Tired of paying for clicks that don’t turn into customers? Whether you DIY your ads or use an agency, these five quick checks will catch the most common money leaks. Use them to pressure-test your setup—or forward to your ad team and see how confidently they answer.
1) “Conversions” aren’t real conversions
Dumb mistake: Counting page views or generic button taps as “conversions.” That bloats reports and teaches Smart Bidding to chase the wrong thing.
How to check: Google Ads → Tools & Settings → Conversions. Review which actions are marked Primary. They should be form submits, qualified calls, purchases or bookings—not visits.
THE ASK âť“ What EXACT actions count as a conversion? How are duplicates prevented?
THE FIX 🛠️ Track only meaningful goals; fire on thank-you/confirmation, enable Enhanced Conversions, and mark true outcomes as Primary. Keep micro-signals as Secondary.
Examples: HVAC → “Request Service” submit or call ≥30s. Retail → Purchase with value. Law → “Free Consultation” form.
2) Stuck in “Smart”/auto campaigns with no control
Dumb mistake: Running only Smart campaigns or PMAX with no strategy, so Google picks themes/placements you’d never buy on purpose.
How to check: Look at campaign types. If it’s Smart-only (or everything is PMAX), you likely lack control of keywords, negatives, and placements.
THE ASK âť“ Which campaign types are we using and why? What levers (match types, negatives, placements, audiences) are actively managed weekly?
THE FIX 🛠️ Use Expert-mode Search for core capture. Mix Exact/Phrase on proven terms; use Broad only with strong negatives. Keep PMAX/Smart where it proves ROI.
Examples: HVAC → exact “heat pump installation near me.” Retail → branded + top product intents. Law → “personal injury lawyer [city]”.
3) No negative keywords = paying for junk
Dumb mistake: Letting Broad/PMAX match to off-intent searches (jobs, DIY, free, competitor terms) and bleeding budget.
How to check: Insights & Reports → Search terms. If irrelevant queries appear—and your negative list isn’t growing—there’s a leak.
THE ASK âť“ Show me our negative keyword lists and the last 10 terms we excluded.
THE FIX 🛠️ Build shared negatives (jobs, careers, free, cheap, DIY, “how to…”, competitor brands as appropriate). Review search terms weekly and add fresh negatives.
Examples: HVAC → exclude “jobs,” “parts,” “manual.” Retail → exclude “DIY,” “template,” “coupon code” (if not offered). Law → exclude “legal jobs,” “pro bono” (if not offered).
4) Over-broad targeting: wrong places, wrong hours
Dumb mistake: Default geo targeting (“Presence or interest”), Search Partners/Display left on, and 24/7 spend regardless of when you answer.
How to check: Locations set to Presence (people in your locations). Networks: turn off Display & Search Partners for Search. Ad Schedule: align to high-intent hours.
THE ASK ❓ Where are our ads showing geographically and by network—and which hours convert best?
THE FIX 🛠️ Tighten to Presence-only geo, disable weak networks, day-part to winning hours, and protect after-hours spend (or route to 24/7 answering).
Examples: HVAC → 7a–7p weekdays. Retail → business hours + weekend peaks. Law → extend evenings for mobile searches; bid down overnight.
5) “Set & forget” management
Dumb mistake: Launching and then trusting Recommendations to do the work. No weekly search-term review, no ad tests, no budget re-allocation.
How to check: Ask for last month’s change log and the results it produced (CPL/ROAS improvements, not just impressions).
THE ASK âť“ What optimizations did we ship last month, and what metric improved?
THE FIX 🛠️ Run a monthly cadence: add negatives, refresh RSAs, pause waste, re-allocate to winners, test new angles/keywords/landings.
Bottom line: Fix these five and you stop most budget leaks. If two or more answers are unclear, it’s time for a second opinion.