Read What The Other PPC Experts Read

For years, I worked for agencies, I worked in house, I write daily on LinkedIn, I write for the PPC industry.

Now, I am rewriting those PPC strategies for YOU (Business Owners)

How to Calculate Your Google Ads Daily Budget: The "Reverse-Budget" Formula

Picking a budget isn't a guessing game; it's a math problem. Most small businesses fail not because their ads are bad, but because they are "Deficit Budgeting." In this technical guide, I break down the exact formula I use to audit enterprise accounts. Find out if your current budget is mathematically impossible before you spend another dime.

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Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen

When to Bring Google Ads In-House: Stop Paying Agency Fees for "Maintenance"

Most companies think they only have two options for running paid search campaigns: pay an expensive PPC agency retainer forever or fire them and go it alone.

There is a third option. Here is how to identify if your business has "graduated" from the PPC build phase, and how to switch to a strategic advisory model that saves agency fees while protecting PPC performance.

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Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen

Stop Budget Chaos: How Smart Bidding and Pacing Protect Your Monthly P&L

Google Ads budget pacing and Smart Bidding are powerful tools, but they require expert setup to drive profit. The best practice is to move beyond Maximize Conversions to Value-Based Bidding (Target ROAS/Maximize Conversion Value), using rigorous tracking and Budget Guardrails to ensure the algorithm optimizes for revenue, not just lead volume, keeping spend predictable throughout the month.

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Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen

PPC Manager Extinction: Why Your $10K/Month Manager is a Liability in the Age of AI

Google's AI has automated the tactical search job, creating a massive "Strategy Gap" in the consulting world. Most companies spending under $30k/month are stuck between tactical optimization (which the AI does better) and deep, media-agnostic strategy (which they can't afford). This piece defines why true strategy is about cross-channel budget allocation, not bid management, and articulates the unique value of the modern consultant who can build comprehensive, cross-channel growth architecture that integrates with full business goals. If you've hit the tactical ceiling, the button-pusher's job is gone—it's time for strategy.

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Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen

The Rule of 100 Clicks: Why Your Google Ads Team Must Resist Impatience

Everyone feels the pressure to "fix it now" when they see a keyword with high spend and zero conversions. But I'll be direct: that urge is the single biggest destroyer of profitability in premium paid search accounts, whether you're selling software or generating qualified B2B leads.

Making a decision to pause or change a keyword after just 20 or 30 clicks is an act of emotion, not optimization. You're actively sabotaging the machine learning algorithm you paid Google to run. The solution is the Rule of 100 Clicks—a non-negotiable threshold that forces you to wait for actual, significant data.

You have to trust the process.

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Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen

The "Inflation" Myth: Why Your Google Ads Costs Are Actually Rising

The most expensive mistake in 2025 is paying premium Search prices for top-of-funnel browsers. I call this the "Cost-Intent Mismatch." If you feel like your CPAs are climbing for no reason, you might be paying steak dinner prices for a window shopper who just wanted a water. Here is how to audit your architecture and align cost with intent.

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Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen

The "More Is Better" Trap: Why Your Website Traffic Strategy Might Be A Leaky Bucket

More traffic doesn’t mean more profit — especially when Google’s defaults are designed to spend your budget, not protect your margins. In this article, I break down the three biggest leaks inside most Google Ads accounts, why broad targeting leads to low‑intent clicks, and how to build an exclusion architecture that turns your traffic from a leaky bucket into a predictable revenue engine.

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Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen

I Beta-Tested Google’s New AI Creative Engine (Here’s What It Means for Your Q1 Strategy)

I was selected as one of 10% of accounts globally to beta test Google’s new AI creative engine. Instead of giving it an easy e-commerce shot, I stress-tested it against the hardest environment possible: a complex, messy B2B industrial factory. The result? The 'creative stopgap' that slows down scaling is officially dead. Here is my full breakdown of what’s coming to your account on December 11th.

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Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen

Stop Blaming Google: How to Solve Your "Rising Costs" with a Cost-Intent Strategy

If your Google Ads costs are rising, Google isn’t always the villain. In this article, I break down the real reason many advertisers overspend: a Cost‑Intent Mismatch. You’ll learn how intent tiers impact CPC, why non‑brand search is becoming an expensive trap in 2025, and the exact multi‑stage strategy I used to take a retail client from a ROAS of 2 to 8 by shifting spend into smarter, intent‑aligned campaigns.

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The Myth of 'Perfect' AI Ad Copy in Google Ads: Polished vs. Powerful

AI can write polished Google Ads in seconds, but polished doesn’t always mean profitable. In this article, I break down why “perfect” AI ad copy is a myth, how machine‑generated RSAs often miss strategy and persuasion, and the simple 4‑step system I use to guide AI so it produces ads that actually convert. If you’re relying on prompts and getting pretty but underperforming ads, this will show you how to turn polished into powerful.

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Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen

Stop Chasing High CTR! Focus on Qualified Clicks in Google Ads

CTR looks like a success metric, but it’s not your North Star — qualified clicks are. In this article, I break down why high CTR can actually hurt performance, how to align your ads with real search intent, and the exact strategies that lift CTR without attracting the wrong traffic. If you want more relevant clicks, better ad alignment, and stronger conversions, this guide shows you how to do it the right way.

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PPC Industry Truths, Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen PPC Industry Truths, Google Ads Strategy Sarah Stemen

Building Paid Search Campaigns Is Easy, Doing It Well Takes Skill

Paid search isn’t hard because of the platform — it’s hard because doing it well requires strategy, judgment, and real expertise. In this article, I break down why building campaigns is the easy part, why managing them well is the real skill, and what small teams need to know before offering paid search as a service. If you’ve ever wondered why PPC feels overwhelming or why clients churn, this explains the real reasons behind it.

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