Fixing Google Ads Conversion Errors Saved 57% of Ad Spend in Just One Month

A private process server company cut wasted ad spend by 57% in just one month after fixing critical Google Ads conversion tracking errors — turning inaccurate data into profitable results.

Overview:

Informations:

Founder & CEO @TPS

Background:

TPS is a process server company based in Phoenix, Arizona. They were actively running Google Ads campaigns and managing their Google Business Profile (GMB), but the results didn’t reflect the money they were pouring into ads.

They were also getting some organic leads through SEO and tracking them inside their CRM, but the data was messy, unreliable, and disconnected across all platforms.

During our first meeting, Jackson Cox, the Founder & CEO of TPS, said:

“I just burned out 33K in the last 7 months. If it continues, my ass will blow out. It feels like someone pushed my head under the water and I can’t breathe.”

That line perfectly summed up how frustrated he was — spending thousands without seeing real growth.

The Problem:

After digging in, we uncovered several major tracking issues:

Duplicate Events in Google Tag Manager: The same form submission was firing multiple conversion events one on click and another on the thank-you page, causing every lead to be counted twice or even thrice in Google Ads.
Misconfigured Google Ads Tag: The conversion tag was firing on all page visits instead of actual lead events, inflating conversion data.
Disconnected CRM & Ads Platform: There was no proper integration or parameter tracking (like GCLID or UTM mapping) between the CRM and ad platforms, making it impossible to verify which campaign generated a real lead.
Lack of Server-Side Validation: All conversions were tracked client-side, so browser blockers and cookie issues led to partial or inaccurate data flow.

What I Solve:

Once the root cause was identified, we completely rebuilt the tracking architecture from the ground up:

Reconfigured Conversion Tracking: Only verified events such as successful form submissions and completed calls were allowed to trigger conversion tags. All duplicate triggers were removed.
Integrated CRM with Google Ads: Connected the CRM using GCLID import and Zapier automation to sync real leads directly with Ads Manager, ensuring full transparency in reporting.
Added Server-Side Tracking: Implemented server-side tagging in Google Tag Manager (Server) to prevent data loss and eliminate fake conversion events.
Set Up Data Validation Dashboard: Created a unified Data Studio dashboard combining data from Google Ads, CRM, and Tag Manager, providing one clear view of real versus reported conversions.

The Results:

Most leads were tracked under a generic “form submission” event — there was no separation between Google Ads, Organic Search, and GMB sources.
UTM parameters weren’t implemented properly, so there was no visibility into which campaigns or keyword groups were performing best.
Over 30% of tracking data was lost due to ad blockers, TTL expirations, and consent-related issues.
Inaccurate conversion data was being sent back to Google Ads, confusing the algorithm and making optimization impossible.

As a result, the budget kept burning without improving lead quality or performance.

The Results:

Within the first 30 days after fixing the tracking issues, the improvements were clear and measurable:

Metric	Before Fix	After Fix	Improvement
Monthly Ad Spend	$8,000	$3,440	↓ 57% Saved
Reported Conversions	190	62 (accurate leads)	Realistic data
Actual CRM Leads	58	62	+7%
Cost per Qualified Lead	$138	$55	↓ 60%
Conversion Accuracy	~35%	98% Accurate
ROI	Negative	Positive (3.2x ROAS)
Lead-to-Call Ratio	Untracked	1 in 3 leads booked a call

Fixing Google Ads Conversion Errors Saved 57% of Ad Spend in Just One Month

Overview:

Informations:

Background:

The Problem:

What I Solve:

The Results:

The Results:

Get Your Free Quote Now!