Ad budget (Google Ads, Facebook Ads): should the agency manage it or should we hire a separate person — which option is better?

my agency was managing the budget too, then another consultant said: 'check it'. tbh i opened the account looked and half the spend had gone to another campaign. don't leave it unmonitored.

you open the accoutn give the agency access. never log into the agencys account but keep it under your control.

Ad Budget Control Model: - Client-led: You open account → give agency access - Agency-led: Agency opens account → you get read-only access - Hybrid: You own account, agency manages, weekly reports Best: Client-owned account (full control)

Budget control: 1) Open your own account on Google Ads. 2) Give the agency 'Manager' access (Editor, so they can manage it). 3) Request weekly reports (spend, clicks, conversions, ROAS). 4) Monitor campaign performance (you). 5) If in doubt bring in a consultant to audit.

Thanks for writing this, that's the right way. Implementing a change request process doesn't slow things down, it speeds them up.

Proven by experience.

I agree with this. Trying to do this alone is the most expensive way.

Correct in theory, but it doesn't work that way in practice. Every "we'll look at it later" in a meeting means unbilled work.

That's all, sorry if I went on too long.

Noted, thanks.

Here's how it went for us. When you try to change everything at once, nothing settles.

If acceptance criteria aren't written, when the work is done is open to debate. If you post the result here it will help others too.

quick summary for newcomers: Solutions that work at a small scale collapse when you grow; I learned this late.

if you post the result here, it will help others too.

Following.

I'll try it.

Timely topic. If you don't write this down from the start, it leads to arguments later.

Of course it varies if your situation is different.

I agree. People defend habits not processes. Resistance comes from there.

People defend habits, not processes. Resistance comes from there. If I were you I'd go this route.

I agree. Any unwritten clause becomes a point of disagreement later, as both sides remember it differently.

People defend habits, not processes. Resistance comes from there.

My question might sound amateurish, sorry about that. Don't hesitate to ask; those who don't ask always pay more.

The biggest time-waster for us was not knowing who had the final say. This is my opinion, I'm not claiming it's absolute truth.

There's also a measurement aspect to this. The harder it is to reverse a decision the slower you should make it.

Let me share what happened to me; it might be useful. If acceptance criteria aren't written, when the work is done is open to debate.