Red Flags You Need to Know When Hiring a PPC Agency

Thinking of hiring a PPC agency, but you’re not quite sure where to start? 

It can be intimidating and stressful, especially if it’s your first time looking for an agency. 

And …you may have been told that it’s “normal” to go through multiple agencies to find the perfect one.

But before you start believing that, there are a few things you need to know about hiring a PPC agency and RED flags you need to be on the lookout for.

After all, you are about to invest your time, money, and trust into a company that should be able to deliver results! The last thing you want is to be left discouraged based on an awful experience.

While there isn’t one golden question you can ask to determine if an agency is legitimate and a good fit for you, there are some red flags you need to look out for:

1. You Are Not Introduced to The Person Working On Your Campaign

Typically the person who will be doing the campaign work and implementation (the person responsible for getting results)  is called an Account Manager or Campaign Manager, depending on the agency. These individuals are tasked with all the “behind-the-scenes”  work, such as ad copywriting, campaign setup, and ongoing management of your account.

It’s very common for agencies to have a Sales Representative who is tasked with business development and may overpromise results to close the deal for commission. This results in the Account Manager already being set up for failure as the client expectations are different from what is feasible with PPC. 

Proceed with caution if you are only interfacing with a sales representative of an agency throughout the entire discovery process. Ideally, the person directly managing your Google Ads campaign account should be part of the sales process. 

Once you get an introduction to the person managing your account, do a quick Google search for their LinkedIn profile and see how many years of experience they have. If they don’t have a LinkedIn profile, that’s a red flag.

It’s also a red flag if they are fresh out of college grad or someone with 1-2 years of experience. There’s a high chance they may be learning on your dime (aka ad budget). 

Do you really want to be someone’s guinea pig?

It’s possible that this person may be learning under a more experienced team member. If that’s the case, it’s acceptable as long as there’s strong oversight from a senior team member with 4-5+ years of experience.

2. The Agency Doesn’t Understand Your Business

Would you trust a cardiologist to perform surgery on your heart if they’ve never done the procedure before?

Absolutely not. And that’s the case with hiring an agency!

It’s a major PLUS to find an agency that knows your industry, audience, and what it takes to get stellar results. But, it’s unlikely that agencies will know every single industry. That’s why it’s important for agencies to take their time to do research during the discovery phase.

If an agency is quick to throw out a price quote without understanding your needs or challenges, run the opposite direction because they’re just viewing you as a number and not really looking for a long-term relationship.

Another question to answer during the discovery phase is: Is this PPC agency taking time to understand your business goals, competition, and industry if they don’t have experience working with others in the same field?

You should look for a PPC agency that wants to get to know you and already has a good understanding of your business (and if not, they should be showing genuine interest in learning about your business and willingness to do research).

Look for an agency with an in-depth interview process or discovery phase. Ideally, they will take time to understand your ideal customer, business model, and goals. From there, they should provide a custom proposal with a strategy, forecasts, and fees!

3. The Agency’s Size Doesn’t Match Your Business

Bigger isn’t always better.

Big-name agencies may not be the right fit if you are a small business. Fortune 500 companies need all hands on deck to run extensive advertising campaigns. In this scenario, they will typically have large teams and nearly an entire agency dedicated to running their ad campaigns. 

Also, large agencies typically charge hefty retainer fees to cover overhead and team-building activities like “Happy Hour Fridays” or a night out on a private yacht. This means your fee may not directly go to resources impacting your campaign results. 

You need to find an agency with an experienced team to give your account the attention it needs. Consider asking about each Account Manager’s workload and how many total clients the agency has. Account Managers ideally should not be managing more than ten small accounts at a time to get results. An overextended team means your account will not get the attention it needs, and things will slip through the cracks. 

*Pro tip: Find an agency comparable in size to your business.

4. Lack of Communication

While you might not know about an agency’s lack of communication until AFTER you hire them, check on the communication rhythm during the discovery phase.

 Are they getting back to you in a reasonable time frame? If not, that’s a bad sign.

Communication is critical to a successful client and agency relationship. You should never be left in the dark about your ad campaign performance. The agency and Account Managers should be comfortable sharing the campaign setup process, optimization strategies, changes to your account, results, and more.

Remember, they should be reaching out to you! You shouldn’t be hounding your agency for answers. 

It’s important to ask up front how often you can expect to hear from your Account Manager and how quickly they respond to emails. Good response times are less than 48 hours during business days but the sooner, the better. Plus, you should be expecting to hear from your Account Manager AT LEAST once a month once your campaign is dialed in but probably a little more during the first several months.

Ideally, you should receive a monthly report on the work being done and the plan moving forward. The report should also include critical metrics such as the number of conversions, cost per conversion, and cost per click. Your account manager should also be able to provide deep insights into the data – you shouldn’t have to interpret anything! 

Remember, generating phenomenal PPC results does not happen using a “set-it-and-forget-it” approach. It requires a proactive Account Manager who is actively adjusting bids, constantly suggesting new tactics, and consistently checking with you about your satisfaction with performance.

If you cannot get your PPC questions answered and your account manager responds too slowly, it’s time to look for a new PPC agency. 

*Pro Tip: Consider working with an agency that uses month-to-month contracts. They will focus on providing results and excellent communication to win your business every month.

5. The PPC Agency Promises Specific Results

Has an agency promised you 100 leads in the first month of signing with them? 

That’s a huge red flag.

The PPC agency you hire should not promise specific results. Why? They are more focused on getting the initial sale. In addition, many variables can affect your PPC performance to guarantee results. 

PPC works kind of like the stock market, with the prices (CPC) changing all the time – there’s no exact way to predict and guarantee exact results. Now, with enough historical data, an agency can estimate results but be wary of guarantees.

While case studies can show effectiveness, remember that past results from any type of client don’t guarantee future returns for you. In addition, PPC is always changing. What worked years prior may not work for your specific business or even for any other agency account. 

This doesn’t mean they are not providing any kind of forecasting. That’s a great sign! But overpromising results usually produce disappointment. Setting proper client expectations is important to a great agency relationship. 

What Should a Small Business Look for When Hiring a PPC Agency?

If you are a small business, you must ask the right questions to find the right PPC agencies. Again, it’s critical to consider the agency’s size, the number of clients they serve, and the types of businesses they have worked with.

Also, ask about the level of communication you will get with your account manager. Will that be monthly reports? Or monthly meetings?

Gathering information about their approach to setting up and managing your campaigns is also critical. This will help you detect if they are proactive or a “set-it-and-forget-it” type of agency. Do they offer a landing page setup? How do they track conversions? 

You should also be able to find case studies on their performance and client reviews. Again, another client’s track record doesn’t necessarily indicate your success, but it’s a great way to get to know who you will be working with.

Need to know some critical questions to ask a PPC agency as you’re interviewing them? Check out this blog.

Conclusion

Vetting and hiring a PPC agency is time-consuming, but it benefits you in the long run! Your agency should be just as invested in your results as you are. Transparency, communication, and proactive actions are all hallmarks of a great PPC agency.

Are you looking for an experienced PPC lead generation agency? Contact Level 28 Media for a free discovery call!