Your first 30 days of Google Ads: a week-by-week plan

Quick answer: Your first 30 days of Google Ads: launch with tight keywords, review search terms weekly, fix tracking early and judge on cost per lead.

The first month of a Google Ads campaign sets the tone for everything after it. Here’s a week-by-week plan to launch properly without wasting budget.

Before launch

• Conversion tracking working and tested. Read conversion tracking setup.
• One Search campaign focused on your most profitable service.
• Tight keyword list (exact and phrase match). Read choosing keywords.
• Negative keyword list in place. Read negative keywords.
• Location set to “Presence” and your real service area.
• Ads written for each ad group, with sitelinks, callouts and a call asset.
• A fast, relevant landing page.

Week 1: Watch, don’t fiddle

• Check daily that ads are running and spending.
• Review search terms every two or three days and add negatives.
• Answer every enquiry fast.
• Avoid big changes to budgets or bidding. The system needs data.

Week 2: First clean-up

• Review search terms again, adding negatives and promising new keywords.
• Pause any keywords with lots of clicks and clearly irrelevant intent.
• Check device and location reports for anything unusual.
• Make sure conversions are recording as expected.

Week 3: Look for patterns

• Which ad groups and keywords produce enquiries?
• Which ads have better click-through and conversion rates?
• Is the landing page converting? If clicks are fine but enquiries are low, focus on the page. Read why people visit your page and leave.
• Add a new ad variation to test against the best performer.

Week 4: First real decisions

• Compare cost per enquiry against what a customer is worth.
• Move budget towards the best-performing ad groups.
• If you have steady conversions, consider moving from Maximise clicks to Maximise conversions. Read Smart Bidding explained.
• Track which enquiries became paying customers.

After 30 days

Keep a weekly routine: search terms, negatives, ad tests and a check on enquiries and costs. Bigger changes (new campaigns, new services, broad match tests) come once the core campaign is profitable.

Sources and further reading

• Google Ads Help Centre