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Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
Google's recommendations aren't there to help you. They're there to help Google.
Most paid search accounts I audit are bleeding 10–30% of spend on waste nobody's looked at carefully in a year. Wrong match types. Unfiltered placements. Broad-targeting "recommendations" accepted because the rep said so. Performance Max chasing anything that moves.
That's how spend goes up and pipeline doesn't.
What the work covers
- Google Ads — Search, Display, Shopping, YouTube, Performance Max
- Microsoft Ads (Bing) — the most underused channel in B2B paid search, usually 20–30% cheaper than Google for the same intent
- Performance Max — audience signals, asset groups, brand exclusions, cannibalization checks, category-fit decisions
- Google Recommendations filtering — which to implement, which to quietly ignore, which will silently tank your account
- Match type and negative keyword hygiene — fundamentals that drift over time
- Placement and location exclusions — one of the highest-ROI moves most teams don't do systematically
- Tracking and attribution — if your conversion data is lying, every optimization decision downstream is wrong. I check this first, always.
Who it's for
Companies spending real money on paid search who want to know where it's going:
- B2B SaaS and fintech running Google + Microsoft
- D2C and ecommerce running Google Shopping + PMax
- Lead gen businesses running high-volume search
- Agencies that need a senior operator on client accounts they can't staff
- Private equity portfolio companies where the paid search budget needs adult supervision
Not a fit: under $5K/month (invest in SEO first) or in-house teams with a full Google partner relationship already in place.
For Meta, LinkedIn, and social paid work, see Social Media Marketing →.
Experience behind it
Over $1M/month of managed paid media across my career at peak. Nearly seven years at iCore Marketing across $600K/month in managed client spend. A decade at Mean Sun running $1M+/month in client ad budgets. I know what a healthy Google Ads account looks like because I've built and fixed hundreds of them.
Further reading: Why Google's Recommendations Are Mostly Traps →
Send me a screenshot of your biggest-spend paid search channel → — I'll tell you the three things I'd change first. Five minutes, no pitch.
Frequently asked questions
What is SEM and how is it different from SEO?
SEM (Search Engine Marketing) is paid search advertising — Google Ads, Microsoft Ads, Shopping, YouTube, and Performance Max. SEO is organic. SEM drives immediate traffic once campaigns launch; SEO compounds over months. Most healthy marketing programs use both because they capture different search intent at different parts of the buyer journey.
Why is my Google Ads account underperforming?
Most paid search accounts are bleeding 10-30% of spend on waste that compounds over time — wrong match types, unfiltered placements, accepted Google recommendations, and Performance Max campaigns optimizing for anything that moves. An audit identifies the specific leaks and prioritizes fixes by expected impact.
Should I accept Google's account recommendations?
Selectively. Some recommendations legitimately help performance; others optimize for Google's revenue at your expense. Common traps include auto-applied broad match, aggressive budget recommendations, and Performance Max changes that cannibalize your search campaigns. Treat recommendations as a queue to evaluate, not a list to accept.
Do I need Microsoft Ads (Bing) or is Google enough?
Microsoft Ads is one of the most underused channels in B2B paid search — usually 20-30% cheaper than Google for the same search intent. Most accounts should run it once they've scaled beyond $10K/month on Google. The audiences are different enough to capture incremental traffic, not just cheaper duplicates.
How do I know if Performance Max is working for my business?
Performance Max works well for some categories and poorly for others. It's often a trap for B2B and considered-purchase businesses because it optimizes for volume rather than quality. It's usually strong for ecommerce and transactional B2C. The key is auditing whether it's driving incremental conversions or cannibalizing what your search campaigns would have captured anyway.
What should I budget for SEM consulting?
SEM engagement budgets scale with account size. Accounts under $5K/month in spend usually don't justify consulting cost — invest in SEO first. Accounts between $10K and $1M+/month benefit most from senior operator review. I work with clients in that range.
How much does SEM consulting cost?
SEM engagements are scoped to account size and complexity. Accounts between $10K and $1M+/month in managed spend benefit most from senior operator review. Typical ranges: $4K–$6K for a one-time account audit, $8K–$12K/month for ongoing account oversight at 10–15 hours per week.
Is SEM consulting worth it on a small budget?
Accounts under $5K/month in ad spend usually don't justify consulting cost — the economics don't work. At that scale, investing in SEO first typically produces better returns. Consulting cost makes sense when the account is large enough that waste reduction or performance improvement exceeds the consulting fee.