What is a Reasonable Seutp Fee for Professional Adwords Management?

The excerpt below is taken from the free white paper "12 Questions You Should Ask a PPC Management Company Before You Hire Them!".

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Question #9 - Do you charge setup fees?

Almost all reputable companies charge setup fees. This is because a good percentage of the work that needs to be done to either set up or overhaul an account happens on the front end. Without the setup fee the PPC company can’t justify putting in the needed resources to really setup or overhaul your account properly. I would be very cautious of any company that does not charge a setup fee. In most cases companies who do not charge setup fees (and just move you into their month-to-month plan) will do little to no upfront work, and you will also see little to no real results or changes within your account – especially in the short to medium term.

At the same time you have to hold your Adwords management company completely accountable for what they say they will do for the setup fee. All too often setup fees are really just padded “sign up” fees and the amount of work / investment on the part of the PPC management company is minimal. Your PPC management company should be able to give you a fixed setup fee cost with clear deliverables that are specific to the needs of your account. Do not sign up with anyone until they have completely spelled out for you in terms that you can understand what they are charging you for and specifically how this is going to help your business move forward.