How to Choose a Google Ads Agency: 12 Questions to Ask (and Red Flags)

To choose a good Google Ads agency, look for five things: you know exactly who will run your account, the ad account stays in your name, the pricing is clear, the reports show leads and revenue rather than clicks, and the agency has worked with businesses like yours. The fastest way to check all five is to ask the right questions before you sign anything.

I have taken over many accounts from agencies that looked great in the sales call and did very little afterwards. The warning signs were almost always there from the start. This guide gives you the 12 questions I would ask any agency, what a good answer sounds like, and the red flags that should make you walk away.

Before You Talk to Any Agency

You will get much better answers if you know your own numbers first. Before your first call, write down:

• Your monthly ad budget. This decides which agencies are realistic. Many larger agencies have minimum fees, and some will not take small accounts at all.
• Your goal. Phone calls, form leads, bookings or online sales. Be specific.
• What a customer is worth to you. If you know your average profit per customer and how many leads turn into customers, you can work out the most you can pay for a lead.
• Your current results. If you already run Google Ads, have your account ready to share so agencies can look at it.

It also helps to decide first whether an agency is the right choice at all. For some budgets, a freelancer, an independent consultant or doing it yourself makes more sense. I compare all the options in Google Ads agency vs freelancer vs in-house.

12 Questions to Ask a Google Ads Agency

Ask these questions in your first conversation. A good agency will be happy to answer all of them. If you get vague answers, that tells you something too.

About the People

1. Who will manage my account day to day?

This is the most important question. At many agencies, a senior person sells you the service and a junior specialist runs your account. Ask for the name of the person who will make the changes, how much experience they have and whether you can talk to them directly.

Good answer: a named person, with years of Google Ads experience, whom you can call or email.

2. How many accounts does that person manage?

A specialist juggling 30 or 40 accounts cannot give yours much attention. There is no perfect number, but the answer tells you how much time your account will really get.

Good answer: a clear number and an explanation of how often they work in each account.

3. Have you worked with businesses like mine?

Experience in your industry, or with a similar type of customer, shortens the learning curve. Ask for examples with similar budgets too. Managing $2,000 a month and managing $200,000 a month are very different jobs.

Good answer: specific examples, even if client names are kept private.

About Your Account and Data

4. Whose name will the Google Ads account be in?

The account should be in your business name, and you should pay Google directly. If the agency runs your ads from its own account, you can lose all your data and history when you leave.

Good answer: "Yours. We only need access to it."

5. Will I have full access to my account at any time?

You should be able to log in and see everything, whenever you want. An agency that makes itself hard to check is a problem, no matter how good its reports look.

Good answer: "Yes, you will have admin access."

6. How do you handle Google's automatic recommendations?

Google Ads suggests changes all the time, and some agencies accept them automatically to keep their optimization score high. Many of those suggestions raise your spend or broaden your targeting.

Good answer: they review each recommendation and only apply the ones that fit your goals.

About Results and Reporting

7. How do you measure success?

The answer should be about leads, sales, cost per lead or return on ad spend. If it is about clicks, impressions or click-through rate, keep looking. Those numbers can go up while your business gets nothing.

Good answer: "Cost per lead and the number of qualified leads" or "revenue and return on ad spend".

8. What will your reports include, and how often will I get them?

Ask to see a sample report. It should show what you spent, what it brought in, what changed since last month and what comes next, in plain language.

Good answer: a monthly report you can understand without a marketing degree, plus a call to go through it.

9. Can you show me a campaign that failed and what you did about it?

Every agency can show a success story. The answer to this question shows how they think when things go wrong, which is what you are really paying for.

Good answer: a specific example with the problem, the diagnosis and the fix.

10. What should I expect in the first 90 days?

A good agency sets realistic expectations. Ads can bring clicks from the first day, but it usually takes 4 to 6 weeks of data and changes before your cost per lead settles.

Good answer: a clear plan for the first three months, with no promises of instant results.

About Pricing and Terms

11. What exactly does your fee include, and what costs extra?

Ask about setup fees, landing page work, conversion tracking, creative and tools. Two agencies with the same monthly fee can cover very different amounts of work. My guide to Google Ads management pricing explains the usual fees and hidden costs.

Good answer: a written list of what is included and a clear price for anything extra.

12. How long is the contract, and how do I cancel?

Some agencies ask for minimum terms of several months. That protects the agency, not you.

Good answer: month to month, or a short initial term with a simple way to leave.

Red Flags When Hiring a Google Ads Agency

Walk away, or at least ask more questions, if you see any of these:

• Guaranteed results. Nobody can guarantee a number one position, a set number of leads or a specific return. Google controls the auction, not the agency.
• The agency owns the account. If the account is in their name, your data leaves with them.
• No access for you. If you cannot log in to your own account, you cannot check what they are doing.
• Reports full of clicks and impressions. Vanity metrics hide poor results. You need leads and sales.
• Long lock-in contracts. A confident agency does not need to trap you.
• One combined invoice for fees and ad spend. Your ad budget should be billed by Google directly to you, so there is no hidden markup.
• The expert disappears after the sale. If you never hear from the person who pitched you, a junior team is probably running your account.
• No questions about your business. An agency that does not ask about your margins, customers and sales process cannot optimize for profit.
• Constant pressure to raise your budget. Spending more only makes sense when the current spend is profitable.
• The same package for everyone. A local plumber and an online store need very different campaigns.

Does Google Partner or Premier Partner Status Matter?

Google Partner is a badge Google gives to agencies that meet three requirements. According to Google Ads Help, an agency needs:

• Performance: an optimization score of at least 70% across the accounts it manages.
• Spend: at least $10,000 in ad spend over 90 days across those accounts.
• Certifications: at least 50% of its account strategists certified in Google Ads.

Google checks these requirements every day, so an agency has to keep meeting them to keep the badge. Premier Partner is the top tier: agencies that meet the Partner requirements and are in the top 3% of participating companies in their country.

The badge tells you that the agency is active, manages real budgets and has certified staff. It does not tell you whether the agency is good for your business. Google ranks Premier Partners on the growth of their clients' ad spend, new clients won, client retention and use of products beyond Search. Most of these are measured in ad spend, so the ranking favors larger agencies with big clients. If your budget is small, you may get more attention from a smaller Partner agency or an independent consultant than from a Premier agency.

Treat the badge as a minimum standard, not a reason to choose. Reliablesoft has been a Google Partner since 2014, and you can read what being a Google Partner means for our clients.

How to Check an Agency Before You Sign

Before you commit, do a few quick checks:

1. Verify the badge. Search for the agency in the Google Partners Directory to confirm its status.
2. Read reviews and ask for references. Talk to a current client if you can, ideally one with a similar budget.
3. Ask for an audit of your account. A short review of your current campaigns shows how they think. Good agencies point out specific problems, not generic advice.
4. Get everything in writing. The fee, what it includes, who manages your account, the reporting schedule and how to cancel.
5. Prefer month-to-month terms. They keep the agency focused on results.

What Should Happen After You Hire an Agency

The first three months tell you whether you made the right choice. Here is what to expect:

• First 2 weeks: an audit of your account, conversion tracking checked or set up, and a written plan.
• First month: campaigns restructured or launched, wasted spend cut and the first report explaining what changed.
• Months 2 to 3: steady improvement in cost per lead or return on ad spend, with regular tests of new ads and keywords.

Stay involved. Log in to your account now and then, read every report, and ask questions when a number moves. Tell the agency which leads turned into customers, because that feedback helps them target better. If after three months results are flat and the explanations are vague, it is time to look elsewhere.

If you are not sure your campaigns are worth the investment at all, read whether Google Ads are worth it before you hire anyone.

An Alternative: Working With an Independent Consultant

Many of the problems in this guide come from the agency model itself: account managers between you and the specialist, large client lists and contracts. That is why I work differently.

I run every account myself, with no account managers, and I keep my client list small. Your account stays in your name, there is no contract, and I work on your landing pages as well as your ads. My plans are published on my Google Ads management service page, and you are welcome to ask me every question on this list.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I find a good Google Ads agency?

Start with agencies that have worked with businesses like yours, check their Google Partner status in the Partners Directory, read reviews and ask for references. Then ask the 12 questions in this guide and compare the answers.

What should a Google Ads agency report every month?

At a minimum: what you spent, how many leads or sales it brought, your cost per lead or return on ad spend, what changed during the month and what is planned next. Clicks and impressions are useful context, but they should not be the headline.

How long should I give a new Google Ads agency?

Give it about three months. The first 4 to 6 weeks are for setup, data and adjustments. By the end of the third month, you should see clear progress in cost per lead or return on ad spend.

Is a Google Premier Partner better than a Google Partner?

Not necessarily for your business. Premier Partners are the top 3% of participating companies in each country, ranked mostly on ad spend growth, new clients and client retention. For small budgets, a Partner agency or consultant who gives your account more attention is often the better choice.

Should I sign a long contract with a Google Ads agency?

Avoid it if you can. Month-to-month terms, or a short first term, let you leave if results are poor. An agency that is confident in its work does not need a long contract to keep you.