Hiring the wrong person doesn’t just waste time — it can cost you hundreds of thousands in missed deals. One of our Midwest wholesaling clients learned this the hard way.
They weren’t beginners. They closed consistently with cold calling and texting, and wanted to scale with inbound. Google Ads felt like the natural next step, so they brought it in-house, hiring a full-time employee to run ads. On paper: keep control, move fast, save on agency fees. In practice: that single decision nearly derailed a six-figure pipeline.
Where It Went Wrong
The new hire had theory, not scar tissue. Their setup showed it:
- Mixed broad/phrase/exact without structure.
- No tight geo targeting — ads showed in rural areas outside their buy box.
- No negative keywords — money burned on irrelevant searches.
- Default automations left on — Search blended with Display, flooding junk traffic.
Leads trickled in from the wrong areas (lots of mobile homes) and unmotivated sellers. They kept spending, hoping it would “optimize.” Months later: wasted budget, zero ROI, sinking morale, and leadership questioning whether Google Ads even works. They fired the employee — who then joined an agency to finally get hands-on training.
The Real Cost
This company was ready to scale: strong acquisitions, capital, systems. But trusting the wrong person with a critical growth channel cost nearly a year, tens of thousands in ad spend, and confidence in digital. It’s common: owners assume “tech-savvy” equals PPC-ready. It doesn’t. PPC is a craft learned by managing real budgets, making mistakes, and iterating with data.
The Turnaround
After seeing our post on Google Ads audits, they asked us to assess the account. We mapped the problems and the potential, then rebuilt from scratch:
- Preserved the few useful data points.
- Implemented a proven structure with high-intent keywords, segmented match types, and tested ad templates.
- Wrote compelling, market-specific copy.
We also designed a new landing page modeled on top competitors in their metro — but repositioned the brand as a legitimate, capital-backed cash buyer (not “just another investor”).
Result: Since starting working with us, they cleared over $100,000 in pure profit from inbound Google Ads deals (after acquisition and disposition agent costs). Not overnight — but predictable and repeatable.
Five Steps Behind the Results
- Restructure & Optimize: Keep what works, cut what doesn’t, and rebuild with clean campaign/ad group architecture, precise match-type strategy, and intent-driven keywords.
- High-Converting Landing Page: Borrow the best market patterns, then differentiate the brand — fast load, clear offer, trust signals, strong CTAs, and phone visibility.
- Relentless Lead-Quality Tracking: Shared tracking with the client; we scored leads, analyzed call notes, and iterated weekly.
- ROI Intelligence: Shift budget toward profitable geos, zip codes, and contract types; add negatives to block time-wasters.
- Plan for Profit: Set monthly ROI targets, then align spend, impression share, and bidding to hit them — consistently.
Each layer compounded the previous one, forming a durable system that now brings quality inbound seller leads month after month.
Final Thought
If you’re moving to digital and debating who should run your ads, remember: the wrong hire doesn’t just cost a salary — it kills momentum. Your best path is working with someone who can:
- Build the right structure from zero if you’re new to Google Ads, or
- Audit and repair your current setup to produce consistent, profitable results.
Experience matters — and so does knowing what to measure and when to pivot. You don’t get to $100,000 (let alone more then that) by chance. You get there with a planned, data-driven, relentlessly optimized process — especially in the volatile world of real estate.
