5 Red Flags Your Google Ads Agency Is Ripping You Off

I'm going to say something that most marketing agencies would never say: a lot of agencies that manage Google Ads for home service businesses are not doing right by their clients. Not all of them — but enough that this deserves a direct conversation.

I started KaeRae Marketing in 2017 because I left an agency where I watched this happen. Business owners writing checks every month, getting reports full of charts that looked impressive, and having no idea their campaigns were underperforming, their budgets were being mismanaged, or their agency was more interested in retaining them as a client than in actually growing their business.

If you're paying an agency to manage your Google Ads right now, here are five red flags that should make you ask hard questions — or start looking for the door.

Red Flag #1: Your Reports Are Full of Metrics That Don't Matter

This is the most common tactic, and it works because most business owners don't know which metrics actually indicate performance.

A dishonest (or just lazy) agency sends you monthly reports packed with:

• Impressions (how many times your ad appeared)

• Clicks (how many people clicked your ad)

• Click-through rate (what percentage of impressions became clicks)

• Average position (where your ads showed in results)

• Quality Score (Google's rating of your ad relevance)

These metrics look like a lot of information. They are not the information that matters.

The metrics that actually tell you whether your Google Ads are working:

• Conversions — how many calls and form fills did the ads generate?

• Cost per conversion — what did you pay per lead?

• Conversion rate — what percentage of clicks became leads?

• Revenue or jobs generated — ideally, what did those leads turn into?

If your monthly report doesn't prominently feature conversion count and cost per lead, your agency is either hiding something or doesn't understand what success looks like for a home service business.

Ask your agency directly: 'How many calls and form fills did our ads generate last month, and what was our average cost per lead?' If they can't answer that in 30 seconds or start talking around it, that's your answer.

Red Flag #2: You Don't Own Your Own Google Ads Account

This one is a dealbreaker. Full stop.

Some agencies create a Google Ads account on your behalf — but they create it under their agency's Google Manager Account (MCC), not yours. The account is technically theirs. When you leave the agency, you don't get to take the account with you. All your historical data, conversion history, keyword performance data, optimization work — gone.

This is intentional. It creates a switching cost that keeps clients trapped even when the relationship isn't working.

What should happen: your Google Ads account should be created in your own name, with your own business email as the account owner. The agency gets access as a manager — they can work in it, but you own it. If they leave or you fire them, you keep the account and all its history.

How to check: Log in to ads.google.com with the email your agency used to set up your account. If you can't log in or don't have an account in your name, ask your agency directly: 'Who owns the Google Ads account you're managing for us?' If the answer isn't 'you do,' demand a transfer immediately.

No legitimate agency should object to you owning your own account. Any pushback on this is a serious warning sign.

Red Flag #3: They Can't Tell You What Keywords Are Generating Leads

Google Ads Search campaigns generate a Search Terms report — a detailed log of every actual search query that triggered your ads and whether it resulted in a click and conversion.

This report is gold. It shows you:

• Exactly what people were searching when they found you

• Which searches are generating calls vs. just clicks

• Irrelevant searches your ads are matching (burning your budget on people who aren't customers)

A competent agency reviews this report regularly, uses it to add converting keywords to their campaigns, and uses it to build negative keyword lists that stop wasting money on bad matches.

If you ask your agency 'which keywords generated our leads last month?' and they can't give you a clear answer — or they give you the keywords you're bidding on rather than the actual search terms that triggered conversions — they're not doing the work.

This report takes 5 minutes to pull. There's no excuse for not having this information.

A plumbing client came to me after leaving an agency. We pulled the search terms report for the previous 6 months. Their ads had been matching searches like 'plumber jobs near me,' 'plumbing apprenticeship programs,' and 'how to become a plumber' — job seekers, not customers. Thousands of dollars in clicks, zero leads. The agency had never added a single negative keyword. They'd also never once shown the client the search terms report.

Red Flag #4: Their Fee Is Tied to Your Ad Spend (Percentage-Based Pricing)

This is a structural conflict of interest that's so common in the industry it's practically standard practice — and it's still a conflict of interest.

Many agencies charge a management fee based on a percentage of your monthly ad spend — typically 10-20%. So if you spend $2,000/month on ads, they earn $200-$400/month. If you spend $5,000/month, they earn $500-$1,000/month.

Do you see the problem? The agency makes more money when you spend more on ads. That creates a financial incentive to keep your ad spend high — not necessarily to keep your performance efficient.

They're not going to recommend you scale back your budget when campaigns are underperforming. They're not going to suggest you pause while you fix your landing page. They get paid more to keep the spend up.

This doesn't mean every percentage-fee agency is dishonest. Many are perfectly ethical and do great work. But the incentive structure is misaligned. Look for agencies that charge flat monthly fees — their income doesn't go up when your ad spend goes up. Their incentive is performance, not spend volume.

Red Flag #5: They're Impossible to Actually Reach

You have a question about last month's performance. You send an email. Three days go by. You follow up. You eventually get a generic reply that doesn't really answer your question.

Or: you want to make a change — pause a campaign, adjust messaging for a new promotion, add a service. Your agency says they'll 'put it in the queue.' Two weeks later, nothing's changed.

For home service businesses, marketing changes often need to happen fast. Seasonal demand shifts. A competitor offers a new promotion. You land a big contract and need to scale. Your ad needs to reflect that new emergency service line.

An agency that's hard to reach or slow to respond isn't just annoying — it's costing you money and opportunities.

What to expect from a legitimate agency relationship:

• A dedicated point of contact who knows your account and answers emails within 24 business hours

• Regular proactive check-ins (monthly at minimum, not just when you chase them)

• Changes implemented within 1-2 business days of approval

• Honest answers when you ask questions — not vague reassurances

If your agency treats you like a ticket number, you're not getting the attention your account needs.

The Question to Ask Before Hiring Any Google Ads Agency

Before signing with any agency, ask this: 'Can I see examples of the monthly reports you send clients, and can you walk me through how you measure success for a home service company specifically?'

A good agency will walk you through conversion tracking, cost per lead targets, search term analysis, and how they handle underperforming campaigns. They'll be direct and specific.

An agency that can't clearly answer that question — or who pivots to talking about their process, their tools, or their team without actually answering what you asked — is telling you something important.

You deserve to understand your own marketing. Not because you need to become a Google Ads expert, but because it's your money and your business. Any agency worth hiring should be actively making you more informed, not keeping you dependent on their expertise to understand what's happening.

What to Do If You Recognize These Red Flags

If you're reading this and recognizing your current agency in two or more of these flags, here's a practical path forward:

• First: Request a copy of your search terms report and your conversion data for the past 90 days. Your agency must be able to provide this — it's your data.

• Second: Confirm account ownership. Log in directly at ads.google.com and verify the account is registered under your email.

• Third: Get a second opinion. Ask another Google Ads specialist to review your account for 30-60 minutes. Many will do this as a free consultation. Fresh eyes often surface issues quickly.

• Fourth: If you're in a contract, read it carefully. Many home service business owners don't realize they're in rolling contracts that auto-renew. Know your exit terms.

• Fifth: When you're ready to make a change, make sure you keep access to your account. Don't let the agency revoke your access — that data belongs to you.

FAQ: Google Ads Agency Red Flags

Is it normal for agencies to not show you the search terms report?

It's common — not normal. A lot of agencies show clients dashboard-level reports that omit the granular search terms data. Whether that's intentional obfuscation or just lazy reporting, the result is the same: you don't get to see where your money is actually going. You have every right to ask for the raw search terms report from your Google Ads account. Any agency that refuses to share it should raise immediate concerns.

How can I tell if my agency is actually doing optimization work each month?

Ask for a specific list of changes made to your account in the previous 30 days. A legitimate agency should be able to tell you: negative keywords added, bids adjusted, ad copy tested, landing page changes recommended, budget reallocations made. If they can't produce a clear change log, they may not be doing much beyond collecting their monthly fee.

My agency has a long-term contract. Am I stuck?

Read your contract carefully — specifically the termination clause. Many contracts have a 30-60 day written notice provision. Some have early termination fees. Know what you agreed to. If you're locked in for 6-12 more months and can't exit without a penalty, focus on getting the most out of the relationship: demand access to your account, demand better reporting, and set clear performance expectations in writing. Document everything.

What's a fair price for Google Ads management for a home service company?

Flat-fee management for a single Google Ads account for a home service company typically ranges from $400-$1,200/month depending on account complexity and what's included. Percentage-based fees usually land between 10-20% of spend. Be cautious of very cheap management (under $300/month) — at that price point, you're likely getting minimal attention. Be equally cautious of very expensive management without clear justification for the premium.

Can I manage my own Google Ads instead of using an agency?

Yes — and for some small plumbing companies, it makes sense to learn the basics. Google offers free certification training. Managing your own campaigns gives you full visibility and eliminates management fees. The tradeoff: it takes time to learn, and mistakes in the learning curve cost real money. If you're spending $1,500+/month on ads, professional management typically pays for itself through improved performance. Under $800/month, DIY with solid education is worth considering.

Ready to stop guessing where your leads come from? KaeRae Marketing handles Google Ads and local SEO exclusively for home service businesses — no contracts, no confusion, no runaround. Book a free consultation and find out exactly what's possible for your business.

→ Book Your Free Consultation at KaeRaeMarketing.com

Want to learn this stuff yourself? KaeRae Education has courses, resources, and a membership community built specifically for home service business owners. Visit KaeRaeEducation.com.