What I Actually Check When I Audit a Google Ads Account
Most audits are a list of generic recommendations generated from an account export. This one is not. I go through the account live, section by section, and tell you specifically what is broken, what is wasted, and what to fix first.
An account can look busy and still be losing money quietly. Impressions and clicks can climb every month while the conversion data behind them is wrong, which means Smart Bidding is optimizing toward the wrong signal without anyone noticing. The five areas below are where that usually starts.
Account settings and security
Who has access, what changed recently in the account history, and whether basic settings like location and language targeting actually match who you sell to.
Conversion tracking accuracy
Whether Enhanced Conversions is verified and not just switched on, whether conversions are being double-counted between GA4 and Google Ads, and whether conversion values are real numbers instead of a flat placeholder.
Wasted spend and search terms
What people are actually typing before your ad shows, and how much of the budget is going to searches that were never going to become a customer.
Ad quality and landing page experience
How closely your ads match the intent behind the search, and whether the landing page a click lands on actually supports the offer in the ad.
Bidding strategy alignment
Whether the bidding strategy fits how long your sales cycle actually is, since a strategy built for instant online purchases behaves badly on a business where the sale closes on a phone call weeks later.
Sample Audit Findings
- Enhanced Conversions verified, not just switched on
- Conversions not double-counted across GA4 and Ads
- Negative keyword list actively maintained
- Call tracking tied to keyword and campaign
- Account access limited to current team members
- Bidding strategy matched to actual sales cycle
Illustrative example. Your real findings depend on your actual account.
Common Questions
What exactly happens on a Google Ads audit call?
We go through your account live, section by section: account settings and security, conversion tracking accuracy, wasted spend, ad quality, and bidding strategy, and you get a written summary of the top issues found afterward.
Is the audit really free?
Yes. There is no payment required and no obligation to continue afterward. The audit exists to give you an honest, specific answer on what is working and what is not.
Do I need to give you access to my Google Ads account?
Read-only access is enough for the audit itself, so nothing in your account can be changed during the call.
How long does a Google Ads audit take?
The live call runs 30 minutes, and the written summary of findings is delivered within one business day afterward, though the depth of the review depends on account size and how many campaigns are active.
What are the most common issues found in a Google Ads audit?
The most common findings are double-counted conversions between GA4 and Google Ads, Enhanced Conversions switched on but not actually matching, broad match keywords pulling in unrelated searches, and Performance Max campaigns cannibalizing brand search traffic that would have converted for free.
Do you audit Performance Max campaigns specifically?
Yes. Performance Max is checked for asset group structure, whether it is bidding on brand terms that should be excluded, and whether the conversion data it optimizes against is accurate, since Performance Max automation only performs as well as the data it is given.
What happens after the audit if I want to move forward?
There is no pressure to continue. If the findings show issues worth fixing, the next step is a specific, quoted plan for the tracking and campaign work needed, not a generic package.