Google Ads account setup, step by step
A Google Ads account opened in a rush costs you later. Here is the order that saves you from fixing it.
On this page
What you need before you sign up
Have four things ready before you sign up.
- A Google login for the business
- Your business name
- Your website
- A payment method with its billing address
Google asks for each of them during sign up.
Use a company login. The account stays with the business when people change.
Google Ads sign up
- Business details Your business name and website.
- Goal and budget What you want from the ads and what you spend.
- Payment details Your payment method and billing address.
The first campaign can wait.
Create the account in three steps
Sign up asks for three things: your business details, your campaign goal and budget, then your payment details.
You can create the account without a campaign. Build the campaign once tracking is in.
Source: Google Ads Help
Settings to check before you spend
Three choices at sign up decide how your reports read and how you pay. Check each one before the first ad runs.
Check at sign up
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Time zone
Pick the time zone you run the business in. Your reports, statistics and billing follow it.
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Billing
Choose how you pay at sign up: a credit or debit card, PayPal or a bank account.
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Account type
Organization is the default. Change it to individual only if you advertise as a person for tax reasons.
Rather have the account set up for you? Book a call.
Give each person their own access
Add each person who works on the account as their own user. Nobody shares a password. When someone leaves, remove their access the same day.
Google Ads has five access levels, from email only to admin. Give each person the level their job needs.
Access levels
- Admin Everything, including who has access.
- Standard Edits campaigns.
- Read only Views campaigns and planning tools.
- Billing Manages payments.
- Email only Gets emails and reports.
Connect conversion tracking before the first ad
Conversion tracking tells Google which clicks became leads: a sent form, a booked call. Google's automated bidding learns from the actions you count.
The full walkthrough: How to set up Google Ads conversion tracking.
Then build the first campaign
With the account and tracking in place, the campaign is the next step: searches, budget, ad and page. How to advertise on Google Ads takes you through each one.
Account set up by someone else? A free Google Ads audit reads the last 90 days and prices every leak.
Set up right
Get your Google Ads account built to count leads.
One free 30 minute call on your first account. You leave with the settings and tracking before the first dollar. Free audit after month one.
- What you get
- A written plan of what this build takes on your setup.
- How it is priced
- The call is free. We quote one price for the build after it.
- What you bring
- A short list of the tools this job runs through today.
Prefer to write? Send us a message.
Google Ads account setup: questions before you start
Can I create a Google Ads account without running an ad?
Yes. Open the account, connect tracking, then add the campaign when it can count leads.
Which time zone should I choose?
The one you run the business in. Google dates every report and invoice in it.
What details does Google ask for at sign up?
Business details, goal and budget, then payment. Have them to hand before you start.
Do I need an agency to set up Google Ads?
No, sign up takes three steps. The work that decides your results comes after it.