There’s a ton of things to look out for when choosing the right Google Ads Agency to work with. You’ll be working with them for quite a while so choosing one should be considered carefully. You will also be sharing with them valuable company information, so you have to be extra careful.
But what exactly should we look out for?
Here are 10 things that you should look for in a Google Ads agency.
In this article, you’ll find
- 1. Look for the Right Google Ads Agency Certifications
- 2. Ask About Their Understanding of Google Ads Management
- 3. Excellent Previous Performance and Experience With Your Industry
- 4. Understands You as a Business
- 5. Understand Your Key Performance Indicators
- 6. Practice Their Craft Personally
- 7. Communicates Efficiently and Effectively
- 8. Upholds Honesty and Transparency in All Transactions
- 9. Freedom to Terminate the Contract
- 10. Know Their Processes In and Out
- Key Takeaway
- Related Reads
1. Look for the Right Google Ads Agency Certifications
The first thing you look for is the right certification. This certification comes in the form of them being a certified Google Ads Partner.
A Google Ads Partner certification is proof that an agency has been able to deliver successful campaigns. These campaigns demonstrate that the agency is proficient in advanced aspects of Google Ads.
If an agency has this certification, it means that they are acknowledged as an expert in online advertising by Google itself.
It’s one of the first things that you should look for in an agency. Other notable reasons why this certification is important to include:
- The agency has active clients who are achieving growth in revenue. This means that the agency can follow through with its promises.
- Google Partner register ads have a spending requirement that they need to maintain. It’s a 90-day ad spend of 10,000 USD across managed accounts. This means the agency has enough clients to reach that spending requirement.
- Google determined that the agency has the knowledge and skills to manage Google Ads accounts for clients.
If you’re looking for an even more prestigious certification, then look for “Premier Google Partner.” This status is so prestigious, there are only a few agencies that have it.
Premier level status means that the agency has met a higher spending requirement. In addition to this, they must also have at least 2 Certified Google Ads specialists. This ensures Google that the agency has advanced ads knowledge worthy of the status.
Once your prospect agency has presented its certification, it is only right that you verify its authenticity. To do this, you should be able to click on the banner or badge on their website. This will direct you to a profile page that is hosted by Google.
2. Ask About Their Understanding of Google Ads Management
You should also look into their level of knowledge in Google Advertising. The agency should be able to give you a breakdown of the effective methods of structuring a campaign that is tailored to your business. They should also be able to show you how they manage ad groups and choose the right targeting criteria.
Look out for a Google Ads agency that understands that a campaign needs to be regularly assessed and optimized. This is because the market constantly changes due to trends and conversion data. They should also be able to discuss with you and apply the best ways to make a campaign adapt to these changes.
3. Excellent Previous Performance and Experience With Your Industry
Anyone who has worked with digital marketing knows that experience is a cornerstone of being an expert at this craft. This is also something that you should look for in the Google Ads agency that you’ll be working with.
When talking to a potential agency that you’ll be working with, don’t be shy to ask about their previous works.
It would also be a good indicator of expertise if the agency has worked with a client in the same industry as you. This means that they’ve worked with a PPC campaign that is similar to your needs. It’s a great way of showing you that they know what they can do for you, and they can do it well.
4. Understands You as a Business
Your Google Ads agency should be able to come up with a campaign strategy that is tailored to your business, goals, and target audience. If they have an ad campaign that is one size fits all, then that’s a big red flag.
The right agency will go into this business transaction like they’re building a relationship. They’ll take the time to get to know more of your business, your goals, and how your customers engage with you. It’s important that they understand you in and out before they start crafting your PPC campaign.
Once they’ve done their part, don’t be shy to ask about details. Here are a few things that you should ask about the campaign:
- How and why will the campaign work?
- What are the possibilities of the campaign failing and why?
- What are the potential outcomes can you expect from the campaign?
- Why is this campaign the best option for your business?
- What are the differences between this campaign, and your current campaign and why will it work better?
In asking these questions, you will get to test if they know what they’re doing. You will also get to explore the expectations that you have of the agency. Be sure to communicate this as well, so they know what you’re expecting of them.
5. Understand Your Key Performance Indicators
Once the Google Ads agency has determined who you are and your expectations of them, they should also know about your KPIs (Key Performance Indicators).
The goal is to let the agency know what is important for you. If they know these things, they can come up with a tailored campaign that can produce valuable results that will achieve your goals.
If an agency only focuses on getting impressions and clicks, that’s a red flag. These things don’t always bring in revenue. At the end of the day, the agency should focus on boosting your business’ revenue.
6. Practice Their Craft Personally
The only way to remain excellent in your industry is to constantly practice your craft. If the agency you’re looking at practices its craft by having its own Google Ad Campaigns, then you’re in good hands.
Seeing their own ad campaigns gives you a glimpse of the quality they can produce.
You can then ask them about their experience concerning their own Google Ads. Did they generate successful leads? Did they increase their revenue? If they can walk you through the process, this is a good indicator that they know what they’re doing.
7. Communicates Efficiently and Effectively
Running an ad campaign can be a fast-paced industry. There are times that the trends change quickly, and you’ll need to adapt along with it. This is why another indicator of a good Google Ads agency is the ability to communicate efficiently and effectively with their clients.
The agency should be able to be reached on a regular basis especially during emergencies. Be that as it may, it’s still not a very good idea on your end to constantly bother them with endless questions. This can be avoided if both parties will be able to work on communicating efficiently and thoroughly.
Another good green flag to look out for is when an agency asks you if you understand the jargon they’re using when explaining things. Information isn’t helpful if you don’t understand it in the first place.
If an agency finds ways to thoroughly explain things to you by using terms that you understand then you’re in good hands.
8. Upholds Honesty and Transparency in All Transactions
Trust is an essential component for any kind of relationship, be it a professional or a personal one. You get the most out of the relationship when you can both trust each other.
In this case, it would be difficult to work with an agency that makes you always doubt if you can trust them. Establishing trust means being honest and transparent with you, be it with the good or the bad.
An honest agency will make sure to communicate data with you honestly and transparently. They’re going to give you objective insights that are targeted towards giving you good service. Also, they’ll tell you when a campaign has failed, if things go wrong, and mistakes were made.
A good agency will not tell you things you want to hear just so they can close a deal with you. They will not hide mistakes from you just to keep you interested in them.
Finally, if you have questions concerning processes and the breakdown of your expenses, you should get a straight answer. It’s your right to know if you’re getting the most out of your money.
9. Freedom to Terminate the Contract
Setting up and launching a new client account can take a lot of time. Seeing if a PPC campaign works also takes a lot of time. Now it only makes sense that agencies tend to propose getting into a long-term contract with you.
For example, it can run anywhere from 12 months or 24 months. After all, they need the time to show you what they can do, right?
Wrong.
Some agencies take advantage of their clients this way. Since they’ve already signed a contract with them, you have no choice but to stay with them. This is regardless if they do a good job or not.
A good Google Ads agency gives you the freedom to terminate your contract whenever you see fit. This becomes even more important if you notice that the agency is not performing well.
A good agency focuses more on doing a good job to continue a working relationship with you. Agencies that promise you good things just to get you to sign a contract are not people you want to work with.
10. Know Their Processes In and Out
The Google Ads agency you’ll be choosing should have an established process for managing and maintaining accounts. These processes then should be tweaked and adjusted to suit you and your business.
The agency should be able to explain to you in detail the reason for their actions. They’re adding new words? Why? They’re creating new ads? What’s wrong with the old ones? You’re making adjustments and changes? Based on what?
It’s also important that they explain to you the tests they will be running, how they’ll run them, and the KPIs they’ll use. If they know what they’re doing, they should be able to explain it to you.
Key Takeaway
Don’t go signing contracts just because the agency you’re talking to promises good results. Always remember that it’s easy to make promises at the start but hard to follow through in the long run.
Take your time to get to know the agency first before you agree to partner up with them. Use these 10 things to look out for when considering working with a Google Ads Agency.
