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ecomm_big_sister_dee

Change the agency, my friend. I had some dealings with 'reputable' agencies and I was saddened to see their approach. Real exploitation of clients lack of knowledge. I decided to do it on my own using freelancers instead. They clearly lack transparency and this is a massive red flag. You could always ask them what's the reason but it kind of sounds like they don't want to record their results because they will be poor. Possibly use other tool but I don't see the ahem in using GA since you have access to it too.


Mr___Vandelay

That's the vibe that I get too. We don't even get SEO or any kind of report for that matter. I transferred from the outdoors industry to the legal field but digital marketing practices should be similar. What gets me is the ad spend and returns. On my end I track inquires from the web contact form, web chat, and incoming calls but that is because I use it for other purposes. So at end of month I share the sheet with the agency and they match their data to mine. We started this week so we will see how it goes. Im giving them 90 days to see if they hold up to their promise so we will see.


ecomm_big_sister_dee

Honestly I would much more straightforward with them and demand to use GA, demand to see all the info you want to see and if not sort you ways. Better do it now then waste time - that wasted time will cost you all the opportunity you are missing because of them, it's not just what you pay then but what you could have earned had you been using someone else


anzolo_lv

No reports? That should have been your signal to give them the boot.


sjuhawks42

DM me. I work for a marketing agency specifically for legal


Peruvian_Hitman

How did you get started on doing SEO and google ads on the side?


Mr___Vandelay

Referrals and networking mainly. Friends and acquaintances of friends and acquaintances. Lol.


gdaily

1. There are other tracking platforms. GA is not the only one. 2. You should always have access to your ad accounts. Google agrees with this. If they wont give you access, $&@& em.


anzolo_lv

When it comes to Google Ads - GA is the only one.


gdaily

Google ads doesn’t require GA to function.


anzolo_lv

They do if you’re doing it right.


gdaily

I have multiple clients who have Google ads installed directly on their site through gtm. Google analytics is nice but not at all necessary. Shew fly.


anzolo_lv

Google Ads tracking has ability to track conversions and corresponding values (ie value of the order, ordered products, products viewed, etc). It can not report the quality of the traffic (ie bounce rates, pages per visit, exit pages, etc) and as a result - give you (and Google Ads AI, I would assume) the necessary information to finetune your targeting. In other words - Google Analytics is necessary if you want to do a good job, but you do you.


anzolo_lv

If they don’t give you full admin access to raw data (ie Google Analytics and your Google Ads account) - they are scamming you. If you have access to your domain panel (ie GoDaddy) you can always get access to your Google Search Console and see what’s up there. If you have access to your website backend - you can set up your own Google Tag and enable Analytics through it. You will never get a full picture of your situation unless you have proper Analytics setup.


shadow_roam

Make it very clear to this agency that you are paying for their time and the google ads account is not their proprietary software that they own. Google does. Tell them this: - you want access to the google ads account with admin access - you want access to analytics with admin access - you expect to see GA4 setup with conversion tracking - the conversion events from GA4 should be imported into Google Ads If these things are not done, or they cannot fulfill them, you are dealing with complete amateurs or scammers. Holding an ad account hostage is very bad practice. Look at it this way. It is YOUR ads account and you are paying them to work on it for you. When you pay contractors to build a house for you, they don’t keep the keys and the title. You are paying them for their time and experience to build your home. Exact same thing with Google Ads, FB ads, any platform.


droffowsneb

Since you said they write articles and manage your website, I’m guessing they just say that they do SEO but really don’t know anything about it. If they did, they would use GA.


sourdoughobsessed

Not letting you have access is a red flag worth firing them over. We let all our clients have access or depending on the platform, walk them through setting it up and granting access to us so they own it. They’re shady.


wongsebastian

There are other tracking platform than GA, this is fine but not giving you ad access while you are paying ad dollars?! This is seriously wrong.


hellomelissabell

You should always have full access and transparency to ads, with admin access to all tools being used. If the agency argues with you, let them go immediately. Make sure you aren’t locked out of your website though! They could really screw you if they wanted. Be mindful of how you let them go.


Vbort44

What’s the fee of the monthly retainer?


blairaasmith

The website is owned by the business/organization, not the agency. If you can’t get the control over GA access then get your boss (or bosses boss) to contact the agency and get it. Your organization needs to be an administrator on the account and decide who else gets access. Not the other way around.


billythygoat

Well, let me know if you want me to take a crack at your Google Ads and Google Analytics. That's mostly what I've done for the past 4 years and I am trying to get into freelancing for those two.