Google Ads Consultant Prices
It's likely you are thinking how much does a good Google Ads marketing agency cost?
Or perhaps you are asking yourself one of two questions related to Google Ads marketing agency prices:
Am I currently paying too much for Google Ads marketing support?
Am I receiving the best service from my Google Ads marketing agency?
Unfortunately, it isn't always easy to get information on Google Ads marketing consultant fees as you would like.
Some consultants and agencies will ask you to make an enquiry before talking about price. It's as if they are holding something back. Of course, if when you finally hear the price, it's too high, everyone's time has been wasted. This is why I strongly support offering transparent pricing from the very beginning. You want to know the price, whether there's an additional set up fee, and how long if at all you are tied into the contract. Here’s the answer.
I charge £100 a month. There is no set up fee and there are no tie ins.
That’s how I do business but it’s worth considering how others charge for Google Ads marketing services. In this post I discuss the pros and cons from your perspective and the viewpoint from the consultant working on your account.
Let's discuss Google Ads marketing agency prices.
Below I discuss the various ways you can be charged for running your Google Ads marketing and how they affect agency prices. Please note all of these ways could have an additional upfront fee for the account set up. Sometimes a marketing agency will remove the setup fee if the client signs up for a minimum of 3 months.
9 Different Ways Agencies Charge For Google Ads:
1. Charge an hourly rate
This can span a broad price range from £15 to £80 per hour. It really can be daunting trying to work out why one consultant charges double what another one quotes.
Furthermore, it's important to realise that an hourly rate is often not a reflection of how well someone or an agency can manage and optimise an account. Instead, the rate can often be related more to where they are based and their own costs of living. How long someone spends on an account doesn't correlate with the quality of their work and, more importantly, the profitability.
Can you imagine a locksmith charging by the hour? It wouldn't make sense and equally, this is the same for digital marketing.
I would suggest you don't want to hire someone where you are both constantly watching the clock. Instead, you want an expert who will actively want to make the improvements because they appreciate the bigger picture.
There also needs to be a limit on the number of hours worked. Who decides this and what happens if the specialist decides they need more hours to complete the work.
Finally should you as the client pay for all of the account testing. Do you not feel the consultant should be experienced and expert enough to always make the right improvements from the start without testing?
2. Charge a percentage of the ad spend
Some consultants will charge a percentage of the monthly fee you pay Google or Facebook. Typically when I have surfed the internet for examples of Google Ads and Facebook management fees I generally see quotes in the region of 15% to 25%.
Please note a profitable campaign could result in less being spent, but will an agency or consultant work in such a manner if this results in them being paid less. This is the way agencies would traditionally work in the past, but I'm not sure it's the right model for today. The reality is, I could reduce costs and increase conversions, yet get penalised for improving the account by getting paid less. Finally, what happens if the business owner decides to stop spending budget for a temporary or extended amount of time, should the fee be zero?
3. Charge a fixed fee
This is a straightforward fees model and allows the business owner to scale without fear of being charged more. Typically this is 10 - 20% of the typical monthly ad spend.
4. Charge a different fixed fee for different amounts of ad spend
This again is still a straightforward fees model but acknowledges there will be more management and optimisation work when the ad spend significantly increases.
5. Charge a fixed fee and a percentage of the ad spend
These kinds of quotes come in many shapes and sizes. Generally, the higher the fixed fee the lower the percentage. For example £2500 + 5% and £1500 + 10%
6. Charge a combination of management fees and a varying monthly ad spend
I have a strong belief in being 100% transparent and, unfortunately, this is often far from the case with this type of fee structure. In this scenario, you never get a clear break down of the management costs and how much you spend on clicks. It's imperative you know what you are spending on Google Ads advertising and what you are spending on management and optimisation. You don't want to be in the dark. A business using this pricing modal relies on thei client not asking for a break down of fees.
7. Charge a fee based on your volume of clicks
I would run a mile from this type of fees model. What is to stop the consultant literally adding unrelated keywords to the account simply to get paid more. I doubt the business relationship would last long. The client would soon question the lack of conversions from the substandard traffic.
8. Charge a fee based on the number of campaigns, adgroups and keywords
This fee structure is promoted by a business simply looking to treat clients as numbers. It's a robotic approach. Their website will typically describe the fee for X number of campaigns, each one with Y number of adgroups and Z number of keywords. Typically I see this approach by consultants looking to attract small practices with a limited budget.
9. Charge based on the number of conversions
There are pros and cons with this model. The client may feel that's great, I only pay when I sell a widget and the consultant maybe equally encouraged because they imagine generating a significant amount of conversions.
In reality, there are often too many variables to have complete confidence on both sides. The consultant will be frustrated by not getting paid on every conversion due to cookie deletion. Equally, they will resent the client's website if they feel it doesn't convert as well as it should.
The client, on the other hand, will question whether they have 100% trust in the interpretation of the conversion data. Conversion attribution is far from an exact science.
Google Ads Marketing Agency Prices: What's Important To My Clients & Why I Charge What I Do
Having reviewed all of the options above I decided:
To offer a fees model with no ambiguity.
To quote a realistic cost, that's a reasonable percentage of the ad spend, much like option 3 described above.
To set the account up in the client's name where they have sole ownership. None of this nonsense where an agency controls your account. That sucks!
To offer a low set up fee. That's what I would want if I was the client.
To offer no ties in. Let me know you no longer need my services before the next invoice date and that's cool.
To be a trusted partner, someone a business owner can turn to for advice on other marketing strategies and platforms.
To avoid a conflict of interest. If I recommend a greater ad spend, I don't want you to resent me because I'm earning more.
To acknowledge full expert set up, experienced management and continual optimisation use up significant resources.