How to Choose a Google Ads Agency: 7 Questions to Ask Before You Sign

To choose a Google Ads agency, ask about launch timeline, who you'll communicate with, how they define a lead, how they report results, who owns the ad account, what the contract terms are, and how they handle tracking. In a MarketingProfs survey, 37% of businesses named slow delivery and 33% named poor communication as their biggest agency frustrations, so vet those two first.

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Most business owners pick a marketing agency based on a good sales call and a couple of case studies. Then, three months in, they're frustrated. Not because the agency isn't smart, but because nothing moves fast and nobody answers.

The data backs that up. In a MarketingProfs survey on the biggest challenges of working with an agency:

- 37% said speed of delivery
- 36% said budget overruns
- 33% said ineffective communication
- 32% said misalignment of goals
- 25% said data analytics and ROI reporting

Notice what's missing from the top of that list: "they weren't smart enough." The top complaints are about process. So that's what you should vet.

## What should I ask before hiring a Google Ads agency?

Here are the 7 questions I'd ask if I were on your side of the table.

### 1. "When will my ads be live?"

Get a real date, not "after onboarding." A clear answer sounds like "within X business days of getting access to your accounts and your info." At Built To Optimize, we get ads live in under 2 weeks, as long as we have what we need from you. If an agency can't give you a timeline in writing, expect Q4 to be half over before you get a click.

### 2. "Who do I talk to, and how?"

Ask who you'll actually text or email when something breaks, and whether that person works in your account. Many agencies route you through an account manager who relays messages to the specialist. That's where the 33% "communication" complaint comes from. With us, you text or email the people running your ads directly.

### 3. "How do you define a lead?"

This one question separates good agencies from dashboard decorators. A good answer: "A form fill or a real phone call from someone who could become a customer." A bad answer counts directions clicks, page views, or newsletter signups as leads. We've audited accounts where email signups were quietly counting as leads, which makes reports look great and the business feel nothing.

### 4. "What will your reports show me?"

Ask for a sample report. You want cost per lead (real leads), lead volume by campaign, and what changed since last month and why. If a report is 12 pages of impressions and click-through rates with no lead count, it's built to impress, not inform.

*Want to see how we actually run accounts, week by week? Join my free newsletter at yourfullstackmarketer.com.*

### 5. "If we part ways, what do I keep?"

The right answer: everything. Your Google Ads account, conversion tracking, data and audiences should be in your name. That history is valuable, and your next partner needs it. If an agency builds your ads in an account it owns, you're not hiring a partner, you're renting one. Get ownership in writing before you sign.

### 6. "How do you track calls?"

For most local service businesses, phone calls are the majority of leads. Ask how the agency tracks them, whether they can tell a 10-second hang-up from a 5-minute sales call, and whether calls feed back into bidding. Call tracking tools like CallRail (affiliate link, opens in a new tab) make this possible.

### 7. "What's in the contract?"

Ask about minimum terms, cancellation notice, what the management fee covers, and how ad spend is billed. Budget overruns were the #2 complaint in that survey (36%), so ask how they pace spend and what happens if a campaign overspends.

## What are the red flags when choosing a marketing agency?

- No launch date in writing
- You can't talk to the person doing the work
- "Leads" include clicks, views or signups
- They own your ad account
- Reports without a lead count or cost per lead
- Long lock-in contracts with vague deliverables

## How do I know if my current agency is doing a good job?

Run a quick self-check:

- Can you name your cost per lead from last month?
- Does the lead count in your report roughly match your phone and inbox?
- When you text a question, do you hear back the same day?
- Do you know who owns your Google Ads account?

If you answered "no" or "not sure" to two or more, it's worth a second opinion. You can book a 30-minute consultation or get a full Google Ads account audit.

To see how we work and who you'd be talking to, meet the team at Built To Optimize.

## FAQ

How long should it take an agency to launch Google Ads?
With access and business info in hand, a focused agency can launch in under 2 weeks. Multi-week "discovery" phases before any ads go live are a common source of frustration.

Should I own my Google Ads account or should the agency?
You should. Owning the account means you keep your data, history and tracking if you change agencies.

What should a Google Ads report include?
At minimum: real leads, cost per lead, spend, performance by campaign, and a plain-English summary of what changed and why.

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