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Hey there 👋

It’s that time again—schools are almost out, pool toys are popping up in your feed, and half your team is Googling "out-of-office email templates." 😅

But for most of us in marketing, this isn’t the slowdown season.

It’s decision season.

Do we scale now?

Hold budget?

Try something new?

Or... do we keep doing what the Google rep suggested and hope for the best?

If you’ve ever found yourself torn between trusting the platform rep and sticking to your gut (or your agency), this edition’s for you. 

I’ve been doing this for 18+ years, and here’s the low down: what’s coming next requires a much better filter for who you trust.

Spoiler: The reps aren’t ‘evil’, but they are salespeople. And your trust in their advice could be costing you.

🎯 Quick Insight: Why Your Google or Meta Rep Might Be Costing You Money

Google, Meta, and Microsoft have laid off thousands from their ad teams over the past 18 months.

Now, the remaining reps are stretched thin, covering more accounts, and—if we’re being honest—pushing AI products and automation features that benefit the platform more than your business.

🤖 This isn’t a conspiracy theory—it’s economics. More AI, fewer humans, and more pressure to promote the newest shiny tools (hello PMax, hello Advantage+).

And guess what?

Sometimes that advice doesn’t match your reality. We’ve seen this play out too many times:

• Local business, $500/mo account. Google rep suggests a “seasonal campaign,” launches PMAX with no exclusions, increases spend to $1,500/month — without approval. The client comes to us with 3X spend and 0X results.

• Another account: The rep recommended switching a lead gen funnel to Smart Bidding for e-commerce, despite it being a B2B service business with long sales cycles. Guess what happened? CPL tripled.

• A Meta rep told us to run Advantage+ with zero exclusions. It drove leads—but all outside the client's ideal age range.

• A Google rep recommended Performance Max in a low-population zip code where we were barely getting booked appointments.

• One client got told by a rep to run Sales campaigns… for a lead gen offer. 

Reps also routinely recommend:

• Broad match keywords without negative lists

• Turning on auto-apply recommendations

• Display campaigns to “increase visibility” (aka burn money)

• Optimizing for traffic instead of conversions

And sending emails with language like:

“Your competitors are outperforming you. Let’s test PMAX.”

🚫 They can’t actually see your competitors’ performance.

🚫 They haven’t run your campaigns.

🚫 They won’t be there when it fails.

Remember: Optimization Score ≠ Business Strategy.

That’s why we built this edition: to help you cut through the noise and build smarter, safer, data-led campaigns—no matter what AI tool or platform push is trending.

🛒 Amazon: A Bit Better — With a Caveat

The reps at Amazon are a little more hands-on, especially if you go through an agency like ScaledOn with verified partner status. They’ll help with:

• Early betas (e.g., DSP creative testing)

• Proactive compliance alerts

• Account escalations when something breaks

But…

Their default suggestions are still geared toward increasing ad spend on underperforming products. We’ve seen “turn on all targeting types” advice tank ACOS overnight.

 🧠 Deep Dive: How to Filter Rep Advice (Without Missing Out on Smart Moves)

Here’s how we help clients balance rep guidance with real-world business needs. 

To strike the right balance between platform rep advice and real business goals, users should follow a 3-part decision framework:

🔍 1. Start with Your Business KPIs, Not Platform Objectives

Platform reps often push recommendations based on their internal metrics: increased ad spend, feature adoption, or campaign types that help the platform’s roadmap.

But your job as a business owner or marketer?

To hit your cost per lead, ROAS, or profit margin goals — not test beta features for Meta or Google.

Real-world example:

Meta may push Advantage+ Shopping to scale fast. But if you haven’t dialed in your creative, it’ll waste your budget on low-quality traffic.

✅ Filter rep suggestions through the lens of your own KPI dashboard.

💡 2. Treat Rep Recommendations as Experiments

Reps do have value — they provide access, alerts on policy changes, and product roadmaps.

But they don’t know your funnel, LTVs, or conversion lag times like your agency does.

Here’s what to do:

• Test their suggestion in a small A/B split

• Track outcomes beyond top-of-funnel: Who actually buys, books, or converts?

• Document learnings in your strategy log — what works for one brand, might not for another

🎯 Empowered businesses treat reps like R&D partners—not strategic owners.

🧠 3. Trust Agencies With Niche Experience — They See the Patterns

An agency like ScaledOn works across Amazon, Meta, and Google, running millions in media and hundreds of creative tests every month.

We’re not guessing.

We’ve seen Advantage+ work well for DTC skincare… and crash for local B2B education.

Niche agencies know:

• When to lean into platform tools (e.g., Meta’s OTP form filters = great for service leads)

• When to push back (e.g., Google reps advising PMax for small-budget lead gen = risky)

• When to build workarounds that outperform what reps can offer

💬 Let your agency translate the platform’s language into your business logic.

⚡ Quick Wins This Week

Here’s what you can implement today to stop rep-driven performance leaks:

✅ Pause auto-apply recommendations in Google Ads. Go to Settings → Optimization → Turn off all automation unless you review each change.

✅ Add audience exclusions to Meta Advantage+ campaigns. Especially if your retargeting pool overlaps with top-of-funnel. Keep your warm leads out of cold campaigns.

✅ Sync your CRM or backend conversions via Conversions API. Let Meta and Google learn from real customer actions—not just form fills or clicks.

✅ Use scripts or rules to monitor budget spikes. Catch surprise campaign launches or CPC increases before they burn budget.

✅ Set internal thresholds. If CPL goes 20% over target, pause and review. Don’t rely on Google’s “learning phase” excuse forever.

🚀 My Final Thought

We love the reps. We learn from them. But …

Their success = your ad spend.

Your success = sales, ROI, margin, and long-term growth.

Those goals are not always aligned.

Your agency—especially one that’s niche, accountable, and data-obsessed—will always know your funnel better than someone working off a global script.

If you’re unsure what advice to follow, don’t guess > test.

👉 Book a free call with me. My team will help you audit the last 30 days of changes, filter good suggestions from bad, and create a smarter Q3 plan.

Let’s scale smarter,

Iulia

🧭 P.S. Curious what’s coming next? We’ll be breaking down AI’s latest product launches from Google AI Studio and AI Mode, and Meta’s AI App next week. Stay tuned—you won’t want to miss it!