Let’s be honest. Google Search Ads can be overwhelming. I’ve seen too many businesses dive in headfirst, make aggressive changes from day one, and then wonder why their campaigns are burning through cash without results.
After managing millions in ad spend, I’ve developed this 90-day framework that actually works. It’s the exact approach I use with my clients to build campaigns that scale predictably and profitably. No flashy promises or secret hacks. Just a structured process that respects the platform’s learning phases and builds on solid data.
Days 1-30: Building Your Foundation
The first month isn’t about chasing immediate wins (though they’re nice when they happen!). It’s about setting up proper measurement, understanding your baseline performance, and collecting enough data to make informed decisions.
Week 1: The Setup Phase
Your first week should focus on the fundamentals that will either make or break your campaign:
- Campaign & conversion tracking setup – Make sure that conversion tracking and your web analytics package is set up and collecting data (Google Tag Manager, GA4, Google Ads Conversion Tracking, Microsoft Clarity). Without proper tracking, you’re flying blind and wasting money.
- Location targeting review – I can’t tell you how many accounts I’ve audited where they’re accidentally targeting the wrong regions or missing crucial exclusions. This seemingly basic step can instantly improve your ROAS.
- Budget pacing checks – Make sure your daily spend aligns with your monthly goals. I prefer setting daily budgets at about 30% higher than the mathematical average to account for high-traffic days.
- Ad scheduling setup – Are there specific times when your customers are most active? Or times when conversions tank? Look at your historical data or industry benchmarks to start, but be prepared to adjust as you collect actual performance data.
- Click fraud monitoring – This is the silent killer of campaign performance. Use Google’s Invalid Traffic report or consider a tool like ClickCease if you’re in a competitive niche with a history of click fraud.
Week 2: Audience & Keyword Foundations
Now that the basics are in place, it’s time to refine who you’re targeting and how:
- Broad match + audience layering – This combination has been game-changing for my campaigns since Google’s algorithm improvements. By pairing broad-match keywords with specific audience segments, you can discover high-intent keywords you might have missed in your initial research.
- Negative keyword identification – Review your Search Terms report daily during this phase. I typically find 10-15 irrelevant terms in the first week alone that can save 15-20% of wasted spend.
- Device performance analysis – Mobile and desktop users often behave differently. I’ve seen campaigns where mobile converts at half the rate of desktop but gets 70% of the traffic – adjusting bids here can immediately improve performance.
- Keyword Review – At this point, you should review your search terms report and targeted keywords weekly to find low-performing keywords that can be removed from your campaigns.
Week 3: Creative Optimization Begins
With targeting dialed in, turn your attention to your ads:
- Ad variation testing – Start testing different CTAs, headlines, and value propositions. I typically create 3-4 variations per ad group, focusing on one element at a time. Remember, you need statistical significance before making decisions.
- Quality Score factors – Review the three components: expected CTR, ad relevance, and landing page experience. Even a one-point improvement in quality score can lower your CPC by 16% (based on my campaigns).
Week 4: Bidding Strategy Refinement
Time to optimize how you’re spending:
- Bidding strategy experimentation – Test different approaches based on your goals. For new campaigns with limited conversion data, I often start with Manual CPC or Maximize Clicks before transitioning to conversion-focused strategies.
- Geographic bid adjustments – By week 4, you should have enough data to identify geographic performance trends. I’ve seen up to 30% ROAS improvement just by adjusting bids for top-performing regions.
Days 31-60: Optimization & Refinement
Now that you have some data to work with, it’s time to filter out the noise and double down on what’s working.
Week 5: Campaign Structure Refinement
- Ad group segmentation – Are your ad groups tightly themed? Break out any that have become too broad. I aim for 5-10 closely related keywords per ad group for maximum relevance.
- Priority vs. Testing Campaigns – Create a dedicated “exploration” campaign with 10-15% of your budget to test new approaches without risking core performance.
- Landing page experience improvements – Focus on speed, clarity, and CTA positioning. I’ve seen conversion rate lifts of 25%+ just by simplifying landing pages and improving load times.
Week 6: Audience Deep Dive
- Remarketing campaign refinement – Segment your remarketing audiences by behavior and intent. Visitors who abandoned carts deserve different messaging than those who just glanced at your homepage.
- Audience layering – By this point, you should be able to identify your top-performing demographic and interest segments. Layer these onto your campaigns for more precise targeting.
- Conversion action testing – Are you tracking the right actions? Test different conversion points to ensure you’re optimizing toward real business outcomes, not just activity. If you are doing lead generation, make sure to set up offline conversion tracking (OTC) in this stage.
Week 7: Conversion Path Optimization
- Landing page A/B testing – Test variations in CTA positioning, messaging, or form fields. Keep changes isolated so you know exactly what drove improvements.
- Attribution model review – Consider switching from last-click to data-driven attribution if you have enough conversion volume. This provides a more accurate picture of which keywords and campaigns are driving value. Explore where in the buying process your ads are helping convert users
Week 8: Competitive Positioning
- Bid adjustment refinement – With two months of data, you can now make more sophisticated bid adjustments for devices, audiences, locations, and more. I only recommend this if you are not using a “smart” automated bidding process.
- Competitor insights analysis – Use the Auction Insights report to understand where competitors are outbidding you and where you might have opportunities to gain impression share.
Days 61-90: Scaling & Growth
The final month is all about pushing budget where it’s working and expanding your reach:
- Incremental budget increases – I recommend increasing budgets by 10-20% every two weeks rather than weekly jumps. This avoids triggering new learning phases too frequently.
- Expansion of top performers – Look for variations and synonyms of your best keywords, and consider different intent stages that might still convert.
- Landing page expansion – Test different landing page approaches – short, conversion-focused pages versus longer, content-rich experiences.
- Automation implementation – Use scripts or rules to automate routine optimizations like pausing poor performers or adjusting bids for high-converting keywords.
- Lifetime value focus – Review the long-term value of customers acquired through different campaigns. Sometimes, the highest CPA campaigns actually bring in the most valuable customers.
- Ad Type Expansion – If you are seeing good results and you have the budget to incest, look into additional Google campaign types like Dynamic Search Ads (typically my next go-to) or Pmax campaigns to capture any remaining search terms you aren’t currently targeting.
The Bottom Line
Building successful Google Ads campaigns isn’t about finding magical keywords or secret settings. It’s about having a structured approach, respecting the platform’s learning phases, and making data-driven decisions at the right time.
This 90-day framework has helped me take campaigns from struggling to scaling across dozens of industries. The key is patience and discipline. Resist the urge to make radical changes without sufficient data, and you’ll build campaigns that deliver consistent, predictable results.
Struggling to scale your Google Search Ads campaigns? The team at Well-Oiled Marketing can help! We’ve managed over 150+ ad accounts across various industries, optimizing millions in ad spend each year. Let’s chat and take your campaigns to the next level! You can reach out here.
