THE ULTIMATE GOOGLE

ADS CHECKLIST
2024
The ULTIMATE GOOGLE ADS CHECKLIST includes
everything for your needs to make sure that your
campaigns are maximizing client ROI.

Khalil Arshad
@imkhalilarshad
Hi 👋, Khalil here!
With over a decade of experience managing 10-digits+ in
Google Ads spend, I’ve worked with 1500+ clients to
achieve remarkable results. I’ve created the Ultimate
Google Ads Checklist, a guide that outlines the critical
actions needed to maximize ROI from your Google Ads
budget.

This checklist is the same framework I use to help

businesses increase leads, boost sales, and free up time
to focus on other important aspects. Each step is vital, and
skipping any could impact your campaign’s success.
Follow it closely for the best results!

Best of luck,

Khalil Khalil Arshad

@imkhalilarshad
2
28-POINT GOOGLE ADS CHECKLIST
PRE-LAUNCH HUSTLE KEEP YOUR CAMPAIGNS
9 IN CHECK

DEFINE YOUR GOAL(S) CALENDARISE ACCOUNT CADENCE

KNOW YOUR COMPETITORS
TRACK YOUR BUDGETS
DEFINE YOUR AUDIENCE
KEYWORD RESEARCH SET BID MORE ON WINNING ADS
YOUR BUDGET SETUP REPLACE UNDERPERFORMING ADS
CONVERSION TRACKING
SEARCH TERMS REPORT
GET CAMPAIGN-READY KEYWORD RESEARCH
ORGANISE YOUR CAMPAIGNS
WEEKLY PERFORMANCE EVALUATION
GROUP KEYWORDS INTO AD
GROUPS OPTIMISE YOUR LANDING PAGE
SET MATCH TYPES
REFINE TARGET AUDIENCE & GEO
AVOID CROSS-GROUP PARAMETERS
NEGATIVES
REVIEW AD SCHEDULE
CREATE ENGAGING ADS
KEYWORD HARVESTING
USE AD EXTENSIONS
NEGATIVE KEYWORD AUDIT
DETERMINE BIDS
MONTHLY COMPREHENSIVE
SET UP A/B TESTING PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS

CAMPAIGN KICKOFF

Khalil Arshad
The Ultimate Google Ads Checklist @imkhalilarshad
3
 PRE-LAUNCH HUSTLE
DEFINE YOUR GOAL(S)
State your campaign objective clearly and establish a measurable target to achieve. By
defining your goals, you can assess the effectiveness of your campaign. Are you aiming to
enhance your subscriber list, boost sales, or increase clients? Provide precise details.
State your business KPIs e.g. revenue targets, LTV, email subscriber targets, CAC targets, etc.

State your marketing KPIs e.g. conversion value targets, conversion rates, ATC, CTRs, ROAS, CPA,

CPC, impression share, etc.

KNOW YOUR COMPETITORS

Take some time to examine how your competitors approach PPC advertising in relation to the
topics you're targeting. Explore their Google ads and identify the keywords they're focusing on.
Consider what you could do differently to attract even more visitors to your own campaigns. It's
essential to conduct a thorough analysis of your competitors' PPC strategies.
You might find competitive intelligence tools like SEMrush beneficial.

I would also take a look at Google Ads Transparency Center.

DEFINE YOUR AUDIENCE

Ensure that your targeting settings for location, device, and time are configured accurately to
reach the appropriate audience at the ideal time and place. Tailor your targeting for different
audiences based on their position in the buyer's journey. It's possible to define your audience at
both the campaign and ad group levels, allowing for greater customisation and effectiveness.

What is the persona of your dream buyer?

Where does your dream buyer live, work, congregate with other like minded people, etc?

How does your dream buyer like to communicate?

Khalil Arshad
The Ultimate Google Ads Checklist @imkhalilarshad4
 PRE-LAUNCH HUSTLE
DO KEYWORD RESEARCH
Thorough keyword research is essential for a successful ad campaign. Begin by searching for all
relevant keywords at a broad level. Then, select the most suitable search terms based on your
desired parameters like search volume volume, CPC, competition, etc. Remember to include
both specific long-tail keywords and broader short-tail keywords in your list.

Use Keyword Planner, the native keyword research tool within Google Ads

Use SEMrush, if you have access to this (there is A LOT of additional information available to

help you make a more informed decision).

For long-tail keywords and query-related keywords, I would recommend AnswerThePublic or

Answer Socrates.

SET YOUR BUDGET

Set clear budgets for your overall campaign and daily spending. Remember, you are charged
for every click your ads receive. Therefore, allocate your budget wisely to accommodate the
cost of clicks.

SETUP CONVERSION TRACKING

Ensure that you track the conversions that align with your established goals. Implement
Google Ads Conversion Pixels on your confirmation pages or import Goals from Google
Analytics to gain comprehensive visibility into the performance of your campaigns and how
they are converting.
Use Google Tag Manager where possible to minimise conversion tracking maintenance.
If Google Tag Manager is not possible, make sure you are using GA4 as a minimum.
If you’re you have a Shopify or WordPress website, there are apps/ plugins available to
help you with setting up conversion tracking.
Be sure to test the conversion setup before proceeding. This VERY IMPORTANT!

Khalil Arshad
@imkhalilarshad 5
 GET CAMPAIGN-READY
ORGANISE YOUR CAMPAIGNS
Create separate campaigns considering various factors such as your product, website, and goals. You
may need to divide campaigns based on factors like region, language, goal, or differentiating
between brand and non-brand keywords. If you're unsure, it's a good idea to structure your
campaigns to mirror the layout of your website.
Here at Matriarch Digital, we typically like to organise campaigns by ‘purpose’. For example, 1x
campaign for brand activities, 1x campaign for non-brand activities, 1x campaign for
competitors, etc. Of course, there is no cookie-cutter approach or strategy to this; it must be
tailored to your goals!
I’d also recommend thinking about how each campaign fits into the marketing funnel. What
campaigns should be TOF, MOF and BOF campaigns?
Think about the different types of campaigns: if you’re an eCommerce business, use PMax,
Search, Shopping, YouTube campaigns. If you’re a service based business, use Search, YouTube
and Display campaigns.

GROUP KEYWORDS INTO AD GROUPS

There isn't a single approach that fits all when it comes to campaign structure. However, we
recommend utilising ad groups to group your ads based on a shared theme. This is commonly
known as Single Themed Ad Groups (STAGs). Consider organising ad groups based on the type
of product or service you provide. It's advisable to keep the number of keywords in each ad group
limited. As a best practice, aim to use only one keyword theme per ad group.

SET MATCH TYPES

If you want to reach a wider audience with your ads, choose the broad match option, but be
cautious because more clicks mean higher expenses. For a more focused and relevant
audience, consider using phrase or exact match types to display your ads. Use phrase match at
the very start of your campaign launch if you’re unsure.

Khalil Arshad
@imkhalilarshad
The Ultimate Google Ads Checklist 6
 GET CAMPAIGN-READY
AVOID CROSS-GROUP NEGATIVES
Occasionally, you may find that some of your ads are competing against each other, but it's best
to avoid such situations. To prevent this, include cross-group negative keywords in the relevant
ad groups. This helps establish criteria for which ads should appear for certain search terms and
which ones should not.
CREATE ENGAGING ADS
Creating engaging and persuasive ad copy with a prominent CTA is essential for your ads to
succeed. Remember to adhere to Google's character limits for each line of text.

Headlines and descriptions should be in ‘Title Case’, highlight your USPs, and be very
straightforward (no fluff!)
Evoke emotion as much as possible. E.g. if you were a family law firm, rather than “20+ Years
Of Family Law Experience”, we’d recommend going with something like “Keeping Families
Together For 20+ Years”.
Make sure that you pin down the keyword specific headlines (i.e. headlines that relate to the
keywords the most) in the 1st position.

USE AD EXTENSIONS
Maximise the value of your advertising budget by including all relevant ad extensions for your
business, such as location, phone number, and address. Google can display this additional
information alongside your ads to users without any extra charges to you.
Ensure you have image, sitelink, structured snippets and callout extensions as the bare
minimum.
DETERMINE BIDS
For keywords that are likely to have a higher CTR, such as branded and exact match terms,
increase your bidding. If you're unsure about the potential results of a keyword, start with a lower
spending allocation initially. Once you assess the performance of your ad, you can adjust the
budget accordingly and allocate more if necessary.
Utilise smart/automated bidding strategies! Don’t be afraid to let Google’s very
intelligent algorithm do its thing. Google collects so much data about its users so it would
naturally be much better at audience targeting that us as human advertisers.
Make sure the bids are set in a way that will allow you to meet/ exceed your marketing
and business goals. Have these goals are your north star!

Khalil Arshad
@imkhalilarshad
7
 GET CAMPAIGN-READY

SET UP A/B TESTING

When conducting tests with multiple ads, organise your ad group accordingly

and enable ad rotation. This ensures that each ad receives enough data for

evaluation and analysis.

CAMPAIGN KICKOFF!

Before launching your campaigns, carefully review all components of the

campaign to ensure accuracy. Once launched, establish a schedule to regularly

monitor your ad progress on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis.

Khalil Arshad
@imkhalilarshad

The Ultimate Google Ads Checklist 8

 KEEP YOUR CAMPAIGNS IN CHECK
CALENDARISE ACCOUNT MAINTENANCE & CADENCE
24 Hours: Schedule calendar reminders to regularly check your campaigns and ad
groups to ensure that any changes made have not had a negative impact.
3 Days Later: Evaluate the traffic, cost per click and cost per conversion metrics to ensure
there is improvement, especially at the top of the sales funnel where it might be too early
to see the impact on ROAS.
7 Days Later: Check the CPCs, traffic, and cost per conversion metrics at the top, middle,
and bottom of the sales funnel. Assess whether there is improvement in terms of cost per
lead, and if possible, review the ROAS as well.
Ongoing: In your reporting dashboard, mark the optimised campaign and make a note
of the date. This will help you determine the appropriate duration to allow the campaign
to stabilise before considering further actions.

TRACK YOUR BUDGETS

To track the performance of your campaigns, regularly review the daily spend compared to the
number of conversions. This will enable you to determine if your campaign is meeting its
objectives as intended or if adjustments are required.

Highlight the key campaigns that are underspending or overspending and develop
next steps according to what the data tells you. E.g. if your campaign is overspending
regularly but not maintaining a profitable ROAS, then it’s time to reallocate some
budget. If your campaign is underspending but is exceeding your target ROAS, then
you may need to increase your bids to reach a wider audience.

BID MORE ON WINNING ADS

When you track the progress of your campaigns, make sure to adjust your bids for the top
performing ads accordingly to get the most out of the campaign. Pivot away from what’s not
working and double down on what is working! We’d recommend aiming for at least a 10%
CTR for ads.

Khalil Arshad
@imkhalilarshad
9
 KEEP YOUR CAMPAIGNS IN CHECK

REPLACE UNDERPERFORMING ADS

Evaluate the performance of your campaigns and substitute underperforming ads with fresh ones.
Extract insights from your high-performing ads and integrate successful elements into your modified
ad campaigns.
SEARCH TERMS REPORT
Keep track of the real search queries that trigger your ads by using the Search Terms Report in Google
Ads. Occasionally, especially with Broad and Phrase Match keywords, your ads may appear for related
but irrelevant search queries. If you come across any of these in the report, add them as cross-group
negative keywords to prevent their recurrence.

KEYWORD RESEARCH
Regularly assess the performance of your keywords and determine which ones are still effective and
which ones need to be replaced. If a campaign, ad group, or keyword is underperforming, it's best not to
waste money by waiting for it to improve. Instead, make necessary adjustments by introducing new
keywords that demonstrate better performance.
WEEKLY PERFORMANCE EVALUATION
Assess the performance of your ad campaigns. Did they meet or fall short of the goals? Reflect on your
learnings, successes, missed opportunities, and ongoing experiments. Utilise these insights to adjust
future campaign parameters, identify trends, and develop performance reports.
OPTIMISE YOUR LANDING PAGE
Are there any ad campaigns that have high click-through rates but low conversion rates? Take a close
look at what could be causing low conversion rates on your landing pages and make adjustments to
your web’s look, content, and user’s ease of access.
REFINE TARGET AUDIENCE AND GEO PARAMETERS
Review the performance of your target audience, location, and device settings. If you encounter low
click-through rates, consider modifying your target audience, location, and other audience targeting
settings. Keep in mind that an ad that performs well in one region may not be effective in another.
Focus on specific audience segments before expanding broadly to effectively analyse different
audiences.
Khalil Arshad
@imkhalilarshad
The Ultimate Google Ads Checklist 10
 KEEP YOUR CAMPAIGNS IN CHECK

REVIEW AD SCHEDULE
Examine performance data based on the day of the week and time of day, and make bid adjustments
accordingly. Decrease or eliminate spending during time blocks that demonstrate poor performance,
and concentrate your budget on the times and days when performance is strongest.

KEYWORD HARVESTING
Examine search terms and add relevant keywords to the ad group with a significant number of
impressions and clicks (at least 30 clicks). Ensure you review data for a sufficient period (at least 30
days) to make informed decisions. If a campaign has fewer impressions and clicks, a longer date
range will be necessary to gather enough data.

NEGATIVE KEYWORD AUDIT

Consider a 60-90 day timeframe for this analysis. Eliminate obviously irrelevant keywords that have
accumulated clicks and spending. Remember to include relevant negative keywords at the
campaign level to prevent them from appearing in other ad groups under the same keyword. Identify
commonalities and add the core keyphrase (e.g., "how to") to exclude a broad range of low-purchase-
intent keywords.

MONTHLY COMPREHENSIVE PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS

Take a broader view of the monthly data to gain a comprehensive understanding of your campaign's
overall performance and make strategic decisions for the future. It’s essential that you are able to not
only look deep into the accounts, but also out and wide! It’s all about understanding what the data is
telling you about the existing performance, forecasting for future performance and how can you map
out the right game plan to maximise your return on investment!

Khalil Arshad
@imkhalilarshad
The Ultimate Google Ads Checklist 11
 And..that’s it!

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