** | which rule group it applies to |
| **Rule type** | Targeting or Campaign, and what it acts on |
| **Status** | **ACTIVE** or not |
| **Created** | when you set it up |
| **Last run** | when it last executed |
| **Next run** | when it will execute again |

**Last run and Next run are the two worth glancing at.** A rule with an old Last run, or a Next run that never arrives, is a rule that is not doing anything — and a silent rule looks exactly like a working one from every other column.

## **Naming rules so the list stays readable**

The convention in a well-run account puts the settings in the name:

> *Northwind Goods — MGO 925 — 14D LB — 1D Adjust*

Brand, the product or group it covers, the **look-back window** (14 days of data), and the **adjustment frequency** (acts once a day). Those two settings are what make two otherwise identical rules behave differently, and they are not columns — so putting them in the name is the difference between a list you can read and eleven rows called “Bid rule”.

Do this from the first rule. Renaming later is a chore nobody does.

## **The Rule Groups tab**

![Rule groups, with a campaign count each](/kb-assets/shot-auto-rule-groups-view-651d68.png)

A **rule group** is a named set of campaigns. Each row shows a name, an optional description, and a **campaign count**.

Groups exist so a rule targets *a set* rather than one campaign. One rule pointed at a group of 31 campaigns is one thing to maintain; 31 rules is not.

**Use the description field.** It is empty by default and it is the only place to record *why* a group exists — which matters when somebody inherits the account.

**+ New Group** creates one.

## **Change log**

The button at the top right opens a record of **every change automation has made on this account, newest first**.

This is the feature that makes the rest safe to use, because it turns automation from something that happens to your account into something you can audit. See [**The Change Log: Auditing What a Rule Changed**](https://kb.trackiq.com/hc/knowledge-base/articles/the-change-log).

## **Create Rule**

![The rule type chooser](/kb-assets/shot-auto-create-rule-view-651d68.png)

**+ Create Rule** opens the type chooser. Two types are live today:

- **Targeting Rule** — adjusts bids or pauses keywords and product targets.
- **Campaign Rule** — adjusts budgets or pauses whole campaigns.

Others are listed and marked as not yet available: **Placement**, **Adgroup**, **Audience**, and a **Harvest** family — Harvest Keywords, Harvest Product Targetings and Negative Targeting. They are visible so you can see where this is going, not because you can use them.

Each live type offers a set of **Quick Start recipes** — pre-built rules you expand, review and apply — or a blank rule if you would rather build the conditions yourself.

## **What to do first**

1. **Read the Change log** before creating anything, if rules already exist. Knowing what is currently happening to your account beats guessing.
2. **Create a rule group** for the campaigns you want to govern together.
3. **Start from a recipe** rather than a blank rule. See **Targeting Rules** and **Campaign Rules**.
4. **Check Last run tomorrow**, then check the Change log the day after. Two small checks that turn a rule you hope is working into one you know is.

Before you automate anything, it is worth ten minutes on [**Guardrails to Set Before You Automate Anything**](https://kb.trackiq.com/hc/knowledge-base/articles/guardrails-before-you-automate) — the mistakes are all avoidable and all annoying.

## **Related**

- [**Dry-Run Preview: Seeing What a Rule Would Change**](https://kb.trackiq.com/hc/knowledge-base/articles/dry-run-preview) — the row-menu action worth knowing.
- [**Scheduling: Last Run, Next Run and Run History**](https://kb.trackiq.com/hc/knowledge-base/articles/rule-scheduling-and-run-history) — last run, next run, history.