u/SEOwithAlex

Edit: LifeTime or near equivalent.

It was on fire then exploded in the parking lot.

During the sales process, ask the agency who owns the account. If the agency gives you any other answer besides you do, do not sign.

Here’s why:

You effectively do not own the most important component of digital marketing and that is your data.

If you need to leave the agency and they own the account, 99% of the time you will need to start over with a new account. That is a painful process for many and if your business is substantially dependent on revenue from Google Ads you are going to be feeling it.

Agencies do this because it locks in a client. Even if their performance is sub par, they know that a move away is a very painful process.

I’d say 80%+ of the accounts we take over are from clients who do not own their ads account and it can be a pretty rough 4-6 weeks in the onset.

It’s a practice that needs to end in our industry. It’s shady, unethical and frankly it tarnishes the reputation of our profession.