Monthly cost
Just ad spend — no mgmt fee.
S$300–S$800/mo + ad spend.
S$1,000–S$5,000/mo + ad spend.
Google Ads Agency Singapore
Google Ads & PPC Management in Singapore
Last month our own Google Ads dashboard said our cost-per-lead was S$50. The real number was S$237.73. Nineteen reported conversions. Four real leads. The other fifteen were job seekers tapping the WhatsApp button on our contact page — Google logged each one as a conversion and the bidding algorithm spent the budget optimising for more of them. If you're running Google Ads in Singapore and you've never reconciled your reported leads against actual booked customers, your CPL is almost certainly higher than you think. We fix it for ourselves and for the businesses we run ads for — same approach, same tracking, same numbers we'd want to see if we were the client.
The Challenge
Why most SG Google Ads accounts report CPLs that are mathematically impossible
The pattern shows up in nearly every account we audit. Reported CPL on the Google Ads dashboard: S$30-50. Reported conversion rate: 8-12%. The owner is convinced the account is performing.
Then we ask: how many of those conversions became actual customers? Half the time the answer is "I don’t know — I never matched them back". The other half it’s "fewer than half — most of the form fills are spam, most of the WhatsApp clicks go nowhere".
We hit this on our own account in April. Reported CPL S$50.05 across 19 conversions. We ran the reconciliation: matched every reported conversion against actual contacts who reached out, replied to us, and entered the sales process. Four were real leads. Fifteen were noise — mostly job seekers tapping our WhatsApp button after seeing the contact page. Real CPL: S$237.73. The bidding algorithm had been optimising the wrong signal for weeks.
The phantom-conversion problem is endemic in SG because of how local SME accounts are structured: WhatsApp-first contact, multi-step lead qualification, no offline conversion upload. Most Google Ads agencies don’t fix this because the broken numbers look good on the monthly report. Reported CPL S$50 is easier to send to a client than real CPL S$237.
The fix is technical and unglamorous: demote noisy conversion actions, install GCLID-to-WhatsApp tracking so every ad-driven WhatsApp lead carries a click ID, upload offline conversions weekly so Google’s algorithm learns what an actual customer looks like. We built this system on our own account in May. Five weeks later the algorithm started filtering job-seeker traffic on its own.
If your agency hasn’t done this for you, your campaign is bidding against a fake metric. The traffic is real, the spend is real, but the conversion signal training the bidding is contaminated. Every dollar you spend reinforces the wrong patterns.
That’s the fix we mean when we say we run Google Ads properly for SG SMEs. The fix. Not the report.
What We Deliver
What Jraft does differently as a Google Ads agency
The work that separates a Google Ads agency that gets you leads from one that gets you customers is the boring layer: tracking, conversion hygiene, and the weekly discipline of feeding the algorithm clean data. Here is what we actually do.
01Audit your conversion actions before touching bids
The first thing we do on a new account is open the Conversions tab and look at what Google is calling a "conversion". On nearly every audit we find at least one conversion action that’s quietly burning budget — a "WhatsApp Click" action firing every time anyone taps the button, a Google-managed "Lead form - Submit" that double-counts, or a "Page Visit" left over from a past agency that’s polluting the bidding signal.
We demote everything noisy to secondary. We turn off everything fake. Only verified primary actions remain.
02Install GCLID-to-WhatsApp tracking on day one
Three of every four real ad-driven leads in Singapore reach out via WhatsApp, not the form. If your Google Ads account isn’t capturing the click ID and passing it through to your WhatsApp messages, you can’t attribute a real customer back to the ad that earned them. We install an inline script that captures gclid on landing, stores it for 90 days, and appends a [ref:GCLID] tag to every wa.me/ link on the site. Real ad-driven leads arrive in your WhatsApp inbox with the click ID attached.
03Upload offline conversions weekly
When a lead becomes an actual customer in your CRM or contact log, we push that back to Google Ads with the original GCLID. The bidding algorithm now optimises for customers, not form fills. This is the single highest-impact thing you can do for a Google Ads account in Singapore. Almost no agency does it because it requires a weekly operational discipline.
04Negative keyword work weekly, not quarterly
Most self-managed accounts and most agency-managed accounts in Singapore have 20-40% of spend going to irrelevant clicks because the negative keyword list hasn’t been touched since campaign launch. We review the search terms report every week, push new negatives, prune over-blocking ones, and refine match-type strategy. On a typical account we recover 25-35% of wasted spend in the first month from this work alone.
The pattern: clean tracking → clean conversion signal → clean bidding → clean negative keyword work → real customers. Skip any layer and the next one breaks.
What You Actually Get
Self-managed vs freelancer vs Jraft-managed — what you actually get for each
The Google Ads management market in Singapore spans a wide range. Below S$500/month you’re typically buying automation (Performance Max running unattended). At S$500-S$1,500/month you’re typically buying a freelancer with three accounts and limited time. Above S$1,500/month you should be buying weekly optimisation, real tracking, and offline conversion uploads. Most accounts don’t get the third even at agency price.
DIY (you run it)
Freelancer / cheap agency
Jraft-managed
Time you spend per week
6–10 hours to do it properly.
Under 1 hour.
30 min review, monthly call.
Campaign structure
Often Performance Max on autopilot.
Smart Campaigns or PMax + basic Search.
Search + PMax + Display + remarketing, structured by intent stage.
Conversion tracking
Whatever Google suggests at setup.
Form + WhatsApp click both fire as “conversions” — noisy.
Verified primary actions only. GCLID-to-WhatsApp. GA4 cross-check.
Offline conversion upload
No.
Almost never.
Weekly, every Friday.
Negative keyword work
Once at launch, rarely touched.
Quarterly.
Weekly search-terms review.
A/B testing on ad copy
Sometimes.
Rarely.
Every 2–3 weeks on rotation.
Landing page input
None.
Generic recommendations.
Specific changes ranked by impact.
Reporting
Dashboard self-serve.
Templated PDF monthly.
Real-CPL reconciliation, monthly written analysis.
Typical real CPL outcome
30–50% worse than properly managed.
20–30% worse.
The real number — what you plan the business against, not what flatters the report.
What you learn from the engagement
A lot, slowly, expensively.
Little — it’s a service contract.
Account becomes a forecasting tool for the business.
Want the deeper comparison — Google Ads vs Meta Ads, real CPL benchmarks by vertical, and our decision flowchart for which platform to start with? Read the full essay — Meta Ads vs Google Ads: Which Should a Singapore SME Start With? (companion essay, shipping early June 2026).
PPC Pricing
Google Ads management pricing — published in full
We publish our fees. The numbers below are real, are what we charge, and reflect the hours the work actually takes.
Below S$800/month you’re typically getting a freelancer with three accounts and limited weekly time. The SG market range for proper agency management is S$800-S$6,000/month plus ad spend. We don’t mark up media spend — every dollar of ad budget goes directly to Google through your own account. Your monthly fee is for the management, the tracking, and the offline conversion work.
Starter
$1,000 SGD/mo
For businesses getting started with paid search.
- 1 advertising platform
- Up to $3K ad spend management
- Keyword research & campaign setup
- Conversion tracking + GCLID-WhatsApp install
- Monthly performance report
Growth
$2,500 SGD/mo
For businesses scaling their ad performance.
- 2 advertising platforms
- Up to $10K ad spend management
- A/B testing & ad copy optimisation
- Landing page recommendations
- Weekly negative keyword review
- Bi-weekly reporting
Scale
$5,000+ SGD/mo
For businesses maximising ROI across all channels.
- All advertising platforms
- Unlimited ad spend management
- Dedicated account strategist
- Conversion rate optimisation
- Custom audience & remarketing
- Weekly reporting & strategy calls
No lock-in. Month-to-month. Minimum ad spend S$1,500/month for the algorithm to have enough conversion data to learn. If we’re not the right fit by month three, we say so.
SG Benchmarks
What “good” cost-per-lead actually looks like in Singapore
The honest benchmark conversation is the one most SG agencies avoid because it makes pricing concrete and removes the ability to claim wins on phantom metrics. Here are the real cost-per-lead ranges Jraft has observed across the accounts we’ve run, audited, or reviewed in 2025-2026.
These numbers are real CPLs (post-reconciliation against actual customer outcomes), not the dashboard numbers. Dashboard CPLs in Singapore typically run 40-80% lower than real CPLs because of the phantom-conversion problem described above.
Vertical
Real CPL range (SGD)
F&B (delivery, reservations)
High-frequency, low ticket.
S$30–S$80
Beauty / hair salons
Mid-frequency, mid ticket.
S$40–S$100
Fitness / gym memberships
Subscription LTV.
S$50–S$120
Tuition centres
Annual contract LTV.
S$60–S$120
Preschools / childcare
Multi-year LTV.
S$60–S$150
Aesthetic clinics
High ticket, repeat treatment.
S$80–S$200
Dental clinics
Recurring annual visits.
S$80–S$180
Professional services (legal, accounting)
High-value engagement.
S$150–S$400
B2B SaaS
Annual contract values.
S$200–S$600
The right CPL for your business depends on customer lifetime value, not on what’s "cheap". A tuition centre that signs a S$3,000 annual customer for S$150 CPL is winning. A B2B SaaS firm closing a S$30,000 annual contract for S$500 CPL is winning. A F&B brand paying S$200 CPL for a S$25 first order is losing — even if the dashboard says CPL is S$50.
Phantom conversion rate across the SG SME accounts we’ve audited: typically 40-80% of reported conversions are noise — WhatsApp clicks without follow-through, form spam, accidental phone-number taps. The fix is conversion hygiene, GCLID tracking, and weekly offline conversion upload. We do all three by default.
Our Process
What a 90-day Jraft Google Ads engagement actually looks like
We run Google Ads in 90-day cycles. Every cycle has stated deliverables at week 2, week 4, week 8, and week 12. If we miss CPL targets by month three, we audit honestly and tell you what changed.
Week 1Account audit and tracking install
We pull your existing account (if you have one), audit every conversion action, check for phantom conversions, verify GA4 cross-talk, and install GCLID-to-WhatsApp tracking. Most accounts have at least one tracking issue costing 20-30% of effective budget — we surface it before we touch the campaign.
Week 2-3Campaign rebuild or restructure
We rebuild the campaign structure around intent stages (high-intent search, mid-funnel comparison, retargeting). New ad copy, structured ad groups, proper negative keyword lists from day one (we maintain a 200+ keyword negative list for SG-specific job-seeker and irrelevant terms). First ads live within two weeks of kickoff.
Week 4-8Optimisation and learning phase
Daily monitoring during the algorithm’s learning phase (typically the first 30 conversions). Weekly search-terms review with negative keyword adds. A/B testing on ad copy starts week 6. First offline conversion upload happens Friday of week 4.
Week 9-13Stabilisation and CPL reconciliation
Real CPL becomes measurable around week 8-10 — earlier on accounts with high lead volume, later on accounts under S$1.5K/month ad spend. We reconcile reported vs actual, surface phantom-conversion patterns, and adjust the bidding strategy accordingly. Month 3 report includes the honest CPL number — not the dashboard one.
What we need from you: Google Ads account access (admin or standard), GA4, your CRM or contact log for weekly reconciliation, and a 30-minute kickoff call. After that, monthly reporting and async approvals.
FAQ
Google Ads Management — Questions Answered
How long until my Google Ads start getting leads in Singapore?
First clicks within 24 hours of launch. First qualified leads within 1-2 weeks for most categories. Stable cost-per-lead (the number we plan against) takes 4-8 weeks — Google Ads needs ~30 conversions for its algorithm to optimise effectively. SG benchmark for typical SME categories: aesthetic clinics S$80-S$180/lead, F&B S$40-S$80/lead, tuition centres S$60-S$120/lead, B2B services S$150-S$400/lead. Wildly cheaper than that on month 1 usually means low-quality leads.
How much does a Google Ads agency in Singapore cost?
Our management fees: Starter PPC at S$1,000/month (1 platform, up to S$3K ad spend, monthly reporting), Growth PPC at S$2,500/month (2 platforms, up to S$10K ad spend, A/B testing, bi-weekly reporting), Scale PPC at S$5,000/month (all platforms, unlimited spend, dedicated strategist, CRO, weekly reporting). Ad spend goes directly to Google — we don't mark it up. SG market range for agency management is S$800-S$6,000/month. Below S$800 you're typically getting a freelancer or an automated tool.
How much ad spend do I need to start?
For most SG SME categories: S$1,500-S$3,000/month minimum to generate enough conversion data for Google's algorithm to optimise. Below S$1,000/month, you're spending in patches — not enough data for the system to learn what's working. The S$1,000/month management fee + S$1,500 minimum ad spend = S$2,500/month total floor. For high-CPC categories (legal, aesthetic medical, mortgage), the floor is closer to S$3,000-S$5,000 in ad spend.
What's the difference between Google Ads and SEO?
Google Ads is paid — you bid for keywords and pay per click (S$2-S$30 per click in SG depending on category). Results start immediately, stop the moment you stop spending. SEO is organic — you optimise your site and content to rank without paying for clicks. Takes 3-6 months to show meaningful results, lasts long after you stop active work. Most SG SMEs need both: Ads for immediate lead flow while SEO builds the long-term cheaper-per-lead channel. We run both.
Do you guarantee Google Ads results?
No, and avoid any agency that does. Anyone guaranteeing a specific number of leads is either over-promising or planning to pad numbers with low-quality conversions (form spam, accidental clicks, irrelevant calls). What we commit to: structured campaign builds, weekly or bi-weekly optimisation, conversion tracking that actually fires, transparent reporting, and a 90-day plan with stated CPL targets you can hold us to. If we miss targets by month 3, we audit, adjust, and tell you honestly what changed.
What's a good cost-per-lead in Singapore?
Depends on category. Rough SG benchmarks from accounts we've run or audited: F&B (delivery, reservations) S$30-S$80, fitness/gym memberships S$50-S$120, beauty/hair salons S$40-S$100, aesthetic clinics S$80-S$200, preschools/childcare S$60-S$150, tuition centres S$60-S$120, dental S$80-S$180, professional services (law, accounting) S$150-S$400, B2B SaaS S$200-S$600. The right CPL depends on your customer lifetime value — if a tuition centre customer is worth S$3,000, a S$150 lead is excellent.
Can I run Google Ads myself instead of hiring an agency?
Yes, if you have 6-10 hours per week to learn and manage it, and S$2K+/month in ad spend to make the learning curve worth it. Google's Smart Campaigns and Performance Max can run on autopilot but typically deliver 30-50% worse cost-per-lead than properly structured manual campaigns. The agency value is in negative keyword work, conversion tracking accuracy, audience segmentation, and weekly bid adjustments — none of which Performance Max does well alone. We've audited dozens of self-managed accounts; the same fix shows up: weak negative keyword lists burning 20-40% of spend on irrelevant clicks.
What's Performance Max and should I use it?
Performance Max is Google's AI-driven campaign type that runs across Search, Display, YouTube, Gmail, and Discover simultaneously. Strengths: easy setup, broad reach, good for e-commerce. Weaknesses: black-box reporting (you can't see where spend goes), poor performance for lead-gen B2B, and tends to burn budget on irrelevant placements without strong audience signals. We use Performance Max for some e-commerce and lead-gen clients with strong conversion data — but only with audience signals, asset groups, and brand exclusions properly configured.
Should I run Google Ads or Meta (Facebook + Instagram) Ads?
Both, usually, but order them by intent. Google Ads captures active demand — someone typing "aesthetic clinic Orchard" is ready to book. Meta creates demand — showing your service to people who weren't looking yet. For most SG SMEs we recommend starting Google Ads first (faster ROI, immediate qualified leads) then layering Meta for retargeting and demand generation in months 2-3. Industry exceptions: visual product categories (beauty, F&B, fashion) often do better leading with Meta.
How do you track conversions for Google Ads in Singapore?
Three layers: (1) Google Ads conversion tags for form submissions, calls, and purchases — fired through Google Tag Manager or Cloudflare Zaraz; (2) GA4 conversion events as a secondary check; (3) offline conversion uploads using GCLID matching — when a lead becomes a booking or sale in your CRM, we push that back to Google Ads so the algorithm optimises for revenue, not just form fills. Layer 3 is what separates an agency that gets you leads from one that gets you customers.
What's a free Google Ads strategy session and what do I get?
A 45-minute call with a strategist where we audit your current Google Ads account (if you have one), review your competitors' ad presence, identify your highest-intent keywords, project realistic monthly spend and CPL targets for your category, and walk through what a working campaign would look like. No deck. No pitch. If we're not the right fit, we'll say so. We do these because most SG SMEs are running Ads built by someone who left, an in-house person who never learned the platform properly, or Performance Max on autopilot. Free hour, honest assessment.
Get the audit
Get a real-CPL audit of your current Google Ads account
Send us your account access. We'll run a 30-minute audit looking at: which conversion actions are firing fake conversions, where your wasted spend is going (the negative keyword gaps), what your real CPL probably is once we reconcile reported vs actual, and the three highest-impact fixes. You get a written 1-page snapshot back within the week. No call required unless you want one.