12 Questions to Ask Before Signing a Google Ads Agency Contract

When a Malaysian business owner meets a digital marketing agency for a pitch, there is an inherent information asymmetry. The agency salesperson uses technical jargon (ROAS, CPA, SKAGs, Smart Bidding) to overwhelm the business owner, making the agency appear as the ultimate authority.

To protect your marketing budget, you must flip this power dynamic. You must take control of the meeting by asking highly specific, operational questions. If the agency stumbles, answers vaguely, or dismisses the question as "too technical," you immediately know they are masking a lack of genuine expertise.

The difference between a mediocre agency and a world-class performance partner lies in their operational execution. The 12 questions below are designed to penetrate the sales pitch and expose how the agency actually operates on a day-to-day basis. If they cannot answer these confidently, do not sign the contract.

Ownership disputes are the most common source of friction between Malaysian SMEs and digital agencies. Address this immediately before any money changes hands.

Question 1: "If we terminate our contract in 6 months, who retains ownership of the Google Ads account?"

The Wrong Answer: "We build the account inside our master agency system, so the account remains with us as our intellectual property. However, we will send you a final PDF report of the historical data."
The Right Answer: "You will create the account under your own corporate email, and you will input your own credit card. You own the account 100%. If you fire us, you simply revoke our Manager Access, and you keep all the historical data, Quality Scores, and tracking tags."

Question 2: "How is your management fee structured relative to our ad spend?"

The Wrong Answer: "We charge 20% of whatever you spend on Google. If you increase your budget, our fee increases." (This incentivizes the agency to waste your money to pad their margins).
The Right Answer: "We charge a flat monthly retainer based on the complexity of your account. Our revenue does not increase just because you spend more on ads; our goal is to make your existing budget as efficient as possible."

Anyone can bid on a broad keyword. True PPC management requires defensive keyword tactics.

Question 3: "What is your exact protocol for negative keywords during the first 30 days?"

The Wrong Answer: "Google's AI handles keyword intent automatically now, so we just let the algorithm learn over time."
The Right Answer: "We apply a master negative keyword list (excluding 'free', 'jobs', 'PDFs') before the campaign even launches. During the first 30 days, we review the Search Terms Report every 48 hours to manually add new negative keywords and stop budget leakage."

Question 4: "Can you walk me through your campaign structuring methodology?"

The Wrong Answer: "We put all your services into one campaign so Google can distribute the budget evenly."
The Right Answer: "We use Single Theme Ad Groups (STAGs). If you are a clinic, we create separate ad groups for 'Braces' and 'Whitening'. This ensures the ad copy perfectly matches the search intent, which boosts your Quality Score and lowers your Cost Per Click (CPC)."

Question 5: "How do you handle brand bidding?"

The Wrong Answer: "We always bid heavily on your brand name to protect it, even if no competitors are bidding on it."
The Right Answer: "We only bid on your brand name if competitors are actively trying to steal your traffic. If the SERP is clear, we rely on your organic SEO to capture brand searches so you don't waste paid budget on users who were already looking for you."

Traffic without conversion engineering is completely useless.

Question 6: "Where exactly are you sending the paid traffic?"

The Wrong Answer: "We will send the Google Ads traffic straight to your current website's homepage or Contact Us page."
The Right Answer: "Your homepage converts too poorly for paid traffic. We will build a dedicated, high-speed landing page specifically for this campaign, stripped of all navigation menus, to maximize the conversion rate."

Question 7: "What technology stack do you use for landing pages, and what is the expected load speed?"

The Wrong Answer: "We use a heavy WordPress builder with a dozen plugins. It loads in about 4-5 seconds."
The Right Answer: "We use lightweight frameworks like Astro or Tailwind CSS, or dedicated platforms like Unbounce. We guarantee a sub-1.5 second mobile load time because speed directly impacts your Cost Per Lead in Malaysia."

Data fidelity dictates the success of Google's machine learning algorithms.

Question 8: "How exactly do you track conversions for our business type?"

The Wrong Answer: "We use the standard Google Ads pixel to track how many people view the 'Thank You' page."
The Right Answer: "We deploy Google Tag Manager (GTM) to set up server-side event tracking. We track actual WhatsApp button clicks, phone dials, and form submissions. We also configure offline conversion tracking if your sales cycle takes weeks to close."

Question 9: "How do you handle iOS tracking prevention and browser ad-blockers?"

The Wrong Answer: "There's nothing we can do about Apple's privacy updates; we just expect a 20% data drop."
The Right Answer: "We implement Server-Side Tagging via Google Analytics 4 (GA4). Instead of the browser sending the conversion data (which gets blocked), your server sends it directly to Google's server via a secure API webhook."

Ensure you know who is actually pushing the buttons in your account.

Question 10: "Who exactly will be managing my account on a daily basis?"

The Wrong Answer: "Our Account Executive (a fresh graduate) will be your point of contact, and they will pass your requests to our backend team."
The Right Answer: "You will have direct communication with the Senior Media Buyer executing your campaign, alongside a dedicated Account Manager for strategy. We don't hide our specialists behind junior account handlers."

Question 11: "Are you outsourcing the execution to overseas freelancers?"

The Wrong Answer: "We have a global network of specialized partners." (Translation: We use cheap labor on Upwork).
The Right Answer: "No. All media buying, copywriting, and landing page development are handled in-house by our full-time team based in Malaysia, ensuring local market context and language nuances are understood."

Question 12: "What happens if our account is suspended by Google?"

The Wrong Answer: "We will just submit an automated appeal and wait for Google to reply."
The Right Answer: "As a certified Google Partner, we have direct access to Google support representatives. We will immediately identify the policy violation (e.g., KKLIU medical compliance issues) and escalate the appeal directly to our account manager at Google to minimize downtime."