KeySendHow to read a Google Ads report as a business owner
Published · Updated · KeySend
Read a Google Ads report in this order: the dates and the comparison, what counts as a conversion, what you paid for each result, and what the agency plans next. You do not need to learn every setting. You need a report that answers those four points, and your own access to the account so you can check it.
Check the dates and the comparison first
Every number in the report belongs to a date range. Find it before you read anything else. Then find what the report compares it with: the previous period, the same period last year, or a target. A percentage without its comparison tells you very little.
Look for the absolute numbers next to each percentage. In a hypothetical report, “conversions up 50%” could mean 4 became 6, or 400 became 600. The first is a small sample that can move by chance. The second is a real shift in volume. Both percentages are correct, and they support very different decisions.
Also check that the two periods are fair to compare. A 31-day month against a 28-day month, a period with a holiday sale, or a week when the website was down will all distort the comparison. A good report says so next to the number.
Find out what a conversion means in your account
A conversion in Google Ads is whatever the account has been set up to count. It can be a purchase, a contact form, a phone call longer than a set duration, or a visit to a thank-you page. Some accounts count several of these at once. Ask your agency to name, in plain words, every action that goes into the number you see in the report.
Google Ads has two columns that are easy to confuse. The “Conversions” column counts primary conversion actions only. The “All conv.” column also includes secondary actions, which Google reports but does not use for bidding. If one report uses “Conversions” and the next uses “All conv.”, the totals are not comparable. You can see the list of actions yourself in Google Ads under Goals, then Conversions, then Summary.
Then ask how many conversions became real business. If the account records 60 form fills and your team says 20 were genuine enquiries, both numbers belong in the conversation. Google Ads only knows what the website or phone system tells it.
The numbers that matter most
A report can contain dozens of columns. These are the ones most owners need, with the question each one answers. Column names are as they appear in Google Ads.
| Column | What it tells you | Question to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | What you spent in the date range | Is this in line with the budget we agreed? |
| Conversions | How many primary conversion actions were recorded | Which actions are counted here? |
| Cost / conv. | Cost divided by conversions | What is a conversion worth to us, and is this below it? |
| Conv. value / cost | Conversion value divided by cost (often called ROAS) | Is the value real revenue or an assigned estimate? |
| Conv. rate | Conversions divided by interactions | Did the website or offer change in this period? |
| Clicks | Visits from ads | Did more visits turn into more results? |
A worked example
A hypothetical plumbing company spends $2,400 in a month and Google Ads records 48 conversions. “Cost / conv.” is $2,400 ÷ 48 = $50. That looks fine if a new job is worth $400.
Now the office reviews the 48 enquiries and finds 18 genuine jobs. The cost per genuine job is $2,400 ÷ 18 = $133. That is still profitable at $400 per job, but the picture is different. If the agency only reports $50, you cannot judge whether to raise the budget. Ask them to report both figures, and agree who supplies the count of genuine jobs each month.
Separate what happened from why it happened
A report should state what happened, then offer an explanation with its evidence. These are two different claims. “Conversions fell from 40 to 31” is a fact you can check in the account. “Conversions fell because a competitor raised bids” is an explanation, and it needs evidence such as Auction insights data or a change in cost per click.
Weak explanations are common because the report author is under pressure to have an answer. Here is the same point written two ways:
- Weak: “Performance dipped this month due to market conditions.”
- Clear: “Conversions fell from 40 to 31. Clicks were flat, so fewer visitors converted. The contact form broke on the 12th and was fixed on the 15th. We think most of the drop came from those three days; we will confirm next month.”
Make sure you own the account
The Google Ads account should belong to your business, and someone at your business should have Admin access. Admin users can give and remove access, which matters if you ever change agency. To check, open Google Ads and go to Admin, then Access and security. The “Access level” column shows who has which level.
Google offers several levels. Read-only users can see campaigns and run performance reports but cannot edit campaigns. Email-only users receive notification emails and reports. If you only want to look, Read-only access is enough to check the numbers in your report against the account. Read more about how KeySend works with business owners who want to see their own Google Ads results.
Why recent numbers may change
The standard conversion columns in Google Ads count a conversion on the date of the ad click, not on the date the customer bought. If someone clicks on the 30th and buys on the 2nd, the sale appears on the 30th, and it appears only after the 2nd. So the last days of any period can gain conversions after the report is sent.
Google also notes that reporting metrics can be updated one or more days after an event, for example when invalid traffic is removed. A good agency tells you which recent numbers may still move, and updates you if a later check changes the picture. Treat a report that never mentions this with some caution, especially when the report is sent on the 1st or 2nd of the month.
Questions to ask your agency or freelancer
Bring these to the next review. A good provider can answer each one in a sentence or two.
- Which actions count as a conversion, and did that list change this period?
- What is the cost per genuine lead or sale, using our own records?
- Which campaign produced most of the change, up or down?
- What did you change in the account this period, and how will you judge each change?
- Which numbers in this report may still change?
- What do you recommend next, what will it cost, and what do you need from us?
- When will we review the result, and what result would make us stop?
Use the report to make a decision
A report is useful when it changes what you do next: keep the budget, raise it, fix the website, or test a new offer. If you finish reading and cannot name a decision, ask for a shorter report with one clear recommendation.
Keep each report and the decisions you made from it. At the next review, start with last month's actions before you look at new charts. If an action did not happen, that is worth knowing. If you work with an agency and want a second view of the account, see how KeySend helps agency clients follow their Google Ads account.
