The short answer
Hire an agency when you want people to own strategy, creative and several channels. Use software when you want the daily Google Ads and Google Merchant Center work done consistently for less. Do it yourself when your spend is small and you have time to check the account every week.
What the daily work actually is
Whoever runs the account, the same jobs keep coming back:
- Reading search terms and excluding the ones that take clicks without selling.
- Moving budget between campaigns and products toward what sells.
- Adjusting budgets and targets in small steps, then waiting for results to settle.
- Fixing Google Merchant Center disapprovals and weak product titles.
- Checking that conversion tracking still works after site or checkout changes.
- Making sure new products land in a campaign and get a fair test.
Doing it yourself
Google charges for clicks, not for managing the account, so doing it yourself costs only your time. It suits a store with a small budget and an owner who enjoys the numbers.
The risk is gaps. A busy week without checks can leave a broken tracking tag or a budget-hungry product running for days.
An agency
Commonly 10% to 20% of ad spend or a retainer of about $750 to $5,000 or more a month, often with a setup fee and a minimum term. You get people, strategy and usually creative, on the agency's schedule.
Check that the account stays yours, how often changes are made, and whether Google Merchant Center is included.
Software
There are two kinds. Some tools list recommendations for you to review and apply. Others make the changes themselves within limits you set. Prices are usually a monthly subscription or a share of spend.
Check what the software is allowed to change, whether every change is recorded and can be undone, and that it works through Google's own access so the account stays yours.
How to choose
- You want to hand over everything, including creative and other channels: an agency.
- You know what sells and want Google Ads and Google Merchant Center kept tidy every day: software that makes the changes.
- You have a PPC specialist who wants to build their own rules: a recommendations tool.
- Your spend is small and you have time: do it yourself, with a weekly routine.
How UltraROAS.ai does this for you
UltraROAS.ai is the software that makes the changes. Press Optimize and it works across Shopping, Search, Performance Max and Google Merchant Center every day, within the daily spend you set, records every change with an undo, and emails you what changed. It costs 5% of the Google Ads spend it manages. No setup fee.