Google Ads
How to Choose a Google Ads Agency: A Guide for UK and US Brands
Picking a Google Ads agency is mostly about avoiding a few expensive mistakes. This guide covers what a good agency does, how pricing models work, the questions to ask before signing and when a remote team makes sense for a brand in the UK or US.
What a Google Ads agency should actually do
A Google Ads agency plans, builds and manages your paid campaigns across Search, Shopping, Performance Max, YouTube and Display. The visible work is campaigns and ads. The work that decides results is less visible: conversion tracking, search term cleanup, budget allocation and landing page feedback.
If an agency cannot explain how it will measure a sale or a lead in your account, stop there. Bad tracking means the account optimises towards the wrong thing, and the reports will look healthy while money is wasted.
How agencies charge
- Percentage of ad spend. Common and simple, but the agency earns more when you spend more, which is not always when you should
- Flat monthly retainer. Predictable, and it removes that conflict, but you need a clear written scope
- Performance fees. Sometimes offered on leads or sales. Check how a lead or sale is defined and who can verify it
- Setup fee. Reasonable for a new account if it covers tracking and structure, not just a template
Prices differ widely by market, scope and budget, so treat any single figure you read online with caution. Ask for the scope in writing and compare like with like.
Questions to ask before you sign
- Who owns the ad account? It should be yours, with the agency added as a user, so you can leave with your history
- What will you report, and how often? Look for cost per lead or return on ad spend against your own break even, not impressions and clicks
- Who will work on the account day to day? Ask for a name, not a team
- What is the notice period and minimum term? Long lock-ins protect the agency, not you
- How do you set up conversion tracking? Expect Google tag or Tag Manager, enhanced conversions and a test before launch
Before you talk to anyone, know your break even. Our ROAS calculator turns your price, cost and shipping into a break even ROAS and a target cost per sale.
Red flags
- Guaranteed rankings, ROAS or lead volumes. Nobody controls competitors, auctions or your offer
- No access to your account. If you only see their PDF, you cannot check the work
- One campaign type for every client. Performance Max suits some accounts and hurts others
- Vague reports. If you cannot tell what changed this month and why, results are not being managed
UK and US specifics to check
Targeting and compliance differ by market. For the UK, check that tracking respects cookie consent, that currency is GBP and that delivery and VAT are shown clearly. For the US, check state level shipping and tax display, and that ads meet the rules for your category. In both, set location targeting to people in your service area, not people merely interested in it.
Time zones matter too. A team working from a different time zone can still manage an account well, because most work is analysis and optimisation rather than live support. What matters is a clear reporting rhythm and a fast reply to urgent issues. We work remotely with brands in several markets, and explain our process on the performance marketing page.
When to start with Google Ads
Google Ads works best when people already search for what you sell. If your product is new and nobody searches for it, social ads may fit better first. For ecommerce brands, Shopping and Search capture demand that already exists, while Meta ads create it. Most growing brands end up using both, with Google capturing the buyers that social ads warm up.