Google Ads Search campaign build
Search is the campaign type where a bad structure costs you fastest. Every click is a query someone typed.
Get the keywords right and you are paying for intent. Get them wrong and you are paying the same money for people researching, looking for a free version, hunting for a job, or shopping for a competitor.
All of that is decided before the campaign goes live. The work below is how it gets decided. You can do it yourself, or have it done once, properly, for $129.
One-off price · No subscription · No access to your Google Ads account · Delivered within 24 hours
Every build checked by Sean Cooney before it is sent.
Running Google Ads since 2001.
Executive summary
Your Search campaign in plain English — what was built and why
Campaign overview
Brand, landing page, goal, conversion type, order value
Strategy & budget allocation
The thinking, and how budget splits across your ad groups
Keyword candidates
The wider list considered, with why each was kept or held back
Validated keywords
Every keyword researched, with its real search data
Landing page readiness
What the page needs fixed before you send traffic to it
One tab per ad group
Theme, mindset, keywords at their match types, copy, Final URL
Negative keywords
With match type and the reason for each
Budget analysis & forecast
Estimated clicks, conversion rate, conversions and CPA
Caveats & considerations
Honest notes, assumptions, and what to watch
Pre-launch checklist
The settings that quietly drain budgets, in order
Not a template with your name dropped in. Every tab is built from your business, your site and live search data.
Download a complete sample build — free, no emailThe number of ad group tabs depends on your business, not on a package tier.
What this actually takes
Nobody charges $129 for a Search build because nobody wants to do this part.
Every line below is a job you would otherwise do yourself, in Keyword Planner and a blank spreadsheet, hoping you picked right. They run in this order on purpose — each one depends on the decision above it, which is why a campaign assembled out of order never quite works.
| The job | Doing it yourself | Your time |
|---|---|---|
| STEP 01Strategy, before anything else | What you sell, who actually buys it, what your break-even will carry, and why they would choose you. Every decision below follows from this one. Google does not make it for you and no template can make it for you either. | 1–24 hrsdepends how well you know your buyer |
| STEP 02Keyword research, at exact and phrase | Live monthly volume, cost-per-click and competition — read at exact and at phrase, because that is where the match type decides itself. We never use broad match in an initial build. Pulling the data is the easy half; knowing which terms are worth having is the other half. | 2–12 hrs |
| STEP 03Narrowing candidates to a launch set | Grouping what you found by what the searcher is actually trying to do — still researching, comparing, or ready to buy — then deciding what launches and what waits. The build keeps the rejects too, with the reason, so the thinking stays visible. | 10 min – 4 hrs10 minutes with software, 4 hours by hand |
| STEP 04Ad groups themed by intent | Each group built around one thing the searcher wants, with its own buyer mindset, keyword focus, budget share and Final URL — and brand isolated so it is measured and protected separately. Loosely themed groups are why the ad never quite matches the query. | 1–5 hrs |
| STEP 05Responsive search ad copy | Headlines and descriptions for every ad group, character-counted, with pin recommendations and display paths. Each line has to stand alone, because Google mixes them in any order. Google will offer suggestions — generic ones, aimed at nothing in particular. | 10 min – 4 hrsper ad group |
| STEP 06Negative keywords | Freebie seekers, informational searches, job hunters, competitor brands — each with the right match type and the reason it is there. Knowing what to exclude before it has cost you anything is experience, and experience is the part you are actually buying. | 30 min – 2 hrs |
| STEP 07Budget forecast and health checks | Your costs, your conversion rate, your click-through rate, and a blended CPC weighted across your ad groups. Not everyone is mathematically inclined, and this is exactly where that bites. It can also tell you something more useful: that Google Ads is the wrong platform for what you sell. | —not hours — whether the numbers work at all |
| STEP 08Landing page readiness | Five minutes a page to analyse, if you already know what you are looking for. Then you have to know which fixes matter, and then actually make them. The build hands you the analysis and the suggested fixes; implementing them is still yours. | 5 minper page — analysis only |
| STEP 09Pre-launch checklist | The Display Network box ticked by default. Locations set to “presence or interest”. The setting that quietly rewrites every keyword to broad match. Auto-apply recommendations adding keywords you never chose. Thirty minutes to work through — the harder part is having the list at all. | 30 min |
| STEP 10Getting it into Google Ads | Typing the whole thing in by hand — campaign, ad groups, every keyword at its match type, copy, pins, negatives, settings. Tedious, and easy to get wrong in ways you will not notice for a fortnight. | 2 hrsor add the upload for $79 |
| Total | About a day if you have done it before, own the software, and the business is simple. Past a working week if you are learning as you go, or you have more than a couple of ad groups. Most people find that out partway through. | 7–50+ hrs |
One thing worth saying plainly: if the numbers say Google Ads is the wrong place to spend your money, the build tells you so. Better to find that out from a spreadsheet than from three months of budget.
All of it, done and checked by a human, in your inbox within 24 hours.
Build my Search campaign — $129Inside the workbook
Real rows from a real build.
Not a template with your name dropped in. Every tab is built from the strategy for your business, a crawl of your own site, and live search data for your own market. Here are three, from a build for a demo retailer.
Responsive search ad copy, counted
| Headline | Pin | Chars |
|---|---|---|
| Dual-Motor Standing Desks | Position 1 | 25/30 |
| Free Delivery Over $99 | — | 22/30 |
| Sit-Stand In One Touch | — | 22/30 |
| Built For Long Days At The Desk | Position 3 | 31/90 |
Negatives, with reasons
| free standing desk | Freebie seeker |
| standing desk jobs | Job hunter |
| how to build a standing desk | Informational |
| ikea bekant | Competitor brand |
The keywords you did not launch with, and why
A separate tab holds the wider candidate list considered before narrowing to your launch set — each one with its suggested match type and the reason it was kept or held back. Most builds show you what you got. This one shows you what was weighed up and rejected, which is the part you would otherwise have to work out yourself.
Every tab in the workbook
How many of each you get depends on your business and the strategy it needs — not on a package tier.
Executive summary
Your Search campaign in plain English — what was built and why
Campaign overview
Brand, landing page, goal, conversion type, average order value
Strategy & budget allocation
The thinking, and how budget splits across your ad groups
Keyword candidates
The wider list considered, with why each was kept or held back
Validated keywords
Every keyword researched, with its real search data
Landing page readiness
What the page needs fixed before you send traffic to it
One tab per ad group
Theme, mindset, keywords at their match types, copy, Final URL
Negative keywords
With match type and the reason for each
Budget analysis & forecast
Estimated clicks, conversion rate, conversions and CPA
Caveats & considerations
Honest notes, assumptions, and what to keep an eye on
Pre-launch checklist
The settings that quietly drain budgets, in order
The complete workbook. Free, no email.
Three steps, then it is in your inbox.
01
Pay once
No subscription, no retainer, nothing recurring, no card on file.
02
Tell us about the business
A short form about your business, not about Google Ads — your website, what you sell, who buys it, where you operate, your budget. No jargon, and nothing you need a marketing degree to answer. The more you tell us, the sharper the build.
03
Get the reviewed build
Built, checked by a human, and delivered as a spreadsheet you own — within 24 hours.
Five ways to get a Search campaign set up.
Most people are choosing between an agency, a freelancer, Google's own setup, or doing it themselves. Here is the honest comparison.
| Option | What it costs | Time to launch | Ongoing commitment |
|---|---|---|---|
| A Google Ads agency | $1,000–3,000 a month, often a setup fee on top | Two to four weeks | Monthly retainer, commonly a three-month minimum |
| A freelance consultant | $500–1,500 one-off | One to two weeks | None — but keyword research quality varies enormously between specialists |
| Google's free setup | Free | Days | None — but it favours broad match, adds keywords you did not choose, and gives you no negative list |
| Do it yourself | Everything in the table above | However long the keyword research takes | None |
| An Omologist campaign build | $129, one-off | 24 hours | None. No retainer, no account access, no subscription. |
There is a version of this where the agency is the right answer. If you want a specialist working the search terms report every week and moving budget between ad groups, hire one — that is a management service and this is not it. If what you need is the keyword research done properly and the structure right before you spend anything, you are paying a retainer for work you only need once.
Running Performance Max as well?
Search captures the people already typing what you sell. Performance Max finds demand across Shopping, Display, YouTube, Discover and Gmail. Buy them together and the two builds are structured to work as one account rather than bidding against each other — with brand isolated so PMax does not cannibalise your Search brand traffic.
Questions, answered.
Do you need access to my Google Ads account?
No. You receive a spreadsheet. Nothing is touched in your account, and no login is ever requested.
How many keywords do I get?
As many as the strategy needs, and no more. A single-service business does not need eight ad groups and will not be given eight. You also get the wider candidate list we considered, so you can see what was weighed up and held back.
What if I do not know how to answer your questions?
You do not need a marketing background. The questionnaire asks about your business, not about Google Ads, and it is written to draw out what we need in plain language. Answer in your own words. There are no wrong answers — only thin ones, and those make for a thinner build.
What if I already have a campaign running?
The build is written to stand on its own, so you can launch it alongside what you have and compare, or rebuild the existing campaign from it. Nothing is changed in your account either way — the decision stays yours.
Why not just use Google's free setup?
It optimises for Google's revenue. It favours broad match, adds keywords you did not choose, and will not write you a negative keyword list — which is where most wasted Search spend actually goes.
Do you offer ongoing management?
No, deliberately. This is a one-off build you own and run yourself. If you want someone working the search terms report every week, an agency is the right answer.
What if the build is not quite right?
Tell us. If we spot it in our own review, we come back to you before it is sent. If you spot it when it lands, get in touch and we will work through it with you and send another reviewed sheet. The one real limit is information — we can only build from what you tell us, which is why the questionnaire is worth taking your time over.
Do I need images or video?
No — and this is where Search is simpler than Performance Max. Search ads are text. There is nothing to shoot, buy or generate before you can launch.
Have the hard part done, and keep the campaign.
A complete Search build, checked by a human, in your inbox within 24 hours. You keep the spreadsheet. You keep your account. You decide when it goes live.
Build my Search campaign — $129Launch price. Normally $199.