What Does Google Ads Management Include?
Google Ads management can involve much more than simply creating advertisements and choosing a daily budget.
Depending on the business, campaign type and provider, management may include strategy, keyword research, campaign setup, conversion tracking, bid management, search-term reviews, negative keywords, ad testing, budget allocation, reporting and ongoing optimisation.
The exact service can vary significantly between providers.
Understanding what Google Ads management may include can help you compare proposals and determine whether the service being offered matches your advertising requirements.
If you are comparing different types of providers, our guide to Google Ads Agency vs Freelancer: What Should You Compare? explains some of the differences to consider.
What Is Google Ads Management?
Google Ads management is the ongoing process of planning, creating, monitoring and improving paid advertising campaigns within Google Ads.
Depending on the account, this may involve:
- Campaign strategy
- Account setup
- Keyword research
- Search-term analysis
- Negative keywords
- Ad creation
- Audience targeting
- Location targeting
- Budget management
- Bid management
- Conversion tracking
- Landing-page reviews
- Campaign testing
- Performance analysis
- Reporting
- Ongoing optimisation
Some businesses may require only one campaign type.
Others may operate multiple campaigns across several products, services, locations or audiences.
The amount of management required therefore depends on the complexity and objectives of the account.
Initial Google Ads Account Review
If a business already has an existing Google Ads account, management may begin with an account review.
The provider may examine areas such as:
- Existing campaigns
- Campaign settings
- Advertising spend
- Keywords
- Search terms
- Negative keywords
- Ad groups
- Advertisements
- Conversion tracking
- Locations
- Devices
- Audiences
- Bidding
- Budgets
- Landing pages
- Historical performance
The purpose is to understand what has already been done and identify potential opportunities or issues before making significant changes.
An existing campaign does not always need to be rebuilt completely.
Sometimes improving the current account structure may be more appropriate.
Google Ads Strategy
A Google Ads provider may help develop the overall advertising strategy before campaigns are created.
This can involve understanding:
- Business objectives
- Products or services
- Target customers
- Geographic markets
- Advertising budget
- Conversion objectives
- Existing marketing activity
- Competitors
- Website or landing pages
- Previous advertising results
The provider can then determine which campaigns and targeting methods may be appropriate.
A local service business may require a very different strategy from an ecommerce store or national company.
Campaign Type Selection
Google Ads includes several campaign types.
Depending on the business, management may involve:
- Search campaigns
- Display campaigns
- Shopping campaigns
- Performance Max
- Video campaigns
- Demand Gen
- Remarketing
- App campaigns
Not every business needs every campaign type.
The provider should ideally explain why a particular campaign is being recommended and how it relates to the business objective.
Keyword Research
Keyword research is commonly associated with Google Search campaigns.
It involves identifying searches that potential customers may use when looking for relevant products or services.
Research may consider:
- Core service keywords
- Product keywords
- Commercial-intent searches
- Location-related keywords
- Long-tail searches
- Search volume
- Competition
- Estimated costs
- Search intent
- Existing campaign data
The objective is not simply to target the largest number of keywords.
Keywords should be relevant to what the business actually offers and to the customers it wants to attract.
Keyword Match Types
Google Ads keywords can use different matching approaches that affect which searches may trigger advertisements.
Management may therefore involve reviewing how keywords are matched to user searches.
The provider may consider:
- Exact match
- Phrase match
- Broad match
Each option can produce different levels of reach and control.
The appropriate approach can depend on available conversion data, campaign maturity, budget, search volume and advertising objectives.
Search-Term Monitoring
Keywords are not necessarily the same as the exact searches entered by users.
Search-term reports can show the queries that triggered advertisements.
Reviewing these searches can help identify:
- Relevant customer searches
- New keyword opportunities
- Irrelevant searches
- Unexpected traffic
- High-cost searches
- Searches producing conversions
- Searches wasting budget
This information can then be used to improve targeting.
Negative Keyword Management
Negative keywords can prevent advertisements from appearing for certain irrelevant searches.
For example, a business offering premium professional services may want to exclude searches relating to:
- Free services
- Jobs
- Training
- Courses
- DIY solutions
- Unrelated products
- Irrelevant locations
The appropriate negative keywords depend on the business.
Negative keyword management can therefore form part of ongoing campaign optimisation rather than being treated as a one-time task.
Campaign Structure
Google Ads accounts can be organised into campaigns and ad groups.
A provider may structure campaigns around factors such as:
- Products
- Services
- Locations
- Customer types
- Search intent
- Budgets
- Campaign objectives
Good organisation can make the account easier to understand and manage.
It can also help keep advertisements and landing pages relevant to the searches being targeted.
Google Ads Copywriting
Google Ads management may include writing and maintaining advertisements.
This can involve:
- Headlines
- Descriptions
- Calls to action
- Offers
- Service benefits
- Location information
- Relevant keywords
- Promotional messaging
Advertisement copy should accurately represent the business.
Avoid exaggerated or misleading claims.
Providers may also test different messaging over time to understand which approaches produce stronger engagement or conversion performance.
Google Ads Assets
Advertisements can include additional information through Google Ads assets.
Depending on the campaign, these may include:
- Sitelinks
- Callouts
- Structured snippets
- Call assets
- Location assets
- Image assets
- Price assets
- Promotion assets
Not every asset will be relevant to every business.
The provider may select and manage those that make sense for the campaign.
Location Targeting
Businesses may only want advertisements shown within particular geographic markets.
Google Ads management may therefore include location targeting based on:
- Countries
- States
- Cities
- Regions
- Radius targeting
- Service areas
Location performance can also be reviewed over time.
For example, one region may generate considerably more valuable enquiries than another.
Budget and targeting may then be adjusted accordingly.
Audience Targeting
Some Google Ads campaigns allow providers to use audience information alongside other targeting.
Depending on the campaign, this may include:
- Remarketing audiences
- Customer lists
- Website visitors
- Interest-based audiences
- Custom segments
- Demographic information
Audience targeting should be selected according to the advertising objective and campaign type.
Device Management
Campaign performance can differ across:
- Mobile phones
- Desktop computers
- Tablets
A provider may review how users behave on different devices.
This can help identify issues such as poor mobile landing-page performance or significant differences in conversion behaviour.
Device data should generally be interpreted alongside other campaign information rather than in isolation.
Advertising Budget Management
Budget management is an important part of Google Ads.
The provider may help determine how available advertising spend is distributed across:
- Campaigns
- Services
- Products
- Locations
- Audiences
- Campaign types
Budgets may also change as performance data develops.
For example, additional budget might be directed towards campaigns producing stronger business results while inefficient areas are reviewed or reduced.
Bid Management
Google Ads uses auctions to determine whether advertisements appear and what may be paid for a click or other advertising interaction.
Campaigns can use different bidding approaches.
Depending on campaign type and available data, management may involve strategies focused on:
- Clicks
- Conversions
- Conversion value
- Return on advertising spend
- Cost per acquisition
- Impression share
The appropriate bidding approach depends on the campaign objective and available data.
Automated bidding does not remove the need for campaign monitoring and strategy.
Conversion Tracking
Conversion tracking helps determine whether advertising activity is producing meaningful actions.
Conversions may include:
- Contact forms
- Quote requests
- Phone calls
- Purchases
- Bookings
- Sign-ups
- Downloads
- Appointments
- Other valuable actions
Google Ads management may include checking that conversions are correctly recorded.
Depending on the website and tracking setup, this may involve tools such as:
- Google Ads conversion tracking
- Google Analytics
- Google Tag Manager
Without useful conversion data, it can be difficult to determine whether clicks are contributing to business objectives.
Landing-Page Review
A Google Ads campaign does not end when somebody clicks the advertisement.
The landing page can significantly affect what happens next.
A provider may review:
- Page relevance
- Mobile usability
- Page speed
- Calls to action
- Contact information
- Forms
- Service information
- Trust signals
- Navigation
- Conversion tracking
Some providers include landing-page recommendations within management.
Others may charge separately for website or landing-page work.
Check the scope carefully.
Campaign Optimisation
Google Ads campaigns generally require ongoing monitoring and adjustment.
Optimisation may involve:
- Reviewing search terms
- Adding negative keywords
- Adjusting keywords
- Testing advertisements
- Reviewing bidding
- Reallocating budgets
- Reviewing locations
- Reviewing devices
- Checking conversion performance
- Pausing inefficient activity
- Expanding successful campaigns
- Reviewing audiences
- Improving account structure
Optimisation should ideally be based on meaningful campaign data rather than changes being made simply for the sake of activity.
Ad Testing
Testing can help providers understand which advertisements or approaches perform more effectively.
This might involve changes to:
- Headlines
- Descriptions
- Calls to action
- Offers
- Messaging
- Assets
- Landing pages
Tests require enough data to produce useful information.
Making too many changes too quickly can make results more difficult to interpret.
Competitor Research
Some Google Ads services may include competitor research.
This could involve reviewing:
- Competitor advertising
- Search-result positioning
- Messaging
- Offers
- Landing pages
- Market competition
Competitor information can provide useful context.
However, the objective should not simply be to copy competitors.
Campaign strategy should remain connected to the business’s own products, services, customers and objectives.
Google Ads Reporting
Ongoing management commonly includes some form of reporting.
Reports may cover:
- Advertising spend
- Impressions
- Clicks
- Click-through rate
- Average cost per click
- Conversions
- Conversion rate
- Cost per conversion
- Conversion value
- Search terms
- Keyword performance
- Campaign performance
- Location performance
- Device performance
- Changes completed
- Planned work
Reporting should help the business understand what happened during the reporting period.
It can also explain what the provider is doing in response to the data.
Google Ads Meetings and Communication
Some management packages include regular meetings or strategy calls.
Others communicate primarily through email or reports.
Before choosing a provider, clarify:
- Who manages the account?
- Who is your main contact?
- How often will you receive updates?
- Are meetings included?
- How quickly are enquiries normally answered?
- How are major campaign changes discussed?
Communication arrangements can be particularly important for businesses running larger or rapidly changing campaigns.
Account Access and Ownership
Businesses should understand how access to their Google Ads account will work.
Clarify:
- Who owns the account?
- Does the business retain administrator access?
- Who owns the historical advertising data?
- What happens when management ends?
- Can another provider access the account later?
This can help prevent unnecessary problems if the business eventually changes providers.
How Often Should Google Ads Be Managed?
There is no universal schedule that applies to every account.
The amount of management required depends on factors such as:
- Advertising spend
- Campaign type
- Search volume
- Number of campaigns
- Number of products or services
- Data volume
- Competition
- Business objectives
- Campaign maturity
- Frequency of changes
A campaign with significant activity may require more frequent attention than a small campaign generating limited data.
More changes do not automatically mean better management.
The quality and purpose of those changes matter.
What Is Usually Not Included in Google Ads Management?
Services vary considerably between providers.
Google Ads management may not automatically include:
- Website development
- Landing-page development
- Graphic design
- Photography
- Video production
- Full analytics implementation
- Call-tracking software
- CRM setup
- Marketing automation
- SEO
- Social media advertising
- Content creation
Some providers offer these services separately.
Others may include certain items within broader packages.
Always check what is specifically included and excluded.
Google Ads Management Fee vs Advertising Spend
The provider’s management fee is normally separate from the money spent on advertising.
Management costs may include:
- Account setup
- Strategy
- Campaign management
- Optimisation
- Reporting
- Communication
Advertising spend is the money allocated to the Google Ads campaigns themselves.
Other costs may also apply, such as:
- Landing-page development
- Tracking implementation
- Call-tracking software
- Creative production
- Additional marketing tools
Ask providers to explain these costs clearly before comparing quotes.
For more information, see What Affects the Cost of Google Ads in Australia?.
What Affects Google Ads Cost Per Click?
The amount paid for a click is not permanently fixed.
Cost per click can vary depending on:
- Keyword
- Competition
- Location
- Search
- Industry
- Device
- Campaign settings
- Ad relevance
- Landing-page experience
- Auction conditions
This means two clicks on the same keyword can potentially cost different amounts.
For a deeper explanation, see Google Ads Cost Per Click: What Affects CPC?.
What Should Be Clearly Defined in Google Ads Management?
Before agreeing to a service, make sure the scope is clear.
Look for information explaining:
- Campaign types included
- Account setup
- Keyword research
- Ad creation
- Negative keyword management
- Conversion tracking
- Landing-page reviews
- Optimisation
- Reporting
- Meeting frequency
- Management fee
- Advertising budget
- Setup fee
- Additional costs
- Contract term
- Cancellation terms
- Account ownership
- Who will manage the account
Two providers with similar monthly fees may provide substantially different levels of service.
Comparing scope can therefore be more useful than comparing price alone.
How Do You Compare Google Ads Management Providers?
When comparing providers, consider questions such as:
- What services are included?
- Who will manage the account?
- Which campaign types do you specialise in?
- How is strategy determined?
- Is keyword research included?
- How are search terms reviewed?
- Are negative keywords managed?
- Is conversion tracking included?
- Are landing pages reviewed?
- How often are campaigns optimised?
- What reporting is provided?
- How often will we communicate?
- What is the management fee?
- Is Google Ads spend separate?
- Are there setup costs?
- Are there additional fees?
- Is there a minimum contract?
- Who owns the Google Ads account?
- What access will my business retain?
- How will performance be measured?
Clear answers can make it easier to compare Google Ads proposals on a like-for-like basis.
Be Careful With Google Ads Guarantees
Google Ads providers cannot control every factor affecting campaign results.
Performance can depend on:
- Competition
- Advertising budget
- Keyword costs
- Customer demand
- Search volume
- Website quality
- Landing pages
- Pricing
- Business reputation
- Offer strength
- Conversion process
- External market conditions
Be cautious about guarantees of specific numbers of leads, sales or returns without appropriate context.
A more useful discussion usually focuses on the proposed campaign strategy, tracking, optimisation process and how performance will be measured.
How To Choose Google Ads Management for Your Business
Start with the outcome your business is trying to achieve.
Consider:
- What do you want Google Ads to generate?
- Which products or services are most important?
- Which locations are you targeting?
- Who are your ideal customers?
- What advertising budget can you maintain?
- Which campaign types may be suitable?
- Is conversion tracking already configured?
- Do your landing pages need improvement?
- How much reporting and communication do you require?
- Do you need other digital marketing services as well?
Then compare providers according to how well their proposed service addresses those requirements.
Compare Google Ads Management Services Before Choosing a Provider
Google Ads management can include strategy, campaign setup, keyword research, advertising, tracking, budgeting, optimisation and reporting.
However, the exact service varies considerably between providers.
Compare what work will actually be completed, who will manage the account, how performance will be measured, how frequently campaigns will be reviewed and what costs are included.
Compare Digital Services helps Australian businesses explore professional digital service providers and request quotes based on their project requirements.
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Frequently Asked Questions About Google Ads Management
What Does Google Ads Management Usually Include?
Google Ads management may include account setup, campaign strategy, keyword research, advertisements, targeting, negative keywords, bid and budget management, conversion tracking, optimisation and reporting. The exact scope varies between providers.
Does Google Ads Management Include Advertising Spend?
Usually the management fee and advertising budget are separate, although arrangements vary. Ask the provider to clearly explain what is included in their fee.
Does Google Ads Management Include Keyword Research?
Keyword research is commonly included for search campaigns, but you should confirm the scope with the provider.
Does Google Ads Management Include Conversion Tracking?
Some providers include tracking setup or review while others charge separately. Confirm which conversions will be measured and who is responsible for implementation.
Does Google Ads Management Include Landing Pages?
Not always. Some providers review or optimise landing pages, while others manage only the Google Ads account. Website or landing-page development may be an additional service.
How Often Should Google Ads Campaigns Be Optimised?
There is no single schedule appropriate for every campaign. The frequency depends on spend, traffic, data volume, campaign complexity and business objectives.
What Is the Difference Between Google Ads Management Fees and Ad Spend?
The management fee pays the provider for managing the account. Advertising spend is the budget used by the Google Ads campaigns themselves.
How Do I Compare Google Ads Management Services?
Compare campaign scope, keyword research, tracking, optimisation, reporting, communication, fees, contract terms, account ownership and the experience of the person who will actually manage your campaigns.
