What good Google Ads management actually looks like
Five checkable standards from the MaxV™ bench: tracking verified before spend, campaign types matched to the job, bidding to a return target, and landing pages inside the scope.
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What Good Google Ads Management Actually Looks Like
By img média · [CONTENT NEEDED: date]
Good Google Ads management means conversion tracking is verified before budget scales, campaign types are matched to intent, bids target a return figure, the landing page is managed as part of the campaign, and results are reported as cost per qualified lead and ROAS, not clicks. That is a checkable standard, not a vibe. This is the lens to hold against any account, including the one you are paying for right now.
Five clauses you can actually verify
Each part of that definition maps to one standard you can inspect. First, the tracking is proven before a single dollar scales: GA4, Google Tag Manager and Enhanced Conversions are set up and confirmed to be firing, so the numbers the account optimizes toward are real. Second, the campaign type is chosen for the job it does. Search captures existing demand, Performance Max scales across feeds and assets, and Demand Gen creates new interest, so spend lands where it belongs instead of one campaign type doing everything.
Third, the bidding aims at a return target (tROAS), so "optimization" has a destination instead of being a word in a report. Fourth, the landing page sits inside the scope of the work, because the click is wasted if the page it lands on cannot convert. Fifth, the reporting is in business numbers: cost per qualified lead, ROAS and revenue, not impressions and click counts that look busy but say nothing about money. Hold an account against these five clauses and "good" stops being a matter of trust.
img média calls this the MaxV™ bench, and the rest of this guide expands each standard one clause at a time, so you can check your own account against it before you talk to anyone.
A tidy report can sit on top of wasted spend
Most advertisers judge their account by two things: how fast the agency replies, and how polished the monthly deck looks. Neither tells you whether qualified leads or revenue actually moved. Stop hunting for what's wrong. Hold the account against a standard of what right looks like.
Responsiveness is not performance
A quick reply feels reassuring. It says nothing about whether the budget bought you customers.
Clicks and impressions are theatre
Activity metrics climb on any account. They hide the only question that matters: did qualified leads or revenue move?
Polish is not proof
A clean deck looks like a healthy account. It can just as easily dress up spend that never produced a sale.
You're missing the criteria, not the data
You can feel the account could be better. What you lack is a checkable standard to measure it against.
Want the full audit checklist?
If you'd rather diagnose what's broken first, here's how to audit your account for garbage spend.
Five standards a well-run account meets
Tracking verified before spend
You can trust the numbers, because GA4, Google Tag Manager and Enhanced Conversions are confirmed before any budget scales. No guessing whether a "conversion" was real.
Campaign type matched to the job
Each dollar runs where it fits. Search captures existing demand, Performance Max scales feeds and assets, and Demand Gen creates new interest, with the reasoning stated.
Bidding to a return target
Bids chase a target ROAS, not clicks and not vague "optimization." You see the return figure the account is steering toward.
Landing page inside the scope
The page your traffic lands on is treated as part of the campaign. Conversion work for paid traffic lives inside MaxV™, not on a separate invoice.
Reporting in business numbers
You read results as cost per qualified lead, ROAS and revenue. Clicks and impressions stay where they belong, behind the numbers that pay for the account.
[CONTENT NEEDED]
What babysitting an account looks like, next to managing one
What the bench actually produces
Lead generation
Comairco, an HVAC manufacturer, cut cost per qualified lead by 39%.
Reporting in business numbers makes that drop visible. You see cost per qualified lead, not clicks.
eCommerce
Beautysense, a beauty eCommerce store, grew ROAS by over 300%.
Bidding to a return target is what moves ROAS. The campaigns chase a return figure, not raw traffic.
eCommerce
Hitchweb, an auto parts store, grew revenue 25% year over year.
Campaign types matched to intent feed that growth. Revenue is the number on the bench, not impressions.
The landing page belongs inside the campaign
“Excellent service. A professional, responsive and highly competent team. Our Google Ads landing pages have been performing much better since we started working with them.”
Questions buyers ask when judging an agency
Is a Google Partner badge enough to trust an agency?+
No. It's a baseline trust signal, not proof of good management. IMG Media holds Google Partner status today, and still says to judge the work against the five standards above, not the badge.
Should landing pages be the agency's responsibility?+
Yes, for paid traffic the destination is half the campaign, which is why landing pages sit inside MaxV™ scope. One client review puts it plainly: their Google Ads landing pages have performed much better since the work started.
Does the pricing model change how an agency behaves?+
It can. A flat retainer removes the incentive to inflate your spend, because the fee doesn't rise when the budget does. See flat retainer vs. percentage of spend, compared.
Who should own the ad account?+
You do. The account and its data should be yours, not the agency's. See who should own your Google Ads account.
Nathanaël Morin · Partner, Director of Technology · runs the Google Ads accounts behind this bench. Client review (translated): "very professional, an approach squarely focused on expected results." [CONTENT NEEDED: years managing Google Ads accounts, certifications, account scale managed.]
Reviewed for accuracy by Martin Genesse, Founder & Director of Strategy · [CONTENT NEEDED: date]
Hold your account against the five standards
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