If you run Google Ads with someone else's money (agency, freelancer, in-house, etc.) then your communication skills are crucial for your success.
Let me tell you about a recent Google Ads coaching call with a client we'll call Eliza. Eliza works in-house, and last year, Google Ads was performing well, and Eliza felt confident. But when the new year started, performance dipped.
We had a call, and I gave her some ideas that helped her stabilize things for a while. Then, just when she thought she had it figured out, a few weeks later, performance dropped again.
Eliza booked another call and told me that the CPA had skyrocketed. Digging deeper, we found that conversion volume had also dropped. She wanted to know what was going on.
We dug in and quickly found the source of the problem: conversion rate had dropped by 60%! This meant something was really wrong. The most likely causes were:
- broken conversion tracking
- a problem with the landing page
- lengthening conversion lag
After exploring each possibility and providing her with a to-do list of specific follow-ups, I took the call in an unexpected direction.
You see, Eliza is the only person managing Google Ads at her company. Everyone relies on her to bring in leads. So, when performance wiggles, everyone points fingers at her. Talk about stressful!
I told her that the Google Ads themselves weren't likely the problem. In fact, her constant changes were probably making things worse. Slashing the budget, changing ads, adjusting keywords... what she really needed was to communicate how Google Ads works, so that everyone around her stopped pressuring her to JUST DO SOMETHING.
I advised her to take the time educate her manager and colleagues. They need to understand the nuances of Google Ads. For example, Eliza was asked to provide monthly reporting on the 1st of the month. But this didn't make sense, because we found that due to conversion lag, a third of the conversions wouldn't be in the data yet if she needed to provide an update on May performance by June 1st.
Also, if conversions drop for a day or two, that doesn't mean there's a problem - ads naturally ebb and flow, and jumping in with constant bid/budget changes will create a problem, not fix one.
I could see the relief on Eliza's face. She knew she had work to do, both in Google Ads and in managing expectations. But we created a step-by-step roadmap to tackle both challenges.
I'm sharing this story because I meet so many marketers like Eliza who start to doubt themselves and their own capabilities due to pressure from people who don't understand Google Ads. You don't need to make your colleagues Google Ads experts, but you do need to educate them. They need to understand that data, patience, and gradual shifts are key to success, not being overly reactive, which often backfires, as Eliza learned.
Want to talk some sense into your colleagues? Need a little reassurance about your campaigns? Book a call with me and we'll figure it out together.
One more thing...
If you live near Manchester, England or Boston, USA then I've got exciting events for you.
Mancunians should check out the upcoming Performance MCR conference on June 25, 2025. With fabulous speakers, practical advice and a very accessible £90 price point, I highly recommend you check it out.
Bostonians should meet me at SMX Advanced at the Westin Seaport June 12-13, 2025. I'll be speaking about audience targeting alongside dozens of the top names in SEO and PPC. Plus, get 15% off the ticket price with code SMXSpeakerFriend.
