Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising compared
Google handles most search volume in the US, so nearly every account starts there. Microsoft Advertising shows ads on Bing, Yahoo and partner sites, and its audience leans toward desktop and work computers. Some B2B advertisers find that worth testing once Google is running cleanly.
Microsoft lets you import campaigns straight from Google Ads. That gives you a starting point, though budgets, bid strategies, location settings and some assets come across differently and need checking after each import.
Management on either platform covers the same basics: keyword lists and match types, negative keywords, ad copy and assets, bidding, conversion tracking and a regular pass through the search terms. Running both means two sets of settings to watch and two invoices from the platforms, both paid by you.
Setup first, then upkeep
Search work falls into two phases, and quotes often price them differently.
Setup happens once. It covers account structure, campaigns grouped by service, keyword lists with match types chosen deliberately, a starting negative list, ads and assets, location and network settings, and conversion actions wired to your form and tested end to end. If an account already exists, setup starts with an audit and often a partial rebuild.
Upkeep is the recurring part. Someone reads search terms, adds negatives, adjusts bids or targets, refreshes ads, watches budgets against the calendar and checks that tracking still works after any site change. It also includes a regular summary for you.
Ask which phase a quote covers. Some providers include setup in the first month; others bill it separately.
Decisions only you can make
A provider can run the account, but some choices belong to the business. Expect to be asked about these early.
Budget. How much you are willing to spend on clicks each month, and whether that changes by season.
Services. Which work you want new requests for, and which you are already turning away. Advertising a service you cannot staff wastes spend.
What a lead is. A form fill with a work email might count; a newsletter signup probably should not. This choice drives conversion tracking and therefore how automated bidding behaves.
Claims and wording. What you are comfortable saying in an ad, and what your industry or counsel says you cannot.
Questions about search ads management
What counts as a conversion?
Whatever you decide is a lead, set up as a conversion action in Google Ads. For most B2B sites that is a completed quote form. Smaller actions such as page views can be recorded but should not be marked primary, because automated bidding learns from primary conversions.
Should Google's automatic recommendations be switched on?
Many managers turn off auto-apply and look at each recommendation by hand. Some are useful, such as fixing a missing asset. Others widen targeting or raise budgets. Ask your provider how they handle them, and check the change history now and then to see what was applied.
Does sending the form commit me to anything?
No. Your request is passed to a service partner who does the work. They will ask about your accounts, services and budget, then agree scope and quote you directly. Nothing is agreed until you accept their terms. See how it works for the steps.
A few details about your business is enough to begin. A service partner replies to you directly.
Get startedOther services
Social ads management
Ongoing campaign upkeep: new creative, audience tests, budget pacing and lead form syncing to your CRM.
Campaign pages
One page per offer or ad group, so the message a buyer clicked on is the first thing they read.
Tracking audits
A check of what your tags count today, what they miss and what they count twice, with a written list of fixes.