Mistakes with PPC Campaigns Are Common—Here Are 5 to Avoid

Google Ads can be an incredibly powerful tool for generating leads, boosting sales, and increasing your brand’s overall visibility—but only when managed strategically. Many businesses dive into PPC with high hopes, only to end up frustrated with wasted budgets and little impact on the bottom line. Today, we’re discussing the top 5 reasons we see ad campaigns fail, and what you can do to avoid them. As always, if you have any questions about ad campaigns for your business, we’re happy to help!

Here are the top five common mistakes that cause Google PPC campaigns to fail—and how you can avoid wasting both time and money on unproductive ad campaigns:

1. Poor Keyword Targeting

Keywords are the lifeblood of Google PPC campaigns. They’re what matches your business with those looking for the goods and/or services that you offer. Choosing the wrong keywords—or failing to refine them—is easily one of the most common PPC mistakes.

Sometimes the issue is keywords that don’t drive enough traffic to make a difference, or only choosing a few extremely competitive keywords and not bidding enough to be competitive. Alternatively, broad or irrelevant keywords can attract clicks from users who have no intention of converting, and may inflate your metrics with high numbers but few (if any) actual conversions.

When it comes to keyword match types, leaving all of your keywords on “broad match” may be the default option, but very seldom is that the best long-term course of action. Google will often match these keywords with searches entirely irrelevant to your business, potentially wasting your budget on those who will never convert. It’s important to use keyword match types to mitigate this and keep as much control as possible over what searches your ads populate for.

Common mistakes:

• Targeting high-volume keywords without considering intent
• Ignoring long-tail keywords that capture more qualified traffic
• Not using negative keywords to filter out unqualified clicks

How to fix it:

• Focus on keywords that align with buyer intent (e.g., “schedule maintenance appointment” instead of just “maintenance”)
• Regularly review your Search Terms Report to add negative keywords
• Use phrase and exact match types strategically

2. Weak Ad Copy

Even if you’re targeting the right audience, bland or generic ad copy won’t inspire them to click or convert. Your ads need to stand out in a crowded search results page.

Think about what would motivate a potential customer to take that next step, and address it concisely and directly (remember, you only have a limited number of characters for each headline or description!) Vague copy without a call-to-action will likely see a potential customer scroll right on by.

Highlighting what sets your business apart or addressing the user’s needs right away can drive immediate results. For example, “Always Free Estimates” or “Emergency Service Available” is much more likely to motivate a user to click through or call than “HVAC Company” or “Air Conditioning.” Review your ad copy from the perspective of a potential customer, and you’ll set yourself up for success!

Common mistakes:

• Vague headlines with no clear value proposition
• No strong call to action (CTA)
• Ignoring ad extensions that enhance visibility

How to fix it:

• Highlight what sets you apart (e.g., “Free Shipping”, “24/7 Support”, “50% Off Today Only”)
• Include a clear CTA like “Get a Free Quote” or “Shop Now”
• Use ad extensions (sitelinks, callouts, structured snippets) to provide more info

3. Poor Landing Page Experience

Getting the click is only half the battle. If users land on a page that’s slow, cluttered, or irrelevant to their query, they’ll bounce—and you’ll still pay for that click.

Similar to the ad copy point above, think of things from the perspective of the customer: What do they want to do? What information do they need to be able to make their decision now? Can they take action on the landing page itself? How fast does the page load? Does the landing page position your business as credible?

Addressing all of these points positions your business to succeed once a user clicks through to the landing page.

Common mistakes:

• Sending all traffic to a generic homepage
• Slow page loading speed, especially on mobile
• Lack of a clear call to action or next step

How to fix it:

• Create dedicated landing pages that match your ad’s message and keyword intent
• Optimize for speed and mobile responsiveness
• Include trust signals like testimonials, security badges, and clear CTAs

4. Lack of Conversion Tracking

Without proper tracking, you’re essentially flying blind. You won’t know which ads or keywords are driving results—and which are wasting money. You also won’t know what users are doing on your site once they land there.

Proper tracking will not only let you know when a user converts, but also which keywords brought them to your site, and which ad variation was responsible. Comprehensive tracking can also tell you where users drop off once they get to your site, how long the average user spends on your site, and more.

Common mistakes:

• Not installing Google Ads or GA4 conversion tracking
• Tracking the wrong actions (like page views instead of purchases or leads)
• Not using tracking data to optimize the campaign

How to fix it:

• Set up conversion actions in Google Ads for your key goals (form submissions, purchases, etc.)
• Use tools like Google Tag Manager to implement tracking efficiently
• Analyze performance regularly and pause underperforming elements

5. Set-It-and-Forget-It Mentality

PPC campaigns need constant attention. Markets change, competitors adjust, and algorithms evolve. Neglecting your account leads to stagnation—or worse, budget bleed.

A high-performing campaign requires regular keyword research, bidding adjustments, alterations to ad copy, and even location targeting changes. Google will propose its own recommendations, but auto-applying them doesn’t guarantee increased performance.

The most important thing is staying on top of all of your campaigns, adjusting based on performance, market changes, and your business’s bandwidth. The more accustomed you get to reviewing past data and making adjustments accordingly, the better your long-term performance will be!

Common mistakes:

• Rarely reviewing or optimizing campaigns
• Leaving default settings untouched
• Ignoring A/B testing opportunities

How to fix it:

• Regularly review performance data and make adjustments
• Test new ad variations, bidding strategies, and keyword groups
• Stay up-to-date with Google Ads changes and best practices

Schedule an Exploratory with Armada Digital

Google PPC advertising can deliver incredible ROI, but only if approached with a cohesive strategy, attention to detail, and a willingness to test and iterate. If you avoid these five common PPC mistakes, it could save you thousands (or tens of thousands!) in wasted ad spend and team members’ time, and it can put your business on the path to paid search success.

Having trouble with an ad campaign or struggling with achieving a definitive ROI on your paid search advertising? Reach out to Armada Digital! We specialize in paid search ad campaigns across a wide range of industries. With years of experience, our team would love to talk with you!