Google Ads can be a powerful tool to drive leads and sales—but if not managed properly, it can quickly drain your budget with little to show for it. If you're running Google Ads and not seeing a strong return on investment (ROI), you may be making costly mistakes. Here are five signs that your Google Ads campaign is wasting money and what you can do to fix it.
1. High Clicks, Low Conversions
Are you getting plenty of clicks but not enough leads or sales? This is a major red flag that your targeting or landing page isn’t optimized. Common causes include:
✅ Targeting the wrong audience
✅ Irrelevant keywords
✅ Poor landing page experience
💡 Fix: Optimize your landing page for conversions, refine your keyword targeting, and ensure your ad copy aligns with what users expect.
2. You're Bidding on Broad Match Keywords
Broad match keywords can drain your budget by triggering your ads for irrelevant searches. For example, if you’re a plumber bidding on “leak repair,” Google might show your ad for “roof leak repair,” even if you don’t offer that service.
💡 Fix: Use phrase match and exact match keywords to improve targeting and negative keywords to filter out irrelevant searches.
3. No Negative Keywords List
If you’re not using negative keywords, your ads might be showing up for unrelated searches, costing you money with zero return. For example, if you’re running an ad for "HVAC repair," you don’t want to appear for "HVAC jobs" or "DIY HVAC repair."
💡 Fix: Regularly update your negative keywords list to prevent wasted spend on irrelevant searches.
4. Low-Quality Ad Copy & Poor Ad Relevance
If your ads aren’t compelling, they won’t drive action. A low Quality Score from Google means your ad copy isn’t relevant, leading to higher costs per click (CPC) and fewer conversions.
💡 Fix: Test different headlines, descriptions, and calls to action (CTAs). Make sure your ad messaging matches your landing page.
5. You're Not Tracking Conversions Properly
If you’re running ads without tracking conversions, you have no idea which keywords, ads, or campaigns are driving real results. Many businesses waste money by optimizing for clicks rather than leads or sales.
💡 Fix: Set up Google Ads conversion tracking to measure form submissions, phone calls, and purchases.
Stop Wasting Money—Optimize Your Google Ads Today!
If you see any of these signs in your campaigns, it’s time to take action. A well-optimized Google Ads campaign should drive quality leads, not wasted clicks. Need help improving your campaigns? Get a free Google Ads performance review today!
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