Your Google Ads Agency Can't Tell You Your Real ROI

The Conversion Lie

Your agency sends a report: “Your Google Ads generated 120 conversions this month at $25 CPA.” Sounds great. But what is a “conversion”?

• A click-to-call that lasted 2 seconds (accidental tap)
• A phone call from a robocaller
• A form fill from a bot
• A repeat call from an existing customer
• A genuine $15,000 project inquiry

Google counts all of these the same. Your agency reports all of them. And your budget decisions are based on numbers that mix gold with garbage.

The Real ROI Formula

Real ROI = (Revenue from Qualified Leads) ÷ (Ad Spend)

Not:

Fake ROI = (Estimated conversion value × all conversions) ÷ (Ad Spend)

The difference between these two formulas is often 3-5×. Businesses making budget decisions on the fake formula are either overspending on losing campaigns or underspending on winners.

How to Fix It

1. Connect Google Ads to Despora — daily spend data syncs automatically
2. AI analyzes every call — qualified leads are identified and valued
3. Revenue is attributed per channel — Google Ads gets credit only for real leads
4. True ROI is calculated — Expected Revenue ÷ Ad Spend

Real-World Example

Google Ads is actually your most profitable channel — you just couldn't see it through 82 fake “conversions.”

What to Ask Your Agency

1. “How many of these conversions were qualified phone leads?”
2. “What's the estimated revenue from qualified leads, not conversions?”
3. “What's our per-campaign ROI based on actual revenue?”
4. “Which keywords generate qualified calls, not just clicks?”

If they can't answer these questions, they're flying blind — and so are you.