This document discusses the need for PPC agencies to provide expert-level service across technical, business, and reporting domains in order to avoid wasting clients' budgets. It argues that agencies must have deep technical skills to handle the complexity of platforms like Google Ads, as well as strong business acumen to tie campaigns to business metrics and goals. Agencies are also advised to provide transparent reporting that directly aligns with clients' internal metrics. The document stresses that agencies must work to continually align clients' business processes with digital opportunities and achieve extraordinary results through leveraging internal wins and reconsidering resource allocation. The overall message is that clients should seek agencies that can perform at an expert level across these different areas of expertise.

1. Is Your PPC Agency
Wasting Your
Budget?
Joe Khoei, SalesX
#SEJThinkTank

3. Joe Khoei
CEO, SalesX
● Obsessed with Internet Marketing since 1998
● Formal background Industrial Tech & Business Administration
● 3 Years Quality Engineering & Process Development
● 10 years Enterprise Software Sales & Finance
● Running SalesX since 01-01-2010
● Shake Me Awake Answer: Create Business Value
#SEJThinkTank

4. #SEJThinkTank
• Who is this for? What will you learn?
What’s the problem?
• Compared to PPC the most
complicated Swiss watch is like a
child’s toy (need tech chops)
• It applies to multiple elements in
your business (need biz chops)
• There are tons of things to hide
behind (need ethics / transparency)
• Challenges the status quo (could
need reengineering)
Is Your Agency Making You a Hero?

5. Technical Ability
● Class C License vs. NASCAR vs. Formula1
(AW Certified vs. UI agencies vs. Script Pros)
● AdWords alone has 45+ features
● F1 level minimum account maintenance
contains 25+ different functions
● Pit crew is at least 5 people on tap
● On top of that you need big brother to monitor
your KPIs, progress, and resource allocation
with active alerts on an hourly basis
#SEJThinkTank

6. Sorry, Vacheron Constanin
#SEJThinkTank

7. Business Acumen
● Business Value, pinned down
● More than just “Increase Direct Income”
○ 19 dials, definitions, and calculations*
● Let’s do the math: 47 x 26 x 19 = 23,218
● When your PPP is not your PPP (Example)
● .˙. 80/20 is insufficient; go for 96/4 or better
* https://sites.google.com/a/salesx.com/salesx/home/selling-on-business-value
#SEJThinkTank

8. Reporting Transparency
● Problem: Subject to Interpretation
○ Solution: Design to Match Internal Metrics
● If unable to, then find out why?
○ Data won’t allow it? Tech chops
○ Unsure what you mean? Biz chops
○ Management disallows it? Conflict of
Interest (avoid like the plague)
● Between Google Data Studio and AdWords
Scripts you can make the data do the Tango,
the Mamba, and the Merengue
#SEJThinkTank

9. Reporting Transparency Example
#SEJThinkTank

10. Business Process Alignment
● La Presse 1836 vs. Hot Wired 1994
○ 181 vs. 23 ∆ = 158 years
● WoM vs. Web
● Business Process Reengineering
● Grown men weeping (Example)
#SEJThinkTank

11. Business Process Alignment Example
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12. Extraordinary Results
● Leveraging Internal Winnings
● Reconsider resource allocation
● Much to gain; 10% down, 90% to go
● Get out of the weeds
#SEJThinkTank

13. Summary
To achieve the upward spiral your agency must:
● Tackle an increasingly complex technical
landscape
● Mesh it with your Business Value Dials of
choice
● Report on it the way your company consumes
information
● And coach you through the intricacies of
Digital
What am I saying?
Get The Experts To Do Expert’s Work
#SEJThinkTank

14. Poll Question
What is keeping you from increasing
your PPC spend?
#SEJThinkTank

15. #SEJThinkTank
Thank You!
Joe Khoei
CEO, SalesX

16. #SEJThinkTank
Aaron LevySr. Team Lead, Elite SEM
aaron@elitesem.com
Aaron has been in digital for over a decade, starting when he was “given the
keys to the car” and ran PPC for DuPont as a college junior. Over the course
of his career, Aaron has developed internship programs, created education
programs and built teams from the ground up.
Now a Sr. Team Lead at Elite SEM, he oversees a growing team across North
America (affectionately known as Team RumHam) who manage digital for
some of the largest brands in the world.
In addition to his duties as a STL, Aaron’s a sought after international speaker,
an adjunct instructor at Drexel & University of Vermont, and has been
shortlisted for marketer of the year by Search Engine Land. He moonlights as
a golfer, hockey player, cyclist and claims to be the industry’s top chef.

17. What
happens
when
results
plateau?
#SEJThinkTank

18. #SEJThinkTank
Understanding the WHY
• Ask your partners to unpack the results you’re
seeing and understand what’s happening in the
landscape.
• Figure out the role of the business vs. the
market when it comes to plateauing results.

19. #SEJThinkTank
Explore the role of other channels
• Unpack the root cause of the plateau, are you
finding a lack of brand search volume? Maybe
it’s time to boost your display efforts
• Finding that PPC efforts have soared at the
cost of other channels? Maybe it’s time to re-
evaluate your proportion of remarketing spend.
• Lack of new customers? Perhaps its time to
figure out where people heard of your brand
first and re-invest your money there.

20. #SEJThinkTank
Be willing to invest in new
technology.
• Bid management technology can help you (or
the agency) automate the simple things.
• Make a time investment in Scripts. Isolate
under or high performing language strings (n-
grams) over a long period of time.
• Invest in CRO. If you can lift conversion rates by
just a hair (5-10% lift) your plateau is gone.

21. “
#SEJThinkTank
The most
dangerous phrase
in the language is
we‘ve always done
it this way
Grace Hopper
Rear Admiral, USN

22. #SEJThinkTank
Re-evaluate Old Tests + Budget Alignment
• A test that failed in 2015 could succeed with flying colors today.
• Evaluate the role of audiences (customer match, similar audiences, in market + more)
to see which fit your old efforts and your new business.
• Consider a NOW | NEW | NEXT budget to encourage innovation and continual testing.
70% 20% 10%

23. When to
fire and
how to hire
an agency
#SEJThinkTank

24. #SEJThinkTank
It's EXPENSIVE
to fire an
agency.
Firing should be your
last resort!

25. #SEJThinkTank
Analyze the agreement.
• Do you have an out clause?
• Elite has a 2 day out clause, many have a 30
day out clause but for larger contracts, it may
be a much longer term.
• Plan accordingly! Know that if you have an
annualized contract you’ll need to have your
research done at just the right time.

26. #SEJThinkTank
Do your research before you
pull the plug
• Don’t sell the house before you have a new place to live.
• Give potential partners access in the sales process, but
unless the relationship is out of control, do your best to
keep it hidden from the existing agency.
• If you throw them into a panic you’ll likely see a weird
interruption in service along with executives poking their
head in trying to make things right.

27. #SEJThinkTank
Give enough notice to get your job done
• A month’s notice to the existing agency is probably too much. Two weeks
is likely fine
• Get access to all of your accounts if you don’t have them already. It’s rare
for an agency to hold accounts hostage.
• Collect all reports, test documents and long term presentations for the new
agency. The new team may not use them, but they can’t hurt either.
• Unlink old tools and terminate access, but give them time for billing done!

28. #SEJThinkTank
Leave on
a Positive
Note

29. Evaluate +
Select a
New Partner
#SEJThinkTank

30. #SEJThinkTank
1: Develop a common
criteria for evaluation
• We put a scorecard together for those of you
who are shopping, evaluating transparency,
relationship, expertise and fit.
bit.ly/agencyevaluation

31. #SEJThinkTank
2: A bridge between Expertise + Experience
• The people who you speak with must demonstrate an ability to do their job well.
• You’re not paying for amateurs. The agency should have a POV on industry changes.
• Does the team have relevant experience in your industry?
• A team of experts, a team of interns or something in between?
• Years of experience may not be the best proxy for a skilled PPC manager
• Focus on identifying how the agency tests, reacts + plans

32. #SEJThinkTank
Poll Question
How do you hope
for an agency to
“pay for itself?”
1. Results – their improved performance
should cover their fees.
1. Time savings – I’m paying them so I don’t
have to do it.
1. A hybrid – Results should be a little better
and I should invest a little less time
1. Agencies are money grubbing scum

33. #SEJThinkTank
3: Evaluate your idea of value
• Is the agency high or low touch? Which do you
prefer?
• How does the agency measure success? Do
they report on their metrics or business
outcomes
• Decide ideal communication cadence, and who
you call if there’s an emergency. Is the agency
willing to be available, or are they off limits?

34. #SEJThinkTank
“If all you have
is a hammer,
everything
looks like a
nail
Abraham Maslow

35. #SEJThinkTank
4: Understand the technology suite
• Make sure the agency’s technology of choice
supports your marketing goals.
• Nobody wants the same car forever –
understand how often the agency evaluates
technologies and whether they take a test drive.
• Get an idea for how the agency monitors
competition, both of yours and of their own.

36. #SEJThinkTank
5: Secure a cultural fit
• Cultural fit is the most important aspect of a relationship. Your new team must be
passionate, proud and motivated.
• Make sure the new structure works for you. Be it a single person or a dozen, you
know how they’re motivated and how they interact with your business.
• Ask to meet the team or someone like them. Most agencies won’t hold bandwidth,
but get to know people who will actually do the work.

37. #SEJThinkTank
6: Find pricing that works for everybody
• Don’t beat up the agency too bad in the negotiation
process. Remember, it’s all give and take.
• Align contract terms with business needs. A snappy
out clause is nice, but it goes both ways.
• Ensure there’s some form of performance incentive.
Be it percentage of media spend, a reward for good
performance or something else entirely, keep
everyone motivated!

38. #SEJThinkTank
Find People
You’ll Love
To Work
With

39. #SEJThinkTank
Thank You!
Aaron Levy
Sr. Team Lead, Elite SEM
aaron@elitesem.com