The campaign looks good but the ads aren't profitable
I started the year with an uncomfortable email from a client. If you run Google Ads, you might have had something similar.
I’ve been managing ads for a small law firm for about three months. When we started, we set a $250 target cost per lead. At that price, there was plenty of margin because their typical case was worth upwards of $5,000.
We’d hit the target almost from the beginning. In December, the cost per lead was $208. By every metric I had access to, the account was doing well. So when I opened my client's email and saw how unhappy she was, I felt ambushed.
I’d been asking her for feedback for months. Each time, the answer was that things were OK, but she was too busy to give me the detail I’d requested.
Without lead-level feedback, every lead looked the same to me. So I ended up optimising the campaign to get as many leads as possible under our target cost. And what I was doing was working. But, the client felt like the leads weren’t a good fit.
When a client is unhappy with the results, the first instinct is to jump into the ad account and start changing things:
- We check the search terms for intent.
- We add more negatives.
- We tweak ad copy or landing pages.
But without lead-level feedback, that’s not optimising, it’s guessing.
And I didn’t have lead-level feedback. She wasn’t able to tell me specifically which leads were good or bad, only that they hadn’t made as many sales as they’d hoped for.
After I explained why I needed this level of detail she promoted an assistant to “Chief Lead Reporting Officer.” I’ll work with him to backfill as much data as we can and track what happens with future leads. I’ll use this to optimise the ads for better leads, not just more leads.
The underlying cause is a data gap.
The data exists: I have data about ad performance (impressions, clicks, leads etc). The business has data about outcomes. Which enquiries turned into real cases. Which ones didn’t. How much money they made.
But this data is siloed:
- Ad data lives in Google.
- Business data lives in the office.
I’m stuck in the middle, with no practical way to combine this information into something that supports good decisions.
From what I’ve seen, this is close to a universal problem for people running Google Ads.
There are obviously some exceptions. I have clients where we’ve built robust lead tracking systems or where their CRM captures and exposes genuinely useful data. We’re feeding real business outcomes back into Google and optimising based on that feedback. In those accounts, I’m more confident and they make more money.
But these setups are expensive. They’re technically complex. And they’re hard to justify unless you’re spending hundreds of thousands per month on ads.
This puts a lot of us in an uncomfortable situation. We want to do great work. We have the skills to do great work. We care deeply about our clients. But we don’t have the information we need to make better decisions.
With better data, we’d deliver better results.
But how many clients are willing to roll out a new CRM, retrain staff, and change how their business operates just to make Google Ads easier to manage?
So we optimise with incomplete information. And sometimes we get blamed even though the campaign itself is performing well.
The problem is simpler to describe than to solve: something is missing between the ad platform and the business.
A middle layer that:
- Captures every lead.
- Preserves ad platform data about how the lead was generated.
- Records what happened to the lead inside the business.
- Feeds outcome data back to Google so optimisation is based on real business value, not just lead volume.
- Gives ad managers the information we need to make better decisions
I think that can change.
I’ve set aside the next few months to work on a way to close this gap without asking clients to rebuild their entire tech stack just to make Google Ads work properly.
If you manage accounts where you don’t have the data you wish you did, I’d really like to hear from you.
If you’re willing, reply and tell me:
- What data you’re missing.
- What you wish the data could tell you or what questions you wish it could answer.
I’ll share what I learn as I go.
Answer 15 questions to find out why your results are worse, and what to do about it.
This assessment will help you measure and improve three key areas:
- The quality of your leads.
- How many leads you get for your ad spend.
- How many leads turn into sales.
It only takes three minutes, is completely free and will give you immediate recommendations on how to improve.
This assessment was created by Pete Bowen. He has helped business owners get the most from their Google Ads since 2007. During that time he has:
- Generated more than 2,000,000 leads for clients.
- Built three software tools to improve Google Ads results.
- Helped fix and improve the profitability of hundreds of Google Ads accounts.
- Written two books and more than 200 articles.
Research shows that fewer than 5% of Google Ads leads become customers. This is an expensive waste. In many cases, simple changes can help turn more leads into customers. This assessment might identify some of these.
Related articles
Ignore the AI hype. Watch the engineering. Discussions about the future of Google Ads usually start with what’s announced: new features, calling everything Max-this or AI-that. But often this is PR hype. I prefer to look at where Google continues to invest engineering effort over many years. It gives a clue to what the system will depend on in the future.
Banging your head against the right problems Google Ads always has problems, but they’re not all the same: Some problems are cheap, some are expensive.Some affect one click, some affect every click. Some problems are in our control, some are in Google’s control.
My lead count doesn't match my conversion count The lead count from Google in your CRM almost never matches the number of conversions in your ad account. Trying to reconcile the difference is a shortcut to madness. Here's why.
Google Ads conversion tracking for WhatsApp orders If you accept WhatsApp orders on your e-commerce site, you face two problems: knowing where the orders came from, and tracking them as Google Ads conversions.
Google Ads conversion tracking for WhatsApp bookings If you accept WhatsApp bookings on your site, you face two problems: knowing where the bookings came from, and tracking them as Google Ads conversions.
50% more leads… and still fired I delivered 50% more leads for a client—then got fired. Here’s why I won’t take responsibility for results without control of the landing pages.
Can Performance Max campaigns work for lead generation? Can Performance Max campaigns work for lead generation? In this article, I share how I tested PMax for a client whose search campaigns had reached their limits.
61 leads. 3 sales. What went wrong? One morning, just after sunrise, I was out in the water when I saw a pair of sharks between me and the beach. This morning wasn’t quite so dramatic. I had time to think between waves. I was replaying a conversation I’d had with a grumpy client.
How to Track Which Google Ads Bring Paying SAAS Users If you're running Google Ads for your SaaS, it's not enough to track free trial signups — you need to know which ads are actually bringing in paying users.
How Many WhatsApp Clicks Turn Into Leads? You can track clicks on the WhatsApp button as conversions in Google Ads but you can't track leads. This results in overcounting how many clicks turn into leads. Inflated conversion numbers lead to overvaluing advertising and other problems. Here is some data...
How Adding Pricing to Google Ads Headlines Increased B2B Lead Qualification by 27% B2B advertisers often waste money on B2C leads. The thinking was that adding the price to the ad would deter individuals without scaring off B2B buyers.
Tracking Google Ads Without the Google Tag or Tag Manager Occasionally, I need to track Google Ads conversions without using the Google Tag or Google Tag Manager. Here’s a simple, non-technical explanation of how I do it.
Does broad match work for lead generation? A better question is When does broad match work for lead generation campaigns?
How I helped a client reduce their risk while scaling up a Google Ads campaign. Scaling up a successful Google Ads campaign by targeting new locations can risk your lead flow. Here's how I helped a client reduce this risk.
Tracking WhatsApp leads as conversions in Google Ads. There’s currently no built-in way to track WhatsApp leads as conversions in Google Ads. I've fixed this.
"Help. I'm Getting Calls For Competitors From My Google Ads." You're paying Google because you want lots of high-quality leads, not because you want a bunch of wrong-number calls.
Can you improve B2B lead quality by blocking free email addresses? Some say blocking free email addresses from B2B enquiry forms improves lead quality. Here's why I disagree.
Some ideas for improving B2B Google Ads. B2B Google Ads usually faces one of 2 problems: very little traffic, or lots of traffic - but most of it B2C. Here are some ideas to improve B2B Google Ads campaigns.
How I stop Spanish job-seeker leads from Google Ads Most Spanish job-seeker spam comes from click fraud. Here's how I stop it.
Data from launching a brand new campaign using Target CPA bidding. Normally you wouldn't launch a new campaign using a conversion-based bid strategy. I did, here's what happened.
A new Google Ads campaign needs deep data, not wide data. 100 clicks on 100 adverts tells you nothing. 100 clicks on 1 advert and a picture starts to emerge.
How I track WhatsApp conversations as conversions in Google Ads At the time of writing Google has no way of tracking WhatsApp leads as conversions. I've used a couple of work arounds to solve this.
Most Google Ads advice is wrong for small businesses A small account needs a different setup and different management. You see, something that improves a $50 000 a month account might tank a $500 a month account.
Modernising a Legacy Google Ads Account Without Breaking It A successful restructure leaves the account easier to understand, easier to optimise and better positioned for the future. Understanding why the account looks like it does is key to getting from sticky mess to well-oiled machine.
How I reduce wrong-business leads from Google Ads This is for you if you advertise on Google Ads and get leads who think they're contacting a different business. They call or fill in a form looking for someone else.
How I improve lead quality by telling Google which leads are good. By default Google Ads believes every lead is good. But that's not true. You can give Google feedback on lead quality and use that feedback to get better leads.
How's your Chinese? Google shows English adverts to people who searched in Chinese even though the campaign language is set to English. Here's how you can stop this and why you might want to.
Is it safe to use broad match keywords for lead generation campaigns? Google is pushing broad match hard and, some people are reporting good results. But, is it actually best practice now? Or are broad match keywords a waste of money?
Should I split a massive multi-country Google Ads account into separate accounts? At first glance it seems like splitting a big account into smaller accounts will make it easier to manage. But, there are downsides and, there are ways to make big accounts easier to manage.
Why did Google charge me $300 for a $20 click? Every now and again Google would charge an outrageous amount for one click. As much as 15 to 20 times what they normally paid. Here's how to prevent that.
Why I don't just delete fake leads from my inbox If the only thing you do with fake leads from Google Ads is delete the lead delivery email you risk getting swamped by fake leads. Here's why and what to do to improve lead quality.
Getting a lot of junk leads from Google Ads? You can spot conversion fraud because the leads have genuine email addresses and phone numbers but when you call them they don't remember filling in your form.
A love letter to statistics This is for you if you’re interested in making data-driven decisions about your Google Ads. Amy Hebdon, founder at Paid Search Magic, wrote a fantastic article she described a love letter disguised as a how to about PPC data interpretation.
Allocating budget How do you know the best way to split your ad budget between search and display, between Facebook and Google, between one keyword and another?
Does Google rip advertisers off? I'm not saying that everyone who's paid for Google ads has turned a profit. That's definitely not the case. But, when people lose money on Google ads its likely to be because Google Ads was a poor fit for their business, or because of the way they did Google Ads. I can't see Google risking their future to steal your advertising budget
Don’t believe every recommendation from Google. The optimisation score is Google’s newest way of telling you how to run your Google Ads account. Read on to see how following it blindly can hurt your business.
Don't believe my writing I'm not trying to bamboozle you, it's just that my - and everyone else's - writing isn't always right for your circumstances. Read on to find out more...
Google showed your ads to the wrong people today. Google showed your some of your adverts to the wrong people today. You (or someone you hire) must deal with this or your ads are going to start costing more and generating fewer leads. Here's how.
Has Google jumped the gun on mobile? How much commercial activity happens on mobile phones? Is it enough to justify a mobile-first approach to development? Case study with mobile vs desktop AdWords generated leads across 7 industries.
How do you get more leads from Google Ads when you’ve maxed out impression share? How do you get more leads from Google Ads when you’ve maxed out impression share? Here's how we solved this problem...
How to get fast traction on a brand new Google Ads campaign. I worked out a process for getting fast results from new AdWords campaigns so I didn't have to worry as much. You're welcome to copy (and improve) my process.
I’m getting too many B2C leads. I want only B2B. I’ve bumped into this problem with almost every client who sells to other businesses (B2B) not to consumers (B2C). Here are some options ..
I'm scared I'll break my campaign If you don't feel confident making changes to Google Ads campaigns this might help...
Improve conversion rates by adding extra calls to action. Need to improve your conversion rate? Here's a tested approach that takes only a few minutes.
Putting a little science into AdWords In the past I relied on a combination of the change history in AdWords, some rough notes and my memory to keep track of my testing. It worked but it wasn't great. It became more difficult as my business grew. I started to feel like I was losing control. I couldn't answer questions about an account without having to root around in Google docs, AdWords and email. Read on to see how I fixed this.
Should you advertise on Search Partners? We check the campaigns we manage regularly to see how much it costs to generate an enquiry on Google search versus search partners. Most of the time it costs more or less the same. Sometimes the difference is huge.
Should you show ads to people on their phones? It is a fact that more people use the internet on their phones than they do on computers these days. But are these glued-to-their-phone types going to buy from you?
The hidden trade-offs of automated bidding I like automated bidding. But, there are some trade offs with automated bidding that are not well documented.
Using the Search Terms Report to find negative keywords. The Search Terms Report is a great place to find negative keywords to add to your AdWords campaign. It shows (some of) the actual words and phrases that triggered your ads.
You don't have enough data to be confident that you're making the right decisions. Here are 3 rules of thumb I use to to help me make more of the right decisions when data is scarce.