Solved: Need a Google Ads agency in London for B2B leads

Hi there,

Thanks for reaching out! Happy to give you some of my initial thoughts and guidance on finding a good Google Ads agency in London for B2B, and what you should be looking for in terms of a proper strategy. It can be a bit of a minefield out there, so I'll just give you a bit of a brain dump based on my experience running these sorts of campaigns for years. Hope it's helpful.

First off, how to spot a decent agency...

This is probably the biggest hurdle. You're right to be cautious. There are a lot of agencies that talk a good game but can't back it up. When you're vetting them, here's what I'd be looking for.

Case Studies are King
This is non-negotiable. Don't just look to see if they have case studies, you need to actually read them. Do they have experience in B2B? Even better if it's a similar niche to yours. A good case study shouldn't just be a shiny number like "10x ROAS!". It should tell a story. What was the client's problem? What was the strategic approach the agency took? What were the exact results, and over what timeframe? We have loads of detailed case studies on our site for this exact reason – it walks a potential client through our thinking and shows we've actually done the work before. It builds trust. If an agency's case studies are vague or they don't have any relevant to B2B, that's a bit of a red flag for me. You also have to be realistic. If your niche is super competitive, you're not going to get insane results overnight, so be wary of anyone promising the world.

The Initial Chat is a Test
Most decent agencies will offer some sort of free initial consultation or account review. This is your chance to really test their expertise. Don't let it be a one-way sales pitch. Ask them hard questions. What would their initial approach be for your business? What platforms would they reccomend and why? What sort of targeting would they start with? You should come away from that call with actual, actionable advice that you could go and implement yourself. That's how we run our free consultations, anyway. We'll literally open up their ad account and give them a full review right there on the call. If they're cagey, talk in jargon, or just promise you "more leads" without any substance, they probably don't have the depth of knowledge you need.

Reviews, Trust, and Red Flags
Obviously, check their reviews online. But also think about the overall feeling you get from them. Do they sound like they genuinely know what they're doing? One massive red flag for us, to be brutally honest, is when a potential client has seen our detailed case studies, had a free in-depth strategy consultation with us, and then asks to speak to one of our current clients for a reference. For us, that's an instant sign that there's a fundamental lack of trust, and the relationship probably won't work out. A good agency provides all the proof you need upfront through their work and their transparency. Another huge red flag is anyone promising specific results. Paid advertising is a process of testing and optimising. No one can garuntee a specific cost per lead or return on ad spend from day one. It's just not possible.

We'll need to look at your actual strategy...

Okay, so let's say you've found an agency that seems to tick the boxes. What should they actually be proposing? Finding the right partner is only half the battle. The strategy they implement is what will actually get you results. For B2B lead gen, it's a completely different ball game to B2C eCommerce.

Who Are You Actually Selling To?
Any agency worth their salt will start here. Before a single ad is built, you have to have a crystal clear picture of your Ideal Customer Persona (ICP). Who is the person inside the business that makes the decision to buy your service? What's their job title? What industry are they in? What's the company size? What are their biggest frustrations and pain points that your service solves? If an agency just wants to jump straight into making ads without this deep dive, they're just guessing. They'll be throwing your money at the wall to see what sticks. This foundational work is what seperates a professional campaign from an amateur one.

The Offer is Everything
This is probably the most common mistake I see with B2B advertising. The ad can be perfect, the targeting can be perfect, but if the destination is a generic website with a 'Contact Us' form, it's going to fail. Especially for high-ticket B2B services. Think about it from the buyer's perspective. It's a huge commitment for them to switch providers or invest in a new service. The friction is massive. Your advertising offer, and your landing page, needs to de-risk that first step for them. A simple 'Contact Us' is not an offer. A 'Book a Demo' might be okay for software, but for services, you need something more compelling.

What works? Things like a free, no-obligation strategy review, a free audit of their current setup, a custom proposal, or a valuable piece of content like a detailed guide or whitepaper. You need to give them something of value in exchange for their contact details. I remember looking at a B2B software client's website once, they were selling a complex accounting system. Their only call to action was 'Buy Now'. No free trial, no demo. Unsurprisingly, their ads were getting zero results. People just won't buy a complex B2B product without trying it first or at least seeing it in action. We told them to switch to a free trial model, and that's when things started to turn around. An agency should be advising you on your offer, not just taking your money to run ads to a weak landing page.

Your Website is Your Digital Salesperson
All the ad traffic in the world is useless if the landing page can't close the deal. The page you send ad traffic to should be laser-focused on one single goal: getting them to take you up on your offer. It needs persuasive sales copy (we use specialist copywriters for this), not just a list of features. It needs to build trust with testimonials, reviews, logos of clients you've worked with, and maybe even short video case studies. And it should have all distractions removed – no navigation bar to the rest of your site, no social media links. Just the offer, the proof, and the form or button to take the next step. If an agency isn't talking to you about landing page optimisation, they're only doing half the job.

I'd say you need to pick your battles... The Right Ad Platforms

You mentioned you're looking for a Google Ads agency, which is definately the right place to start for B2B. But a truly great agency will look at the whole picture and advise on which platforms make the most sense for your specific goals. It's rarely a 'one-platform-fits-all' situation.

Google Ads - The Intent Harvester
This is the bread and butter for most B2B service businesses. Why? Because you are tapping into existing demand. People are actively going to Google and typing in things like "b2b marketing agency london", "lead generation services for software companies", or "ai implementation service". They have a problem, and they are looking for a solution right now. This is the lowest hanging fruit. A good agency will do deep keyword research to find not just the obvious terms, but the long-tail keywords that show high intent and have less competition. They'll structure the campaigns properly, probably by service type, and write compelling ad copy that speaks directly to the searcher's pain point and encourages them to click.

LinkedIn - The B2B Proactive Powerhouse
This is where you go when you want to create demand, not just capture it. LinkedIn is an absolute goldmine for B2B because the targeting is second to none. You can't do this on Google. Let's say your ICP is a Chief Marketing Officer at a UK-based FinTech company with 100-500 employees. On LinkedIn, you can build an audience that targets exactly those people. You can even upload a list of your top 100 target companies and just show your ads to the decision-makers within them. This is incredibly powerful.

I recall a campaign we ran for a B2B software client where we needed to reach very specific decision makers. Using LinkedIn, we were able to achieve a cost per lead of $22. You can test different ad formats too. Sponsored Content ads (the ones in the main feed) with a Lead Gen Form can work well to get leads at a lower cost, as the user's details are pre-filled, reducing friction. The downside is the lead quality can sometimes be lower. Sending them to a dedicated landing page usually results in a higher cost per lead, but the leads are much more qualified because they've had to make more of an effort. A good agency will test both to see what works best for your bottom line.

What About Meta (Facebook & Instagram)?
Most people dismiss Meta for B2B, and for the most part, they're right. The targeting is much broader and less precise. However, it can work in certain situations, and an expert agency knows when to deploy it. For instance, if you're selling to small businesses, you can target people with interests like "small business owners" or people who are admins of a Facebook business page. It's not as precise as LinkedIn, but the costs are often much lower. We've had a lot of success with this for B2B SaaS clients. One campaign we ran generated over 4,600 registrations for a B2B software at just $2.38 per registration. Another brought in over 1,500 trials. So while it's not the first choice for high-ticket B2B services, it shouldn't be dismissed out of hand, especially for lower-cost offers or for building a retargeting audience.

You probably should create a clear plan...

So, putting it all together, a good agency should be presenting you with a clear, phased plan of attack. It's not just about turning on ads. It's a methodical process of building foundations, testing, and scaling. I've detailed what I think a good initial approach looks like for a business like yours in the table below. This is the sort of thinking and structure you should be looking for.

You'll need an expert eye on this...

As you can probably tell, getting B2B lead generation right is a lot more involved than just boosting a few posts or picking some keywords. It's a complex process that involves deep strategic thinking, technical setup, creative development, persuasive copywriting, and constant data analysis and optimisation. It’s a full-time job to do it properly.

Trying to manage all of this yourself while also running your business is incredibly difficult, and it's easy to waste a lot of money learning through trial and error. That's where working with a specialist consultancy can make a huge difference. An experienced team can help you avoid common pitfalls, implement proven strategies from day one, and ultimately get you a much better return on your investment, much faster.

This is just a general overview based on my experience, of course. Every business is unique. If you'd like to have a proper chat about your specific situation and goals, we'd be happy to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation call. We can take a look at what you're doing now and give you some concrete advice on how to move forward.

Hope this helps!

Regards,

Team @ Lukas Holschuh