If your Google Ads account is spending money without producing qualified leads, the problem is rarely the bidding strategy. More often, it's a handful of default settings that quietly send your budget to searches you'd never choose yourself.
We audit dozens of accounts every quarter. These are the seven issues we find most often — and what to do about each one.
1. Search partners and Display expansion left on
Search partners and Display expansion can be useful, but they're switched on by default in many campaign types. For local service businesses and high-intent lead generation, they often produce cheap clicks that never convert. Check your segment reports before deciding — don't assume.
2. Broad match without negative keyword hygiene
Broad match plus a thin negative keyword list is the fastest way to burn budget. Review the search terms report weekly, add negatives aggressively, and consider a shared negative list across campaigns. If you're not reviewing search terms, you're not managing Google Ads.
3. Conversion actions counting the wrong thing
We regularly see 'conversions' that include page views, button clicks or form starts. The algorithm then optimizes toward people who click, not people who buy. Set up primary conversion actions that map to real business outcomes — calls, qualified forms, purchases — and mark everything else as secondary.
- Phone calls over 60 seconds
- Form submissions with a thank-you page
- WhatsApp clicks that lead to a conversation
- Purchases with revenue values passed back
4. No geographic exclusions
If you serve customers in Bangalore, you probably shouldn't pay for clicks from outside Karnataka. Set location targeting to 'presence' rather than 'presence or interest', and add exclusions for areas you can't service. This one change often cuts wasted spend by double digits.
5. Ad schedule and device bids ignored
A B2B lead form converts very differently at 11 AM and 11 PM. A clinic gets calls when it's open. Use ad scheduling and device bid adjustments based on your actual conversion data — not assumptions.
6. Landing pages that don't match the ad
Quality Score isn't just about keywords. If your ad promises 'same-day AC repair' and the landing page is a generic homepage, you'll pay more per click and convert less. Build a dedicated landing page for each major intent cluster.
7. Nobody owns the account
The most expensive setting is neglect. Accounts without weekly search term reviews, creative refreshes and budget checks decay quietly. If you don't have a named owner and a weekly checklist, fix that before you increase spend.
What to do this week
Start with the search terms report and conversion actions. Those two fixes usually produce the fastest improvement in lead quality. Then tighten geography, schedule and negatives.
“Most wasted spend isn't caused by bad bidding. It's caused by defaults nobody checked.”
Want us to check your account? Our free audit reviews these seven settings plus tracking, landing pages and creative — and tells you exactly what we'd fix first.
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