In this guide, we’ll explain exactly how a PPC agency creates business growth, why businesses hire PPC agencies, what agencies typically charge and the signs to look for (and avoid) when choosing a Paid Search partner that’s right for your business.
Running Google Ads can be an effective way to drive sales, generate leads and increase traffic, but achieving consistent results that deliver genuine business growth requires more than simply setting a budget and launching a campaign.
PPC is one of the fastest ways to generate qualified demand, but as Google Ads has evolved with automation, AI bidding and increasingly complex campaign types, effective management now requires far more than simply selecting keywords and writing adverts.
How a PPC Agency Creates Business Growth
A common misconception is that PPC agencies simply manage Google Ads accounts. In reality, experienced agencies act as strategic partners, using paid media to support wider business objectives and deliver measurable commercial growth.
Rather than focusing solely on impressions, clicks or cost-per-click, an experienced PPC agency starts by understanding what success looks like for your business. That could be increasing market share, launching into new regions, generating higher-quality leads, improving profitability or scaling ecommerce revenue. All of which would require very different approaches.
An effective PPC strategy is one that’s built around those commercial objectives. Budget is allocated to the campaigns, audiences and products most likely to deliver a return, while ongoing analysis identifies new opportunities to improve performance and reduce wasted spend.
As campaigns mature, the role of the agency evolves beyond day-to-day optimisation. Performance data provides valuable insight into customer behaviour, demand trends and competitive activity, helping marketing teams make more informed decisions across the wider business. PPC becomes not just a generation channel, but a source of market intelligence that can influence everything from promotional activity and product strategy to future marketing investment.
Ultimately, a successful PPC agency isn’t judged by how many clicks it generates, but by its ability to turn advertising spend into sustainable business growth.
Let’s jump into the full detail of the process to give you more context as to what to expect from a PPC partner.
1 – Aligning PPC with Business Objectives
Effective PPC management begins with creating a bespoke strategy aligned to business objectives and focused on profitable growth.
The strategy should be the first thing put into place before a single ad is created. In this way it’s just like any other form of marketing, begin with the objective of what is trying to be achieved and create a strategy around that objective.
If the strategy is to support the launch of a new product in a highly competitive market, it’s going to be very different to the strategy of a mature business that’s simply looking to get the maximum return from their current ad investment.
In short, there is no one size fits all.
Experienced PPC specialists typically spend time understanding your business, your customers and the customer journey.
2 – Identifying High-Value Search Demand
An important part of the strategy is carrying out keyword research.
However, keyword research only forms part of the picture and part of the role of a PPC agency is to also decipher the audience intent behind the searches. For example, someone searching for ‘The best SPF 50 sun creams for fair skin’ has a very different intent to someone searching ‘Can sun cream go out of date?’
Experienced PPC specialists will generally take their time at this stage of the process to eliminate and identify which searches fit the businesses objectives and aid them to target the right demographic and audience.
3 – Campaign Implementation
Once that initial work is done and the strategy is agreed with the client, the day-to-day management of the PPC account then involves both planning and launching the PPC campaigns.
This stage involves creating both the ad copy and creative for the ad. Good quality ad copy gives the user a reason to choose the clients business and is essential especially when operating in a competitive industry.
Engaging creative is equally if not more important than ad copy itself, especially considering how much every business is now fighting for digital attention from the user across placements such as YouTube and the Google Display Network. There is a very brief window of time to get the user’ attention, therefore the role of the content is to make the ad instantly relatable to ensure the journey ends with the desired outcome (Enquiry, online sale etc).
The creative in the ad is even more vital when it comes to Paid Social campaigns which are often a natural extension of PPC. Although, the two can have very different purposes when it comes to the users purchasing journey. For the purposes of this blog however, we will purely focus on PPC.
4 – Continuous Optimisation and Commercial Performance
Once the campaigns are implemented the final stage is monitoring the success of the campaign performance.
An experienced PPC agency monitors performance on a daily basis (and often hourly), this way fluctuations can be tracked and reacted to in a relatively short space of time, which reduces wasted spend for the client whilst also maximising opportunity.
Modern PPC agencies spend less time manually changing bids and more time training Google’s automation through better audience signals, conversion data, creative testing and account structure.
Many things can impact daily fluctuations in CTR’s and impressions. Some products/services for example are extremely linked to the weather i.e. sun cream sales, gardening products, whereas others are more static.
A strategic PPC partner will keep the client updated on any major fluctuations or significant growth in real time as often it can be a good indication of how they can expect their future sales to perform and is also a chance to adapt their other marketing channels.
For example, if a gardening retailer suddenly experiences a spike in demand during a warm spell, a PPC agency can increase budgets and adjust bidding strategies to capture additional traffic before competitors react.
In addition to daily monitoring, a PPC agency will also report on performance on a long term basis (typically this is done monthly or quarterly as well as annually depending on the client requirements), ensuring every metric is aligned to the clients goals.
Regular catch-up calls between the PPC agency and the client are essential to ensure that the campaigns that are running remain relevant and any company/product updates are incorporated into the campaigns as soon as possible. Performance should also be shared with you in an accessible format that you understand. Your agency are the experts but you should always be clear on how things are performing and the actions being taken.
A common example is when an advert continues promoting a product that is no longer available. This often happens when communication between the business and the PPC agency breaks down.
Why Businesses Hire PPC Agencies
If you are in a Marketing role, you may have inherited a legacy PPC account or you may have even set one up yourself, so why hire a PPC agency?
Expertise:
PPC expertise is very different to general marketing expertise. This is not to say that the average Marketing Manager wouldn’t be able to set up a PPC account, however there are so many variables that can impact performance, each one needs to be understood and monitored closely. A PPC agency can also bring invaluable knowledge that can hugely impact the overall growth of the business.
If your business currently has a PPC account in place but your team are struggling to answer how much it has contributed to overall revenue, the chances are it’s time to reach out to a specialised PPC agency.
Time:
Carrying out the initial planning, implementation and constant monitoring of a PPC account is time consuming even if the business has a relatively simple set up. For businesses with multiple divisions or more complex products/services the time involved is even greater. Hiring a PPC agency allows you as the Marketing Manager/Director to focus on the wider marketing strategy and driving business growth.
In addition, there are constant updates in the world of PPC. Google updates in particular often go unannounced and are not easy to decipher. Getting your head around all of these changes and how they impact your account is another drain on time that you most likely can’t afford to lose.
Insight:
The insights a PPC agency can give you into your business shouldn’t just be viewed in isolation. They are invaluable in understanding the wider landscape around your business and can often help focus the future objectives of the business.
A data backed forecast is essential for giving clients a blueprint for exactly how they are going to achieve their business objectives. It builds a clear view of what is achievable based on the existing data and allows the PPC agency to stay on track and more importantly, stay accountable.
PPC insights can help a business understand:
- Your customer (and what’s important to them)
- Consumer perceptions of your product/service
- Your competitor activity
- The industry as a whole
How Much Does Hiring a PPC Agency Cost?
PPC agency pricing varies depending on the size and complexity of the account, the advertising budget and the level of support required.
Most agencies use one of three pricing models:
Fixed monthly retainer – A set monthly fee regardless of ad spend. This can be helpful if you want to know your exact outgoings each month.
Percentage of Ad spend – Typically a percentage of the monthly advertising budget.
Hybrid model – A combination of a fixed fee and a percentage of spend.
Performance model – Based on achieving a specific forecast supplied by the agency. This shows that the agency has a vested interest in the outcome of the campaign performance.
When comparing agencies, businesses should focus on value rather than simply selecting the cheapest option.
What are the Main Reasons Businesses don’t Hire PPC Agencies?
With all of these benefits to hiring a PPC agency, why doesn’t every business make the move?
The reasons can be complex and unique to every business but generally it comes down to one of the below reasons.
Cost concerns:
While agency fees are often seen as a barrier, it’s important to compare the investment against the potential return.
The real question isn’t “How much does a PPC agency cost?” but “How much revenue can the agency generate beyond its fee?”
Many businesses invest heavily in their marketing teams and then when approached with a suggestion to bring on a PPC agency it can often feel like an added cost.
In reality, when an experienced agency is instructed, it is much more of an investment rather than a cost. The initial cost is very quickly offset by the growing revenue that the ads go on to generate. This also doesn’t factor in all of the benefits that are mentioned above, of which many of them have an impact on cost also. For example, your Marketing team may be investing significant time creating, managing, reporting on PPC. By partnering with a PPC agency this time can be reallocated to activities that help grow the company.
Previous negative experiences:
This is a big one in the industry and unfortunately like every industry, there are good PPC agencies and bad ones.
If this rings true for you we have put together a handy guide on how you can prevent this in the future.
How to Spot the Signs of a Poor PPC Agency?
1 – They keep the PPC account hidden from you
The PPC account should always be visible to you as the client and it should be owned by you. You should also be able to access all historical data. If this isn’t available, question why (Ideally ask this question at the start of the pitch process to avoid issues further down the line).
2 – Campaigns stay static
If a PPC agency sets up a campaign and then never makes changes, it becomes very clear that they are not interested in optimising the campaign. A good campaign is continuously improved and optimised.
3 – The reports lack financial data
If you receive reports of incredible impression & CTR’s but don’t hear anything in terms of leads generated, ROI or CPA (Cost per Acquisition) the reality is that you are paying the agency for more traffic to your website rather than to grow your business.
4 – You don’t know the name of your Account Manager
If your initial meeting was with a senior contact but you don’t hear from the person actually managing the account, the chances are a much more junior employee is running the account behind the scenes without senior input.
If you have encountered a bad PPC agency who overpromised and underdelivered you are right to be cautious when selecting a new partner, however by using the above insight to help inform who your next partner will be, this can be avoided.
Summary
Whether you’re running Google Ads internally or considering outsourcing PPC management, understanding how agencies work can help you make a more informed decision.
The right PPC partner should provide strategic guidance, transparent reporting and measurable business growth. Not just more clicks.
If you’re unsure whether your current campaigns are delivering the best possible return, an independent PPC audit can quickly identify opportunities to improve performance, reduce wasted spend and increase conversions.
At Green Ginger Digital we offer PPC audits and ongoing management designed to drive real business growth. Get in touch to see how we can help you achieve your business objectives.
