Pay-per-click advertising can drive a lot of leads, and is a very effective bottom-of-the-funnel strategy for leads. It’s also a minefield of budget traps, misleading automation, and “helpful” suggestions that quietly bleed your spend. If you’re running Google Ads and want to tighten the reins without tanking performance, here are five quick, high-impact tricks to keep your campaigns sharp and cost-efficient.
1. Don’t Use Broad Match Keywords – Ever
Broad match keywords are the junk drawer of Google Ads. They’re messy, unpredictable, and full of things you didn’t ask for.
When you use broad match, Google interprets your keyword as loosely as possible. For example, if you bid on “custom furniture,” your ad might show for searches like “cheap IKEA hacks” or “how to build a bookshelf” – neither of which are likely to convert if you’re selling high-end, bespoke pieces.
Why it’s wasteful:
- You pay for irrelevant clicks.
- You lose control over intent.
- Your data gets noisy, making optimization harder.
Better alternatives:
- Use phrase match or exact match to maintain tighter control.
- Layer in negative keywords to block irrelevant traffic.
- Regularly audit your match types to ensure they align with your goals.
2. Stay Away from Performance Max Campaigns
Performance Max campaigns promise automation, reach, and simplicity. But in reality, they’re a black box. You give Google your assets, budget, and goals – and it decides where, when, and how to show your ads across Search, Display, YouTube, Gmail, and more. (We recently devoted a whole article as to why you should avoid PMax campaigns)
Why it’s risky:
- You lose visibility into placements, targeting, and search terms.
- You can’t control bidding strategies or ad copy per channel.
- It’s nearly impossible to diagnose poor performance or wasted spend.
Unless you have a very specific use case or an exceedingly large budget, Performance Max is best avoided by advertisers who value transparency and control.
3. Check Your Search Terms—Not Just Keywords
This one’s a game-changer. Many advertisers obsess over their keyword list but ignore the actual search terms triggering their ads. These are the real queries users type into Google—and they often reveal a shocking amount of waste.
Keyword vs. Search Term:
- Keyword: What you bid on (e.g., “custom furniture”).
- Search Term: What the user actually searched (e.g., “cheap furniture near me”).
Google takes liberties with all match types, even exact match. Your keyword might be “custom furniture,” but your ad could show for “DIY furniture kits” or “furniture repair” – neither of which are relevant.
How to fix it:
- Go to the Search Terms Report in Google Ads.
- Identify irrelevant queries and add them as negative keywords.
- Look for patterns—are certain modifiers (like “cheap” or “free”) consistently wasting spend?
This one fix can save hundreds or thousands of dollars over time.
4. Don’t Use Google’s Auto-Suggestions
Google Ads loves to suggest keywords, audiences, and bidding strategies. These suggestions are often framed as “recommended for better performance” – but they’re usually designed to increase your spend, not your ROI. The changes can also stack. For example, we inherited an account whose manager just accepted all suggested keywords – which got further and further from original intent. They literally went from “saliva testing kit” to “poop” (not kidding!).
Common traps:
- Adding broad match keywords.
- Creating automated extensions that may not be what you want to say.
- Enabling automated bidding without enough data.
- Expanding audience targeting beyond your ideal customer.
What to do instead:
- Treat Google’s suggestions like a used car salesman’s pitch: smile, nod, and verify everything.
- Use your own data, customer insights, and business goals to guide decisions.
- Test changes manually and measure impact before scaling.
Automation can be powerful—but only when it’s based on your strategy, not Google’s incentives.
5. Take Calls from Google Reps with Extreme Caution
If you’ve ever received a call from a Google Ads rep, you know the drill: they’re friendly, persistent, and eager to “help” you improve your account. But here’s the truth: most reps are incentivized to increase your budget and push features that benefit Google more than you. The best advice – politely decline the calls. Tell them your not interested, and don’t waste your time. However, if you do get stuck on a call, caution is your friend.
Red flags to watch for:
- Reps recommending broad match or Performance Max.
- Suggestions to raise bids or budgets without clear ROI justification.
- Pressure to implement changes immediately during the call.
How to handle it:
- Ask for written summaries of recommendations so you can review them critically.
- Push back on changes that don’t align with your goals or data.
- Remember: you’re not obligated to follow their advice.
Some reps are genuinely helpful, especially if you’re spending at scale and have a dedicated account manager. But for most small to mid-sized advertisers, caution is key.
Control Is the Key to Efficiency
Saving money on PPC isn’t about cutting corners—it’s about cutting waste. The more control you maintain over your targeting, bidding, and messaging, the more efficient your campaigns become.
Want help auditing your PPC account or building a leaner, smarter campaign? We offer a 24-point PPC audit that handles everything from account structure to targeting to performance. If you’re starting from the ground up, we build and manage strategic, ROI-driven campaigns that drive results.
Let’s make your ad spend work harder and smarter.
